The book is somewhat chronological but chapters on johnny cash or jerry lee lewis seem thrown in at random. Sun 232 johnny cash so doggone lonesome folsom prison blues december 1955 label variations depicted. The man and the mistakes that invented rock n roll. Johnny cash had just married a woman from texas named vivian leberto and moved to memphis when he formed a little country trio with guitarist luther perkins and bassist marshall grant, and eventually they wrangled an audition with sam phillips at sun records in memphis. Npr morning edition sam phillips, the legacy of sun. Johnny cash, jerry lee lewis, and elvis all got together at sam phillips sun. Drivin slow was by johnny london, a sixteen year old black saxophone player. Childhood memories of johnny cash february 08, 2015. He was the founder of sun records and sun studio, in memphis, tennessee, where he produced recordings by elvis presley, roy orbison, jerry lee lewis, carl perkins, johnny cash, and howlin wolf.
The complete sun recordings 19551958 johnny cash songs. Biography examines life of sun records sam phillips youtube. New biography illuminates life of sun records founder sam. Sun was the first label to record elvis presley, charlie rich, roy orbison, jerry lee lewis, carl perkins, and johnny cash. Season two being pitched to amazon, cw by cindy mclennan, june 5, 2017 although cmt cancelled its sun records tv show after just one season, the song may continue. Prior to that, sun had concentrated mainly on africanamerican musicians because phillips loved rhythm and blues and wanted to bring it to a white. Four legendary performers happened to bump into one another, and, as musicians tend to do, sat down to play some tunes. The book covers the entire history of sun records, from sam phillips first hit with rufus thomas. Johnny cash sings the songs that made him famous discogs. This book by john floyd was one of the volumes we used to recommend to people who wanted to gain more insight into the history of that amazing place, often as in memphis, tennessee, in the 1950s, magic happened, a music and culture that, quite literally, changed the world. Samuel cornelius sam phillips january 5, 1923 july 30, 2003 was an american record.
Published on nov 28, 2015 sam phillips and his sun records label discovered some of the biggest artists of all time including johnny cash, jerry lee lewis, howlin wolf and ike turner. Suns second book, a collaboration with musical playwright and actor linmanuel miranda, was released in october 2018. Sam phillips rocked the music world with sun records and. Stream and download audiobooks to your computer, tablet or mobile phone. Nov 28, 2001 read a timeline of sam phillips and sun records. The man who invented rock n roll by peter guralnick. Sam phillips, the founder of sun records in memphis, is frequently remembered. In 1957, cash became the first sun artist to release a longplaying album. Cash was known for his deep, distinctive voice, the boomchickaboom or freight train sound of his. Following i walk the line was johnny cashs home of the blues, recorded in july 1957. Cashs next record, folsom prison blues, made the country top 5, and i walk the line became no. Good rockin tonight is the history, in words and over 240 photographs, of sam phillips legendary storefront studio, from the early days with primal blues artists like howlin wolf and b. February 26, 1932 september 12, 2003 was an american singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and author.
He decided to call his company sun because he believed it was the universal power. Recorded august 4 1957, sun studio, 706 union, memphis tn. The only sun albums that stayed in print past the early 1960s were the seven johnny cash albums. The first record on sun was blues in my condition by little walter horton and jack kelly. The essential johnny cash is a doublecompact disc compilation by johnny cash released as part of sony bmgs essential series. As colorful and energetic as the music itself, its a oneofakind book for anyone who. Etpt by sarah essary 2212017 kevin fonteyne plays a young johnny cash in cmts scripted series sun records premiering thursday feb. Sun records is an american independent record label founded by producer sam phillips in memphis, tennessee in february 1952. His genre spanning songs and sound embraced country, rock and roll, rockabilly, blues. Sun records was first and foremost a singles label, only 12 albums were issued on sun and another 8 on the phillips international label. In 1952, sam phillips founded the legendary sun record company and throughout the 50s changed the course of popular music with artists like elvis, johnny cash, and jerry lee lewis.
Because in the intense interest in the sun label, many of the albums are very collectable. Most recently, he underwent a complete makeover to work on an asyetuntitled lifetime thriller from the team behind cmts sun records. There is an lpsize booklet containing an introduction by sam c. Hes written several books of essays about american vernacular music, my.
New york times bestseller one of the washington posts notable nonfiction books of 2015 mr. It is not to be confused with the threecd box set of the same name released by columbia records in 1992. During the 1950s1960s it defined the rockabilly genre with artists like johnny cash, carl perkins, jerry lee lewis, and of course elvis presley. When elvis presley walked in unexpectedly, johnny cash was called into the studio by. Johnny cashs classic recordings for sun have been reissued many times, and they have been issued in complete form before, most notably in bear familys exhaustive fivedisc 1990 box set, the man in black. Aug 22, 2010 i have a two albums one is just got johnny cash it is a sun international corporation recording it has a sun2118 on the cover. King, jerry lee lewis and elvis presley, claimed that the. As has been noted previously, peter guralnicks biography, sam phillips. Cash is widely considered to be one of the most influential american musicians of the 20th century. Feb 23, 2017 visit tunefind for music from your favorite tv shows and movies.
How one man discovered howlin wolf, ike turner, johnny cash, jerry lee lewis, and elvis presley, and how his tiny label, sun records of memphis, rev audiobook by peter guralnick. Sun records is the iconic 50s label in the top 10, according to variety which launched the. He was the fourth of seven children, who were in birth order. Rock island line probably recorded earlier the same year. Nov 18, 2015 his followup, red hot, has been covered many times but didnt get a big push from sun. Capitol record club edition of this album originally released in 1958 by sun records. Meet the young johnny cash, aka kevin fonteyne cmt. Nov 06, 2015 sam phillips, the founder of sun records in memphis, is frequently remembered for a single sound bite. How one man discovered howlin wolf, ike turner, johnny cash, jerry lee lewis, and elvis presley, and how his. Johnny cash, jerry lee lewis, carl perkins, roy orbison. Aug 29, 2006 this is the famous johnny cash in great spirit, on sun records show 1956best time ever.
Lewis, johnny cash, howlin wolf, charlie rich, roy orbison and a host of others. One of the washington posts notable nonfiction books of 2015. Johnnys records 45 tokeneke rd, darien, connecticut 06820 rated 4. All 12 songs featured in sun records season 1 soundtrack, listed by episode with scene descriptions. In his new book, sam phillips, music writer peter guralnick profiles the founder of the sun records label. Sun records founder sam phillips shapes the music of elvis, johnny cash, carl perkins and jerry lee lewis. Cookies websites use cookies that have been placed on this site by its operator. Its a big book about a huge personality whose influence on popular music has. Guralnick is a sensitive biographer who has landed upon a perfect topic in phillips, the brilliant memphis producer who, in the 1950s, recorded the earliest work of elvis presley, johnny cash, jerry lee lewis and howlin wolf. However, there wasnt a day that the studio wasnt searching for other artists, other hits. Cash auditioned with gospel songs, and phillips was underimpressed, but when cash returned another time with the song hey. Dustin ingram, star of the cmt series sun records, is joining the watchmen cast in a recurring role that remains undisclosed. The man who invented rock n roll guralnick, peter on amazon.
Cashs paternal grandmother also claimed cherokee ancestry. Nov 17, 2015 new biography illuminates life of sun records founder sam phillips authorpop music historian peter guralnick in culver city on nov. Salon talks to peter guralnick about his new biography of. It was compiled to commemorate cashs 70th birthday. Cmts series sun records has been canceled after an eight episode run behind the networks now signature series, nashville. Salon talks to peter guralnick about his new biography of sam. May 08, 2017 a show that gave a fresh shot in the arm to the legacy of sun records and artists like johnny cash and jerry lee lewis will not be renewed for a second season. King, johnny cash, jerry lee lewis and elvis presley, and how his tiny label, sun records of memphis, revolutionised the world. December 4, 1956 on december 4, 1956, one of the most famous and awe inspiring jam session in history occurred at sun records in memphis, tennessee.
The list of sun records releases would have been improved if release dates had been included. The artists on this album are jerry lee lewis, carl mann. This was the last cash session produced by sam phillips. The mystery surrounding damon lindelofs upcoming watchmen series is not getting any clearer, even with the casting of a key supporting character. Sun records is the iconic 50s label in the top 10, according to variety which launched the careers of the million dollar quartet artists elvis, johnny cash, jerry lee lewis mick jagger spotted in memphis. Nov 20, 2015 throughout his life, sam phillips, who founded sun records and launched the careers of artists such as johnny cash, howlin wolf, b. Samuel cornelius sam phillips january 5, 1923 july 30, 2003 was an american record producer who played an important role in the development of rock and roll during the 1950s. The man who brought down racial barriers through music. Sun 221 johnny cash and the tennessee two hey, porter. Stay in touch with sun records next episode air date and your favorite tv shows. If i could find a white man who had the negro sound and the negro feel, i could make a. Written off the show in 2015, jeffrey vincent parise has continued to reinvent himself in new roles.
The legacy and history of sun records could fill a volume four times this size. He was the founder of sun records and sun studio, in memphis, tennessee, where he produced recordings by elvis presley, roy orbison, jerry lee lewis, carl. Beginning to face competition for local talent he decided to sell records through his own label. Cash, february 26, 1932 september 12, 2003 was a grammy awardwinning american country singersongwriter. He is one of the bestselling music artists of all time, having sold more than 90 million records worldwide. July 18, 1999 the sun international series was a late bloomer, starting almost a decade after the 100 series. Label owner sam phillips was in the famed sun studio in memphis, tenn. The man who brought down racial barriers through music the. The man who invented rock n roll guralnick, peter on. King to the long nights in the studio with elvis and jerry lee. Sun joins singleton legacy, moves to nashville, 50 years ago. Still, as bob dylan noted in 2015, he was a true original.
I buy records on the sun label from memphis, tennessee. Back in the late 90s, i worked for a while as a tour guide at sun studio. Because of this glut of product, its easy to look at timelifes 2005 threedisc set, the complete sun recordings 19551958, and wonder if its necessary, or just a quick cashin. An oral history 2nd edition brings to readers the voices of the pillars of sun records, the artists, producers and engineers who made the place tick. The hbo series inspired by alan moore and dave gibbons iconic graphic novel has released some footage and shared a. Sun international album discography, part 2 by david edwards and mike callahan last update. Set in memphis during the tumultuous early days of the civil rights movement, sun records tells the untold story of nothing less than the birth of rock n roll. Aug 28, 2015 hot on his heels came jerry lee lewis, carl perkins and johnny cash. This is a book written out of admiration and love, guralnick outlines in his preface. Baby ride easy with june carter cash february 27, 2015. Hot on his heels came jerry lee lewis, carl perkins and johnny cash. Many of the albums in this series were issued on both gold vinyl and black vinyl.
Johnny cash signs with sun records october 17, 1954. Each lp sleeve bears a detailed track by track analysis of the enclosed recordings. If you have any sun records you want to sell, please contact me at 8184891866, or by. Sun records an oral history new book by author john floyd. Npr morning edition sam phillips, the legacy of sun records.
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