Rick Hudson

Named after a rock’n’roll star, it was little wonder that Rick formed a love of music right from the start, making his stage debut at just age 4. He visited Graceland in 1976 and attended concerts by Rick Nelson, Jerry Lee Lewis, Chuck Berry, The Everly Brothers and Roy Orbison in the 80s. After winning an Elvis Presley Competition run by radio station Gold 104 at age 18, he formed his first band, Blue Moon Boys, named as tribute to the early years of Elvis. The band quickly became a local sensation, releasing their Run Wild album of rock’n’roll inspired originals in 1993. The band was endorsed by the Elvis Presley Fan Club of Australia and appeared at all of the club’s major functions.

A protégé of legendary DJ Stan “The Man” Rofe, Rick’s major appearances include as 50s Elvis in the Gold 104 promoted Rock’n’Roll Revival Concert at Dallas Brooks Hall, a showcase for the Elvis Presley Fan Club of Victoria and more recently in January 2023 as a contestant in the UETA Competition at the Parkes Elvis Festival.

Rick performed for a number of years with a local production of The Buddy Holly Tribute Show, appearing as Ritchie Valens, often stealing the show with his portrayal of the young ill-fated star. He extended his repertoire performing as lead guitarist in The Beatles inspired 60s tribute band, The Velvet Parade.

An accomplished songwriter with over 350 original compositions to his name, Rick has released his own albums and performed across Australia and internationally in Singapore, Europe and the USA. A recent highlight for Rick was having the opportunity to record his own version of That’s All Right at the famous Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee in 2019.

The Ricky Nelson Show is a celebration of the music of the original teen idol, only 16 years old when he hit the charts. Rick will perform all of his hits including Travelin’ Man, Hello Mary Lou, Poor Little Fool and many more as well as recount some stories of meeting Rick back in the 1980’s during his Australian tours.