Poplar Tunes / One-Stop Shop

Poplar Tunes / One-Stop Shop (HM1MSB)

Location: Memphis, TN 38105 Shelby County
Buy Tennessee State flags at Flagstore.com!
Country: United States of America
Buy United States of America flags at Flagstore.com!

N 35° 8.914', W 90° 2.636'

  • 0 likes
  • 0 check ins
  • 0 favorites
  • 646 views
Inscription

306-308 Poplar Avenue

Poplar Tunes

Calling itself "Memphis' Original Record Shop," Poplar Tunes lived up to its billing. Founders Joe Cuoghi and John Novarese opened the store in 1946, selling records for the retail, wholesale and jukebox trade. Demo records lined the shelves with turntables at the end of each row, allowing customers to hear records before deciding to buy. A young Elvis Presley, who lived nearby, bought his first record here. As his career began to take off, Elvis frequented the shop, hiding in a corner to hear how customers were reacting to his latest release. Another drop-in was Sam Phillips of Sun Records, often introducing Cuoghi to new talent, such as Jerry Lee Lewis. The store's success led to the founding of Hi Records, headquartered next door. Hi's most famous artists were the Bill Black Combo, Willie Mitchell and Al Green.One-Stop Shop
Before the days of "Top 40" charts, Poplar Tunes, circulating its own chart, became a barometer and major influence of popular music tastes. Boosting the store's reputation was disc jockey Dewey Phillips. With his free-wheeling, rapid-fire banter, "Daddy-O-Dewey" urged his listeners to: "Get yourself a load of goober dust, take it to Joe Cuoghi at Poplar Tunes and tell him Phillips sent you." During off hours Phillips and local artists would visit the shop, spin new releases and rate them. He compared his picks and exchanged industry gossip with Cuoghi, who was regarded as the city's foremost music insider and often a make-or-break critic of new releases. Young artists felt they had arrived if Cuoghi invited them to hold autograph signings at Poplar Tunes. Phillips died at age 46 in 1968. Cuoghi died two years later, at age 48, leaving Novarese to run the shop. It closed in 2009.
Details
HM NumberHM1MSB
Tags
Year Placed2015
Placed ByShelby County Historical Commission
Marker ConditionNo reports yet
Date Added Tuesday, August 11th, 2015 at 9:03pm PDT -07:00
Pictures
Sorry, but we don't have a picture of this historical marker yet. If you have a picture, please share it with us. It's simple to do. 1) Become a member. 2) Adopt this historical marker listing. 3) Upload the picture.
Locationbig map
UTM (WGS84 Datum)15S E 769298 N 3893520
Decimal Degrees35.14856667, -90.04393333
Degrees and Decimal MinutesN 35° 8.914', W 90° 2.636'
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds35° 8' 54.84" N, 90° 2' 38.16" W
Driving DirectionsGoogle Maps
Area Code(s)901
Which side of the road?Marker is on the right when traveling West
Closest Postal AddressAt or near 300 N Lauderdale St, Memphis TN 38105, US
Alternative Maps Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap

Is this marker missing? Are the coordinates wrong? Do you have additional information that you would like to share with us? If so, check in.

Check Ins  check in   |    all

Have you seen this marker? If so, check in and tell us about it.

Comments 0 comments

Maintenance Issues
  1. Is this marker part of a series?
  2. What historical period does the marker represent?
  3. What historical place does the marker represent?
  4. What type of marker is it?
  5. What class is the marker?
  6. What style is the marker?
  7. Does the marker have a number?
  8. This marker needs at least one picture.
  9. Can this marker be seen from the road?
  10. Is the marker in the median?