Sept 16th

We took the free shuttle bus from the Graceland hotel and camp ground to Sun Records in Memphis.  Sun Records was the name of the studio founded by Sam Phillips who had Elvis, Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis on contract in the early 50’s.  He also recorded B.B.King, Howlin’ Wolf and Roy Orbison at Sun Records for other labels.  The tour was really entertaining due to the enthusiasm of the tour guide named Eldorado – a member of a local rock band.  This tour was awesome – the place is original from the ceiling to the floors except for the equipment.  The equipment was removed when Sam Phillips quit running the recording studio and the building was used for other things until 1985 when a local musician bought it and started doing the tours.  It is again being used as a recording studio in the evenings and has had many current stars record there for nostalgic reasons.  The control booth was not open for the tour because it has been updated with current equipment.

Our next stop was the National Civil Rights Museum at the location of the motel where Dr. King was assassinated.  It is basically a documentary of the history of the civil rights struggle for African-Americans.

Here is a slide show of today’s photos. Don’t forget to click the little box at the bottom right of the photos to get a better look.