Sun Records: Sun Records

Click the links below for full Inductee pages from our website, including videos, artifacts, and full essays from Induction programs.

• Sam Phillips. "One of the most important figures in the history of rock. Sam Phillips discovered Elvis Presley, pioneered rockabilly and founded Sun Records, where he quietly went about the business of building and recording the rock and roll canon."
• Elvis Presley. "Elvis Presley is, quite simply, the King of Rock & Roll. In 1954, the performer kicked off a musical revolution by modernizing traditional genres such as blues, country and bluegrass for contemporary (and more youthful) audiences. Throw in a charismatic stage presence with then-scandalous hip-swings and body contortions, and it's easy to see why Presley set the charts (and hearts) ablaze."
• Jerry Lee Lewis: "Raising hell with the devil’s music. That’s what Jerry Lee Lewis did best. He pounded the piano with such abandon that it’s a wonder it didn’t come apart. He was a defiant, reckless, indefatigable wild man that could rock you into oblivion."
• Johnny Cash: "Johnny Cash had all the qualities of a country legend: a rich life, a keen instinct for storytelling and an unflinching eye on the world around him. Cash’s humble beginnings made him an authentic storyteller whose plainspoken narrative songs spoke to the American everyman. He wrote songs prolifically but never carelessly; each one captured a deeper truth and resonated uncannily with the working man."
• Roy Orbison: "Warbly yet forceful, vulnerable yet strong, grandiose yet intimate—Roy Orbison’s voice happens once in a generation. Orbison showcased his vocals with unconventionally written songs that ranged from operatic ballads to rockabilly jams. He is revered by the likes of Tom Petty and Bob Dylan."
• Carl Perkins: "The widely influential pioneer of rockabilly. Carl Perkins transformed his humble sharecropper roots into jumping, jiving rockabilly hits. His song “Blue Suede Shoes” launched a label and a movement."

Our books pertaining to Sun Records can be found here. Below are some highlights from our collection.

Click here for more sound recordings from the Library's collection. 

Listed below are notable collections and items from the Rock Hall's Archives. You can find more by searching our catalog here.

Free articles are available on Rock's Backpages through the Free on RBP link. The articles below may require you to be on-site at the Library & Archives in order to read them.