Class of '55
Encyclopedia
Class of '55 is a 1986 album
by Johnny Cash
, Jerry Lee Lewis
, Roy Orbison
and Carl Perkins
.
While the album was in part a tribute to Elvis Presley
, it was mainly a commemoration of those young performing hopefuls, the four album participants included, who came to Sun Records
in 1955 to make music in the new era of Rock and Roll
. Recorded at Sam Phillips'
Sun Studios and completed at American Sound Studios, the album was documented by Dick Clark Productions, which filmed it from start to finish; by The Commercial Appeal, the Mid-South's largest circulation newspaper; and by Nine-O-One Network Magazine
, the first edition of which was sold with the album in a telemarketing package.
The final song of the session, "Big Train (from Memphis)", written by John Fogerty,includes the blended voices of John Fogerty
, The Judds
, Dave Edmunds
, Ricky Nelson
, Sam Phillips
, and June Carter Cash
. Fogerty told a reporter that he was thinking about the old Sun Records sound when he wrote the song.
The recorded "Interviews from the Class of '55 Recording Sessions" earned the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
for the four performers plus for producer Chips Moman, Sam Phillips
and Ricky Nelson
. For Nelson, it was his last recording session and only Grammy Award
of his career.
Cash, Lewis and Perkins had previously collaborated in 1956 with the Million Dollar Quartet
and in 1982 with The Survivors Live
.
Side two
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by Johnny Cash
Johnny Cash
John R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
, Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer-songwriter and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis's career faltered after he married his young cousin, and he afterwards made a career extension to country and western music. He is known by the nickname 'The...
, Roy Orbison
Roy Orbison
Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer-songwriter, well known for his distinctive, powerful voice, complex compositions, and dark emotional ballads. Orbison grew up in Texas and began singing in a rockabilly/country & western band in high school until he was signed by Sun Records in Memphis...
and Carl Perkins
Carl Perkins
Carl Lee Perkins was an American rockabilly musician who recorded most notably at Sun Records Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, beginning during 1954...
.
While the album was in part a tribute to Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley
Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
, it was mainly a commemoration of those young performing hopefuls, the four album participants included, who came to Sun Records
Sun Records
Sun Records is a record label founded in Memphis, Tennessee, starting operations on March 27, 1952.Founded by Sam Phillips, Sun Records was known for giving notable musicians such as Elvis Presley , Carl Perkins, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash...
in 1955 to make music in the new era of Rock and Roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
. Recorded at Sam Phillips'
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
Sun Studios and completed at American Sound Studios, the album was documented by Dick Clark Productions, which filmed it from start to finish; by The Commercial Appeal, the Mid-South's largest circulation newspaper; and by Nine-O-One Network Magazine
Nine-O-One Network Magazine
Nine-O-One Network Magazine was a bi-monthly music magazine published in Memphis, Tennessee, from 1986 to 1989.-Beginnings:The magazine originated during the heralded 1986 “Class of '55” recording session in Memphis with Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Carl Perkins. Producer Chips...
, the first edition of which was sold with the album in a telemarketing package.
The final song of the session, "Big Train (from Memphis)", written by John Fogerty,includes the blended voices of John Fogerty
John Fogerty
John Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
, The Judds
The Judds
The Judds were an American country music duo composed of Naomi Judd and her daughter, Wynonna Judd. Signed to RCA Records in 1983, the duo released six studio albums between then and 1991. One of the most successful acts in country music history, The Judds won five Grammy Awards for Best Country...
, Dave Edmunds
Dave Edmunds
David 'Dave' Edmunds is a Welsh singer, guitarist and record producer. Although he is primarily associated with Pub rock and New Wave, and had numerous hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, his natural leaning has always been towards 1950s style rock and roll.-Early bands:As a teenager Edmunds first...
, Ricky Nelson
Ricky Nelson
Eric Hilliard Nelson , better known as Ricky Nelson or Rick Nelson, was an American singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, and actor...
, Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
, and June Carter Cash
June Carter Cash
Valerie June Carter Cash was an American singer, dancer, songwriter, actress, comedienne and author who was a member of the Carter Family and the second wife of singer Johnny Cash...
. Fogerty told a reporter that he was thinking about the old Sun Records sound when he wrote the song.
The recorded "Interviews from the Class of '55 Recording Sessions" earned the 1987 Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album
The Grammy Award for Best Spoken Word Album has been awarded since 1959. The award had several minor name changes:*In 1959 the award was known as Best Performance, Documentary or Spoken Word...
for the four performers plus for producer Chips Moman, Sam Phillips
Sam Phillips
Samuel Cornelius Phillips , better known as Sam Phillips, was an American businessman, record executive, record producer and DJ who played an important role in the emergence of rock and roll as the major form of popular music in the 1950s...
and Ricky Nelson
Ricky Nelson
Eric Hilliard Nelson , better known as Ricky Nelson or Rick Nelson, was an American singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, and actor...
. For Nelson, it was his last recording session and only Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
of his career.
Cash, Lewis and Perkins had previously collaborated in 1956 with the Million Dollar Quartet
Million Dollar Quartet
"Million Dollar Quartet" is the name given to recordings made on Tuesday December 4, 1956 in the Sun Record Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. The recordings were of an impromptu jam session among Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash. It was arguably the first...
and in 1982 with The Survivors Live
The Survivors Live
The Survivors Live is a live album by country musicians Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis, released in 1982 on Columbia Records. It was recorded on April 23, 1981 in Böblingen, near Stuttgart, West Germany, when all three singers, who had been labelmates at Sun Records at the beginning...
.
Track listing
Side one- Carl Perkins – "Birth of Rock and Roll" (Carl Perkins/Greg Perkins) – 4:21
- Jerry Lee Lewis – "Sixteen Candles" (Luther DixonLuther DixonLuther Dixon was an American songwriter, record producer, and singer. Dixon's songs achieved their greatest success in the 1950s and 60s, and were recorded by Elvis Presley, The Beatles, The Jackson 5, B.B. King, Dusty Springfield, and others...
/Allyson Khent) – 3:48 - Carl Perkins – "Class of '55" (Chips MomanChips MomanLincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman is an American record producer, guitarist, and songwriter. As a record producer, Moman is known for recording Elvis Presley, Bobby Womack, Carla Thomas, and Merrilee Rush, as well as guiding the career of the Box Tops in Memphis, Tennessee during the 1960s...
/Bobby Emmons) – 2:56 - Perkins, Lewis, Orbison & Cash – "Waymore's Blues" (Waylon JenningsWaylon JenningsWaylon Arnold Jennings was an American country music singer, songwriter, and musician. Jennings began playing at eight. He began performing at twelve, on KVOW radio. Jennings formed a band The Texas Longhorns. Jennings worked as a D.J on KVOW, KDAV and KLLL...
/Curtis Buck) – 2:25 - Johnny Cash – "We Remember the King"' (Cash/Lewis/Orbison/Perkins) – 2:58
Side two
- Roy Orbison – "Coming Home" (Orbison/Will JenningsWill JenningsWilbur H. "Will" Jennings is an American songwriter who is popularly known for writing the lyrics for "My Heart Will Go On", the theme for the film Titanic .-Life and education:...
/J.D. Souther) – 3:59 - Perkins, Lewis, Orbison & Cash – "Rock and Roll (Fais-Do-Do)" (Michael Smotherman) – 3:17
- Jerry Lee Lewis – "Keep My Motor Running" (Randy BachmanRandy BachmanRandolph Charles "Randy" Bachman, OC, OM is a Canadian musician best known as lead guitarist, songwriter and a founding member for both the 1960s–70s rock band The Guess Who, and the 1970s rock band Bachman–Turner Overdrive...
) – 2:52 - Johnny Cash – "I Will Rock and Roll with You" (Cash) – 2:01
- Perkins, Lewis, Orbison & Cash – "Big Train (from Memphis)" (John FogertyJohn FogertyJohn Cameron Fogerty is an American rock singer, songwriter, and guitarist, best known for his time with the swamp rock/roots rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival and as a #1 solo recording artist. Fogerty has a rare distinction of being named on Rolling Stone magazine's list of 100 Greatest...
) – 7:56
Personnel
- Johnny Cash — vocals, guitar
- Carl Perkins — vocals, guitar
- Jerry Lee Lewis — vocals, piano
- Roy Orbison — vocals
- Jack Clement, Marty Stuart — background vocals, guitar
- Reggie Young, Bob Wootton, Kenneth Lovelance, J.R. Cobb — guitar
- Memphis Strings — strings
- Ace Cannon, Wayne Jackson, Jack Hale Jr., Bob Lewin — horns
- Bobby Emmons — keyboards, Snyclavier
- Mike Leech, Bob Moore — bass
- Gene Chrisman, WS Holland, Buddy Harmon — drums
- Toni Wine, Paul Davis, Dan Penn, June Carter Cash, Rebecca Evans, Chips Moman, Sam Philips, John Fogerty, Dave Edmunds, The Judds, Rick Nelson — background vocals
Chart performance
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 15 |