Sun Records - General Discussion

[nodorothyparker]

Cool.  I was just looking for this.

[nodorothyparker]

Man, I want to like this show so much more than than I do.  The musical bits are mostly terrific, even if I'm still not fully buying Kevin Fonteyne in sound or characterization as Johnny Cash and every single account of that fateful recording of "Rocket 88" can agree that the fuzz guitar distortion didn't come from a buckshot-riddled speaker even if they agree on little else.  Three episodes in though it still feels like a lot of this stuff just isn't coming together in any cohesive sort of way.  The one Elvis scene really served no purpose other to remind the audience that he is in fact on the show, while the Jerry Lee/Swaggart scenes seem to exist at this point only as comic relief even if one did occur in a very cherry red Chevy.  Oh, those lovable scamps!  But someday ...

Historical accuracy issues aside, I loved the introduction of Ike Turner.  The actor was hitting the line between justifiably cocky and assholishness perfectly as well as selling his resentment that he'd had both the lead vocal and the songwriting credit for what would become one of the seminal singles of rock history basically swiped out from under him.   The scenes of recording the song itself were magical.  I'm assuming we're probably not going to see much more of Trevor Donovan as Eddy Arnold as that part of Colonel Parker's story moves on, which is a shame because he's been doing a bang-up job in what's something of a thankless role as the singer we're NOT here to see.  

We get it show.  Sam Phillips the man was a mess who managed to make music history with a combination of ingenuity and sheer dumb luck.  Do we really need scenes of his car careening drunkenly through the streets to make that point?

[Raja]

So far the church cousins are my favorite ongoing bit on the show. They seem so much younger than young Elvis that I keep thinking are they time shifting.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Johnny: These krauts sure know how to [drink beer].
Johnny's friend: Yeah, if the war had been a drinking contest, we would have lost.
Johnny: We had prohibition. We got out of practice.

Sam: Ike, you're a hell of a piano man.
Ike: Heh, well, thank you, Mr. Phillips.
Sam: But I ain't gonna jive you.. You can't sing for crap.
Ike's bandmate: Man, we've been trying to tell him that for two years.
Ike's other bandmate: Three years.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Sam's worsening anxiety attacks lead to a radical new medical procedure. Elvis tries to win Trixie back. Overseas, Johnny Cash makes a decision that will affect his girlfriend back home.

[nodorothyparker]

The Memphis Commercial-Appeal doing a bit of fact checking on Record Man Blues:

http://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/local/the-901/2017/03/10/901-sun-records-episode-3-rock-n-roll-born/98998818/

[ElectricBoogaloo]

I agree that I don't need to see drunk driving and generally being a mess as much as we do. I don't know how much of that is due to my dislike of The Chad, but I find him more tolerable when he's actually working (as opposed to screwing his employee, snapping at his wife, or swerving down the road).

I'll be sorry if we don't see any more of Eddy Arnold because he was one of the good things I enjoyed seeing every week. I know the show is juggling a lot of storylines and characters but I'll be sad if that's the last we've seen of Eddy.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Drake Milligan on Playing Elvis Presley:

[CruiseDiva]

I've been following Drake's journey since we met on The Elvis Cruise when he was only nine years old. He's such a nice young man and I'm so happy to see his success.

[Angeltoes]

He is adorable!  I just read that the kids (well, they look like kids to me) that play Jerry Lee and Jimmy are really twin brothers.

I wonder if the real Jerry Lee watches this.  Hard to believe he's the last man standing out of that crowd.

[Raja]

Was Keb Mo supposed to be playing Howlin' Wolf? If so in this case I guess I was prejudiced by Eamon Walker's portrayal of a man you knew was to be reckoned with in Cadlilac Records

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Sam finds another hit with Johnny Bragg and the Prisonaires; Becky makes a surprising announcement; Elvis enlists Sam to help him record a song for his mother; Johnny takes his relationship with Vivian to the next phase.

 

Edited March 19, 2017 by ElectricBoogaloo

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Sam: You're my wife, Becky. Stop acting like my damn mother.
Becky: Well then you stop acting like a damn child.

Army guy: No wonder these Russkies are miserable bastards. Their damn booze is made out of potatoes.
Johnny: Who cares if it's made out of dirty socks if it does the job?
Army guy: What do you expect from a hick who drinks whiskey made from corn?
Johnny: That ain't whiskey. That'd be corn liquor.

Would you care for a cocktail, Marian? Or a sherry?
Marion: Wild Turkey, neat.

Sam: You know what I need, Marian? I need someone who does the administrating of this studio to be here when I'm doing sessions. Do you know where I could find someone like that, Marian?
Marion: Only if you can find someone to produce the sessions when I'm doing the administrating, which seems to be more my problem than yours lately.
Sam: Awwwwwww, come on. Just how hard can that administrating be?
Marion: Who answers the phones? Who makes sure we got enough acetates, tape stock, office supplies while making sure there's fresh coffee, not to mention cleaning the filthy toilets.
Sam: You finished?
Marion: The Rocket 88 deal. How much money does Chess Records owe us? Hmm. Who checks the BMI statements? Who writes the checks? Not just signs them and makes sure we got enough in the bank and deals with the bill collectors when we don't? Who's working a second job, which I'm doing to help you?

Dewey: My head feels like a gravy train with biscuit wheels.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

So I guess the point of this episode was to fully illustrate what an ass Sam is? I just can't with a guy who has a wife AND a girlfriend and then has the nerve to complain about his wife to his girlfriend and get mad that his girlfriend went on a date with someone else. It's also pretty hard for me to feel sorry for someone who self medicates so much that he crashes into a kid's swingset.

I was totally with Becky when Sam told her to top acting like his mother and she told him to stop acting like a child. She is doing everything she can to bring in some money and he's lying to her about having to work when he's really just sitting at the studio doing NOTHING (or sleeping with Marion or drinking with Dewey).

I was also on Marion's side when he got all territorial because of her date and said he needed an employee who would be at the studio when he had sessions scheduled. Marion has been doing his job on top of her job (for very little pay, I'd bet) so he can STFU with his pity party. Wah, my mistress isn't here for me every second of the day! I also loved when she listed all the things that she does because you know he has no idea how much work she actually does to run the studio. I was so glad when she told him no and pushed him away, but then she had to turn around and go back because she looooooooves him. Ugh.

Loved that Elvis followed his mom advice perfectly to win Trixie back. I was surprised that Trixie's dad was so jovial about Elvis climbing up to Trixie's room. I am much younger than Trixie and my dad would have killed anyone who snuck into my bedroom!

[nodorothyparker]

This one was a tough one to sit through and a tough one to think of anything to say about it.  Other than the small window we get into the history of mental illness and electroconvulsive therapy, there just wasn't much there.  We get it.  Sam has a wife and a mistress and is an ass to both.  He's pissy and unsatisfied that the next big thing hasn't walked through his door yet and has to "waste his time" recording small potatoes stuff that barely pays the bills.  I did appreciate Marion unloading him on just how much she does to keep everything afloat but of course by the end of the episode she was back to holding his wife's hand again.

It's incredible to me that we're four episode into an eight-episode run and we've still seen almost no movement in the story of what would give Sun its place in history.  Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee are still off doing their own thing and Elvis hasn't done more than make a delivery and continue to moon after a girl.  The fact that there was so little music this episode also didn't help matters any. 

[nodorothyparker]

11 hours ago, Raja said:

Was Keb Mo supposed to be playing Howlin' Wolf? If so in this case I guess I was prejudiced by Eamon Walker's portrayal of a man you knew was to be reckoned with in Cadlilac Records

Yes, that was Keb Mo portraying Howlin' Wolf at the club.  He would also record his first singles at Sun at this same time period that would be distributed by Chess.

[mojoween]

It's interesting that of all the screen tests I'm assuming they did Chad was the one who they said "yes!  He's perfect!"

Last week we got a parental advisory obviously because of the n word, was this week's because of the racist word when Trixie's dad was talking about someone Japanese in the war?

I'm not interested in what Colonel Parker is doing at this point of the story and hope it gets somewhere soon.

[nodorothyparker]

What media there was about this episode was all about CM breezing around naked in the scene with Becky and the neighbor lady.  I assumed the advisory was probably about that even thought he was only TV naked in that you didn't really see all that much.  

I like Billy Gardell in the role of Parker and it's obvious he's enjoying it too, but yeah, it all feels pretty superfluous at this point to the bigger story, such as it is.

[CruiseDiva]

I enjoyed the music--what there was of it--but little else.

[Sarah 103]

On March 19, 2017 at 10:49 AM, nodorothyparker said:

It's incredible to me that we're four episode into an eight-episode run and we've still seen almost no movement in the story of what would give Sun its place in history.  Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee are still off doing their own thing and Elvis hasn't done more than make a delivery and continue to moon after a girl.

Here is my prediction for where the series is heading episode by episode. This prediction is based on the end point/episode 8 being the Million Dollar Quartet session in December of 1956. I could total see a version of this miniseries where the last image is the actors recreating the Million Dollar Quartet picture. It changes to the real picture, and then we get title cards with a brief summary of carreer highlights of the lead characters. 

Episode 5: Lewis attends Southwest Bible Institute. Elvis makes the record for his mother. Johnny Cash is discharged from the army and marries Vivian Liberto.

Episode 6: Lewis is expelled from Southwest Bible Institute. Elvis starts recording for Sun. Cash moves to Memphis.  

Episode 7: Lewis starts recording for Sun Records. Cash starts recording for Sun Records. Elvis signs with Colonel Tom Parker.  

Edited March 21, 2017 by Sarah 103

[nodorothyparker]

Darius Rucker will be guesting as Prisonaires lead singer Johnny Bragg:
 

[nodorothyparker]

Darius Rucker is rating a mention for his portrayal of  Prisonaires lead singer Johnny Bragg:

http://www.rollingstone.com/country/news/see-darius-rucker-play-singing-prisoner-on-sun-records-w473180

http://theboot.com/darius-rucker-sun-records-johnny-bragg/

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Quote

Sam and Marion take Elvis on the road to promote "Blue Moon,”. Colonel Tom Parker pays a heavy price for his gambling, while Jerry Lee tries to stay on the straight and narrow in his new married life.

Sneak peek:

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Sex, love, and rock & roll

[nodorothyparker]

I liked this episode a lot more than its predecessor, probably because it gave us a couple of big musical moments, but good God am I tired of the Sam-Becky-Marion story.   Divorce was still a pretty scandalous thing at the time and not all that easy to get depending on what state you were in and we're to buy that Sam and Marion think they're doing Becky a huge favor by forcing that on her while she's still young enough to meet someone else?  Mostly I'm just annoyed that the two lovely recording sessions we got this week had to play soundtrack and take a backseat to their stupid drama.

Drake Milligan is killing me with how absolutely dead on he sounds like young Elvis.  Even with the scene spending more time on Sam and Marion nuzzling in the sound booth, watching him lay down that first "My Happiness" and knowing what it will eventually lead to gave me goosebumps.  This is what I was wanting from the show.  Because my mind was wandering when Vernon Presley was later haranguing Elvis about wasting his money on recording, I looked up the conversion of a dollar in 1953 when he made the recording to today and got $9.04 in 2017 dollars.  So unemployed daddy was complaining about his truck driving teenager wasting the equivalent of $36. 

Darius Rucker really made the most of his cameo appearance both in his singing and in laying a few hard truths on Sam about white justice and what music meant to him.  There's some comfort, I suppose, in knowing that their fame from this session would result in some opportunities to perform throughout the region and eventual commutation of Johnny Bragg's sentence so he didn't die in prison.  If we didn't know who the Jerry Lee character is going to become, at this point I'd be wondering why the show is bothering with him or his look alike cousin at all because they're not really adding anything to the story.  Dewey's story at least is foreshadowing all the problems he's going to have in the coming years with payola and corporate playlists and the FCC solidifying standards.

[Sarah 103]

On March 24, 2017 at 10:20 AM, nodorothyparker said:

 If we didn't know who the Jerry Lee character is going to become, at this point I'd be wondering why the show is bothering with him or his look alike cousin at all because they're not really adding anything to the story.

I think you could make that argument about almost all of the characters that will go on to be famous singers. Elvis and Johnny Cash are involved in variations of boy meets girl stories. Also, I doubt there are few people watching this miniseries who don't already know how it ends for the lead characters (Elvis, Jerry Lee, Johnny Cash). I think this is going to be a miniseries about the time before they were stars.  

[Simba122504]

Marion would be called an old maid by the everyone in town. She's still unmarried and childless. It's 2017 and sadly people still treat unmarried, childless women like aliens from another planet. It was even worst in the '50s. I'm also sick of that LT. Sam is not going to leave his wife. Not only is Mrs. Phillips a typical '50s housewife. She's a blind one too. 

Edited March 27, 2017 by Simba122504

[nodorothyparker]

That's a clip from last week.  The one for this week actually has me kind of giddy:
 

[Lorna Mae]

Is this the end of the season? I don't see an episode 7 in upcoming.

[nodorothyparker]

It's supposed to be an 8 episode season.

[CruiseDiva]

Apparently they couldn't get permission to perform "That's All Right Mama" but "Blue Moon of Kentucky" is a winner. I love Drake.

[Sarah 103]

On March 29, 2017 at 9:17 PM, Lorna Mae said:

Is this the end of the season? I don't see an episode 7 in upcoming.

I have an episode 7 scheduled on my DVR. Based on the preview, I'm really hoping episode 7 involves a shopping trip to Lansky Brothers. 

[nodorothyparker]

The preview suggests that it does.

"Blue Moon of Kentucky" is a great interpretation of a great song but yeah, this lost a little something for me watching them pushing pushing pushing and failing to get a Bill Monroe cover played by white DJs when we know historically that a lot of the early objections were that Elvis was singing "black" music and blurring that color line.  I'm sure copyright/permission issues must be a right bitch trying to make a series like this and I did like their sly acknowledgement of it with that throwaway line that maybe they should have offered to play "That's All Right Mama" on the other side of the record after they'd been shown the door yet again.

I feel like I say it every episode he's gotten to sing in, but Drake Milligan is a goddamn wonder.  He absolutely nails that young Elvis sound so thoroughly that if I wasn't really paying attention I think I might have a hard time telling the difference.  He also does a nice job channeling the head ducking self-effacing quality that Elvis had in those early interviews.  

I get that they have to keep highlighting Sam's financial struggles to show what he was really up against in making these monumental discoveries but not having the resources to properly promote them that will eventually lead to the RCA sale, but I am so over watching him argue yet again with the exasperated long suffering Becky.  Hopefully, Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee's stories are going to tie in in these last two episodes because right now they almost feel like they're happening on a separate show.

[CruiseDiva]

Drake is a wonder. His version of My Happiness is actually better than Elvis' original recording. However, Drake is so true to the Elvis tribute artist persona that I can forgive him for being (almost) superior to Elvis in his early days.

[nodorothyparker]

The Memphis paper is, like us, unclear about the reasoning for subbing one song in for another in that historic recording session.  Their take on "Who They Were Meant to Be:"

http://www.commercialappeal.com/story/news/local/the-901/2017/03/31/901-sun-records-recap---elvis-presleys-origin/99862050/

[Sarah 103]

Drake has done an excellent job of capturing Elvis's voice and mannerisms. 

Also, does anyone know the name of the song Elvis was singing in the car? I know they were making up their own lyrics, but the tune sounded so familiar. Thanks to anyone who can help answer this question. 

Edited April 2, 2017 by Sarah 103

[mojoween]

It occurred to me that I don't care about anyone but Elvis and to a lesser extent Johnny.  No other storyline holds my interest.  Like let's just get on with Colonel Parker meeting Elvis, I don't need all the other backstory.

That's interesting about the show not getting the rights to "That's All Right" because it was driving me nuts that they weren't playing it.  That's kind of an important detail that the show should have fought harder for.

Anyone who pines for the "good ol' days" should listen to Elvis prepping for an interview by being told to mention his high school so people would know he is white.  Christ.  

[Lorna Mae]

On 4/1/2017 at 8:01 PM, Sarah 103 said:

Also, does anyone know the name of the song Elvis was singing in the car? I know they were making up their own lyrics, but the tune sounded so familiar. Thanks to anyone who can help answer this question. 

I thought it was "I Want Candy ".

[Sarah 103]

22 hours ago, mojoween said:

It occurred to me that I don't care about anyone but Elvis and to a lesser extent Johnny.  No other storyline holds my interest.  Like let's just get on with Colonel Parker meeting Elvis, I don't need all the other backstory.

Anyone who pines for the "good ol' days" should listen to Elvis prepping for an interview by being told to mention his high school so people would know he is white.  Christ.  

@mojoween- What you're calling backstory is this story/miniseries. We're not going to see Elvis buy Graceland, or Cash record his famous album At Folsom Prison. At around episode 4 or 5 I started to suspect that the end point was going to December 1956, and now I'm close to certain. The writers could still surprise me. 

I totally agree with you about your second point. I think many of the people who pine for "good ol' days" might also be in favor of segregated schooling. It's awful, but true.  

[nodorothyparker]

It seems pretty obvious to me now that that's end point we're heading toward too.  It doesn't mean some of these other stories haven't felt like filler or a way to get characters on the canvas even though they really don't have a lot or anything at all to do with the Sun story just yet.

It's funny to me that for as much as I found the "Elvis, stay out of the black church" storyline kind of clunky, I honestly think they've played down quite a bit of the race angle of the larger story here.  Fans of the genre have almost certainly read the Marion Keisker quote that Sam famously said he'd make a billion dollars if he ever found a white boy who could credibly produce the black sound as music was so heavily segregated at the time.  But I didn't really get much sense of that in this episode.  Part of it is probably that they were using "Blue Moon of Kentucky" by Bill Monroe, a white man, instead of "That's All Right Mama" by Arthur Crudup, a black man, with all the connotations that would have come with that.  The show also wasn't making it clear why they were having a hard time getting the various DJs to play the record, just as I don't think it's done a good job of spelling out that Dewey's suspension and continuing woes with WHBQ had a lot to do with his heavy rotation of black blues musicians and the inevitable accusations of promoting race mixing that would have come with it.

[nodorothyparker]

Elvis gets his first taste of fame when he starts playing live shows. Colonel Tom Parker scams his way out of debt and eyes an opportunity with Elvis. Johnny returns from overseas to begin his life with Vivian.

[nodorothyparker]

And we finally get a trip to Lansky Bros.

[Sarah 103]

10 hours ago, nodorothyparker said:

And we finally get a trip to Lansky Bros.

Yes! This makes me so happy! I was really hoping we'd get to see something like this. I love the clothes.

I have an inflation calculator on my smartphone, so if anyone was curious here are the priced adjusted for inflation.

$10 jacket in 1955 dollars, which is $91 in 2017 dollars

$6.50 pants in 1955 dollars, which is $60 in 2017 dollars

$12.00 shoes in 1955 dollars, which is $109 in 2017 dollars

Rounding up to account for sales tax, the total comes to $29.00 in 1955 dollars, which is $260 in 2017 dollars.

Now all we need is a recreation of some of the Wertheimer photographs and my wish list will be complete. 

Edited April 7, 2017 by Sarah 103
added prices adjusted for inflation

[Sarah 103]

I know it was pure silly cheese, but I really liked the intercut of Jerry Lee and Johnny Cash as door to door salesman. 

I'm not someone who's familiar with many gospel songs, so I was trying to figure out why "Just A Closer Walk With Thee" seemed so familiar. All of a sudden I could sort of hear a version of the song that was slightly different in tone, and a mental image started to form and it all become clearer and clearer-it was in Cool Hand Luke. 

[CruiseDiva]

14 hours ago, Sarah 103 said:

I'm not someone who's familiar with many gospel songs, so I was trying to figure out why "Just A Closer Walk With Thee" seemed so familiar. All of a sudden I could sort of hear a version of the song that was slightly different in tone, and a mental image started to form and it all become clearer and clearer-it was in Cool Hand Luke. 

The first time my husband and I went with my mother-in-law to her Southern Baptist church I nudged him when the choir began singing "Amazing Grace" and whispered that's a Willie Nelson song! Then, they sang "I Saw the Light" and he shushed me before I could say Johnny Cash!!

I'm Episcopalian and had never herd those songs in church. LOL!!

[nodorothyparker]

Colonel Tom Parker presses to take over Elvis’ career but Sam struggles with the decision to let his star go. Jerry Lee’s philandering catches up with him, and Johnny starts his own band.

[Razzberry]

The Peabody Hotel ducks!  Still performing twice daily. lol

[nodorothyparker]

It's been a decade since I was last at the Peabody and had the chance to see them so that was fun.

They certainly left the door open for a possible second season, didn't they?  I wasn't expecting that.

[Razzberry]

I didn't even realize it was the season finale until I read your reply!   They can't stop now, we haven't even seen the big four jamming.  Too much time spent on Marion?  I don't know what the ratings were like but I sure hope it comes back.  

[nodorothyparker]

From what I've been able to find, it started off strong ratings wise, dropped off a chunk in the middle as the story seemed to meander a bit on Sam's marital woes, and was regaining these last couple of weeks.  There's been no official yes or no on a second season yet, but a number of TV writers I've read seem to think it's likely given that the numbers weren't terrible and CMT has been vocal about wanting to build more original programming since it snagged Nashville from ABC.  I did notice yesterday when I went to the network site to get the program synopsis that although the show was originally billed as a "limited series" everything is now labeled Season 1, so here's hoping.

I actually thought this was a pretty decent finish for a season finale.  If it was intended as a series finale, I would be left wondering what was the point of including the Jerry Lee story at all since he has yet to venture anywhere near Sun and hasn't figured into the larger story at all.  Johnny Cash's story finally feels like it's moving in a way that he's recognizable now as the icon he'll become and the actor seems to finally be growing into the role, but he hasn't gotten there yet either.  I liked the increased use of music throughout that we know will go on to become iconic, as well as lesser known gems like "Hearts of Stone."  The use of "Love Me" and its lyrics of "treat me like a fool" felt a little dead on in the scene where both Elvis and Sam knew that Elvis was shopping for a more lucrative deal but neither could acknowledge it.  It was nicely done nonetheless and as always, I'm left marveling at how great Drake Milligan has been in this.

Chad Michael Murray and his accent have been uneven at times throughout this run, but he really sold this episode as a man who knows he's holding something truly once in a lifetime in his hands but also knows he has no means to do anything with it and stands to lose it all.  It's been a long time since I last visited Sun Studios, but I remember the official tour being pretty matter of fact that "yeah, Phillips sold Elvis for $35,000, which seems like a stupid decision, but he needed the money" in a way that doesn't really convey how tough that must have been.  Sam's scene with Dewey slobbering drunk over Alan Freed's claim as the DJ who discovered rock n' roll made me want to hug them both.   Don't worry, guys.  When the history books are written, you'll be remembered for this.