55-456: Samuel Cornelius Phillips (January 5, 1923 – July 30, 2003) was an American disc jockey, songwriter and record producer. 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 . Phillips played a major role in the development of rock and roll during
110-408: A 200-acre farm near Florence, Alabama to Madge Ella ( née Lovelace) and Charles Tucker Phillips. Sam's parents owned their farm, though it was mortgaged. As a child, he picked cotton in the fields with his parents alongside black laborers. The experience of hearing black laborers singing in the fields left a big impression on the young Phillips. Traveling through Memphis with his family in 1939 on
165-531: A Hole in It "), Charlie Rich , Junior Parker , and Billy Lee Riley recorded for Sun with some success, and others, such as Jerry Lee Lewis , B. B. King , Johnny Cash , Roy Orbison , and Carl Perkins , became stars. Phillips's pivotal role in the early days of rock and roll was exemplified by a celebrated jam session on December 4, 1956, with what became known as the Million Dollar Quartet . Jerry Lee Lewis
220-423: A ballad I don't think you would have heard of Elvis Presley." Phillips stated of his goals, "everyone knew that I was just a struggling cat down here trying to develop new and different artists, and get some freedom in music, and tap some resources and people that weren't being tapped." He didn't care about mistakes; he cared about the feel. Phillips met Presley through the mediation of his longtime collaborator at
275-483: A dozen singles before it closed in 1970. The company was briefly run by Marshall Chess , Leonard's son, in his position as vice president between January and October 1969 and then as president following its acquisition by GRT, before he went on to found Rolling Stones Records . In early 1969, the Chess brothers sold the label to General Recorded Tape (GRT) for $ 6.5 million. In October 1969, Leonard Chess died and by 1972,
330-472: A fortune. He was one of the first investors in Holiday Inn , a motel chain that was about to expand to a nationwide franchise; he became involved with the chain shortly after selling Elvis Presley's contract to RCA , for $ 35,000, which he multiplied many times over the years with Holiday Inn. He also created two subsidiary recording labels, Phillips International Records and Holiday Inn Records . He also owned
385-525: A stake in Aristocrat Records in 1947. In 1950, he brought his brother, Phil, into the operation, and they became the sole owners of the company. In that same year, they bought out a third partner, Evelyn Aron, and renamed the company Chess Records. The first release from Chess was a 78 RPM single , "My Foolish Heart", backed with "Bless You", by Gene Ammons , issued as Chess 1425 in June 1950, which became
440-601: A white audience. On January 28, 2021, Sun Records was acquired by Primary Wave for $ 30 million. Sam Phillips opened his Memphis Recording Service studio on January 3, 1950, at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis. It was founded with the financial aid of Jim Bulliet , one of many record executives for whom Phillips had scouted artists before 1952. In March 1951, Phillips produced " Rocket 88 " by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats, who were actually Ike Turner and his Kings of Rhythm . Because of Turner's Delta blues connections, he
495-402: Is an American independent record label founded by producer Sam Phillips in Memphis, Tennessee on February 1, 1952. Sun was the first label to record Elvis Presley , Charlie Rich , Roy Orbison , Jerry Lee Lewis , Carl Perkins , and Johnny Cash . Prior to that, Sun had concentrated mainly on African-American musicians because Phillips loved rhythm and blues and wanted to bring it to
550-463: Is how they relieved the burden of what existed day in and day out." In addition to musical performances, Phillips recorded events such as weddings and funerals, selling the recordings. Phillips and Elvis Presley opened a new form of music. Phillips said of Presley: "Elvis cut a ballad, which was just excellent. I could tell you, both Elvis and Roy Orbison could tear a ballad to pieces. But I said to myself, 'You can't do that, Sam.' If I had released
605-612: The Beatles , the Rolling Stones, Cream, Fleetwood Mac, Ten Years After, the Beach Boys and Eric Clapton . In 1952, the brothers started Checker Records as an alternative label for radio play (radio stations had a policy of only playing a limited number of records from any one imprint). In December 1955, they launched a jazz and pop label, Marterry, a name created from the first names of Leonard and Phil's sons, Marshall and Terry. This
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#1733106647920660-399: The Beatles . In 2001, Paul McCartney appeared on a tribute compilation album titled Good Rockin' Tonight: The Legacy of Sun Records . The 2008 tribute Million Dollar Quartet is based on the famous photograph of Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis grouped round Elvis Presley at the piano, the night when the four joined in an impromptu jam at Sun Records' one-room sound studio,
715-520: The Chess brothers was strained and he had disputes with the Bihari brothers at Modern Records . Initially, Phillips didn't want to create a record label. He said, "I was forced into it by those labels either coming to Memphis to record or taking my artists elsewhere." The original Sun Records logo was designed by John Gale Parker Jr., a resident of Memphis and high school classmate of Phillips. Sun Records shared
770-607: The Country Music Hall of Fame , and in 2012 he was inducted into the inaugural class of the Memphis Music Hall of Fame . Phillips died of respiratory failure , aged 80, at St. Francis Hospital in Memphis, on July 30, 2003, only one day before the original Sun Studio was designated a National Historic Landmark . Phillips is interred in the Memorial Park Cemetery in Memphis. Sun Records Sun Records
825-623: The Prisonaires and others. The Memphis Recording Service also served as the studio for Phillips's own label, Sun Record Company , which he launched in 1952. Sun Records produced more rock-and-roll records than any other record label of its time during its 16-year run, producing 226 singles. Phillips recorded different styles of music, but he was interested in the blues: "The blues, it got people—black and white—to think about life, how difficult, yet also how good it can be. They would sing about it; they would pray about it; they would preach about it. This
880-667: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame , and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame . He was the first non-performer inducted. In 1987, he was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame . He received a Grammy Trustees Award for lifetime achievement in 1991. In 1998, he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame , in October 2001 he was inducted into
935-741: The " Million Dollar Quartet " of December 4, 1956. A TV series about the label ran for eight episodes on CMT from February to April 2017. In August 2022, Sun Records issued a 70th Anniversary Compilation album. The album features contributions from ten of the industry's top music supervisors and includes tracks from artists from the Sun catalogue including James Cotton , Linda Martell , Roy Orbison , Johnny Cash , The Dixie Cups , The Imperial Wonders, Rufus Thomas Jr., and Barbara Pittman. In November 2022, Peter Guralnick and Colin Escott released The Birth of Rock ‘N’ Roll: The Illustrated Story of Sun Records and
990-401: The "Yellow Sun Records from Nashville". In 1969, Mercury Records label producer Shelby Singleton purchased the Sun label from Phillips. Singleton merged his operations into Sun International Corporation, which re-released and re-packaged compilations of Sun's early artists in the early 1970s. It later introduced rockabilly tribute singer Jimmy "Orion" Ellis in 1979, with Orion taking on
1045-429: The 1950s, launching the career of Presley. In 1969, he sold Sun to Shelby Singleton . Phillips was the owner and operator of radio stations in Memphis; Florence, Alabama; and Lake Worth Beach, Florida . He was also an early investor in the Holiday Inn chain of hotels and an advocate for racial equality, helping to break down racial barriers in the music industry . Phillips was the youngest of eight children, born on
1100-565: The 50th anniversary of Chess Records. In the 2000s, Universal's limited-edition reissue label, Hip-O Select , began releasing a series of comprehensive box sets devoted to such Chess artists as Muddy Waters , Howlin' Wolf , Little Walter , Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry . In July 2008, the 2008 Universal Studios fire burned down a warehouse filled with Universal Music Group recording masters , including many albums and songs released by Chess. These masters, by artists such as Chuck Berry, were "priceless" and irreplaceable; while UMG claimed at
1155-525: The 70 Recordings that Changed the World , a history of Sun Records illustrated by 70 records. Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago , specializing in blues and rhythm and blues . It was the successor to Aristocrat Records , founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music , gospel music , early rock and roll , and jazz and comedy recordings, released on
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#17331066479201210-504: The Chess and its subsidiary labels Checker and Argo / Cadet . The Chess catalogue is owned by Universal Music Group and managed by Geffen Records and Universal Music Enterprises . Established and run by two Jewish immigrant brothers from what was then Poland , Leonard and Phil Chess , the company produced and released many singles and albums regarded as central to the rock music canon. The musician and critic Cub Koda described Chess as "America's greatest blues label". Chess
1265-456: The Chess brothers moved to a building at 2120 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago. The studio would operate at this location until 1967 when they relocated to 320 East 21st Street. In 1958, Chess began producing their first LP records which included such albums as After School Session by Chuck Berry, The Best of Muddy Waters , The Best of Little Walter , and Bo Diddley . Chess Records
1320-495: The Memphis Recording Service, Marion Keisker , who was already a well-known Memphis radio personality. On July 18, 1953, the eighteen-year-old Presley dropped into the studio to record an acetate for his mother's birthday; Keisker thought she heard some talent in the young truck driver's voice, and so she turned on the tape recorder. Later, she played it for Phillips, who gradually, with Keisker's encouragement, warmed to
1375-514: The Moonglows ; the former group was not very popular but the latter achieved several major crossover hits including " Sincerely ", which was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002. Several of Chess's releases gave a writing credit to Alan Freed. During the 1950s, Leonard and Phil Chess handled most of the recording production themselves. They brought in producer Ralph Bass in 1960 to handle
1430-605: The Sun Studio Café in Memphis. One location was in the Mall of Memphis . Phillips and his family founded Big River Broadcasting Corporation, which owns and operates several radio stations in the Florence, Alabama area, including WQLT-FM , WSBM , and WXFL . He also established radio station WLIZ in Lake Worth, Florida in 1959. In 1986, Phillips was part of the first group inducted into
1485-523: The company acquired over the years. Its website sells collectible items and compact discs bearing the original 1950s Sun logo. Sun Records is located in Nashville , Tennessee. It has been mainly a reissue label since the 1970s but signed country musician Julie Roberts to a recording contract in 2013. The music of many Sun Records musicians helped lay part of the foundation of late 20th-century rock and roll and influenced many younger musicians, including
1540-504: The disappearance of some original master tapes). The reissued singles and LPs sold well, but by the mid-80s All Platinum had fallen into financial difficulties, and the Chess master recordings were acquired by MCA Records , which itself was later merged with Geffen Records , a Universal Music imprint. In the 1990s, MCA Records sued Charly Records for selling CDs which contained copyrighted material by Chess artists. In February 1997, MCA started releasing eleven compilation albums for
1595-741: The family he worked in a grocery store and then a funeral parlor . In 1942, Sam, 19, met Rebecca "Becky" Burns, 17, his future wife, while they were both working at WLAY radio station in Sheffield, Alabama . He was an announcer and she was still in high school and had a radio segment with her sister as 'The Kitchen Sisters' where they played music and sang. A January 18, 2013, article in the Alabama Chanin Journal honoring Becky quoted Sam as saying, "I fell in love with Becky's voice even before I met her." Becky described her first encounter with Sam to journalist Peter Guralnick: "He had just come in out of
1650-458: The first six months, the flip side, " Blue Moon of Kentucky ", Presley's upbeat version of a Bill Monroe bluegrass song, was slightly more popular than "That's All Right (Mama)". While still not known outside the South, Presley's singles and regional success became a drawing card for Sun Records, as singing hopefuls soon arrived from all over the region. Singers such as Sonny Burgess (" My Bucket's Got
1705-519: The gospel output and some of the blues singers. Bassist and songwriter Willie Dixon was also heavily involved in organizing blues sessions for the label and is now credited retroactively as a producer on some re-releases. During the 1960s, the company's A&R manager and chief producer for soul and R&B recordings was Roquel "Billy" Davis , who had previously worked with Motown founder Berry Gordy on songs for Jackie Wilson, Etta James , Marv Johnson and other early Motown releases. In May 1957,
Sam Phillips - Misplaced Pages Continue
1760-468: The idea of recording Elvis. Presley, who recorded his version of Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup 's " That's All Right " at Phillips's studio, became highly successful, first in Memphis, then throughout the southern United States. He auditioned for Phillips in 1954, but it was not until he sang "That's All Right (Mama)" that Phillips was impressed. He brought the song to Dewey Phillips , a disc jockey at WHBQ 560, to play on his Red, Hot & Blue program. For
1815-493: The label's biggest hit of the year. In 1951, the Chess brothers began an association with Sam Phillips , of the Memphis Recording Service , the forerunner of Sun Records . One of the most important recordings that Phillips gave to Chess was " Rocket 88 ", by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats (the band was actually Ike Turner's Kings of Rhythm ), which topped Billboard magazine's R&B Records chart and
1870-438: The label's final Chicago home. Shortly before the death of Leonard Chess in 1969, the Chess brothers sold the company. The Studio at 2120 South Michigan Avenue was designated a Chicago Landmark on May 16, 1990. In 1993 the building was purchased by Marie Dixon, the widow of Willie Dixon , and turned into a museum which opened in 1997 The building is now the home of Willie Dixon 's Blues Heaven Foundation. Leonard Chess bought
1925-604: The latter film was at the Toronto International Film Festival, September 11, 2008. The original Chess LP series started with LP-1425 and included albums on both the Chess and the Checker labels. After 1437, the series was used exclusively for the Chess label; the Checker label switched to a 2970 series. The Chess Vintage LP series started with LP-407 and featured 9 albums released in 1970/71 with an additional three albums released in 1975. In 1971 Chess Records
1980-527: The mid-1960s, Phillips rarely recorded. He built a satellite studio and opened radio stations, but the studio declined, and he sold Sun Records to Shelby Singleton in 1969. In 1977 Sam's sons, Knox and Jerry, were working with John Prine at the Phillips Recording Studio when Sam Phillips joined them to oversee recordings that were eventually included on the album Pink Cadillac . Phillips launched radio station WHER on October 29, 1955. Each of
2035-458: The only part of Chess Records still operating in Chicago was the recording studio, Ter-Mar Studios. Following the sale of Chess to GRT, Phil left the label to run radio station WVON . In the 1970s, Chess Records and its publishing arm, Arc Music, were successfully sued by Muddy Waters and Willie Dixon for nonpayment of royalties due to them. Ter-Mar Studios continued to operate at the 320 E. 21st St. building until its closure in 1979. Some of
2090-721: The other artists who contributed to the legacy of Chess Records were the Flamingos , the Moonglows , Fontella Bass , Billy Stewart , the Dells and the Ramsey Lewis Trio . In the early 1980s, noticing that much of the Chess catalogue was commercially unavailable, Marshall Chess was able to convince Joe and Sylvia Robinson , who ran All Platinum, to reissue the catalogue themselves under his supervision (All Platinum had been licensing selected tracks to other companies, which ultimately resulted in
2145-463: The persona of Elvis Presley . The company remains in business as Sun Entertainment Corporation, and currently licenses its brand and classic hit recordings (many of which have appeared in CD boxed sets and other compilations) to independent reissue labels. Sun Entertainment also includes SSS International Records, Plantation Records , Amazon Records, Red Bird Records , Blue Cat Records among other labels
2200-555: The rain. His hair was windblown and full of raindrops. He wore sandals and a smile unlike any I had ever seen. He sat down on the piano bench and began to talk to me. I told my family that night that I had met the man I wanted to marry." They wed in 1943 and went on to have two children in a marriage that ended in 1960. Becky Phillips died in 2012, aged 87. In the 1940s, Phillips worked as a DJ and radio engineer for station WLAY (AM) , in Muscle Shoals, Alabama . According to Phillips,
2255-461: The recordings to larger labels. Phillips recorded what the music historian Peter Guralnick considered the first rock and roll record : " Rocket 88 ", by Jackie Brenston and His Delta Cats , a band led by the 19-year-old Ike Turner , who also wrote the song. The recording was released in 1951 by Chess Records in Chicago. From 1950 to 1954 Phillips recorded music by James Cotton , Rufus Thomas , Rosco Gordon , Little Milton , Bobby Blue Bland ,
Sam Phillips - Misplaced Pages Continue
2310-484: The same building as Sun Studio (formerly Memphis Recording Service). There, Phillips discovered and first recorded such influential musicians such as Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison and Jerry Lee Lewis. Presley's recording contract was eventually sold to RCA Victor for $ 40,000 (US$ 454,957 in 2023 dollars ) in 1955 to relieve Sun's financial difficulties. Sun record producer and engineer Jack Clement discovered and recorded Jerry Lee Lewis while Phillips
2365-510: The station's "open format" (of broadcasting music by white and black musicians alike) would later inspire his work in Memphis . Beginning in 1945, he worked for four years as an announcer and sound engineer for radio station WREC , in Memphis. On January 3, 1950, Phillips opened the Memphis Recording Service, at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis. He let amateurs record, which drew performers such as B. B. King , Junior Parker , and Howlin' Wolf , who made their first recordings there. Phillips then sold
2420-449: The time it had copies, later investigative reporting questioned this, with the truth emerging that all the masters were destroyed. Chess Records was the subject of two films produced in 2008, Cadillac Records and Who Do You Love? . In addition to the Chess brothers, both films feature portrayals of or characters based on Willie Dixon , Muddy Waters , Little Walter , Chuck Berry , Howlin' Wolf and Etta James . Cadillac Records
2475-650: The way to see a preacher in Dallas, he slipped off to look at Beale Street , at the time the heart of the city's music scene. "I just fell totally in love," he later recalled. Phillips attended the now defunct Coffee High School in Florence. He conducted the school band and had ambitions to be a criminal defense attorney . However, his father was bankrupt by the Great Depression and died in 1941, forcing Phillips to leave high school to look after his mother and aunt. To support
2530-467: The young women who auditioned for the station assumed there would only be one female announcer position, as was the case with other stations at that time. Only a few days before the first broadcast did they learn of the all-female format. It was the first all-female radio station in the United States, as almost every position at the station was held by a woman. Through shrewd investments, Phillips amassed
2585-438: Was also known for its regular band of session musicians who played on most of the company's Chicago soul recordings, including the drummer Maurice White and the bassist Louis Satterfield , both of whom later shaped the funk group Earth, Wind & Fire ; the guitarists Pete Cosey , Gerald Sims and Phil Upchurch ; the pianist Leonard Caston , later a producer for Motown; and the organist Sonny Thompson. In 1962, Chess Records
2640-550: Was away on a trip to Florida in 1956. Some of the other artists who recorded for Sun were Rufus Thomas (who recorded solo and with his daughter Carla Thomas ), Tex Weiss, Charlie Rich , Bill Justis , Conway Twitty (who at that time recorded under his real name, Harold Jenkins), Barbara Pittman and the Miller Sisters. In the Lovin' Spoonful song "Nashville Cats", John Sebastian used poetic license when he referred to Sun as
2695-436: Was based at several locations on the south side of Chicago, initially at South Cottage Grove Ave. The most famous was 2120 S. Michigan Avenue , from May 1957 to 1967 immortalized by the Rolling Stones in " 2120 South Michigan Avenue ", an instrumental recorded there during the group's first U.S. tour in 1964. In 1967, Chess relocated to a much larger building, the former home of Revere Camera Company at 320 E. 21st Street,
2750-530: Was contracted by Phillips as a talent scout and he was effectively an in-house producer. Turner brought fellow musicians Howlin' Wolf , Bobby "Blue" Bland , Little Milton , Billy "The Kid" Emerson and Roscoe Gordon to record for Phillips. The success of "Rocket 88" helped fund the creation of Sun Records which Phillips founded in February 1952. Before creating Sun, Phillips licensed recordings to Chess Records for release. But by 1952, his relationship with
2805-416: Was directed by Darnell Martin and features an ensemble cast including Adrien Brody , Mos Def , Beyoncé Knowles and Jeffrey Wright . Who Do You Love was directed by Tony Award winner Jerry Zaks and stars Alessandro Nivola playing Leonard Chess "as a complicated, driven man, hard on both his musicians and his family, yet with a real love for some of America's greatest music." The world premiere of
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#17331066479202860-548: Was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 in recognition of its influence on rock and roll. One of the most important artists that came out of Memphis was Howlin' Wolf , who stayed with the label until his death in 1976. Musical figures created for Chess by Bo Diddley, Willie Dixon, Chuck Berry, Howlin' Wolf, Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy, and others were the basis of much subsequent rock and roll. Many songs created by Chess artists were later covered by many rock artists, including
2915-487: Was playing piano for a Carl Perkins recording session at Phillips's studio. When Elvis Presley walked in unexpectedly, Johnny Cash was called into the studio by Phillips, leading to an impromptu session featuring the four musicians. Phillips challenged the four to achieve gold record sales, offering a free Cadillac to the first, which Carl Perkins won. The contest is commemorated in a song by the Drive-By Truckers . By
2970-453: Was quickly renamed Argo Records , but the name was changed again in 1965 to Cadet Records to end confusion with an existing British spoken-word label. In 1953, Leonard Chess and Gene Goodman set up Arc Music BMI, a publishing company, which published songs by many rhythm and blues artists. In the mid-1950s, the Chess brothers received two doo-wop groups by Alan Freed , the Coronets and
3025-647: Was sued by Peacock Records for recording their artists Reverend Robert Ballinger and the Five Blind Boys of Mississippi . In 1969, Chess Records established a subsidiary label in the U.K., Middle Earth Records, which was distributed by Pye Records . The subsidiary specialized in Psychedelic rock and was a joint venture with the Middle Earth Club in London. The Middle Earth label released only four albums and about
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