'The friendly face-off between the King and the killer is still phenomenal. It's like eavesdropping on the jam session of the Gods - Perkins' guitar-picking is divine, while Elvis and Jerry Lee bust a lung trying to out-earnest one another on the mostly gospel repertoire'. (Record Collector).
2016 marked the 60th Anniversary of a one-off meeting of rock'n'roll giants at Sun Studios on December 4th, 1956. Consequently, the recordings made on that day by the so-called Million Dollar Quartet really do have legendary status.
Carl Perkins was completing a recording session on which Jerry Lee Lewis had been playing the piano when Elvis Presley dropped by to visit his old friends at Sun, where he had made his first seminal recordings a couple of years earlier. The scene was set for an extraordinary impromptu jam session which was fortunately recorded for posterity by Sam Phillips' engineer Jack Clement.
Supported by Carl Perkins' band, Elvis, Carl and Jerry spontaneously run through a mixture of popular songs of the day, country favorites as well as the old country-gospel tunes which had so influenced the trio.
Johnny Cash's actual involvement in the surviving tracks has for many years been a matter of conjecture. Although his voice does not seem to appear on any of the surviving tracks, several reliable authorities, including Cash himself in his autobiography, have stated that he was definitely present and performed on several songs.
The music we hear is a mixture of snippets of songs, passages of dialogue as well as several complete or near-complete songs. In one particularly fascinating segment, Elvis talks about and sings three of his own then-current releases, 'Don't Be Cruel', 'Paralysed' and 'That's When Your Heartaches Begin'.
The striking Deluxe Gold Metallic Gatefold Sleeve features in-depth notes by Martin Hawkins, period photos, and recollections of the historic event from Sun Records founder Sam Phillips.
Buy 'The Million Dollar Quartet' audiophile-quality double LP on 10-inch vinyl
'The Million Dollar Quartet' audiophile-quality double LP on 10-inch vinyl.
Side A
01. You Belong In My Heart (00:45)
02. When God Dips His Love In My Heart (00:17)
03. Just A Little Talk With Jesus (03:59)
04. (Walk That) Lonesome Valley (02:43)
05. I Shall Not Be Moved (03:31)
06. (There'll Be) Peace In The Valley (02:13)
07. Down By The Riverside (02:27)
Side B
01. I'm In A Crowd But Oh, So Alone (01:17)
02. Farther Along (02:05)
03. Blessed Jesus, Hold My Hand (01:27)
04. On The Jericho Road (00:48)
05. I Just Can't Make It By Myself (01:17)
06. Little Cabin Home On The Hill (00:37)
07. Summertime Has Passed And Gone (00:10)
08. I Hear A Sweet Voice Calling (00:39)
09. Sweetheart, You Done Me Wrong (00:27)
10. Keeper Of The Key (02:09)
11. Crazy Arms (00:16)
12. Don't Forbid Me (01:15)
13. Medley : Too Much Monkey Business / Brown Eyed Handsome Man (01:18)
14. Out Of Sight, Out Of Mind (00:40)
15. Brown Eyed Handsome Man (01:52)
Side C
01. Reconsider Baby (02:53)
02. Don't Be Cruel (02:22)
03. Don't Be Cruel (02:14)
04. Paralyzed (03:01)
05. Don't Be Cruel (00:34)
06. There's No Place Like Home (03:39)
07. When The Saints Go Marching In (02:19)
Side D
01. Softly And Tenderly (02:44)
02. Is It So Strange ? (01:12)
03. That's When Your Heartaches Begin (05:09)
04. Brown Eyed Handsome Man (00:21)
05. Rip It Up (00:21)
06. I'm Gonna To Bid My Blues Goodbye (03:43)
07. Crazy Arms (03:43)
08. That's My Desire (01:14)
09. End Of The Road (01:50)
10. Black Bottom Stomp (01:12)
11. You're The Only Star In My Blue Heaven (01:13)
12. Elvis Farewell (00:34)
Buy 'The Million Dollar Quartet' audiophile-quality double LP on 10-inch vinyl