Cultural Heroes and One-of-a-Kinds: Saluting Sam Phillips.

Sun Studios founder Sam Phillips. He is revered as one of the leading catalysts in post WW II American music. As a record producer in the 1950s and 60s his recordings launched the careers of Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins, and Jerry Lee Lewis and that’s just to name a few. Next Month, Phillips will be a celebrity host on the public radio program Beale Street Caravan. Phillips is now in his mid 70s.

Froom produced albums by Elvis Costello, Los Lobos, Richard Thompson, and Suzanne Vega. He joins Fresh Air to talk about how he pushes artists to new musical territories.

Tom Waits, Patti Smith, Marc Almond, Marianne Faithfull, Shane MacGowan and others appear on a new two-disc compilation of pirate ballads and sea songs called Son of Rogues Gallery. Here, Terry Gross talks with Hal Willner, the project's producer, about some of the stories behind the project.