Sam Phillips

Sam Phillips


  • The Night Carl Perkins Gave Rock ‘n’ Roll Its Swagger: The Story of “Blue Suede Shoes”

    On December 19, 1955, Carl Perkins stepped into Memphisโ€™ Sun Studio with a song that would become a cornerstone of rock โ€˜nโ€™ roll history. But like most great music moments, the creation of Blue Suede Shoes wasnโ€™t so much a straight line as it was a tangled web of stories, late-night drives, and serendipitous inspiration.…

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  • From Memphis to Mainstream: The Day Elvis Signed With RCA Records

    November 21, 1955, wasnโ€™t just another Monday. For Elvis Presley, it was the day a $35,000 contract (equivalent to $400,000 in 2024) pulled him out of a regional spotlight and thrust him onto the global stage. RCA Records, sensing that the young singer from Tupelo, Mississippi, was more than just a passing trend, purchased his…

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  • The King’s First Chords: Elvis Presley’s Debut Recording

    In the annals of music history, July 18, 1953, marks a momentous occasion. It was on this day that Elvis Presley, the undisputed King of Rock ‘n’ Roll, ventured into Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee, and made his first-ever recording. It was a modest start, a heartfelt gift for his beloved mother, that would inadvertently…

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