Associated With

  • King Records, 1943 – 1968
  • Queen Records, 1945 – 1947
  • Federal Records, 1950 – ca. early 1960s
  • Deluxe Records, 1947 – 1968?
  • Lois Publishing, ca. 1945 – 1968
  • Royal Plastics, 1945 – 1968

Led the Way

  • Launched one of the first, and largest, independent record labels in the United States.
  • Ran a racially integrated company before it was ever mandated by law.
  • Produced recordings by significant first generation bluegrass bands (Reno & Smiley, Stanley Brothers, Moore & Napier).
  • Managed one of the few recording companies to make a record from start to finish, all under one roof.
  • Unlike other labels, that tended to be genre specific, King Records covered a variety of styles including country, blues, R & B, black gospel, bluegrass, and more.
  • Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 1997.
  • Bluegrass Hall of Fame, 2006.

By the Way

  • His eyesight was so poor he wore glasses that were a thick as the bottoms of soft drink bottles.
  • Reportedly hated a fiddle and encouraged his groups to discontinue using the instrument on his recordings.
  • Noted for a volatile temper and colorful language, but fondly remembered by most associates.
  • Genre-bending experiments included having the Stanley Brothers record Hank Ballard’s R& B hit, “Finger Poppin’ Time” and using James Brown’s drummer on the Stanleys’ “How Well I Do Feel.”
  • Was so anxious to bring to market a cover of Hack Johnson’s 1955 single “Home Sweet Home” on King that he sent Don Reno into a Charlotte studio to record all the parts without waiting for the rest of the Tennessee Cut-Ups.
  • Took advantage of major label disputes with the American Federation of Musicians to release records while others were on the sidelines.

Mentors

  • Max Frank
  • Earl Herzog

Associated With

  • King Records, 1943 – 1968
  • Queen Records, 1945 – 1947
  • Federal Records, 1950 – ca. early 1960s
  • Deluxe Records, 1947 – 1968?
  • Lois Publishing, ca. 1945 – 1968
  • Royal Plastics, 1945 – 1968

Led the Way

  • Launched one of the first, and largest, independent record labels in the United States.
  • Ran a racially integrated company before it was ever mandated by law.
  • Produced recordings by significant first generation bluegrass bands (Reno & Smiley, Stanley Brothers, Moore & Napier).
  • Managed one of the few recording companies to make a record from start to finish, all under one roof.
  • Unlike other labels, that tended to be genre specific, King Records covered a variety of styles including country, blues, R & B, black gospel, bluegrass, and more.
  • Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, 1997.
  • Bluegrass Hall of Fame, 2006.

By the Way

  • His eyesight was so poor he wore glasses that were a thick as the bottoms of soft drink bottles.
  • Reportedly hated a fiddle and encouraged his groups to discontinue using the instrument on his recordings.
  • Noted for a volatile temper and colorful language, but fondly remembered by most associates.
  • Genre-bending experiments included having the Stanley Brothers record Hank Ballard’s R& B hit, “Finger Poppin’ Time” and using James Brown’s drummer on the Stanleys’ “How Well I Do Feel.”
  • Was so anxious to bring to market a cover of Hack Johnson’s 1955 single “Home Sweet Home” on King that he sent Don Reno into a Charlotte studio to record all the parts without waiting for the rest of the Tennessee Cut-Ups.
  • Took advantage of major label disputes with the American Federation of Musicians to release records while others were on the sidelines.

Mentors

  • Max Frank
  • Earl Herzog

From the Archives

From the Archives: An historical marker in Cincinnati, Ohio. Photo by Debbie Delmore.

“Syd was gruff, crude, an eccentric and a true pioneer. He will never be given the credit he deserves.”
Shad O’Shay, a former DJ and friend of Nathan’s, quoted by Greg Evans in “The Cincinnati Sound,” Cincinnati magazine, June 1986.
“[Syd] was a pioneer. He was smart, too. Some people said he was gruff and mean, and he smoked those foul-smelling-cigars. But, I tell you this: if Syd Nathan were alive today, I’d probably still be working for him. He had insight, a special way of seeing talent in people.”
Ray Pennington, former producer at King Records, as quoted by Larry Nager in “Seymour Stein Learned the Ropes at King,” Cincinnati Enquirer, January 17, 1990.
“In many ways, he was a remarkably open-minded man. He perceived this wonderful notion of American music as not being segregated into different styles, but one big cross-ethnic whole. He did that because it was a way to make money.”
Henry Glover, former producer at King Records, as quoted by Rick Kennedy and Randy McNutt in Little Labels – Big Sound: Small Record Companies and the Rise of American Music, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 1999.
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