The Sun Records Story
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Sun Records
Sun Records Logo,
unchanged since it's birth
Two things are synonymous with Sun Records: Elvis Presley and Sam Phillips. Sam Phillips was a southern boy
that became involved in the music business early. He was most famous for finding and breaking Elvis Presley,
In addition to that unmatchable feat in music history, he was making an important mark in Blues history
and development. He found and recorded a young
B.B. King while working for another record comany, and also recorded
a young
Howlin' Wolf, whose contract he sold to the legendary Blues label
Chess Records. After several disputes within the label, Sam ventured out on his
own, creating Sun Records in 1952, it's name being a sort of euphamism for optimism. Sun was a down-home Memphis
Blues label for several years. It was at Sun Records that Ike Turner and his band recorded the song "Rocket 88",
arguably the first Rock song ever made, which he sold off to Chess Records in 1951.
"His song 'Moanin' at Midnight' ...when it came out, it was as if everything
just stopped, everything that was going on. Time stopped. Everything stopped. And you heard
the Wolf. This is where the soul of man never dies,"
- Sam Phillips on Howlin' Wolf.
In 1953, Elvis Presley wandered into the studio, and was called back some months later by Sam to audition. Around
the 4th of July 1954, they had several frustrating experiences with Elvis while trying to record him. That is,
until he picked up a guitar while in a break and played a
Big Boy Cruddup song. Elvis went on to
record several other Blues covers, including
Big Mamma Thornton's "Hound Dog", which has remained
one of Elvis's most timeless hits. Believing he had a huge potential success on his hands, Sam reportedly sold
Elvis's records out of the trunk of his Cadillac for months. The massive national and international success of Elvis
that quickly followed brought others to the studio, and started a Sun Records trend of arguably just a
different interpretation of Blues: rockabilly. It's most ambitious disciples are still household names: Jerry Lee
Lewis and Johnny Cash.
CHUCK BERRY
Sun Records at
706 Union Ave.
In the mid 1960s, Sun abandoned the familiar studio located at 706 Union Ave. in Memphis and moved to
a bigger location several blocks away, and on July 1st, 1969, Sun was sold to record executive Shelby Singleton.
Phillips was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986, and the Blues Hall of Fame in 1998. The
Union Avenue location of Sun Records was granted national historic landmark status the day after Sam passed
away July 30th, 2003. Interestingly, Sam purchased early shares of Hoiday Inn from the proceeds he gained from
selling Elvis's contract, which made him very wealty. Sun Studio still exists, and is located at the Union
ave. location in Memphis, giving regular tours and selling memorabilia with Sun's logo. Sam often said that
finding Howlin' Wolf was his greatest discovery, (and losing him to Chess Records his greatest career disappointment),
and finding Elvis Presley was his second greatest discovery.
Sun was one of, if not the greatest direct contributor to the transformation of Blues sound and soul into
what would ultimately become Rock and Roll as we know it today. Thanks to the unique ear and attention to
music that Sam Phillips had, artists like Elvis and Cash and Lewis, whose biggest influences were early
Delta and southern Blues musicians, were given a chance to make their own contributions and interpretations
to music, ultimately further widening and enriching the American sound!
Notable artists under Sun Records
Elvis Pressley
Howlin' Wolf
Johnny Cash
Jerry Lee Lewis
Junior Parker
Notable Websites on Sun Records
The Sun Record Company
Sun Studio Official Website
Notable Books on Sun Records
Good Rockin' Tonight: Sun Records and the Birth of Rock 'N' Roll by Colin Escott and Martin Hawkins
Sun King: The Life and Times of Sam Phillips, the Man Behind Sun Records By Kevin Crouch, Tanja Crouch
