Having stocked up on white sequined jumpsuits at Graceland, our next stop was Beale St and the legendary Sun Studio. Sun is the record label and recording facility started by Sam Phillips, that was the home of historic recording sessions by Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash and many more. The tour was expertly delivered by Eldorado, a guy with some of the finest sideburns this side of the Mason-Dixon line.
Standing in that room and hearing clips from classic rock n' roll recordings was a memorable experience and we were bowled over by the overwhelming sense of history. An awesome experience for any musician or anyone interested in popular music culture.
In late afternoon, we popped over to the Stax Records museum on McLemore Avenue, a replica of the Stax studio built on the same site where many of the historic Stax recording sessions took place. The museum houses a similarly excellent collection of music memorabilia for fans of Memphis soul music.
From the Hammond organ used on Green Onions, to Isaac Hayes' gold plated Cadillac Eldorado, the place is a joy for anyone who ever appreciated the clothes, records and instruments of this incredible era of soul music.
At 6pm, with the temperature at 92 degrees, we got back on the road and set the dials for Texas. Seeing as how it was midnight back home in the UK, we all sang Happy Birthday to Loll, who was born on May 6. She'll be spending her birthday Crossing the States this year. Hopefully, we can make it special for her. After a short while we entered Arkansas, passing through its capital city Little Rock, and eventually pulled in to a small hotel offering free wi-fi and breakfast.
After a few exchanges with the locals, one of whom's brother in law recorded Sweet's Love is Like Oxygen (geek out), we went for dinner and spent a few hours choosing sides from a menu equivalent to the instruction book for a stereo. This much choice invites chaos for British people, but we're getting used to deciding everything that comes with a dish. We did a bit of shopping before bed and were sure to ask for 'styrofoam' cups instead of 'polystyrene' ones and 'band aids' instead of 'plasters'.
We're about four hours from Dallas, so we should be there by lunch time tomorrow if all goes to plan.
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