Carl Lee Perkins has been called “The King of Rockabilly” and an “architect of rock and roll.” He was a guitarist, singer and songwriter best known for his country/R&B/pop crossover hit “Blue Suede Shoes.” That’s right. Elvis’ version was a cover.

Carl was born April 9, 1932, in Tiptonville, TN, the son of sharecroppers who put him to work in those cotton fields at age 6. His musical roots trace to gospel and blues sung by field hands, and Bill Monroe’s bluegrass heard on Saturday’s Grand Ole Opry radio show. Carl was introduced to the guitar by an old African American field hand, “Uncle John” Westbrook, but was mostly self-taught. His first “guitar” was fashioned by his father from an old cigar box and broomstick. His first real instrument was a battered $2 acoustic. Still, Carl soon became proficient and even began writing his own songs. He won a local talent contest at 13, and the next year started playing in bars with his brothers.

1949

The group was locally famous for Carl’s distinctive sound, an up-tempo fusion of blues and country. Carl didn’t know that a kid from Tupelo, MS, was making the same kind of music until 1954, when he heard Elvis’ version of Bill Monroe’s “Blue Moon of Kentucky” on the radio. Carl decided to go to Sun Records in Memphis, TN, where clearly the producer of Elvis’ record, Sam Phillips, understood what Carl was doing.  Carl auditioned for Phillips, was signed to the label and started cutting what were now called “rockabilly” records. It was 1955, and Carl joined a stable of performers that included Elvis, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash – “The Class of '55.” 

By the end of 1955, Carl had written and recorded “Blue Suede Shoes.” When it was released on January 1, 1956, it was a smash hit across the charts, the first time that had ever happened. The song was #1 on the Billboard Country, #2 on the R&B, and #2 on the Pop charts. The “fickle finger of fate” intervened in March, when Carl and his brother were seriously injured in a car crash in Delaware, while traveling to NY for a big TV show. While still in the hospital, he saw Elvis performing “Blue Suede Shoes” and talking it up on television. By the time he got back on the road, Elvis’ version had become the standard. 

December 4, 1956 is now famous for an impromptu jam session of Sun performers Perkins, Lewis and Cash, along with Elvis (who had moved to a new label). The so-called "Million Dollar Quartet" met up at Sun studios and thankfully someone rolled tape. Unreleased until 1981 in Europe and 1990 in the US, it contains seminal rock and roll, as well as gospel and Christmas songs.

The Million Dollar Quartet: Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, Elvis (December 4, 1956)

Carl picked up where he had left off, staying true to his rockabilly sound, recording minor hits and touring. He would never again have a #1 record. Rock and roll was now king. In 1964, Chuck Berry convinced a reluctant Carl to tour the UK with him. Carl was worried that as forgotten as he seemed to be in the US, it could only be worse across the pond. Berry assured him that the Brits appreciated rock’s roots music more than was the case in the US, and Carl was gratified to find Chuck was right. The blues rockers flocked to his shows and wanted to meet him. He met and jammed with the Beatles, and was delighted to find out that George Harrison taught himself to play guitar listening to Carl's records. Said Paul McCartney: “Without Carl Perkins, there would be no Beatles.”

This is another example of the British Invasion bringing awareness of rock's roots back to the US, where that history was sadly neglected. The Beatles, the Stones, the Yardbirds, Clapton, et al., re-introduced the US to its own music history.

"The Class of '55": Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, Johnny Cash

In the 1970s, Carl toured with pal Johnny Cash, and became a frequent guest on his popular TV show. In 1985, the Class of '55 tribute album featured Carl, Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, and a 1957 addition to Sun Records, Roy Orbison. Later that year, the 30th anniversary show Blue Suede Shoes: A Rockabilly Session featured Carl, George Harrison, Eric Clapton, Dave Edmunds, Lee Rocker, Rosanne Cash and Ringo Starr. It was a highlight of Carl’s later career that brought him to tears. Carl was inducted into the rock and roll HOF in 1987. 

While working on another album in 1989, Carl was diagnosed with throat cancer. He survived and continued to work. In 1996, he published his autobiography Go Cat Go! and released an album of the same name. It contains Carl performing duets with Bono, Johnny Cash, John Fogerty, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Tom Petty, Paul Simon, and Ringo Starr.

Carl suffered a series of strokes, and died in 1998, at the age of 65.

Here's to the King of Rockabilly, Carl Perkins!