At the heart of the city's tourist district is the famed Beale Street, a shock of neon and colors and food smells and constant nighttime movement and sound. However, it deteriorated in the '70s and '80s. All that changed in the mid-'80s with the revitalization of Beale Street. During the Memphis in May Blues Festival, Beale Street looks a lot like New Orleans, with throngs of people meandering from one club to another, enjoying street musicians, wonderful sounds and tempting smells. While you're in the groove, it's the perfect time to visit Sun Studio, which still houses the original studio where Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bobby Blue Bland, Rufus Thomas and Roy Orbison recorded.
People come from every corner of the world for a tour of Sun Studio, where rock and roll began.
The 30-minute tour takes you upstairs to the new museum and gallery, which is filled with a rare collection of '50s and '60s memorabilia and musical instruments used by B.B. King, Ringo Starr and others. Even today the studio continues to be a favorite recording spot for U2, Marty Stewart, Tom Petty, Ringo Starr and Paul Simon. Sun Studio is only five minutes from downtown, so on your way back into town take a quick tour of the quaint Mississippi riverbank community of Harbor Town, a Charlestonlike neighborhood set atop the bluffs of the Mississippi River. It's an interesting contrast to the rest of the city's old cotton warehouse buildings that have been converted into restaurants, coffee shops, lofts and apartments. A trip to Memphis wouldn't be complete without a visit to the Rendezvous, a world-famous barbecue restaurant in a downtown alley.