Wednesday March 07 10:00 PM EST
Sun Records Rises Again
dailynews.yahoo.com
In the summer of 1954, Elvis Presley recorded his first single, "That's All Right," for producer Sam
Phillips' fledgling Sun Records. With the label's fiftieth anniversary approaching, Paul McCartney
joined Presley's original band mates -- guitarist Scotty Moore and drummer D.J. Fontana -- in a New
York studio last March to lay down a version of the song for a Sun tribute album due out this summer.
"I had more fun doing that session than I've had in years," says Fontana. "Paul said, 'We'll do it all
ourselves. We don't need nobody.' And I said, 'Well, Sir Paul, you're right.'"
The soundtrack to a Sun Records documentary being directed by acclaimed filmmaker Bruce Sinofsky,
the album features not only McCartney but a stunning lineup of rock & rollers, including Bob Dylan,
the Who and Elton John, covering both famous and obscure Sun tracks.
"The Sun Records empire was built by people who put music first," says the Who's Pete Townshend.
"There's lots of jewels in there." For their part, the Who are expected to record a version of a Jerry
Lee Lewis hit, "It'll Be Me." Dylan offers a rendition of "Red Cadillac and a Black Moustache," Jimmy
Page and Robert Plant cover "My Bucket's Got a Hole in It," and Jeff Beck and Chrissie Hynde team
up for "Mystery Train." Also signed on for the project are Mark Knopfler, Kid Rock, Van Morrison,
Sheryl Crow, the Roots, Elton John, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi and Rod Stewart.
The documentary will include footage from the album's recording sessions but will primarily offer a
look at the history of the label that launched the careers of Presley, Lewis, Johnny Cash, Roy Orbison
and many others. Following its theatrical release, it will air as part of PBS's American Masters series,
in December.
Sun Records' founder Phillips says he hopes that the film and soundtrack will turn young people on to
some of rock & roll's classic tunes. "I think those records are the most honest things," he says. "There
is an integrity that they must have, because something doesn't go on like this for fifty years unless it
sets itself apart with each individual who hears it."
JENNY ELISCU
(March 7, 2001) |
