Orion (singer)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Orion (singer) (1945 - December 12, 1998) was the stage name of rockabilly singer Jimmy Ellis. Following the death of Elvis Presley in August 1977, Ellis dressed and sang in the manner of Presley and wore a mask during public appearances, fueling speculation that Presley had faked his death and returned to singing. Ellis' singing and natural speaking voice very closely resembled Presley's. Ellis had recorded rock and country singles under his real name for a number of independent labels since the early 1960s before adopting the Orion persona for Sun Records - Presley's first recording label - in 1980.

Sun owner Shelby S. Singleton conceived of the idea of overdubbing Ellis' Presley-styled vocals onto a previously-unreleased 1961 Jerry Lee Lewis recording of "Save The Last Dance For Me". Ellis was billed only as "Friend." The single made #26 on the Billboard Country charts and caused a stir as listeners speculated about the mysterious "Friend's" identity. Another overdubbed pairing with Lewis, a cover of Hank Williams' "Cold, Cold Heart" was also released as a single, peaking at #84.

[edit] Orion Reborn

Ellis took his new stage name from the 1978 novel Orion by Gail Brewer-Giorgio, which deals with a rock star who fakes his own death to escape the pressures of fame. Brewer-Giorgio would discuss Ellis in her 1988 book, The Most Incredible Elvis Presley Story Ever Told.

The cover of his first Sun LP Reborn, depicting Ellis rising from a coffin, was quickly withdrawn and replaced with a photo of Ellis in a blue outfit standing against a similarly-colored backdrop. The original cover art was restored on the album's CD release in 2005. Many of Ellis' Sun Records releases would be on colored vinyl. Ellis would record as Orion through 1984 when he took off his mask and once again began using his real name, or the name "Ellis James." Though he had vowed never to don the mask again, new Orion releases would be issued sporadically through 1989.

Ellis and his wife Elaine were shot to death in a botched robbery of the pawn shop they owned in Orrville, Alabama on December 12, 1998.

This article about an United States singer is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.