Phillips Recording got his start, and a studio in Tupelo, Mississippi for demos. The Nashville and Tupelo studios were short-lived. Sun Records' many artists recorded there until 1969, when the label was sold to Mercury Records producer Shelby Singleton of Nashville. Phillips Recording continued operating, and hosted recordings by a newer generation of rock-and-roll groups like the Cramps, starting in 1979, drawn in part by the mystique of Sam Phillips. Numerous Memphis veteran sessions musicians of several genres, from soul to country, rock and others, have worked there over the years, and the studio still records various musical styles. Sam Phillips' son
Phillips' Sound Recording Services and microphone linked to the studio above. The recordings would normally be on tape, and then transferred to disc, although the tape was recorded over again during the next session. Because of trams, trucks, and horses going up and down Kensington, Phillips had to hang heavy blankets over the studio door and a rear window to minimise the noise. Phillips' first recording was of himself singing "Bonnie Marie of Argyle", (unaccompanied) and a few days later he recorded "Unchained Melody", with local dance band singer Betty Roy. The first disc he cut in the studio was on 7 August 1955,