![]() ![]() “It brings out personality traits in the musicians that I write about in the book, and in the same way that the book covers a wide range of performers and styles the record does too. “It brings some of the stories to life,” he says. More: Scott Barretta: Blues Hall of Fame to induct Miss. ![]() I spoke to Gordon about how the album complements the book. That trait, he argues, was epitomized in the way Sam Phillips teased out raucous rock n’roll from a young Elvis who initially aspired to be a crooner. It does, nevertheless, encompasses what Gordon sees as Memphis’ distinctive musical ethos, oriented more to capturing the renegade spirit of artists pursuing their individuality rather than deliberately aiming for mainstream success. The 12-track album, "Memphis Rent Party: The Blues, Rock & Soul," - including seven previously unreleased songs - doesn’t cover each of the artists covered in the book. In addition to legendary figures in blues and soul (Bobby “Blue” Bland, James Carr), and rockabilly (Jerry Lee Lewis, Charlie Feathers), Gordon captures that ethos through portraits of producers Sam Phillips and Jim Dickinson as well as out of towners whose found a musical home in Memphis (Cat Power, Tim Buckley) ![]() The book builds upon magazine articles, album liner notes and interviews that Gordon, a native of the Bluff City, wrote between the mid-‘80s and the mid-‘90s, and addresses the renegade spirit that Gordon identifies as exemplifying Memphis’ distinctive musical orientation. ![]()
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