Scotty Moore

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Winfield Scott "Scotty" Moore III (born December 27, 1931 near Gadsden, Tennessee) is a legendary American guitarist and member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. He is best known for his backing of Elvis Presley in the first part of his career, between 1954 and the beginning of Elvis' Hollywood years.

Scotty Moore learned to play the guitar from family and friends at eight years of age. Although underaged when he enlisted, Moore served in the United States Navy between 1948 and 1952.

Moore's early background was in jazz and country music. A fan of guitarist Chet Atkins, Moore led a group called the "Starlite Wranglers" before Sam Phillips at Sun Records put him together with then teenage Elvis Presley. In 1954, Moore and double bassist Bill Black accompanied Elvis on what was going to be the first legendary Presley hit, the Sun Studios session cut of "That's All Right (Mama)", a recording regarded as a seminal event in rock and roll history. Elvis, Black and Scotty Moore then formed the "Blue Moon Boys". They were later joined by drummer D.J. Fontana. Beginning in July of 1954, the "Blue Moon Boys" toured and recorded throughout the American South and as Presley's popularity rose, they toured the United States and made appearances in various Presley television shows and motion pictures.

Moore played on many of Presley's most famous recordings including "Good Rockin' Tonight", "Baby Let's Play House", "Heartbreak Hotel", "Mystery Train", "Hound Dog", "Too Much" and "Jailhouse Rock", with the backing group The Jordanaires.

In the 1960s, Moore released a solo album called The Guitar That Changed the World. He performed on the NBC television special called Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special.

Moore played a Gibson ES-295, which is very close to the ES-175 model, but with P-90 pickups, and remains a very rare guitar.

For his pioneering contribution, Moore has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. In 2000, he was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.