Carl Perkins

Born in Tennessee in 1930, Carl Perkins began playing country music with his brothers. He signed to Sun Records and recorded Blue Suede Shoes which won a gold disc and was later covered by Elvis Presley.

Perkins had another hit with Matchbox (later recorded by The Beatles) and was at the height of his career when tragedy struck in 1957. He and his group were driving to New York to appear on Perry Como’s TV show when their driver fell asleep at the wheel, causing the car to hit the back of a truck before plunging into water. The driver was killed and Carl and his brother Jay were seriously injured. Although Perkins was back on the road in about a month, Jay never fully recovered and was later diagnosed with a brain tumor, from which he died in 1958.

Carl Perkins died in 1998.