Photograph by Josh Monken
"Every day is Halloween," Al Jourgensen of Goth-rock band Ministry famously lamented in song. And if your day job calls for a remarkable costume, every day has a touch of that Halloween masquerade.
Steve Davis has been zipping himself into "rhinestone-for-rhinestone" re-creations of Elvis Presley's late-era polyester jumpsuits for 25 years of performances as an Elvis tribute act.
"It's very surreal to open your closet and see dozens of Elvis' jumpsuits," says Davis. "Each one has its own matching belt, too, and some have capes." His favorite is the "American Eagle" design made famous by Elvis in his 1973 Aloha From Hawaii TV special.
Over the years, Davis says, he's been through more than 100 jumpsuits, with some more battle-worn than others. "I pick out my jumpsuits like Tony La Russa picks his pitchers," he explains. "Some of them have injuries, and they're not quite ready to go back out there."
Davis rocks a set of heavy sideburns and is often stopped on the street by passersby asking, "Anyone ever tell you you look like Elvis?" His stock response: "'Not in the last 12 minutes,' and then I hand them one of my business cards."
Davis says he's grown used to the double life—he's Steve offstage, and Elvis onstage an incredible 400-plus times per year. The act may be an illusion, but it's a daily illusion that requires an ungodly amount of travel, a closet full of studded jumpsuits, and daily reminders of the line between reality and theater. The bumper sticker his diehard fans affix to their cars says it all: "If It Can't Be Elvis, Let It Be Steve Davis."
To learn about upcoming shows, visit memoriesofelvis.com.
