Sun Studio In 1957, Bill Justis recorded his Grammy Hall of Fame song "Raunchy" for Sam Phillips and worked as a musical director at Sun Records. In 1969, Sam Phillips sold the label to Shelby Singleton, and there was no recording-related or label-related activity again in the building until the September 1985 "Class of '55" recording sessions with Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash, produced by Chips Moman. In 1987, the original building housing the Sun Records label and Memphis Recording Service was reopened by Gary Hardy as "Sun Studio," a recording label and tourist attraction that has
Sam Phillips (musician) the name "Sam" professionally in 1988 when she left Myrrh Records and signed with Virgin Records in order to distance herself from her prior persona. With "The Indescribable Wow" Philips moved into mainstream music. The album featured the orchestrations of Van Dyke Parks. "Cruel Inventions" was released in 1991, and included a guest performance by Elvis Costello. 1994's "Martinis and Bikinis" was widely praised by music critics and was nominated for a Grammy Award; her second nomination (the first was as Leslie Phillips). In 1995, Phillips made her film acting debut as the mute terrorist Katya in the Bruce Willis