A benefit concert was held at Bethel Springs School on September 17, 1954, shortly after local schools resumed for the fall, and the lineup included a young Elvis Presley in his first documented live concert outside Memphis, Tennessee. Presley was then drawing moderate regional media attention for his first single, That’s All Right / Blue Moon of Kentucky (SUN 209), but he was still far from the superstar he would soon become. The small gathering of McNairy County students was electrified by his new style, even though two weeks later his music received a chilly reception at the more traditional Grand Ole Opry. Future rockabilly icon Carl Perkins was in the audience and noted the crowd’s enthusiastic response. He later said the event was a turning point in his career, the first time he realized that the music he and Presley were pioneering appealed to younger record-buyers. Presley and Perkins met here as virtual unknowns, and both are now considered founding fathers of Rock ‘N’ Roll music.