I love Las Vegas. It is, without question, my favourite place to visit. I love everything about it: the huge buildings, the obscene meals, the shows, the crowds and just the overall excessiveness. Be it the glitzy opulence of the Las Vegas Strip or the tacky neon jungle of Fremont Street, Sin City has something to offer everyone. Having just returned from my most recent trip to The Entertainment Capital of the World, my musical thoughts have been dominated by The King, Elvis Aaron Presley.
Even today Elvis' influence on Las Vegas is unmistakable. Elvis impersonators fill the streets, his merchandise fills the souvenir shops and his music fills the hotels and casinos.
Viva Las Vegas was released in 1964 as the B-side to the single What'd I Say. I do enjoy Elvis' original, fun, bouncy version of the song but, for me, the definitive version of Viva Las Vegas was released by ZZ Top in 1992 on their Greatest Hits album. It truly captures everything that
is Las Vegas today, without disrespecting the original version of the song. Much like the city of Las Vegas itself, the song evolved over time yet retained its appeal to a wide range of fans. A completely over the top band singing a song about a completely over the top city. Seems like
a natural fit to me.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLUl8xkKSTk
