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Roy Clark
at Lucky Eagle Casino
By Kurt "Swingcat" Johnson
The dice were rolling, the slots were paying and the theatre was packed
with a 1500 guest capacity crowd to see legendary country western guitar
picker and entertainer Roy Clark at Rochester, Washington's Lucky Eagle
Casino. At the casino for Friday and Saturday night shows, Roy Clark
is on tour supporting his new compilation CDs Absolutely the Best,
Vol 1 and Original Artist Hit List.
A legendary entertainer, Clark's list of accomplishments is endless,
ranging from 20 years on the TV shows Hee Haw and The
Beverly Hillbillies,
to multiple albums and CDs, sold out tours in Moscow, Russia, guest
hosting Johnny Carson's Tonight Show and multiple TV commercials. He's
appeared and recorded with the Boston Pops Symphony Orchestra and had
sell-outs at venues as diverse as Madison Square Garden and Carnegie
Hall. In the music business for over 50 years, Clark is one of the
most recognizable county music icons. He's truly become one of country
music's treasures.
Clark's show was another in Lucky Eagle's many big name shows that
are featured at the casino's theatre. Among the many acts that have
performed at Lucky Eagle this year are BJ Thomas, Tony Curtis and Tony
Orlando. As part of Lucky Eagle's total entertainment experience, shows
are not limited to legendary acts, but also include local variety,
classic rock and country western band acts.
On this visit, while Roy Clark was in the theatre, country western
variety act The Jonathan Harris Band performed in the Center Stage
Bar and Cabaret. Lucky Eagle also offers live boxing matches featuring
multiple fight cards along with stand-up comedy, Chippendale shows
and feature big-name acts.
Along with live entertainment, the casino offers a huge assortment
of table, slot and lounge games with an excellent choice of roulette
wheels, craps tables, blackjack, video slots, keno and poker. Also,
there are bingo and seniors’ appreciation days, football tournaments
and daily drawings. In addition, the Casino offers four separate quality
dining operations, The Grand Buffet, The Golden Eagle Prime Rib and
Steakhouse, The Center Stage Bar and Cabaret and The Eagle Talon Sidewalk
Deli.
Lucky Eagle's Entertainment Director, Denny Murray, tells about the
casino's wide appeal, "People come from Seattle, Tacoma, Olympia,
Portland and all areas in between. We hope to offer an entertainment
experience. We want you to leave with a feeling that you had a great
time." He describes some of the entertainment options at Lucky
Eagle; "You walk into our player's club, they show you how to
win free prizes and getaway vacations, tell what our entertainment
schedule is and how you can get tickets and free meals.” He further
explains, "There's three restaurants for three different dining
experiences. Every week, we feature free bands in the lounge from blues
to classic ‘70s rock."
Robert McFadden, Lucky Eagle's Food and Beverage Manager, adds this; "We
provide a great dining experience, a great quality product at a great
price and we provide a variety of venues and menus. There's something
for everyone when it comes to dining. Our buffet does the bulk of our
business and we have a variety of buffet menus from the Senior Mondays
to the fresh seafood buffet on Friday nights." He continues, "We
also have our Prime Rib Steakhouse. It's a quality restaurant and steakhouse
with an eclectic menu and weekly specials along with prime rib and
steaks. At Lucky Eagle you just get more."
McFadden also talks about Lucky Eagle's customer service focus, "Customer
service is at the forefront of our operations. We strive to exceed
our guests’ expectations on every visit. We realize the importance
of our customers to the casino. And we value every customer." The
casino even provides daily motor coach service to distant cities like
Portland and Spokane.
Regular customer Dave Blok echoes this. He lives about an hour away
from the casino in Federal Way, Washington. He says this about why
he prefers the Lucky Eagle; "I've been coming here since opening
day. I live in Federal Way and I'm 15 minutes from the major Tacoma/Seattle
casinos. I come here because they're friendly here and treat everyone
like a VIP even if they're not. They treat you like family and they
actually care. They take an interest in you as a person. It just adds
to the entertainment and casino. In the military, I've traveled all
over the world and visited casinos all over, including Monte Carlo.
I'd rate this casino equal or better than most I've been to!"
Over in the theatre Roy Clark was putting on one of his patented stage
shows. Now in his ‘70s, Clark has lost nothing on stage. His
guitar pickin' is still blistering fast and he continues to be the
consummate entertainer with lots of clever one-liners, funny stories
and comedic anecdotes. He completely captivates the crowd with his
charm and showmanship, not to mention his unmatched musical skill both
as a singer, and guitar and banjo picker.
Clark travels with a large band including a steel slide player, keyboardist,
drummer, bassist and three multi-talented string players, who play
both banjo, fiddle and mandolins. The musical selection is a variety
of styles ranging from bluegrass, to waltzes and even a Russian folk
song for balalaika performed on mandolins. Selections include original
compositions, old standards, gospel songs and even blues. All feature
beautiful soaring vocal harmonies to back Clark's lead singing. The
songs often include dueling fiddles, banjoes or mandolins and the effect
is magic.
On the gospel song, Where Can I Go, Clark sang lead, backed by his
three-person choir with melodic harmonies uplifting the sound, Clark
talked about the song and making his Gospel album, Roy Clark Sings
and Plays Gospel Greats. He says, "I finally got around to making
a gospel album. It was nominated for a Grammy Award, but we didn't
win it."
Later, he commented to the crowd about how well his guitarist
Ralph Lorent played on a Spanish Flamenco song, Clark cracked, "It
wouldn't be wise for him to play better than me. It wouldn't be difficult.
It
just wouldn't be wise!" The crowd ate it up and laughed loudly.
On the original composition Man of Constant Sorrow, Clark described
how it came to be recorded. He says, "We were driving along in
the tour bus. I was in the back listening to some music from up front.
I thought it was a CD. It really sounded new and interesting. So I
went up front and found that it was the guys jamming. So I told them
that this was too good and should be put on a CD! So we did." The
song is unique because it's recorded without Clark on vocals. It's
distinctly bluegrass with a boisterous fiddle, banjo, mandolin and
honky-tonk bassline.
Clark also mentioned he's always asked what would be the one song he
would pick out that truly represents him. Clark says this, "After
50 years, if I were to pick-out one song, after deep thought, this
one song would represent my life-and that's Thank God and Greyhound
You're Gone.” The crowd loved it and roared their approval. The
band then dived into a rollicking version that had everyone in the
crowd tapping their feet and clapping their hands. You can see more
of Roy Clark on his website www.roy-clark.com.
With big-time entertainment, top-notch customer service and dining
variety, along with exciting gaming opportunities, Lucky Eagle Casino
really does provide a complete entertainment experience. Plan a trip
for some gaming, dinner and a show. You won't be disappointed! You
can see more of Lucky Eagle Casino at their website www.luckyeagle.com.
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