Oh Boy Records is 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 ...

founded in 1981 by singer

John Prine John Edward Prine (; October 10, 1946 – April 7, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter of country-folk music. He was active as a composer, recording artist, live performer, and occasional actor from the early 1970s until his death. He ...

, his manager Al Bunetta, and their friend Dan Einstein. The label has released more than 40 audio and video recordings by singer-songwriters Prine,

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are " Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", " Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the ...

, Daniel "Slick" Ballinger, Shawn Camp, Dan Reeder, and

Todd Snider Todd Daniel Snider (born October 11, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter whose music incorporates elements of folk, rock, blues, alt country, and funk. Early career Todd Snider was born in Portland, Oregon, but was raised in nearby Beave ...

, along with a dozen reissues of classic country music artists. Oh Boy Records also manages two subsidiary labels, Steve Goodman's Red Pajamas Records and specialty label Blue Plate Music. Oh Boy is based 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 ...

History

Al Bunetta was a talent manager with

Paul Anka Paul Albert Anka (born July 30, 1941) is a Canadian-American singer, songwriter and actor. He is best known for his signature hit songs including " Diana", " Lonely Boy", " Put Your Head on My Shoulder", and "(You're) Having My Baby". Anka also ...

's management company CMA, working with artists such as Bette Midler, Al Green, and The Manhattan Transfer. When Anka signed John Prine and Steve Goodman to management contracts in 1971, Bunetta became the manager for both of them. In 1980, Prine finished his recording contract with

Asylum Asylum may refer to: Types of asylum * Asylum (antiquity), places of refuge in ancient Greece and Rome * Benevolent Asylum, a 19th-century Australian institution for housing the destitute * Cities of Refuge, places of refuge in ancient Judea ...

and moved to Nashville. Rather than sign with another major label, he decided to start one of his own, and was joined by Bunetta and associate Dan Einstein. The new Oh Boy label's first release was a red vinyl Christmas single with Prine singing "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus" on the A-side and "Silver Bells" on the B-side. The first full-length release was Prine's ''Aimless Love'' in 1984. Around 1989,

Sony , commonly stylized as SONY, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. As a major technology company, it operates as one of the world's largest manufacturers of consumer and professiona ...

offered to buy Oh Boy Records, but Prine decided to keep the label independent and turned down the offer.

Recent projects

In 2000, the label began reissuing a series of classic country music artists titled ''Oh Boy Classics Presents...'' These are remastered versions of the original recordings. The first three artists in this series were Roger Miller,

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...

, and

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled a ...

. In 2007, Oh Boy released ''Standard Songs for Average People'', an album of classic country duets by Prine and bluegrass singer

Mac Wiseman Malcolm Bell Wiseman (May 23, 1925 – February 24, 2019) was an American bluegrass and country singer. Early life He was born on May 23, 1925, in Crimora, Virginia. He attended school in New Hope, Virginia, and graduated from high school the ...

. In February 2010, singer-songwriter Dan Reeder released his album ''This New Century'', using instruments he made himself. The release of a new Prine live album in 2010, ''In Person & On Stage'', was followed by ''Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows'', a tribute album of Prine songs performed by artists such as

Sara Watkins Sara Ullrika Watkins (born June 8, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and fiddler. Watkins debuted in 1989 as the fiddler of Nickel Creek, the progressive bluegrass group she formed with her brother Sean and mandolinist Chris Thile. In addi ...

and

Old Crow Medicine Show Old Crow Medicine Show is an Americana string band based in Nashville, Tennessee, that has been recording since 1998. They were inducted into the Grand Ole Opry on September 17, 2013. Their ninth album, '' Remedy'', released in 2014, won the ...

. Both of these 2010 releases debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' Folk Album charts. In April 2018, John Prine released ''Tree of Forgivenes''s produced by

Dave Cobb Dave Cobb (born July 9, 1974) is an American record producer based in Nashville, Tennessee, best known for producing the work of Chris Stapleton, Brandi Carlile, John Prine, Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell, The Highwomen and Rival Sons . Cob ...

. This was Prine's first album of original works in 13 years. Guest artists on the album include Brandi Carlile,

Jason Isbell Michael Jason Isbell (; born February 1, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He is known for his solo career, his work with the band The 400 Unit, and as a member of Drive-By Truckers for six years, from 2001 to 2007. Isbell h ...

, Amanda Shires, and

Dan Auerbach Daniel Quine Auerbach (; born May 14, 1979) is an American musician, singer-songwriter, and record producer, best known as the guitarist and vocalist of The Black Keys, a blues rock band from Akron, Ohio. As a member of the group, Auerbach has ...

. In 2019, the label signed singer-songwriter

Kelsey Waldon Kelsey Waldon is an American country singer and songwriter. She has released four EPs and six full albums, the most recent being "No Regular Dog" released on August 12, 2022. Early life Waldon was born in Ballard County, Kentucky, and raised i ...

. The female outlaw country singer is Oh Boy's first artist signing in 15 years. In December 2019, Oh Boy Records signed Sacramento, California-based indie folk-singer Tré Burt. Burt was introduced to the label by Jody Whelan, who had discovered the folk singer's album Caught It from the Rye. In June 2020, Oh Boy Records signed Ohio-based country singer Arlo McKinley, marking him as the last signee by

Discography

References

External links

Official site
{{Authority control American independent record labels Old Town School of Folk musicians Record labels established in 1981

History

Recent projects

Discography

See also

References

External links