Canyon Records

Canyon Records of Phoenix, Arizona has produced and distributed Native American music for 56 years. Canyon was founded in 1951 by Ray and Mary Boley, who had opened the first recording studio in Phoenix, Arizona Recording Productions, in 1948. The Boley's involvement with Native American music began when Ray was asked by the Phoenix Little Theater to record a Navajo singer named Ed Lee Natay. Boley was so taken with what he heard that he recorded a collection of songs titled Natay, Navajo Singer, an album still in active release.

To promote the album, the Boleys took a booth at the 1951 Arizona State Fair. For most fairgoers, the recording was only a curiosity, but for Native Americans it was a revelation. They had never seen any of their music available on record before, and the album was well received within the Native community. Before the close of the fair, a Hopi jeweler at a booth next to the Boleys suggested they record Hopi music.

The Boleys took the idea to heart and soon began recording music from tribes throughout the southwest. Their new label, Canyon Records, was a sister company to Canyon Films, a company also founded in 1951 specializing in documentaries and commercial work.

Prior to the Boleys' efforts, most recordings were produced and released for the benefit of scholars and academics. The Boleys saw their Native American neighbors as customers, tailoring their releases to fit the needs and requests of the Native community. In an era when Native Americans were a little-understood, often ignored, and frequently oppressed minority, Canyon Records served as an important validation of their music, artists, culture, and community.

In 1971, the Boleys sold Canyon Films and expanded the efforts of Canyon Records. They opened a retail operation in Phoenix, and began building a distribution network. This development was laborious, and involved extensive travel by motor home across the country. Many store owners didn't see the potential of selling Native American music. One shopkeeper in Bemidji, Minnesota (adjacent to a significant reservation) responded with, "Indian music...who wants it?" and thus ignoring the potential customers passing his door. Despite this resistance, the Boleys succeeded in building a distribution network throughout the western United States and Canada to sell Canyon titles as well those of other Native American music producers.

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