Indeed, it was his filial affection that first prompted him to visit Sun Records, whose studios offered the sophisticated equivalent of a fairground recording booth service. In 1953, as a birthday present to his mother, Gladys, Presley cut a version of the Ink Spots' "My Happiness", backed with the Raskin/Brown/Fisher standard "That's When Your Heartaches Begin". The studio manager, Marion Keisker, noted Presley's unusual but distinctive vocal style and informed Sun's owner/producer Sam Phillips of his potential. Phillips nurtured the boy for almost a year before, in July 1954, putting him together with country guitarist Scotty Moore and bass player Bill Black. Their early sessions showed considerable promise, especially when Presley began alternating his unorthodox low-key delivery with a high-pitched whine. The amplified guitars of Moore and Black contributed strongly to the effect and convinced Phillips that the singer was startlingly original. In Presley, Phillips saw something that he had long dreamed and spoken of discovering; a white boy who sang like a negro.
Presley's debut disc on Sun was the extraordinary "That's All Right (Mama)", a showcase for his rich, multi-textured vocal dexterity, with sharp, solid backing from his compatriots. The b-side, "Blue Moon Of Kentucky", was a country song, but the arrangement showed that Presley was threatening to slip into an entirely different genre, closer to R&B.