Hot off the presses at United, Third Man Records’ next trio of Sun Records reissues is ready to make its way onto your turntable. This is the second installment of their ongoing partnership with Sun (the first (http://thirdmanrecords.com/news/view/sun-records-reissue-series), including The Prisonaires, Johnny Cash, and Rufus Thomas), with each release remaining faithful to its original issue. We’ve replicated the classic logo and label design and coupled it with a custom sleeve that employs the rooster that Sun founder Sam Phillips regretted losing when the label stopped pressing 78’s and moved exclusively to 45’s. One of the first releases to be pressed as a 45 by Sun during this transition is the first 7″ included in this set, D.A. Hunt’s “Lonesome Old Jail” b/w “Greyhound Blues.”

D.A. Hunt’s “Lonesome Old Jail” b/w “Greyhound Blues” TMR-224 (http://thirdmanstore.com/featured/greyhound-blues-b-w-lonesome-old-jail)

Daniel Augusta Hunt, better known as Junior Hunt, was born in Munford, AL in 1929. On or around March 11th, 1953, Hunt recorded these two songs at 706 Union Avenue in Memphis and they were released in June of that year. For over 50 years, these songs were believed to only exist in 78 rpm form, until a copy pressed as a 45 rpm 7″ single turned up in Minnesota. This only known copy was sold on eBay in 2010 for $10,323. This marks the first legitimate release of Hunt’s material on a 7″ record, and both songs are outstanding examples of the heartbreaking, desolate nature of the solo bluesman accompanying himself on guitar and borrow heavily from the template set by Lightnin’ Hopkins. Hunt was arrested in Memphis in 1958 for stealing a saxophone and died in May 1962 in Phoenix, AZ.

Roy Orbison and the Teen Kings “Rockhouse” b/w “You’re My Baby” TMR-225 (http://thirdmanstore.com/featured/greyhound-blues-b-w-lonesome-old-jail-1)

Most likely recorded in June of 1956, “Rockhouse” is a prime example of quintessential, undiluted rockabilly. While Roy and the Teen Kings’ stint with Sun would be brief, the sheer power unleashed on these tracks is palpable. Most folks are only familiar with Orbison’s perfected pop orchestrations recorded for Monument Records in the ’60s, but his roots were firmly planted in the dusty West Texas sound, were influenced heavily by Buddy Holly and Elvis Presley, and remain equally important as the work of both.

Jerry Lee Lewis “Great Balls of Fire” b/w “You Win Again” TMR-226 (http://thirdmanstore.com/featured/greyhound-blues-b-w-lonesome-old-jail-2)

Like the Golden Gate Bridge, hot dogs, Wrigley Field, Converse All-Stars, and Jack Daniels, “Great Balls of Fire” is of the uppermost echelon of cultural exports America has ever produced. If you don’t already know this, it’s okay…you can buy this single now and no one will be the wiser.The Killer at his finest.

Purchase all three as a bundle (http://thirdmanstore.com/featured/sun-records-reissue-bundle-2-d-a-hunt-roy-orbison-jerry-lee-lewis), or individually on our Sun Records Reissue page. The limited edition SUN RAY ™ versions of these singles will be available at a future date with location TBA.

Learn more about the first installment of this series here:
http://thirdmanrecords.com/news/view/sun-records-reissue-series

Available at Third Man Records and local, independent record shops:
http://thirdmanstore.com/the-shaw-tapes-live-in-detroit-5-27-88

“The best garage band in America since the ’60s. Very primitive…they made people with Les Pauls and Marshall amps look like idiots.” – Jack White

The Gories began in the cultural vacuum of Detroit in 1986. With humble beginnings at a community concert series through a tumultuous end on their 1992 European tour, this is a band whose influence has far outstretched the ground they covered. Rooted in the primal, primitive underpinnings of 50’s rhythm and blues and unhinged 60s garage punk, the sound the came to was wholly their own. Over two years in the making, Third Man collectively feels like a bunch of teenage fanboys with the release of The Shaw Tapes: Live in Detroit 5/27/88. Recorded at house party in a converted store front, the band captured here is at the height of their powers. Featuring covers of classics by the likes of John Lee Hooker, the Stooges and Willie Dixon, as well as a bevy of their oft-imitated originals, Live in Detroit 5/27/88 is the Gories first live album, their fourth full-length and their first widespread release since 1992. While band members Mick Collins and Dan Kroha would go on to wider recognition in the Dirtbombs and Demolition Dolls Rods respectively, the Gories should be viewed in the same influential context as the Velvet Underground and the Cramps. While they may have barely sold any records, the folks that saw and heard these bands were inspired to create. It’s high time the Gories get their due and there’s no better evidence than this explosive live recording from 25 years ago.

The Gories
The Shaw Tapes: Live in Detroit 5/27/88
CD/LP/download
AVAILABLE NOW

Tracklist:
1. Nautiloid Reef (the Nautiloids)
2. Leavin’ Here (Eddie Holland)
3. I Think I’ve Had It
4. To Find Out (The Keggs)
5. Boogie Chillen (John Lee Hooker)
6. Real Cool Time (The Stooges)
7. Charm Bag
8. Sovereignty Flight
9. Again & Again (The Iguanas)
10. Thunderbird ESQ
11. Hate (The Stoics)
12. Train Kept a Rollin’ (Tiny Bradshaw)
13. I Just Wanna Make Love to You (Willie Dixon) / Give Me Love