The only member I hadn’t yet met was Elvis himself. As I’ve said, I was certainly familiar with his music—and liked much of it—but I wasn’t what would be considered a huge fan. When I met him, though, I immediately understood the attraction that fans had to him. I thought, “Wow, there’s a reason this guy is the biggest star in the world.” It sounds like a fantasy or a cliché, but I swear you could almost sense him before he walked into a room.

On this occasion, he was “fashionably late.” Everyone was ready, even anxious to begin but, as we would learn, rehearsals—like recording sessions and sometimes concerts—would begin only when Elvis was ready for them to begin. Eventually, we heard footsteps coming down the hall and then, suddenly, the door to the ballroom opened and in walked “the guys.” It seemed as if there were six or more guys who came in and then parted, like the Red Sea, to reveal Elvis strolling in behind them, looking every bit like the King of Rock. He was dressed exactly like one might expect to see him: a dark two-piece suit with his signature high, Napoleonic collar, a patterned high-collared shirt, and carrying a black cane with a gold ornament on top. He immediately came over to J.D. and grabbed him in a bear hug.

While it’s been told many times, J.D. had been somewhat of a hero to Elvis when he was growing up. As the bass singer for The Blackwood Brothers, he had allowed Elvis to come in the back door of various Memphis all-night gospel sings—long before Elvis could afford to buy a ticket, let alone became famous himself. Also, when Elvis’s mother died, J.D. and the rest of the Blackwoods sang at her funeral. Elvis never forgot J.D.’s kindness, and as he did with so many others, he seemed to make it part of his life’s work to repay such kindnesses many times over.

Standing in that hotel ballroom, Elvis and J.D. quickly caught up, and soon J.D. began introducing each one of us to him. Elvis interrupted him to say he didn’t need the introductions because he felt as if he already knew us. He hugged me and then we shook hands. I still remember looking into his eyes that first time. The magnetism was indescribable. I couldn’t believe that he knew my name and knew that I was the bass singer. I don’t know how we gathered ourselves well enough to sing at that rehearsal, but apparently we did. I just kept thinking over and over that there was Elvis Presley, and here we were singing with him. It was a feeling that would continue every night; it never got old to me.