Sun Studio Sun Studio Sun Studio is a recording studio opened by rock-and-roll pioneer Sam Phillips at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis, Tennessee, on January 3, 1950. It was originally called Memphis Recording Service, sharing the same building with the Sun Records label business. Reputedly the first rock and roll single, Jackie Brenston and his Delta Cats' "Rocket 88" was recorded there in 1951 with song composer Ike Turner on keyboards, leading the studio to claim status as the birthplace of rock & roll. Blues and R&B artists like Howlin' Wolf, Junior Parker, Little Milton, B.B. King, James Cotton, Rufus Thomas, and
Sam Frazier Jr. at Gilley's was Gene Watson, a legendary country artist. Sam's first big foray in the blues arena came in 1987. Sam booked a session at Sound of Birmingham recording studios in Birmingham, AL and over a six-month period, he and studio owner/producer Don Mosley finished an entire album which was released on the "Blue Rock" label out of Torrence, California. In support of that release, Sam moved to California and appeared on showcases around the state. While in California, Sam also performed with Johnny Otis in "The Johnny Otis Revue". On a return visit to Birmingham, Sam met record producer