Bear Family Records is a Germany-based independent record label that specializes in reissues of archival material ranging from country music to 1950s rock and roll. An independent record label is variously described as a record label operating without the funding (or outside the organizations) of the major record labels, and/or a label that subscribes to indie philosophies such as DIY and anti-corporate art. ... This article includes a list of works cited but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... Rock and roll (also spelled Rock n Roll, especially in its first decade), also called rock, is a form of popular music, usually featuring vocals (often with vocal harmony), electric guitars and a strong back beat; other instruments, such as the saxophone, are common in some styles. ...

The label has been in existence since 1978, founded by collector Richard Weize, and has become known for its extravagant (and expensive) box sets. The company describes itself as "a collector's record label" due to its primary business, which is reissuing rare recordings in CD format. See also: other events of 1978 list of years in music 1970s in music // January 14 - The Sex Pistols played their final show (until a 1996 reunion) at San Franciscos Winterland Ballroom. ...

Among the many artists who have been the subject of extensive box set releases by Bear Family are Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Dean Martin, Bill Haley & His Comets, Louis Jordan, the Everly Brothers, Ann-Margret, Pat Boone, Doris Day, Burl Ives, the Carter Family, Fats Domino, Rosemary Clooney, Connie Francis, Ricky Nelson, Nat King Cole and Jerry Lee Lewis. Johnny Cash (born J. R. Cash, February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an influential American country and rock and roll singer and songwriter. ... Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 30, 1933) is an American entertainer and songwriter, born and raised in Abbott, Texas. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... The original members of Bill Haley and His Comets, c. ... Louis Jordan swinging on sax, Paramount Theatre, NYC, 1946 (Photo: William P. Gottlieb) Louis Jordan (July 8, 1908 – February 4, 1975) was a pioneering African-American blues, jazz and rhythm & blues musician and songwriter who enjoyed his greatest popularity from the late 1930s to the early 1950s. ... Don (born February 1, 1937 in Brownie, a small coal-mining town (now defunct) near Central City, Muhlenberg County, Kentucky) and Phil Everly (born January 18, 1939 in Chicago, Illinois) are country-influenced rock and roll performers who had their greatest success in the 1950s. ... Ann-Margret Ann-Margret (born April 28, 1941) is a Swedish-born actress and singer. ... Pat Boone Charles Eugene Patrick Boone (known as Pat Boone) (born June 1, 1934) is a singer whose smooth style made him a popular performer of the 1950s. ... Doris Mary Ann von Kappelhoff, known as Doris Day (born April 3, 1924), is an American singer, actress, and animal welfare advocate. ... Burl Icle Ivanhoe Ives (14 June 1909 – 14 April 1995) was an acclaimed American folk music singer, author, and actor. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Antoine Dominique Fats Domino (born February 26, 1928 in New Orleans, Louisiana), is a classic R&B and rock and roll singer, songwriter and pianist. ... Rosemary Clooney (May 23, 1928 – June 29, 2002) was an American popular singer and actress. ... Connie Francis (born December 12, 1938 in Newark, New Jersey) is an American pop singer best known for international hit songs such as Whos Sorry Now?, Where The Boys Are, and Everybodys Somebodys Fool. // Born Concetta Rosa Maria Franconero in Newarks Italian Down Neck or Ironbound... Ricky Nelson can also refer to Ricky Nelson (wrestler) or Ricky Lee Nelson, baseball player. ... Nathaniel Adams Coles, known professionally as Nat King Cole (March 17, 1919 ?– February 15, 1965) was a popular American singer, songwriter, and jazz pianist. ... Jerry Lee Lewis (born September 29, 1935), also known by the nickname The Killer, is an American rock and roll and country music singer, songwriter, and pianist. ...

Bear Family has also made a habit of producing thorough compilations of artists with a more limited fanbase, such as two separate 5-CD Johnnie Ray collections, 6-CD box sets of Slim Whitman and the Orioles, a 7-CD Rod McKuen set, 8-CD collections of Lonnie Donegan, Del Shannon, Neil Sedaka and Gene Vincent, or a 9-CD omnibus of Johnny Burnette. John Alvin Johnnie Ray (January 10, 1927 - February 24, 1990) was one of the most popular American singers of his day. ... Slim Whitman (born January 20, 1924 in Tampa, Florida) is an American country music singer and songwriter. ... Genera Oriolus Sphecotheres Orioles are colourful Old World passerine birds in the family Oriolidae. ... Rod McKuen (born April 29, 1933) is a bestselling American poet, composer, and singer, instrumental in the revitalization of popular poetry that took place in the 1960s and early 1970s. ... Lonnie Donegan Lonnie Donegan MBE (29 April 1931 – 3 November 2002) was a skiffle musician, possibly the most famous of them all, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. ... Del Shannon should not be confused with Dell Shannon, the pseudonym under which Elizabeth Linington wrote police precedurals for 26 years. ... Neil Sedaka 2005 Neil Sedaka (born March 13, 1939 in Brooklyn, New York) is an American pop singer, pianist , and songwriter often associated with the Brill Building. ... Gene Vincent, real name Vincent Eugene Craddock, (February 11, 1935 – October 12, 1971) was an American rockabilly pioneer musician, best known for his hit Be-Bop-A-Lula. // His parents, Ezekiah Jackson and Mary Louise Craddock, were shop owners in Norfolk, Virginia. ... Johnny Burnette was a Rockabilly pioneer in Memphis, Tennessee and with his older brother Dorsey Burnette and a friend named Paul Burlison was one of the founder members of The Rock and Roll Trio. ...

The company has also released several hundred "Various Artists" compilations, organized by theme or genre. These include such projects as a 10-CD political protest song box set, an 11-CD set of the Jewish and Yiddish performers of the mid-1930s, a 7-CD box featuring 195 different versions of the song "Lili Marleen," a 4-CD collection of British music hall songs of the early 20th century, a 10-CD set of late-1930s calypso music, and a 52-CD "History of Pop Music." A protest song is a song intended to protest perceived problems in society such as injustice, racial discrimination, war, globalization, inflation, social inequalities, incarceration, the Greenhouse effect, the global warming. ... Lili Marleen is a famous German song which ironically became very popular on both sides during World War II. A Lili Marleen and Lale Andersen memorial in Langeoog The words were written in 1915 during World War I by Hans Leip (1893-1983), a school teacher from Hamburg who had... Music Hall is a form of British theatrical entertainment which reached its peak of popularity between 1850 and 1960. ... Calypso might refer to one of several things: Calypso is the name of a sea nymph in Greek mythology; Calypso music is a style of Caribbean folk music; Calypso is the name of an album sung by Harry Belafonte; Calypso is the name of a moon of Saturn; 53 Kalypso...

See also

• List of record labels

This is a list of record labels. ...

External links

• Official site
• CD Wolf Music-Retailer specializing in Bear Family releases
• Atomic Platters Site-Site with information on the 2005 Bear release.