After 50 years in Las Vegas, Wayne Newton is hinting that his new show, Once Before I Go may be his last. Wayne's show opened last Wednesday at the Tropicana in Las Vegas.
The man known throughout the world as "Mr. Las Vegas" says retirement is possible. His new show, which Newton says took 2 1/2 months to write, is presented as a live memoir of Newton's life and his career, with never-before-shared insights from Newton about personal episodes along the way.
"It's challenging to keep it entertaining," Newton said. "And that was my first prerequisite."
In his show, Newton told stories about Dean Martin failing to rehearse for a TV duet, Bobby Darin fighting a publisher to let Newton record his signature tune "Danke Schoen", and a handwritten note by Elvis which inspired him to write a song called, The Letter. Click below to see an interview with Wayne talking about the song.
Here are the lyrics to The Letter
One more phone call from a friend
Just to say how hard it’s been
How their hopes and dreams have scattered
With the wind
They don’t see that I’m there too
How it breaks my heart in two
Just to make it through this night’s all I can do
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
I’m still standing all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
As I awake again today
And my pain won’t go away
And the face I have to wear
Shows a smile
Now my nights are so alone
I just wish I could go home
I don’t know if I can make it another mile
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Please help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
I’m still standing all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
I feel so alone sometimes
The night is quiet for me
I’d love to be able to sleep
I am glad that everyone is gone now
I’ll probably not rest tonight
I have no need for all of this
Help me Lord
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Please help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
God I am so all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
Won’t you come and take me home
Help me Lord
Click the video below to see Wayne perform his song inspired by Elvis. And listen closely as he dedicates it to Colonel Parker.
Wayne Newton said this about his friendship with Elvis, "When I first met Elvis, we had so much in common and became fast friends."
More on Wayne Newton
Newton arrived in Las Vegas in 1959, when a two-week tryout at the Fremont Hotel & Casino turned into lounge act of six shows per night, six nights a week for nearly a year. The crooner earned national fame after a 1962 television appearance on "The Jackie Gleason Show," which led to many more singing and acting gigs on TV and in film.
He also headlined at several casinos throughout Sin City, including the New Frontier, which hosted entertainers including Elvis Presley, Ronald Reagan and Siegfried & Roy over it's 65 years. The casino was imploded in 2007.
"I've been working since I was four," Newton said. "There really has not been a time in my life that I don't remember working."
Newton said writing "Once Before I Go" has taken a toll on him and will likely be emotional to perform nightly.
"If I still feel like I have something to give when this particular show is over, then I'll make the decision to probably curtail work a little bit but not give it up totally," he said. "If I don't feel that way at the end of this, then I'll probably hang it up."
The man known throughout the world as "Mr. Las Vegas" says retirement is possible. His new show, which Newton says took 2 1/2 months to write, is presented as a live memoir of Newton's life and his career, with never-before-shared insights from Newton about personal episodes along the way.
"It's challenging to keep it entertaining," Newton said. "And that was my first prerequisite."
In his show, Newton told stories about Dean Martin failing to rehearse for a TV duet, Bobby Darin fighting a publisher to let Newton record his signature tune "Danke Schoen", and a handwritten note by Elvis which inspired him to write a song called, The Letter. Click below to see an interview with Wayne talking about the song.
Here are the lyrics to The Letter
One more phone call from a friend
Just to say how hard it’s been
How their hopes and dreams have scattered
With the wind
They don’t see that I’m there too
How it breaks my heart in two
Just to make it through this night’s all I can do
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
I’m still standing all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
As I awake again today
And my pain won’t go away
And the face I have to wear
Shows a smile
Now my nights are so alone
I just wish I could go home
I don’t know if I can make it another mile
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Please help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
I’m still standing all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
I feel so alone sometimes
The night is quiet for me
I’d love to be able to sleep
I am glad that everyone is gone now
I’ll probably not rest tonight
I have no need for all of this
Help me Lord
Help me Lord
I need the sun to drive away
The shadows in my mind
Please help me Lord
I need someone to guide me
When the path is hard to find
Even though the crowd surrounds me
God I am so all alone
When I know I can’t go on
Help me Lord
Won’t you come and take me home
Help me Lord
Click the video below to see Wayne perform his song inspired by Elvis. And listen closely as he dedicates it to Colonel Parker.
Wayne Newton said this about his friendship with Elvis, "When I first met Elvis, we had so much in common and became fast friends."
More on Wayne Newton
Newton arrived in Las Vegas in 1959, when a two-week tryout at the Fremont Hotel & Casino turned into lounge act of six shows per night, six nights a week for nearly a year. The crooner earned national fame after a 1962 television appearance on "The Jackie Gleason Show," which led to many more singing and acting gigs on TV and in film.
He also headlined at several casinos throughout Sin City, including the New Frontier, which hosted entertainers including Elvis Presley, Ronald Reagan and Siegfried & Roy over it's 65 years. The casino was imploded in 2007.
"I've been working since I was four," Newton said. "There really has not been a time in my life that I don't remember working."
Newton said writing "Once Before I Go" has taken a toll on him and will likely be emotional to perform nightly.
"If I still feel like I have something to give when this particular show is over, then I'll make the decision to probably curtail work a little bit but not give it up totally," he said. "If I don't feel that way at the end of this, then I'll probably hang it up."
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