The Old-Time Herald Volume 9, Number 1

The Triumph of an Independent Label Called Copper Creek

Gary Reid of Copper Creek approached Ginny Hawker and Kay Justice with a tempting idea. “I heard one of their June Appal CDs,” Reid recalls, “and I think maybe the first or second track … was a Carter Family song. It just struck me … that they do this stuff so well that a whole album of Carter Family material would really be nice by them.” Hawker and Justice found the idea irresistible. Reid remembers the excitement of being present during the Bristol recording session. “It was a great experience,” he recalls. Hawker sang old Baptist hymns to clear her throat before each session. “None of that made it onto the CD, but that was wonderful just listening to her clear her pipes and get them in shape.”

Copper Creek has become one of the most respected independent labels issuing old-time and bluegrass music. From retrospectives like Through the Years by the E.C. Ball to recent releases like My Mother’s Voice by Kathy Kallick, the label offers an authentic edge absent from many independent labels. “I think possibly what we’re doing,” Reid says of Copper Creek, “is maybe a little truer … to some of the older forms.” Even when a group ventures outside of strict “authentic old–time,” he still believes that the artists on the label have “a certain feel to them that I think is …vital to the success of any of the recordings that we do. I think, for the most part, it’s just good music with an honest feel to it.”

Copper Creek Web Site- http://www.coppercreekrec.com/

To read the full article subscribe to the Old-Time Herald!

<<<Return to 9-1 Index