Sam Phillips once remarked of Chester Arthur Burnett, "When I heard Howlin' Wolf, I said, 'This is for me. This is where the soul of man never dies.'
On January 3, 1950, Phillips opened the "Memphis Recording Service" at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, which also served as the studios for Phillips' own label, Sun Records, through the 1950s. In addition to musical performances, he recorded events such as weddings and funerals, selling the recordings.
Phillips recorded what some—notably music historian Peter Guralnick—consider the first rock and roll record: "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats, a band led by 19-year-old Ike Turner, who also wrote the song. The recording was released on the Chess/Checker record label in Chicago, in 1951. From 1950 to 1954 Phillips recorded the music of black rhythm and blues artists such as James Cotton, Rufus Thomas, Rosco Gordon, Little Milton, Bobby Blue Bland, and others. Blues legends such as B.B. King and Howlin' Wolf made their first recordings at his studio. In fact, Phillips deemed Howlin' Wolf his greatest discovery and he deemed Elvis Presley his second greatest discovery.
I like to give credit where credit is due. That's just how I roll. Some people mistakenly believe that the blues is a black or white thing. It is true that many of the great bluesmen were black, it is also a fact that there were many white men standing behind them encouraging them, enabling them, cajoling them, collaborating with them to create this great art form that we all love so much.
Any way, I just want to shed some light on the men who stood with the bluesmen. Who helped them become the giants that we know today. In the coming months I plan to cover their bios, books, music, and other contributions of the following in a series of post I'm calling "The Men Behind the Bluesmen."
Lenard Chess
Phil Chess
Sam Philips
Alan Lomax
Robert Palmer
And many, many others.
