I got this book from NetGalley, so I can read and review it before it’s published.
As a music fan, I knew who Carl Perkins was and was interested in learning more about him. Plus, The Beatles covered some of his songs and The Beatles were my favorite band for a very long time. I am 47 years old, and after I turned 13 years old, I purchased all there albums with some of Bar Mitzvah money! I added books, memorabilia, and posters to my Beatles collection throughout the years. As I have gotten older, I am not as big as a fan as I used to be. I still like music, don’t get me wrong, especially 60’s, but I tend to skip over Beatles songs. Maybe I am just Beatled Out!
I rarely stop and screenshot quotes from books, but this one had two that popped out to me:
“If there were no Carl Perkins, there would be no Beatles.” – Paul McCartney.
“If it hadn’t been for your daddy, I would have never picked up the guitar.” – George Harrison to Stan Perkins, Carl’s son.
I really enjoyed learning more about his life and how some of his hit songs came to be. Carl was one of the first major stars from Sun Records and Sam Phillips, the founder. Yes, also on that short list is Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Johnny Cash. It was Carl who suggested to Lewis to not just sit still at the piano! It was a Carl recording session with Jerry Lee Lewis playing on a song, and Elvis was just hanging in the control room. Elvis then moved to the studio to jam and Sam Phillips called Johnny Cash to come in asap, and that was how the million dollar quartet came to be!
Carl had some bad things happen to him (car accidents, drinking, and close friends and family dying), but he never gave up. He was also totally dedicated to his wife and kids.
Unfortunately, after he recorded Blue Suede Shoes in 1955, he never had another hit and he also switched record companies a few times. Despite that, he did get back by playing with Johnny Cash, and later Carl turned solo with his own group, The CP Express, which his son’s were in! How awesome is that! When he first started, Carl’s bandmates were his brothers.
Overall, I enjoyed it and it was a quick and easy read for me.
