John Fry

Who is John Fry?

John Fry is the founder of Ardent Music, LLC in Memphis, Tennessee, which includes Ardent Studios, two record labels, Ardent Records and Ardent Music, and a production company, Ardent Film Department. Originally founded in 1959, the business didn't become official until 1966.

The studio has been used by Bob Dylan, Big Star, Chris Bell, Led Zeppelin, Isaac Hayes, B.B. King, R.E.M., Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Replacements, The White Stripes, Cat Power and M.I.A.. About 20 percent of the Stax catalog was recorded at Ardent and every major Stax artist has recorded there other than Otis Redding who died in 1967.

Fry has engineered and produced a plethora of records, many for Stax, but is mostly known for his work on the first three Big Star albums and as the band's mentor.