Carl Perkins

Carl Perkins was born in Jackson, Tennessee in 1932 and grew up playing guitar with his brothers, drawing from the country, blues, and gospel music around him. In the mid-1950s, Sam Phillips at Sun Records heard his raw playing and recorded him. The result was 'Blue Suede Shoes' in 1955, a song that became an immediate hit with its twangy guitar and pounding rhythm.

That record helped define what people called rockabilly, a sound Perkins kept exploring on songs like 'Dixie Fred,' 'Honky Tonk Gal,' and 'Go Cat Go.' A serious car accident in 1956 kept him off the road for nearly two years, just as his career was taking off. Elvis Presley's cover of 'Blue Suede Shoes' became a massive hit around the same time, which created some understandable frustration for Perkins.

He kept recording through the late 1950s and 1960s, putting out albums like 'Dance Album of the Year' and 'Boppin' the Blues.' His band often included his brothers Jay and Clayton on guitar and bass, with W.S. 'Fluke' Holland on drums. Perkins was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987. He died in 1998 at age 65.