Oh Boy Records is an independent American record label founded in 1981 by singer John Prine, 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, Daniel "Slick" Ballinger, Shawn Camp, Dan Reeder, and Todd Snider, 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 the Mountain Stage label Blue Plate Music. Oh Boy is based in Nashville, Tennessee and is managed by Fiona Whelan Prine.[2]
| Oh Boy Records | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Founded | 1981 |
| Founder | John Prine, Al Bunetta, Dan Einstein |
| Distributor(s) | Secretly Group[1] |
| Genre | American folk, Americana, country |
| Country of origin | U.S. |
| Location | Nashville, Tennessee |
| Official website | www |
From 2016 to 2024, the label was distributed by Thirty Tigers.[3] Since August 2024, Oh Boy Records has been distributed by Secretly Distribution.
History
editAl Bunetta was a talent manager with Paul Anka'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.[4] In 1980, Prine finished his recording contract with Asylum 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.[5] 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.[6] The first full-length release, completely funded in advance by fans, was Prine's Aimless Love in 1984.[7] Around 1989, Sony offered to buy Oh Boy Records, but Prine decided to keep the label independent and turned down the offer.[8] In 1996, Oh Boy established a chat page for Prine fans that evolved into one of the first Internet music communities.
Recent projects
editIn 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, and Merle Haggard. In 2007, Oh Boy released Standard Songs for Average People, an album of classic country duets by Prine and bluegrass singer Mac Wiseman. In February 2010, singer-songwriter Dan Reeder released his album This New Century, using instruments he made himself.[9]
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 and Old Crow Medicine Show.[10] Both of these 2010 releases debuted at number one on the Billboard Folk Album charts.
In April 2018, John Prine released Tree of Forgiveness produced by Dave Cobb. This was Prine's first album of original works in 13 years. Guest artists on the album include Brandi Carlile, Jason Isbell, Amanda Shires, and Dan Auerbach.[11]
In 2019, the label signed singer-songwriter Kelsey Waldon. The female outlaw country singer is Oh Boy's first artist signing in 15 years.[12]
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.[13]
In June 2020, Oh Boy Records signed Ohio-based country singer Arlo McKinley, marking him as the last signee by John Prine.[14]
Discography
edit| Year | Artist | Title | Number | Comments |
| 1981 | John Prine | Red Vinyl Christmas 45 | OBR-001 | "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"/"Silver Bells" |
| 1984 | John Prine | Aimless Love | OBR-002 | |
| 1986 | John Prine | German Afternoons | OBR-003 | |
| 1987 | John Prine | Green Vinyl 45 | OBR-004 | "Let's Talk Dirty in Hawaiian"/"Kokomo" |
| 1988 | John Prine | John Prine Live | OBR-005 | |
| 1989 | John Prine | Bruised Orange | OBR-006 | Originally released in 1978 as Asylum 139 |
| 1990? | John Prine | Pink Cadillac | OBR-007 | Originally released in 1979 as Asylum 222 |
| 1990? | John Prine | Storm Windows | OBR-008 | Originally released in 1980 as Asylum 286 |
| 1991 | John Prine | The Missing Years | OBR-009 | |
| 1993 | John Prine | A John Prine Christmas | OBR-011 | |
| The Bis-Quits | The Bis-Quits | OBR-012 | ||
| John Prine | Great Days: The John Prine Anthology | OBR-ANT | Originally released as Rhino R2 71400 | |
| 1995 | John Prine | Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings | OBR-013 | |
| Heather Eatman | Mascara Falls | OBR-014 | ||
| 1997 | John Prine | Live on Tour | OBR-015 | |
| RB Morris | Take That Ride | OBR-016 | ||
| Donnie Fritts | Everybody's Got a Song | OBR-017 | ||
| 1998 | Various Artists | Lucky 13 | OBR-018 | |
| 1999 | John Prine | In Spite of Ourselves | OBR-019 | |
| 2000 | Todd Snider | Happy To Be Here | OBR-020 | |
| John Prine | Souvenirs | OBR-021 | Number may be OBR-010, sources disagree | |
| Roger Miller | Oh Boy Records Classics Presents Roger Miller | OBR-400 | ||
| Willie Nelson | Oh Boy Records Classics Presents Willie Nelson | OBR-401 | ||
| Merle Haggard | Oh Boy Classics Presents Merle Haggard | OBR-402 | ||
| 2001 | Joe Tex | Oh Boy Classics Presents Joe Tex | OBR-403 | |
| Conway Twitty | Oh Boy Classics Presents Conway Twitty | OBR-404 | ||
| Bill Anderson | Oh Boy Classics Presents Bill Anderson | OBR-405 | ||
| The Kendalls | Oh Boy Classics Presents The Kendalls | OBR-406 | ||
| Merle Haggard | Oh Boy Classics Presents Merle Haggard...Again | OBR-407 | ||
| John Prine | Sessions at West 54th | OBR-500DVD | DVD | |
| 2002 | Riders in the Sky | A Pair of Kings | OBR-022 | |
| Todd Snider | New Connection | OBR-023 | ||
| Don Gibson | Oh Boy Classics Presents Don Gibson | OBR-408 | ||
| Roy Acuff | Oh Boy Classics Presents Roy Acuff | OBR-409 | ||
| Rusty & Doug Kershaw | Oh Boy Classics Presents Rusty & Doug Kershaw | OBR-410 | ||
| Lorrie Morgan | Oh Boy Classics Presents Lorrie Morgan | OBR-411 | ||
| Don Everly | Oh Boy Classics Presents Don Everly | OBR-412 | ||
| 2003 | Todd Snider | Near Truths and Hotel Rooms | OBR-024 | |
| Kris Kristofferson | Broken Freedom Song: Live from San Francisco | OBR-025 | ||
| Janis Ian | Live: Working Without a Net | OBR-026 | Double CD | |
| 2004 | [Dan Reeder] | dan reeder | OBR-027 | |
| Kris Kristofferson | Repossessed/Third World Warrior | OBR-028 | Double reissue of 1986/1990 Mercury albums | |
| Janis Ian | Billie's Bones | OBR-029 | Also released as Rude Girl Records RGR0019 | |
| Slick Ballinger | Mississippi Soul | OBR-030 | EP | |
| Todd Snider | East Nashville Skyline | OBR-031 | ||
| Shawn Camp | Live at the Station Inn | OBR-032 | ||
| Kris Kristofferson | Breakthrough | OBR-501 | DVD | |
| 2005 | John Prine | Fair & Square | OBR-034 | |
| John Prine | Fair & Square | OBR-034-1 | Vinyl with 4 Bonus Tracks | |
| John Prine | Fair & Square | OBR-034-EP | EP on CD with 4 Bonus Tracks | |
| 2006 | Slick Ballinger | Mississippi Soul | OBR-035 | Full Length |
| Dan Reeder | Sweetheart | OBR-036 | ||
| 2007 | Todd Snider | Peace, Love and Anarchy | OBR-037 | Rarities, B-Sides and Demos, Vol.1 |
| John Prine & Mac Wiseman | Standard Songs for Average People | OBR-038 | ||
| 2010 | John Prine | In Person & On Stage | OBR-039 | Live. Includes duets with Iris DeMent, Sara Watkins, Emmylou Harris, Josh Ritter, Kane Welch Kaplin |
| Dan Reeder | This New Century | OBR-041 | ||
| Various Artists | Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Songs of John Prine | OBR-042 | Tribute CD. Also vinyl as OBR-042-1 | |
| 2011 | John Prine | The Singing Mailman Delivers | OBR-040 | Double CD, live studio, recorded in 1970 |
| 2015 | John Prine | September '78 | OBR-043 | Live at Park West in Chicago. Limited edition with 2000 units produced for Record Store day, re-released in 2017 |
| John Prine | Live on Soundstage 1980 | OBR-501 | DVD | |
| 2016 | John Prine | For Better, or Worse | OBR-044 | Also vinyl as OBR-044-1 |
| 2017 | Dan Reeder | Nobody Wants to Be You. | OBR-045 | |
| 2018 | John Prine | The Tree of Forgiveness | OBR-046 | Also vinyl |
| 2019 | Kelsey Waldon | White Noise/White Lines | OBR-050 | Also vinyl as OBR-050LP |
| John Prine & Kelsey Waldon | The Kentucky Sessions | OBR-051 | 7-inch vinyl | |
| 2020 | Tré Burt | Caught It From the Rye | OBR-052 | Also vinyl as OBR-052LP |
| Dan Reeder | every which way | OBR-053 | ||
| Arlo McKinley | Die Midwestern | OBR-055 | Also vinyl as OBR-055LP | |
| 2021 | Tré Burt | You, Yeah, You | OBR-066 | |
| Emily Scott Robinson | American Siren | OBR-067 | ||
| 2022 | Various Artists | Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Songs of John Prine, Vol. 2 | OBR-063 | Tribute |
| Kelsey Waldon | No Regular Dog | OBR-071 | ||
| Arlo McKinley | This Mess We're In | OBR-072 | ||
| Emily Scott Robinson | Built on Bones | |||
| 2023 | Mick Flannery | Goodtime Charlie | RRV006 | Also vinyl as RRV005 |
| Tré Burt | Traffic Fiction | OBR-078 | ||
| 2024 | Various Artists | Live on Mountain Stage: 40 Year Anniversary - Outlaws and Outliers | OBR-079 | Blue Plate Music 2-disc set |
| Various Artists | My Black Country: The Songs of Alice Randall | OBR-082 | Also vinyl | |
| Swamp Dogg | BLACKGRASS: From West Virginia to 125th Street | OBR-083 | Also vinyl | |
| Kelsey Waldon | There's Always a Song | OBR-084 | Also vinyl | |
| Dan Reeder | smithereens | OBR-085 | Also vinyl |
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ https://www.billboard.com/pro/sony-music-masterworks-buys-black-sky-stake-music-deals
- ^ Gleason, Holly (March 21, 2023). "Fiona Whelan Prine: Love & Live Define Manager/Activist's Mission". Pollstar.com. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
- ^ Hanks, Matt (May 12, 2016). "John Prine's Oh Boy Records Announces Exclusive Distribution Partnership With Thirty Tigers". Shorefire.com. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
- ^ Bunetta, Al (2006-08-02). "Episode #9". Music Business Radio (Interview). Interviewed by David Hooper. Nashville, Tennessee: WRLP. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
- ^ "Question & Answer with John Prine". Oh Boy Records. Retrieved 2008-12-15.
- ^ Bunetta, Al; Einstein, Dan. "A John Prine Christmas Liner Notes". Oh Boy Records. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
- ^ Barry, Dan (April 6, 2016). "John Prine Endures, With a Half-Smile and a Song". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on March 30, 2020. Retrieved April 8, 2024.
- ^ Baker, Brian (June 2005). "John Prine does it "Fair & Square"". Country Standard Time. Archived from the original on 2006-09-10. Retrieved 2009-01-11.
- ^ Andrew Dansby (25 February 2010). "CD reviews: Dan Reeder, Los Campesinos, Midlake". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
- ^ "Broken Hearts & Dirty Windows: Songs of John Prine". Oh Boy Records. Retrieved August 8, 2010.
- ^ Keith Caulfield. "Jason Aldean Scores Fourth No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart With 'Rearview Town". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
- ^ Annie Reuter. "John Prine Signs Kelsey Waldon to Oh Boy Records". Billboard. Retrieved September 3, 2019.
- ^ Cooper, Daniel (2019-12-03). "John Prine's Oh Boy Records signs Tré Burt". The Grateful Web. Retrieved 2020-07-23.
- ^ Sacher, Andrew (2020-07-22). "Arlo McKinley releasing 'Die Midwestern' on John Prine's label (watch video for new song)". Brooklyn Vegan. Retrieved 2020-07-23.