From The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR):
Although it’s based in Seattle, JazzWeek magazine’s “jazz label of the year” has Eugene’s fingerprints all over it.
Origin Records bested Concord Records, Palmetto, Sunnyside, Heads Up and HighNote Records to take the prize in late June. The winner was announced at the JazzWeek Conference held during the Rochester Jazz Festival.
The label’s founder, drummer John Bishop, accepted the award. Bishop, a 1978 South Eugene High School graduate, got most of his formal music education here, but moved to Seattle in 1981.
Reached by phone at home, he said he did not set out to start a record label. But now that he’s making a nice living at it, he said being recognized as one of the best in the country is a big honor for his business, which was nominated once before.
The origin of Origin Records goes back 12 years, when Bishop started the label to release his own album, “Now.. Here ...This.”
Today, Origin puts out 40 titles a year under its own name, as well as through its spinoff label, OA2 Records, and a sister imprint that focuses on classical music. A news release says the label has six Grammy nominations to its credit.
Although it’s based in Seattle, JazzWeek magazine’s “jazz label of the year” has Eugene’s fingerprints all over it.
Origin Records bested Concord Records, Palmetto, Sunnyside, Heads Up and HighNote Records to take the prize in late June. The winner was announced at the JazzWeek Conference held during the Rochester Jazz Festival.
The label’s founder, drummer John Bishop, accepted the award. Bishop, a 1978 South Eugene High School graduate, got most of his formal music education here, but moved to Seattle in 1981.
Reached by phone at home, he said he did not set out to start a record label. But now that he’s making a nice living at it, he said being recognized as one of the best in the country is a big honor for his business, which was nominated once before.
The origin of Origin Records goes back 12 years, when Bishop started the label to release his own album, “Now.. Here ...This.”
Today, Origin puts out 40 titles a year under its own name, as well as through its spinoff label, OA2 Records, and a sister imprint that focuses on classical music. A news release says the label has six Grammy nominations to its credit.
