Sun Records, Sam Philips, Memphis and Elvis

Sun Records - Around the same time Fats Domino and Little Richard started rockin' in New Orleans, a little way up the Mississippi river in Tennessee, things in Memphis were starting to take off as well. Sam Phillips, who had already been recording African American artists (B.B. King and Howlin' Wolf to name a few) in his studio (Memphis Recording Service), was thinking to himself that if he could find a white artist who could emulate the black musicians he had been recording, he would really have something that he could sell to a broader audience. Mr. Philips had already recorded what many historians consider the very first Rock and Roll song, "Rocket 88" (written by Ike Turner and recorded by his band, "Kings of Rhythm") which was released on Chicago's Chess label in 1951. In the process he created his new record label, Sun Records and would soon go on to record some future superstars including, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and... 

Elvis Presley - Elvis had been recorded several times at Sam Philip's studio from 1953 to 1954 but the recordings didn't do that much for Philips. He was interested in the teenager but hadn't really found the material he was looking for. Not until Elvis recorded his rendition of the 40's song "That's Alright" did Philips find what he was looking for. He followed up with "Blue Moon of Kentucky" and through local radio, Elvis created a major stir. It's hard to imagine now, but at the time Elvis sounded black to the general white audience and this is what Sam Philips was trying to achieve. After recording several times, Elvis began touring with his new band including guitarist Scotty Moore and Bill Black on bass. Elvis had a distinctive burlesque type movement on stage that he developed over time that made women in the audience go absolutely crazy and critics angry. His Sun releases sold well and by the time he was 20, bigger labels started approaching Sam Philips to sell his contract. Philips eventually sold Elvis' contract to RCA for somewhere around 40G, which might seem like a major mistake considering Elvis' future popularity, but at the time $40,000 was not only a lot of money but it allowed Sam Philips to finance distribution of Carl Perkin's "Blue Suede Shoes" which would end up being a major hit and money maker for Sun. Elvis went on to release countless hits and become one of the biggest selling superstars yet. He died in 1977 at the age of 42.

Sun Records went on to produce countless hits over its sixteen year history and in 1986 Sam Phillips was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He died in 2003.