Schwabs' New Owners to host Elvis Music Party with Amy LaVere & More

For all you celebratory types out there — and you know who you are — here’s an event that promises to be fit for a king.

Or more specifically, for “The King,” thankyaverymuch.

A musical tribute/birthday party for Elvis Presley (he would have turned 77 on Sunday) will be staged from 6 to 10 p.m. this Saturday at A. Schwab, 163 Beale.

The Elvis-themed evening launches a new era for the store as part of what the proprietors promise will be an ongoing effort to spotlight artists from Memphis and the Delta region.

Saturday’s musical entertainment will be provided by several artists, including Amy LeVere and the Tramps, the Jason Freeman Band and the Memphis Dawls.

Admission is $5 at the door.
The event marks the first weekend entertainment offering at the historic dry goods store since it was sold on Dec. 22 to a group of investors, led by Terry Corona Saunders, principal of Martin Group Realty, and her husband, Jake, a grandson of Piggly Wiggly founder Clarence Saunders.

Other investors are Jake’s sister, Posey Cochrane, and Tommy Peters, CEO of B.B. King’s Blues Club.

Founded in 1876 by haberdasher Abraham Schwab, A. Schwab has operated on Beale Street for the past 100 years and remained owned by Schwab family members until its recent sale.

With about 12,000 square feet of sales space, the iconic Downtown store is a popular tourist attraction and customers entering the historic shop are greeted with the motto, “If you can’t find it at A. Schwab, you’re probably better off without it!”

© 2012 Memphis Commercial Appeal.