Scotty Moore, Elvis Presley Guitarist, Dead at 84

Scotty Moore, the guitarist who was featured on Elvis Presley’s early recordings and some of his biggest hits, has died, Billboard reports. He had reportedly been in poor health over the past few months. He was 84.

Moore played guitar at a young age, and in 1954, he started a country band called the Starlite Wranglers with Bill Black. The band started working with Sam Phillips at Sun Records, and later in 1954, Phillips asked Moore to sit down with Presley and work on a few songs. The combo of Moore, Black, and D.J. Fontana were behind Presley's legendary early Sun sessions. Moore continued working with Elvis after he was signed to RCA and appeared on several of his biggest hits including “Hound Dog,” “Jailhouse Rock,” and “Heartbreak Hotel.” He also appeared in Elvis’ earliest films.

In 1964, Moore would record a solo album, The Guitar That Changed the World. Moore became a producer and engineer. Thanks to his engineering work on Ringo Starr’s 1970 album Beaucoups of Blues, Moore noted that he was the only artist to work with both Sun and Apple Records. Eventually, he reunited with Elvis for his televised 1968 special.

Moore was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2000. Last year, he was inducted into the Memphis Music Hall of Fame.

via Evan Minsker