New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Seventy years later at Sun Studios, in the very same room where Elvis Presley recorded "That's All Right," Ruthie Foster, accompanied by producer Tyler Bryant (Tyler Bryant & The Shakedown), performed her slow-burn version of the Arthur "Big Boy" Crudup classic. Here, Foster reprises her sultry Delta blues-styled rendition, which appears on her Sun Records debut, Mileage. That release, her 10th album, earned the label its first ever GRAMMY® nomination.
"That's All Right" has been a talisman of sorts for the legendary label. It was written and recorded by Crudup in 1946, but became a mainstream smash when Elvis Presley recorded it for Sun in 1954. It put both the hip-swinging singer and the fledgling label on the map. Foster reverentially returns the song to its blues roots on Mileage.
"It was magical tracking that song in a room that has so much history. You could feel all of the blues, country, and rock n' roll that had been recorded there," Foster said. "It was both humbling and beautiful to perform that song, in that room, and be a part of the Sun Records lineage—a label that has profoundly shaped the landscape of American music and beyond."
No doubt the rock n' roll ghosts were all ears as Foster's slow and soulful vocals filled the room with blues majesty while Bryant accompanied her with gutbucket swagger on acoustic guitar. It could be argued that rock n' roll was born in this room, and Foster and Bryant delivered on Sun's legacy in a performance elegantly captured in black and white and shot in one take.
In one triumphant artistic gesture, Foster pays tribute to Sun's legacy and her own heritage as a Black roots music artist. Foster's perfect take of "That's All Right" is also a beautiful memento from a profound time in Sun Records' history, with her nomination at the 67th Annual GRAMMY® Awards for Mileage as Best Contemporary Blues Album. The only other Grammy association for the label happened back in 1991, when Sun founder Sam Phillips was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Grammy.
Mileage is an emotive and enlightening scrapbook of memories and life lessons from Foster's East Texas heritage and her experiences as a queer Black female artist. It came together organically through Foster and Bryant's heartfelt conversations. She co-wrote the songs with Bryant and his wife, GRAMMY®-winning singer/songwriter and multi instrumentalist Rebecca Lovell, one half of the duo Larkin Poe.The album is a soulful synthesis of blues, Americana, and gospel, effortlessly aligned with Sun's musical legacy while also bringing Foster's singular experiences and identity to the forefront. It's garnered wide critical acclaim, with the title track landing on Spotify's Best of Blues 2024 playlist.
Foster is a six-time GRAMMY® nominee who has brazenly carved her own path pushing the blues into the 21st century with her eclectic Americana aesthetic. She has collaborated with such modern masters as Susan Tedeschi, Derek Trucks, and Larkin Poe.
