Eighteen-year-old Taylor Vaden did a tribute to the king of rock 'n' roll Saturday evening at the Eden Kiwanis Amphitheater at Freedom Park and city officials say there is more to come. With his '60s rocker style costume, deep voice and heartfelt rendition of "Fools Rush In," the native of King made the transformation to Elvis Presley. Vaden's performance was the first in a series of Saturday night concerts to be held at the newly constructed amphitheater.
Johnny Farmer, Eden's director of parks and recreation, said the city set the last Saturday of each month as the ongoing date for the concerts so people can mark it on their calendar and plan to enjoy free performances by talented local musicians. "We're trying to use a lot of local folks because there's a lot of local talent here," said Farmer. Later in the summer, he said he hopes to have a battle of the bands showcasing local talent at the amphitheater.
"It brings another great element to the park," said Farmer. "We hope the park will continue to grow and meet the needs of the citizens here." Mayor John Grogan called the amphitheatre "another arrow in your quiver for the community.
" He said it bolsters community spirit by giving people a chance to spend time together outdoors. "Our whole park is a first class venue, with restrooms and paved parking and things the community can come out and enjoy," said Grogan. "We're going to have softball games going on and kids skating in the skate park while the concerts are going on.
Bring the kids and grandkids." Before Saturday's concert, city officials dedicated the amphitheatre to the Eden Kiwanis, which donated $20,000 for construction costs. "It's going to bring a lot of people here," said Jimmy Wright, member of the Eden Kiwanis.
"It's really a great addition to Freedom Park." According to Wright, the Eden Kiwanis planned to use the money to build a new picnic shelter at the park. He said the club decided to donate funds for the amphitheatre because it's something that will benefit the entire community.
"When the park came up with this idea, we jumped all over it," said Wright. "We had the funds necessary to bring this about." He said the Eden Kiwanis eventually hope to raise enough money to build dressing rooms for the musicians next to the amphitheatre.
Vaden didn't have any trouble transforming from Elvis Presley to a country music star at Saturday's concert. After his tribute to the King, he sang songs by some of his favorite country artists, accompanied by childhood friend Chris Kiger. He also sang an original song "A Picture from the Past," which he recently wrote and composed.
"He's self taught, never had a lesson. He plays by ear," said Vaden's mother Shannon Booth. Vaden, who was a semi-finalist in Triad Idol last year and sang at a variety of venues during the past year, aspires to have a career in country music.
But he will never forget what gave him his start in music - his tribute to Elvis Presley. At the tender age of 7, Vaden's aunts Beverly Gentry and Donna Kiger said Vaden sang "Hound Dog" in front of an audience at Memories Theater in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. "He had never performed in front of an audience before, but he wasn't nervous," said Donna.
"He just looked at them and said, 'hit it.'" According to Vaden's stepfather Jeff Booth, Vaden stopped doing tributes to Elvis after elementary school, but he got back into it about a year ago, at a senior talent show at West Stokes High School. Vaden named "Polk Salad Annie" and "You Gave Me a Mountain" as his favorite Elvis songs.
Some of his favorite country singers are Johnny Cash, Dierks Bentley and Gary Allen. Vaden said he enjoyed performing in Eden for the first time Saturday. Staff Writer Miranda Baines can be reached at mbaines@reidsvillereview.
com or 623-2155, ext. 15.
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