Ranwood Records was an American record label started in 1968 by Randy Wood (after he left

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In 1956, the company moved ...

) and

Lawrence Welk Lawrence Welk (March 11, 1903 – May 17, 1992) was an American accordionist, bandleader, and television impresario, who hosted the ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1951 to 1982. His style came to be known as "champagne music" to his radio, tele ...

. Lawrence Welk owned all of the recordings that he released on Dot as they were produced and manufactured by Teleklew Productions and leased to Dot. These were repackaged for reissue on Ranwood. Welk did not own or buy those recordings he made for Coral and they continue to be owned by Universal Music. Most of Welk's later recordings were released on Ranwood. The label released albums by ''The Lawrence Welk Shows cast members, including

Jo Ann Castle Jo Ann Castle (born September 3, 1939) is an American honky-tonk pianist, best remembered for appearing on ''The Lawrence Welk Show''. She adopted her stage name from the name of an accordion manufacturer, another instrument she played proficien ...

Guy & Ralna Guy & Ralna are an American singing duo who appeared as regulars on television's ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' from 1970 to 1982. Musical career The act consists of Guy Hovis and Ralna English, who married in early 1969 and made their Welk debut on ...

Clay Hart Clay Hart (born July 1, 1942) is an American country music singer and guitarist who was a member of ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' television program from 1969 to 1975. Biography Born Henry Clay Hart, III, and reared in Providence, Rhode Island; he a ...

Tom Netherton Thomas Harold Netherton Jr. (January 11, 1947 – January 7, 2018), was an American singer. He was known for his tenure on ''The Lawrence Welk Show''. Early life Netherton was born on January 11, 1947, in Munich, Germany while his father, a Un ...

, and

Ava Barber Ava Marlene Barber (born June 28, 1954) is an American country music singer and performer. She is best remembered for her performances on ''The Lawrence Welk Show'' throughout much of the 1970s and early 1980s. She is also known as a recording a ...

. Welk acquired Wood's interest in the label in 1979. Ranwood's releases were mostly albums and 45 rpm singles. Musicians who recorded for Ranwood but were unrelated to Welk's TV show included

The Mills Brothers The Mills Brothers, sometimes billed the Four Mills Brothers, and originally known as the Four Kings of Harmony, were an American jazz and traditional pop vocal quartet who made more than 2,000 recordings that sold more than 50 million copies an ...

Jim Nabors James Thurston Nabors (June 12, 1930 – November 30, 2017) was an American actor, singer, and comedian, widely known for his signature character, Gomer Pyle. Nabors was discovered by Andy Griffith while working at a Santa Monica, California, Sa ...

Sounds of Sunshine Sounds of Sunshine were an American sunshine pop group from Los Angeles, California consisting of three brothers. The group released one album on Ranwood Records in 1971, which peaked on the ''Billboard'' 200 at #187. Its title track, "Love Means ...

, The Exotic Guitars, The Charles Randolph Grean Sounde and Damita Jo. During the mid-1980s, the label was folded into

Welk Music Group Welk Music Group is an American record company comprising Ranwood Records. It was founded by Lawrence Welk and is still owned by the Welk Family. The company evolved from when Welk's Teleklew Productions acquired Harry Von Tilzer Music in 1957. Wel ...

, which also acquired

Vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

and Sugar Hill. In 2015, Welk Music Group sold the Vanguard and Sugar Hill labels to

Concord Bicycle Music Concord Music Group was an American independent music company based in Beverly Hills, California, with worldwide (including the U.S.) distribution through Universal Music Group. The company specialized in recordings ( Fearless Records, Concord R ...

while retaining ownership of the Ranwood catalog. Welk licensed the Ranwood catalog to Concord Music Group for ten years.

References

{{Authority control 1968 establishments in the United States American country music record labels Jazz record labels Lawrence Welk Pop record labels Record labels established in 1968

See also

References