Editorial Review:

Amazon.com:
Sun Records and Elvis Presley will always be linked in the minds of music lovers, but Sam Phillips's storied label had a rich history before the arrival of the hillbilly cat (it all started July 5, 1954, with 'That's All Right') and it continued to flourish after Phillips sold Presley's contract to RCA in late '55. Rhino's three-disc label anthology naturally hinges on Presley's recordings, swinging back to the gutbucket blues Phillips loved and forward to the rockabilly and country that became the foundation of the Sun sound in the late '50s. We Record Anything was Sun's motto, but Phillips had a finely honed ear for music that was authentic, energetic, and direct, an aesthetic that embraced everyone from Howlin' Wolf and B.B. King to Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash to Charlie Rich and Roy Orbison. The stable's leading lights are all represented in this package, but there's great fun to be had discovering the lesser-known likes of the Prisonaires, Sonny Burgess, and Billy Lee Riley. A 34-page booklet that includes an interview with Phillips rounds out this overview of what is arguably the most important imprint in rock & roll history. --Steven Stolder

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Disc 1:

1. Gotta Let You Go - Louis, Joe Hill
2. Rocket 88 - Brenston, Jackie
3. B.B. Blues - King, Riley
4. Swamp Root - Floyd, Frank [1]
5. Moanin' at Midnight - Howlin' Wolf
6. How Many More Years - Howlin' Wolf
7. There's a Man in Jerusalem - Ford
8. Rats in My Kitchen - Estes, Sleepy John
9. She May Be Yours (But She Comes to See Me Sometimes) - Louis, Joe Hill
10. Baker Shop Boogie - Nix, Willie
11. Easy - Horton, Big Walter
12. Bear Cat - Phillips, Sam [Prod
13. Take a Little Chance - Burns, Sam
14. Just Walkin' in the Rain - Bragg, Johnny
15. Make Room in the Lifeboat for Me
16. Feelin' Good - Parker, Herman
17. Tiger Man (King of the Jungle) - Burns, Sam
18. Mystery Train - Parker, Junior
19. Come Back Baby - Ross, Doctor
20. Gospel Train - Traditional
21. My Kind of Carryin' On - Moore, Scotty
22. I'm Gonna Murder My Baby - Hare, Pat
23. Cotton Crop Blues - Cotton, James

Disc 2:

1. That's All Right - Crudup, Arthur 'Big
2. Good Rockin' Tonight - Brown, Roy [1]
3. Drinkin' Wine, Spo-Dee-O-Dee - McGhee, Sticks
4. Turn Around - Perkins, Carl [Rock
5. Baby Let's Play House - Gunter, Arthur
6. Someday You Will Pay - Miller, Roy
7. Red Hot - Emerson, Bill
8. Lookin' for My Baby - Campbell, James [1]
9. Cry Cry Cry - Cash, Johnny
10. Sitting by My Window - Five Tinos
11. Mystery Train - Parker, Junior
12. Let the Jukebox Keep on Playing - Perkins, Carl [Rock
13. Defrost Your Heart - Cantrell, Bill
14. Folsom Prison Blues - Cash, Johnny
15. Blue Suede Shoes - Perkins, Carl [Rock
16. Honey Don't - Perkins, Carl [Rock
17. Let's Get High - Gordon, Roscoe
18. Everybody's Trying to Be My Baby - Perkins, Carl [Rock
19. Rock & Roll Ruby - Cash, Johnny
20. I Walk the Line - Cash, Johnny
21. Get Rhythm - Cash, Johnny
22. Ooby Dooby - Moore, Wade
23. Red Headed Woman - Burgess, Sonny [1]
24. Dixie Fried - Perkins, Carl [Rock
25. Ubangi Stomp - Underwood, Charles

Disc 3:

1. Crazy Arms - Mooney, Ralph
2. End of the Road - Lewis, Jerry Lee
3. Flyin' Saucers Rock & Roll - Scott, Ray
4. Matchbox - Perkins, Carl [Rock
5. Down by the Riverside - Traditional
6. Devil Doll - Orbison, Roy
7. Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On - David, Sonny
8. So Long, I'm Gone - Orbison, Roy
9. Red Hot - Emerson, Bill
10. Red Cadillac and a Black Moustache - May, Lilly
11. Raunchy - Justis, Bill
12. You Win Again - Williams, Hank [1]
13. Great Balls of Fire - Blackwell, Otis
14. Claudette - Orbison, Roy
15. Breathless - Blackwell, Otis
16. Guess Things Happen That Way - Clement, Jack
17. High School Confidential - Hargrave, Ron
18. Right Behind You Baby - Rich, Charlie
19. Jump Right Out of This Jukebox - Wheeler, Onie
20. Lovin' Up a Storm - Dixon, Luther
21. Mona Lisa - Evans, Ray
22. Lonely Weekends - Rich, Charlie
23. Who Will the Next Fool Be? - Rich, Charlie
24. Jack's Jump - Frost, Frank
25. Don't Put No Headstone on My Grave - Rich, Charlie
26. Cadillac Man - Minga, Tommy

Rating: - Put The Blame On Sam!
This review (and others concerning Sun Records in this space) has been used for separate CD collections. If you NEED all the best (and some middling) R&B, blues, rockabilly, roll 'n' roll Sun work under one roof this is the one for you. This is the feast of feasts.

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Howlin' Wolf, Roscoe Gordon, Rufus Thomas and an assortment of black blues notables in the early days. Elvis, Carl Perkins, Johnnie Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis and an assortment of white rockabilly notables in the mid to late 1950's. What do they have in common? Well, one thing, and make that a decisively important one thing, is that they passed through Mr. Sam Phillips' Sun Records recording studio in Memphis, Tennessee on the way to some kind of career. Amazing. With the possible exception of Chess Records in Chicago, a label that moreover concentrated on the blues no other studio can claim so much as the catalyst for what became rock and roll in the mid- 1950's, the youth of the present writer and of his Generation of `68.

That said, the impetus for this review of a compilation of Sun Record rock and roll artists is a Public Broadcasting Station's American Masters series that highlighted the ten years existence of that recording studio. There the format included a generous round of ` talking heads' interspersed with some performances, in this case, to honor the 50th Anniversary of the founding of the Sun Records (1950). The `talking heads' in that documentary include several of the artists highlighted here.

This also included many of the old Sun artists who did not attain the stardom of those mentioned in the first paragraph yet who nevertheless had some interesting things to say about the meaning of the Sun Record experience. A recurring theme is that mainly it got them the hell off the farms and out of the fields, especially those damn cotton fields. And they had fun and got paid for it. And met girls! How can you beat that? My take on this is that they were good old boys who got more out of the Sun, if not financially then musically, than they had originally bargained for. And this entire trip down memory lane is presided over by the impresario himself, the late Sam Phillips.

Most of the points made above about fates of the rock and roll artists apply here as well, except the obvious question of race both in how the artists were treated personally and financially by Phillips and the audiences that the artists could perform before that does not get dealt with adequately in the documentary except by Rufus Thomas in his fight to trace the roots of rock and roll back to the black musical influence.

As to the present compilation some comments are worth mentioning. As with all such compilations there is some unevenness in the quality of performance. Rufus Thomas on Married Woman is fine. As are Earl Hooker and Sleepy John Estes in his pre-country blues folkie days on their cuts. Tops for me is Little Milton. One should also note the high quality of the house musicians like Billy Emerson ( a fine artist in his own right) and hovering around on that old piano the late Ike Turner (can anyone forget his work on Rocket 88, although it is not on this CD. Get it, please).

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Rating: - The hot, the cool and the birth of rock & roll
The Sun Records Collection

All in all, an enjoyable 3 disc set for those who like classic rockabilly, blues, country and early rock and roll. I will say that the remastering is not flawless, and a lot of the hissing, clicks and pops from the old tapes are still there. It adds character to the recording, yes, but it also sounds like ass on a good stereo. However, that is not true of every track and overall the remastered versions are cleaner. The breakdown disc by disc is as follows.

Disc 1 is mostly a blues disc with some spirituals and boogie woogie piano numbers. Notable artists are Howlin Wolf, BB King and Rufus Thomas. Fairly enjoyable if you dig on that sound. The gospel songs really stand out, especially "There's a Man in Jerusalem" by the Southern Jubilee Singers. This a capella song has outstanding harmony and the remastering brings out the bass vocals nicely. Blues highlights are "I'm Gonna Murder My Baby" by Pat Hare mainly because it's a pretty disturbing tune. Also, "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston is a hot song, bridging the gap between blues and early rock and roll.

The second disc kicks off the rock era, with Elvis' first song "That's All Right" starting things right. This disc is from the golden era of Sun, with songs from Elvis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison and Carl Perkins. Some highlight tunes are "Drinkin' Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee" by Malcolm Yelvington, which I like because it is an odd rockabilly tune that reminds me of Screaming Jay Hawkins. Also, "Red Hot" by Billy "The Kid" Emerson is worth a mention because it's a decent little song that is covered by another Sun artist on the 3rd disc, and this version is about 8000% better than the cover by Billy Lee Riley. Other notable songs are Johnny Cash's first hit, "Cry Cry Cry," as well as his additional hits with the Tennessee Two "I Walk The Line" and Folsom Prison Blues." However, the show stopper on this album is the original "Blue Suede Shoes" by Carl Perkins.

Three starts out with another Sun superstar, Jerry Lee Lewis. Honestly, Jerry owns this disc with 8 tracks out of 26. Notables are his hits "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On," "Breathless" and "Great Balls of Fire," the last being close to a theme song for Jerry. One of the more interesting tracks is the gospel song "Down By The Riverside" as it is performed by the "Million Dollar Quartet" of Carl Perkins, Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis and Johnny Cash. There are some interesting articles out there on the irony of that myth. Also interesting is Jerry Lee Lewis' cover of Hank Williams' "You Win Again." Its follows the lines of the original, but has some added vocals and such that make it a rock ballad. It also has the creepiest song in the world, "Right Behind You Baby" by Ray Smith, which is also apparently the first recorded song about stalking a woman.

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Rating: - Treasure Chest Of Early Rock
This is Music that wasn't motivated by fame and fortune. This cd collection features your early Elvis Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins,Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash, Howlin Wolf BB King and many others. It features your first rock song Rocket 88. The songs on the collection would go on to influence bands like The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton as well as many others. I would recommend this collection to a true music fan.

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Rating: - Absolultely Essential for Historians/Fans
This superb Rhino box set collects the best of the enormous treasure trove of music recorded during the heyday of Sam Phillips' Sun Record Studio in Memphis. There is a wealth of material to pick from, but this release by Rhino is by far the finest, most informative, and affordable representation of the Sun legacy released to date. There is little marginal material included here. The story begins with "Rocket 88," believed by many to be the first rock and roll recording, and segues into haunting sides recorded by BB King, Joe Hill Louis, and Howlin' Wolf. The best of Elvis Presley's early Sun sides are here (including "That's Allright, Mama," and "Mystery Train," perhaps the most exciting 2 minutes of music ever waxed), as are the best output of Jerry Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison, and Charlie Rich. The legacy continues into the early 60's with the country-flavored sides of Warren Smith and Billy Lee Riley. An extremely informative, well-researched booklet and discography penned by reknowned expert Colin Escott accompanies this flawless 3-CD survey of the most important record company in the history of recorded music.

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Rating: - If only ....
Elvis hadn't succumbed to Col. Tom Parker and stuck to this material ("That's All Right,'' "Mystery Train''). He wouldn't have made as much money, but he probably would have lived longer and produced more rewarding work.

Beyond that, this is a wonderful set. Look at the material recorded in a relatively short period in 1954 and 1955 that still lives. From Johnny Cash ("Folsom Prison'' and "I Walk the Line"); Carl Perkins ("Blue Suede Shoes'') Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis and on and on through Howlin Wolf, B.B. King, et. al. An interesting note in the booklet _ "Blue Suede Shoes'' was No. 2 on the pop and R%B charts, No. 1 in country. That's something that's rarely happened since in a comparmentalized market.

Interesting. Phillilps and Sun were clearly color blind before their time. So much so that they also produced "Ubangi Blues,'' a blatantly racist track that includes the "n'' word. It didn't offend me as much as it reflected how much society has changed in the last half-century.

This is worth of for Elvis.
But it's worth it for the others, too.