Step One Records was an independent American
record label
A record label, or record company, is a brand or trademark of music recordings and music videos, or the company that owns it. Sometimes, a record label is also a publishing company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the produ ...
established in February 1984 in
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...
. The label was founded by singer-songwriter and producer
Ray Pennington
Ramon Daniel Pennington (December 22, 1933October 7, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for writing the song "I'm a Ramblin' Man", and for founding the independent Step One Records label.
Ca ...
with Curtis Potter, the former of whom had produced for
Waylon Jennings
Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music.
Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...
. At the time of the label's foundation, it was one of the few independent country music labels to have significant chart success, most notably in 1991, when the label released
Clinton Gregory's "(If It Weren't for Country Music) I'd Go Crazy", the only independently released single on the ''
Billboard'' country charts at the time of its release. The label lasted into the mid 1990s, having more visibility with
Western Flyer
Western Flyer was an American country music band founded in 1992 by Danny Myrick (lead vocals, bass guitar), Chris Marion (keyboards, vocals), T. J. Klay (harmonica, mandolin, vocals), Bruce Gust (drums, vocals), Steve Charles (lead guitar, vocal ...
's "
Cherokee Highway"
and "What Will You Do With M-E?". Other artists signed to the label included Ashley Evans,
The Geezinslaws,
Ray Price,
Faron Young
Faron Young (February 25, 1932 – December 10, 1996) was an American country music producer, musician, and songwriter from the early 1950s into the mid-1980s. Hits including "If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')" and "Live Fast, Love Hard, Di ...
, and Pennington himself.
The label closed in 1998 and the catalog is owned by Gusto Music.
Roster
*Matt Benson
*Sheryl Brewer
*
Don Cox Donald Cox or Don Cox may refer to:
* Don Cox (singer) (born 1964), American singer
*Don Cox (politician)
Don Cox is an American educator and politician from Washington. Cox is a former Republican member of Washington House of Representatives fr ...
*
Buddy Emmons
*Dawnett Faucett
*
The Geezinslaws
*
Clinton Gregory
*
The Kendalls
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...
*Jerry Lansdowne
*
Charlie McCoy
Charles Ray McCoy (born March 28, 1941) is a Grammy-winning American session musician, harmonica player, and multi-instrumentalist. In 2009, he was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Based in Nashville, McCoy's playing is heard on r ...
*
Terry McMillan
Terry McMillan (born October 18, 1951) is an American novelist. Her work centers around the experiences of Black women in the United States.
Early life
McMillan was born in Port Huron, Michigan. She received a B.A. in journalism in 1977 from ...
*
Ray Pennington
Ramon Daniel Pennington (December 22, 1933October 7, 2020) was an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for writing the song "I'm a Ramblin' Man", and for founding the independent Step One Records label.
Ca ...
*
Celinda Pink
Celinda Cosby (born 1957), known professionally as Celinda Pink, is a female country music singer. Between 1993 and 1995, she released two studio albums on Step One Records and three singles, including her 1993 single "Pack Your Lies and Go", w ...
*
Ray Price
*Bryan Smith
*
Cal Smith
Calvin Grant Shofner (April 7, 1932 – October 10, 2013), known professionally as Cal Smith, was an American country musician, most famous for his 1974 hits "Country Bumpkin" and " It's Time to Pay the Fiddler".
Career
Calvin Grant Shofner was ...
*
Gene Watson
Gary Gene Watson (born October 11, 1943) is an American country music singer. He is most famous for his 1975 hit "Love in the Hot Afternoon," his 1981 No. 1 hit " Fourteen Carat Mind," and his signature 1979 song " Farewell Party." Watson's l ...
*
Kitty Wells
Ellen Muriel Deason (August 30, 1919 – July 16, 2012), known professionally as Kitty Wells, was an American pioneering female country music singer. She broke down a barrier to women in country music with her 1952 hit recording " It Wasn't God ...
*
Western Flyer
Western Flyer was an American country music band founded in 1992 by Danny Myrick (lead vocals, bass guitar), Chris Marion (keyboards, vocals), T. J. Klay (harmonica, mandolin, vocals), Bruce Gust (drums, vocals), Steve Charles (lead guitar, vocal ...
*
Faron Young
Faron Young (February 25, 1932 – December 10, 1996) was an American country music producer, musician, and songwriter from the early 1950s into the mid-1980s. Hits including "If You Ain't Lovin' (You Ain't Livin')" and "Live Fast, Love Hard, Di ...
References
*
External links
*
{{Authority control
American country music record labels
Record labels established in 1984
Record labels disestablished in 1998
American independent record labels