Monday in Memphis: Sun Studio

I visited Memphis back in 2009 and Sun Studio was at the top of my “must see” list. Designated as a National Historic Landmark in 2003, Sun Studio is synonymous with the discovery of Elvis Presley. Owned and operated by Sam Phillips, Sun Records became known for giving local area artists their start in the recording biz, such as Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, Carl Perkins, B.B. King, and Charlie Rich. Not a bad lineup, huh? Edited from the Sun Record website page on Elvis Presley: 

In the summer of 1953 Elvis drops by The Memphis Recording Service, home of the Sun label and makes a demo acetate of “My Happiness” and “That’s When Your Heartaches Begin” for a cost of about $4.00. (The studio came to be known as Sun Studio though never officially named that until the 1980s. For simplicity this text uses the name Sun Studio.) The studio owner isn’t in, so his assistant, Marion Keisker handles the session.

Want to see Marion’s desk?



And here’s Marion:



Elvis wants to see what his voice sounds like on a record and he has aspirations to become a professional singer. He takes the acetate home, and reportedly gives it to his mother as a much-belated extra birthday present. By the fall, he is working at Precision Tool Company, and soon changes jobs again, going to work for Crown Electric Company. A year later, at Marion Keisker’s suggestion, Sam Phillips calls Elvis into the studio to try singing a song Sam hopes to put out on record. The song is “Without You” and Elvis does not sing it to Sam’s satisfaction. Sam asks Elvis what he can sing, and Elvis runs through a number of popular tunes. Sam is impressed enough to team Elvis up with local musicians Scotty Moore (guitar) and Bill Black (bass) to see if they, together, can come up with something worthwhile. Nothing really clicks until July 5, when after a tedious session, Elvis and the guys break into a sped-up version of Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup’s “That’s All Right.” This song, backed with Blue Moon of Kentucky becomes the first of five singles Elvis will release on the Sun label. Flash forward to November 1955: Elvis signs his first contract with RCA Records. Colonel Parker negotiates the sale of Elvis’ Sun contract to RCA, which includes his five Sun singles and his unreleased Sun material. The price is an unprecedented $40,000, with a $5,000 bonus for Elvis. RCA soon re-releases the five Sun singles on the RCA label. At the same time Elvis signs a contract with Hill and Range Publishing Company, which is to set up a separate firm called Elvis Presley Music, Inc. Elvis will share with Hill and Range the publishing ownership of songs bought by Hill and Range for him to record. Elvis is the hottest new star in the music business.

The recording studio at Sun:





From the Sun Studio tour page:

Sun Studio is known worldwide as “The Birthplace of Rock’n’roll”. Today our goal is to spread the story of Memphis’ history and culture through the music that put Memphis on the map. Stand in the very same spot that Elvis first recorded. Your tour guide will tell you the inside stories of B.B. King, Howlin' Wolf and Ike Turner before Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, & Roy Orbison who were all drawn to the new Sun Sound. See the priceless memorabilia from the musical legends that blended blues and country music to explode in the "big bang" of Rock'n'roll. Hear the voices of musicians that still haunt this studio, as you listen to outtakes from recording sessions and feel the energy of the music created here.

I didn’t see any ghosts, but I sure enjoyed seeing the vintage equipment, photos, and memorabilia!



Elvis has nothing to worry about.



Below is Elvis’ cow hide guitar case, from the Dorsey Brothers Stage Show which aired on January 28, 1956. This item was on loan from Graceland.



Elvis’s diploma from L. C. Humes High School, circa 1953:



This RCA lathe recorder is what put the grooves in the vinyl:



Atop this vintage radio is Elvis’ Social Security card:





This jacket was worn by Elvis in 1954 at the Arkansas Municipal Auditorium in Texarkana (named after Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana):



Last photo for today shows the stained glass window designating the address of 706 Union Avenue for Sun Studio.



See more Sun Studio photos at my main website.