The immortal Sam Phillips was born on this day in 1923. Of course Sam Phillips didn’t singlehandedly invent Rock and Roll but he was a major force in its creation. Sam Phillips was the owner of the legendary Sun Studio and Sun Records in Memphis, Tennessee.

Some call the record “Rocket 88” by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats the first rock and roll record {it was actually done by  Ike Turner’s Kings of Rhythm. They recorded the song at Sam Phillips recording studio in Memphis.

Sam Phillips discovered a who’s who of 1950’s rock and roll greats. Sam himself always said his greatest discovery was not Elvis Presley but bluesman Howlin’ Wolf. He of course discovered Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Charlie Rich [vastly underappreciated Charlie Rich} and Roy Orbison.

In my opinion the greatest record label of all time was Sun in the 1950’s. By the end of the 1950’s all the great artists he had at Sun had moved on to bigger labels and stardom. In 1969 Sam sold Sun. He also made a lot of money as an early investor in the Holiday Inn chain of motels.

In 1996 Sam Phillips was inducted into the first class in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He died in 2003 at the age of 80.

If you are ever in Memphis stop and take a tour of Sun Studio. Everytime I have been in the city I’ve made a pilgrimage there. The place where Rock and Roll was born.