Tuesday, 19 November 2024

Red Robinson


Robert "Red" Robertson is part of the 50s Elvis story. Red was a Canadian disc jockey and Elvis fan. He was the first DJ to play rock 'n' roll music in Vancouver, Canada. On 31 August 1957 he was also the MC for Elvis' rock 'n' roll concert at the Empire Stadium in Vancouver in front of 25,000 fans.

Robinson taped Elvis' dressing room press conference before the concert. It was released on an album in 1977, named The ELVIS Tapes. 

Red described the Elvis concert in Vancouver as troublesome pandemonium: 

There were policemen there, but not enough of them. Fans furthest away from every corner of the stadium came to the front to get a better look at Elvis and then returned to their seats. However, the gathering in front of the stage, the first five or six people deep, was where the problem was; that was where the fear was. At the end Elvis finished his set and tore down the back stairs. He took off his jacket and handed it to his cousin Gene, who got into the limo. The kids followed the limo while Elvis stayed behind till it was safe for him to get out.