The Elvis Brothers were a

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

/ pop trio (and sometimes quartet) that got its start in

Champaign, Illinois Champaign ( ) is a city in Champaign County, Illinois, United States. The population was 88,302 at the 2020 census. It is the tenth-most populous municipality in Illinois and the fourth most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropo ...

in 1981, and were "staples of midwest clubs and theaters from the early 80s through the early 90s". The members were Rob Elvis (guitar, vocals), Graham Elvis (bass, vocals) and Brad Elvis (drums). The band released two albums with

Portrait A portrait is a portrait painting, painting, portrait photography, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, Personality type ...

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

: '' Movin' Up'' in 1983, and ''Adventure Time'' in 1985. The band lost their record deal when Portrait was closed in 1986. The original trio re-united in 1992 and released an album called ''

Now Dig This ''Now Dig This'' is the third and last album by the rock/ pop trio The Elvis Brothers. Released in 1992 by Recession Records, the album represented a return to the original line-up. The band had undergone some personnel changes and then broken up ...

'' on Recession Records. On April 5, 2002,

International Pop Overthrow The International Pop Overthrow (often referred to as simply The IPO) is an American-originated music festival, devoted to power pop music and related genres. The festival is dedicated to bring classic pop music to the public, and is run by CEO an ...

music festival hosted an Elvis Brothers Reunion show at th
Abbey Pub in Chicago
IL. After the Elvis Brothers broke up, Brad Elvis replaced

Clem Burke Clement Burke (born Clement Anthony Bozewski; November 24, 1954) is an American musician who is best known as the drummer for the band Blondie from 1975, shortly after the band formed, throughout the band's entire career. He also played drums f ...

as the drummer for

The Romantics The Romantics are an American rock band formed in 1977 in Detroit. The band is often put under the banner of new wave and power pop. They were influenced by 1950s American rock and roll, Detroit's MC5, the Stooges, early Bob Seger, Motown R&B, ...

The band name

The band started off as a duo of Rob and Graham and at that time they included many

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

covers in their set, so when they had to come up with a name, they jokingly went with "The Elvis Brothers" and it stuck.

Reception

*"If you're really committed to the 'fun' only unpretentious pop can provide, you might as well go directly to these proud posers, who generate hooks in an abundance that will shame whatever 'authentic' locals you retain a sentimental yen for. Connoisseurs of pop plasticity will get an additional kick out of how affectlessly they shift from the usual ersatz teen romance to equally meaningless and equally commercial outlaw and rebel themes. Plus an uncanny Beatle impression on 'It's So Hard.' B− " (

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

) *"the band released a pair of albums ... that, while not groundbreaking, were well-crafted pop, and highly regarded in power pop circles." (Chris Woodstra,

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

) *"(The Elvis Brothers) played a marvelous (and deceptively simple) concoction of slicked-up rockabilly, stripped-down Cheap Trick-tinged melodic rock and roll and pristine pure pop that boasts superbly articulated energy, occasionally goofy lyrics and enough hooks to catch a school of minnows. (Ira Robbins,

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference to ...

) *"Take Rockpile's loose-as-a-goose barroom stomp-downs, add Cheap Trick's Midwestern hard-pop sensibility and cartoon-character posturing, throw in Squeeze's knack for the modern hook and the Stray Cats's rockabilly-trio configuration, and you'll have some idea of where the Elvis Brothers are coming from." (Parke Puterpaugh,

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

)

Members

Main members *Rob Elvis (Rob Newhouse) - guitar, vocals *Graham Elvis (Graham Walker) - bass, vocals *Brad Elvis (Brad Steakley) - drums Additional members *Adam Schmitt - guitar, vocals *Randy Seals - drums

Discography

Albums

*'' Movin' Up'' (1983,

) *''

Adventure Time ''Adventure Time'' is an American fantasy animated television series created by Pendleton Ward for Cartoon Network and distributed by Warner Bros. Domestic Television. The series follows the adventures of a boy named Finn (Jeremy Shada) and ...

'' (1985, Portrait) *''

'' (1992, Recession Records) *''Movin' Up/Adventure Time'' (1995,

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professional ...

/Recession Records)

Singles

*"Fire In The City" / "Here We Go Again" (1983, Portrait) *"Hidden In A Heartbeat" / "Full Speed Straight Ahead" (1983, Portrait) *"Fire In The City" / "Full Speed Straight Ahead" (1984, Portrait UK) *"Somebody Call The Police" / "Crosswinds" (1985, Portrait) *"Don't Take My Guns Away" (1985, Portrait) *"Motormouth" / "Rock For It" (1992, Recession) *"Valentine" / "The Great American Acid Test" (1992, Recession)

References

American power pop groups Musical groups from Illinois {{US-band-stub