Memphis Day 2: Sun Studio

Today was a visit to Sun Studio. For those not aware, this is where it all started for Elvis. Elvis recorded and released his first single here, "That's All Right" on July 19, 1954.

Our host shared so many great stories from the first song Elvis actually recorded at Sun (but not released) that Sam Phillips, Sun founder actually "hated". That song was a ballad and it wasn't until Elvis was paying to record another song with a provided backing band (Bill Brown and Scotty Moore), that during a break from a recording session that wasn't going so we'll that Elvis started singing "That's All Right". Sam Phillips loved it, got them to record it, and the rest is history.

Elvis was only with Sun for a short period and was bought out of his contract by RCA (see pic of the actual contract) for US$45,000. That's about US$400k now and was the largest contract amount of it's time.

This history of Sun Studio is interesting. Originally founded as the Memphis Recording Service by Sam Phillips in 1950, becoming Sun Records in 1952 and gaining fame as the "birthplace of rock and roll" for artists like Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, and Jerry Lee Lewis. The studio recorded pioneering blues, R&B, country, and rockabilly artists, including B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf, and Roy Orbison. After Phillips sold the label in 1969, the building was largely dormant until 1987 when it reopened as the recording studio and museum it is today, attracting artists like U2 and Def Leppard. In the past the building has been a barber shop that installed a dropped ceiling, retaining the original ceiling designed for recording. The studio is still used on a nightly basis for new and current recording artists.

A great visit today and it bought back lots of great memories from previous trips.