There’s more to Las Vegas than casinos, strippers and wedding chapels.

We know about Sin City’s countless casinos, strip clubs and wedding chapels, but there’s also an undercurrent of olde world glamour — and an impressive musical history.

Melbourne singer Harrison Craig, who rose to fame in the second season of The Voice, has visited three times — most recently to work on his new album.

He explains what keeps drawing him back.

DO YOU HAVE ANY FAVOURITE PLACES YOU RETURN TO EACH TIME?

I spend a lot of time downtown. It’s a throwback to a golden era of Las Vegas, it reminds me a lot of the music I would hear growing up being played around the house.

WHY IS LAS VEGAS THE THEME FOR YOUR LATEST ALBUM?

I was deeply inspired from an early age by the ‘Kings’, if you’d like, of Las Vegas — the ones who ruled the Strip and who created and performed some of the best music of the era and indeed the music industry.

Harrison Craig was so inspired by Las Vegas he made an album about it.Source:Supplied

For years I had wanted to visit Las Vegas, and while I was writing in L. A. I drove to Vegas taking some of the original routes which honestly only fuelled my eagerness to get there.

When I arrived, I was not disappointed. I was so inspired from travelling around Las Vegas during that trip that I knew exactly what kind of album I wanted to make next.

WHERE DOES THE NAME ‘KINGS OF VEGAS’ COME FROM?

I look at the [likes] of Sammy Davis Jr, Newton, Sinatra, Deano, Valli, Presley and many more of the greats and revere them as kings of their time.

They changed the game for everyone, including those to come after them. The mark they left on the town, but indeed also the world was so significant that the music of the era has been solidified in history as golden.

HAVE ANY LAS VEGAS PERFORMERS INFLUENCED YOUR SOUND?

Of course everyone is influenced in some way by hearing or seeing the music of the era being performed by the people that made it famous.

Take for example Elvis Presley — I think at first glance you see this rock ‘n’ roll god who gets every girl, and then you hear such a beautiful melody and vocal from them and it completely changes the way you view their music. It broadens your mind.

Yes, it’s fabulous, but it’s not just about casinos, strippers and wedding chapels.Source:istock

Growing up listening to the likes of Presley, Sinatra, Wayne, Englebert, Armstrong, Bennett, and many more, I think everything right from their phrasing, to their presence on stage has influenced me in some way. I like to pay homage to them, yet continue on the path to creating my own unique presence on stage.

DO YOU THINK LAS VEGAS HAS SHAPED MUSIC?

Definitely. That much is evident even if you haven’t visited Las Vegas.

I think Las Vegas has given some of the greatest performers to grace the Strip a bit of the grit they were looking for, and thus only goes to further the impact that Las Vegas has had on music to date. It’s a paradise, but only if you know how to sing to it.

WHAT IS THE CITY’S MOST UNDERSTATED ELEMENT?

Definitely some of the cultural aspects of the business around town.

The bars, restaurants, city streets, and architecture has helped shape the town; the ‘golden era’ of music back in the 1950s — early 70s, the loneliness of the saloon bars, the smoky theatres and beautiful climate.

He loves the olde world glamour of cars, smoky theatres and scotch.Source:Supplied

WHAT DOES YOUR ULTIMATE LAS VEGAS DAY INCLUDE?

Visiting some of the older regions of Vegas, and definitely driving an old Thunderbird through the streets to get there, and finishing it off with a performance and a scotch afterwards. Definitely a good day in my books.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO A FIRST TIME VISITOR TO LAS VEGAS?

Don’t hold back! Explore every inch of Las Vegas and make some great memories. It’s a town that promises a new experience every time, and this is no different! Take silly photos, visit every landmark, drink a bit of scotch, and most importantly; bathe in the glory of Las Vegas.

Harrison’s new album ‘Kings of Vegas’ is in stores now.