Wondering what really happened in the Elvis Sun sessions? It began on one July night in 1954, when a break turned into a take: Elvis, Scotty Moore and Bill Black cut “That’s All Right” at Sun in Memphis.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Session that produced “That’s All Right” | July 5, 1954 |
| Musicians with Elvis | Scotty Moore (guitar) and Bill Black (bass) |
| Year Arthur Crudup first recorded the song | 1946 |
| First local radio play, per Sun Records | July 8, 1954 |
| Single released | July 19, 1954 |
| B-side | “Blue Moon of Kentucky” |
Figures come from Sun Records and HISTORY. Dates and details can change or be disputed, so check the sources before you rely on them.
This page is an independent editorial look at the music. It is part of our wider rockabilly history coverage, and it is not connected to any label, estate or brand mentioned.
How did Elvis end up at Sun in the first place?
The route to the July session ran through the Sun office, not the stage. HISTORY says Sam Phillips, who owned and operated Sun Records in Memphis, is rightly credited with discovering Presley, but that several other people made the discovery possible.
One of them was Marion Keisker, Phillips’s business partner. According to HISTORY, Phillips recorded Elvis singing “My Happiness” and “That’s When Your Heartaches Begin,” and Keisker wrote down a note about him: “Good ballad singer.” The same account says she kept bringing his name up afterwards.
The note documents early interest in Elvis’s ballad singing. He was a shy young ballad singer who seemed worth following up.
Phillips sends two session men
In early July 1954, per HISTORY, Phillips sent two of his favourite session musicians to meet Elvis and report back. They were guitarist Scotty Moore and bassist Bill Black.
The two vouched for the young singer. According to Sun Records, the trio rehearsed on July 4, 1954, for a recording session the following evening.
What happened on the night of July 5, 1954?
The plan was a run of songs, and much of it was apparently unremarkable. The breakthrough came from the margins of the session rather than from a prepared number.
The song that mattered was “That’s All Right”. Sun Records notes that Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup, a Delta blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, wrote and first recorded it in 1946. HISTORY identifies Elvis’s performance of Crudup’s song as the turning point for Phillips.
So the key moment, as these sources frame it, was a young white singer taking a blues number and giving it a different pulse. Here is what the accounts agree on:
- The session took place on July 5, 1954.
- Presley recorded his version with Scotty Moore and Bill Black.
- The song was written by Arthur Crudup, not by Elvis or the band.
- Phillips recognised on the spot that the sound was something new.
The three-piece lineup is part of the story. With only guitar, upright bass and a voice, the record left a lot of space, and that space became a signature of the early rockabilly sound.
How did the B-side and the first airplay come together?
A hit needs a flip side, and Sun did not have one. Sun’s account describes the trio returning for a B-side session, where Black started ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’ and Presley joined in.
Black tried a faster arrangement of Bill Monroe’s ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’; Presley added singing and acoustic guitar. The result was a country song from one tradition paired with a blues song from another.
That pairing is a neat summary of why the record is treated as an origin point. It joined two Southern musical streams on a single disc.
Radio and release
According to Sun Records, Dewey Phillips broadcast the recording on WHBQ on July 8 after Sam Phillips delivered it. Other sources give a slightly different date for that first play, so treat the exact day with care.
Elvis’s debut single appeared on July 19, 1954, pairing ‘That’s All Right’ with ‘Blue Moon of Kentucky’. That was Elvis’s debut single.
Why do the Sun recordings still matter to rockabilly?
For fans of the style, these early records are a reference point. They show how Elvis’s rhythm guitar and vocals, Scotty Moore’s lead guitar and Bill Black’s bass worked together.
They also show how collaborative the moment was. Keisker’s early note, the two session men, Crudup’s song and Monroe’s bluegrass number all feed into the result, which is why the story is often told as more than one man’s achievement.
If you want the label’s wider story, our sun records history page covers the studio beyond Elvis. For another landmark of the same scene, read about how the carl perkins blue suede shoes record fits alongside these sessions.
What to listen for
- Start with “That’s All Right” and note the loose, bouncing feel.
- Move to “Blue Moon of Kentucky” and compare its pace with the slow bluegrass original.
- Then hear Crudup’s 1946 version of “That’s All Right” to measure how much the arrangement changed.
Who deserves credit for the Sun breakthrough?
HISTORY makes the point directly: Phillips is rightly credited with the discovery, but the account names four others whose roles are often overlooked. Reading the two sources side by side, the chain looks like this:
- Marion Keisker first spotted something special in the young singer and kept raising his name.
- Scotty Moore and Bill Black met Elvis for Phillips and vouched for his musical talent.
- Arthur Crudup wrote the blues song Elvis was playing when Phillips realized what he had.
- Sam Phillips recognised it and pushed the trio to record properly.
Bill Monroe belongs on that list too, since his bluegrass number supplied the flip side. None of these pieces alone makes the record, and that is why the story is richer than the usual one-line version.
A note on conflicting accounts
Retellings of the session vary in small ways, such as which day the first radio play happened or exactly how the first take came about. The sources used here are two summaries, not studio logs, so the dates above are best read as the accepted outline rather than a minute-by-minute record.
If you are researching a detail for your own writing, look for book-length biographies and the label’s own archive, and compare more than one account before you quote a date.
Frequently asked questions
When was “That’s All Right” recorded?
Show answer
On July 5, 1954, at Sun in Memphis, with Scotty Moore on guitar and Bill Black on bass, according to Sun Records.
Who wrote “That’s All Right”?
Show answer
Arthur “Big Boy” Crudup, a Delta blues singer, songwriter and guitarist, who recorded it in 1946, per Sun Records.
What was on the B-side of the first single?
Show answer
“Blue Moon of Kentucky,” a Bill Monroe bluegrass classic that Presley sang with a revved-up feel.
When was the first single released?
Show answer
Sun released it on July 19, 1954.
