Stand Up! Records

Last updated
Stand Up! Records
Stand Up! Records.jpg
Founded2000;24 years ago (2000)
Founder Dan Schlissel
Genre Comedy
Country of originU.S.
Location Minneapolis, Minnesota
Official website standuprecords.com

Stand Up! Records is an American independent comedy record label founded in Minneapolis, Minnesota, by Grammy-winning producer Dan Schlissel. It has been called "the country's most respected indie comedy label." [1] Stand Up! has released more than 200 comedy albums and videos since its founding in 2000, including albums by Lewis Black, Patton Oswalt, Greg Proops, David Cross, Maria Bamford, Hannibal Buress, Judy Gold, the Sklar Brothers, and Eddie Pepitone. [2] [3] Comedian and actor Marc Maron, who released his first three albums on Stand Up!, described Schlissel as "a guy who loves comedy, and is very attentive to the process of recording comedy," and, referencing the large number of noteworthy comics who were given important exposure in their early careers by the label, joked that "you've done everybody's first two records." [4]

Contents

A relatively small operation, the label is run almost entirely by Schlissel, who also served as recording engineer and producer on many of the label's albums. [5] The label has been praised for bringing an independent approach to the comedy genre, inspired by Schlissel's roots in punk and indie rock. Henry Owings, founder of humor magazine Chunklet , stated that Schlissel "has done a great job trying to reintroduce some fresh blood into comedy albums. ... If anybody's trying to bring back the idea of comedy albums being something that should be looked at in the same light as a music album, it's him." [6]

History

In the 1990s, Schlissel founded the Lincoln, Nebraska-based -ismist Recordings, which released works by Midwestern punk, metal and alt-rock bands such as Killdozer and House of Large Sizes, including Iowa metal band Slipknot's 1997 debut/demo, Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat . After Slipknot left -ismist for Roadrunner Records, Schlissel became disillusioned with running a music label, and moved away from Nebraska in 1998 to take a job at a software company in Minneapolis. [7] He considered folding -ismist, but instead found new focus after convincing Lewis Black to work with him after meeting the comedian after a show in Minneapolis. [8]

Schlissel recorded Black's The White Album in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1999, with John Machnik, who would be his production partner for many years. [9] Released on -ismist, the album was an immediate success, eventually selling around 60,000 copies, more than the entire previous -ismist catalog combined. [10] Schlissel reinvented -ismist entirely, moving from punk rock to comedy. The label released several other comedy albums, including two by Doug Stanhope, Sicko and Something to Take the Edge Off , and Jimmy Shubert's Animal Instincts, while Schlissel launched Stand Up! Records in 2000. By 2002, -ismist had effectively closed down and been replaced by Stand Up! Records. [11] Black's next album, the post-9/11 The End of the Universe , sold similarly well. [1]

Even after Black moved to the larger Comedy Central Records label, he continued to work with Schlissel, who produced or edited four more Black albums in the mid-2000s, Rules of Enragement , Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues , The Carnegie Hall Performance , and Anticipation . [12] Of these, Carnegie Hall won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Album, while Luther Burbank and Anticipation were both nominated in that category. [13] Stand Up! also released the vinyl editions of Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues and Rules of Enragement.

Notable releases

Original productions

Stand Up!'s original works include:

Stand Up! also often partners with comics who have already self-released an album to re-release it in an expanded edition with broader distribution. Examples include Maron's debut Not Sold Out and Pepitone's A Great Stillness. [4]

Vinyl and collectors' editions

Stand Up! releases albums via digital download and streaming, CD and vinyl. Although vinyl remains a niche market with minimal profit margins compared with digital and streaming, [5] Schlissel told an interviewer for Roctober magazine that he continues to support the format because "the physical product matters. I want me and my artists to have something to hold in hand and say, 'I did this!'" [10] The label's dedication to vinyl has been credited with helping a resurgence in the format; Don Steinberg of the Wall Street Journal stated that Stand Up! has given comedy on vinyl "a hipster comeback," [14] while John Wenzel of Vulture lauded the label for "honoring the history of the format." [15]

The vinyl picture-disc edition of Black's End of the Universe was autographed by Black before manufacturing; his signature is part of the vinyl art, under the grooves. Dana Gould, former co-executive producer of The Simpsons , re-released three discs on vinyl with Stand Up!: Funhouse, Let Me Put My Thoughts in You and I Know It's Wrong. For the 2009 re-release of Funhouse, the label also made an 8-track tape version as well as CD and vinyl. [10]

Stand Up! often works with larger labels to co-release collector's-edition vinyl versions of a comic's album. Besides the two Lewis Black albums, Stand Up! also released LPs of David Cross's Grammy-nominated 2002 album Shut Up You Fucking Baby [16] and the subsequent It's Not Funny and ...America...Great..., as well as Patton Oswalt's Feelin' Kinda Patton and Werewolves and Lollipops , [14] Hannibal Buress' Animal Furnace, and Kyle Kinane's Death of the Party. [10] In 2015, the label re-released Joan Rivers' groundbreaking 1968 The Next To Last Joan Rivers Album for Record Store Day; it had long been out of print. [17]

Philosophy and approach to comedy

The name "Stand Up!" was chosen not only for its obvious connection with stand-up comedy, but for its association with free-thinking and revolutionary ideals, as in the Bob Marley song "Get Up, Stand Up" and the intellectually confrontational comedic approach of George Carlin, Lenny Bruce and Joan Rivers. [8] The label's logo, a clenched fist holding a microphone aloft, was designed by street artist and activist Shepard Fairey in 2002. [8]

Rather than sticking to a single style of comedy, Stand Up! maintains a diverse set of styles and viewpoints among its artists. Political material on the label ranges from libertarian Tim Slagle to moderate Will Durst to the left-leaning Black and Maron. [10] [6]

Reflecting the label's interest in edgy, punk-inflected comedy and Schlissel's roots in indie rock, Stand Up! often works with visual artists who share that sensibility, such as Fairey and Frank Kozik. [16] MAD magazine cartoonists Jack Davis and Mort Drucker drew the covers for albums by Tim Slagle and Dwight York, while Raymond Pettibon, the iconic punk artist who created many of Black Flag's album covers, drew the cover for J.T. Habersaat's Hostile Corporate Takeover. [11] Derek Riggs, who designed Iron Maiden's albums, did the cover for Glenn Wool's No Land's Man. [10] Wendy Pini, creator of the Elfquest comic-book series, illustrated the cover of Keith Lowell Jensen's album Elf Orgy. [10] Cartoonist Drew Friedman illustrated the 2014 vinyl edition of Eddie Pepitone's A Great Stillness. [18] Pia Guerra, Eisner Award-winning co-creator of Y: The Last Man , drew the cover for Ray Harrington's 2017 album Overwhelmed. [19]

Ties with Minneapolis and Austin

In addition to its roster of nationally known comedians, the label also has particularly strong ties with the regional comedy scenes in Minneapolis-St. Paul and Austin, Texas. Minnesotan comics on the label include Bamford, Chad Daniels, Mary Mack, Tim Harmston, Chris Maddock, "Fancy Ray" McCloney, Corey Adam, and Rich Kronfeld of Comedy Central's Let's Bowl , and Stand Up! has also released two DVDs of the Twin Cities public-access cable series Drinking With Ian. [7] In Austin, the label has put on multiple showcases at the annual SXSW festival, and has produced albums by Austin comedians including Andy Ritchie, David Huntsberger, J.T. Habersaat, John Tole, Doug Mellard, and Ryan Cownie. In 2019, Stand Up! released the posthumous album by Austin's Lashonda Lester, Shondee Superstar, [20] which was praised by Paste magazine as "a lovely introduction to a voice that's both purely unique and universally relatable ... If the world is only lucky enough to have one album from Lester, it's a blessing that it's a recording of a complete show." [21]

Other works

Roku channel

Stand Up! has a streaming channel available on Roku featuring new and archival comedy videos and podcasts. [22] [7]

Akumal Comedy Festival

From 2012 to 2015, Stand Up! hosted the annual Akumal Comedy Festival in Mexico, a nonprofit event held in Tulum, Playa del Carmen, and Akumal which raised money for the Mexican Red Cross. The festival featured comics performing in both English and Spanish. Headliners included Darryl Lenox, Maggie Faris, and Derek Sheen. The festival was co-founded by Schlissel and Twin Cities comic Gus Lynch, who also acted in the films Saving Silverman , North Country , and I Spy . [23] Lynch died after an accidental fall in Akumal in 2014; the final festival was held in his honor. [20] [24]

Scottish tartan

In 2017, during the label's first visit to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Schlissel registered a Scottish tartan with the National Records of Scotland in the name of Stand Up! Records. Designed by Edinburgh kiltmaker Gordon Nicolson, the tartan blends the colors red, black, and tan (from Fairey's Stand Up! Records logo), blue (from the Israeli flag, symbolizing Schlissel's Jewish heritage), and silver-grey (for -ismist Recordings' 25th anniversary). [25]

Discography

All releases from 2000 and 2001 were originally issued by -ismist Recordings, the predecessor to Stand Up! Records. When the titles were repressed, starting in early 2002, the branding was switched to the Stand Up! Records imprint. All titles from 2002 onward were originally issued by Stand Up! Records, unless under license from another label, or bringing an out of print release back into print.

2000

2001

2002

2003

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Single (music)</span> Release with one to three tracks

In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album or LP record, typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standalone tracks or connected to an artist's album, and in the latter case would often have at least one single release before the album itself, called lead singles.

Snog is a band that was formed by Australian musician David Thrussell, along with fellow art school friends Tim McGrath and Julia Bourke in 1989. The band's music is a fusion of many different styles, including industrial, techno, ambient, experimental, funk and country music. The band name is a reference to "kissing and cuddling".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Figgs</span> American rock and roll band

The Figgs are a rock ‘n’ roll band formed in Saratoga Springs, New York in 1987. Originally known as The Sonic Undertones, their output includes thirteen studio albums and multiple EPs and singles. They’ve served as the backing band for rock and roll legend Graham Parker on and off since 1996 and also toured with Tommy Stinson of The Replacements fame.

<i>The White Album</i> (Lewis Black album) 2000 studio album by Lewis Black

The White Album is Lewis Black's first album, recorded in 1999 at Laugh Lines Comedy Club in Madison, Wisconsin and released on June 1, 2000.

In the music industry, a reissue is the release of an album or single which has been released at least once before, sometimes with alterations or additions.

Aspecialthing Records is a stand-up comedy record label started by Matt Belknap and Ryan McManemin. Belknap was the creator of aspecialthing.com, an internet message board especially popular with West Coast comedy fans. McManemin was an executive at Sony/MGM and longtime member of the message board.

<i>Die Laughing</i> (album) 2002 studio album by Doug Stanhope

Die Laughing is the fourth stand-up comedy album by Doug Stanhope, released in 2002 by Stand Up! Records.

<i>Deadbeat Hero</i> 2004 American film

Deadbeat Hero is Doug Stanhope's second stand-up comedy DVD and his fifth CD. Recorded at the Comedy Underground in Seattle, Washington in 2004, originally produced by Shout Factory, and released as part of the Ad Lib Breakout Comedy Series. It was reissued in 2007 by Stand Up! Records.

Andrew J. Andrist is an American stand-up comedian and former writer for Comedy Central's The Man Show.

Weathermaker Music is the record label owned by the American rock band Clutch and their manager Jack Flanagan. Weathermaker Music LLC was formed in June 2008. Weathermaker Music was mostly known to work with Clutch and their side project, the psychedelic jazz-rock alter ego The Bakerton Group.

This is a comprehensive discography for Comedy Central Records, the record label of American cable channel Comedy Central.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">-ismist Recordings</span> American record label founded in Nebraska

-ismist Recordings was a Lincoln, Nebraska-based independent record label founded in 1992 by Dan Schlissel. Over the 1990s, -ismist released nearly 80 albums and singles by bands including Killdozer, Season to Risk, and House of Large Sizes. It is most widely known for comedy albums by Lewis Black and Doug Stanhope, as well as Iowa metal band Slipknot's 1996 debut/demo, Mate.Feed.Kill.Repeat. By the early 2000s, after Slipknot had moved on to major label Roadrunner Records and Schlissel had found greater success with comedians like Black and Stanhope than with indie rock, he changed his focus to comedy albums on a new, Minneapolis-based label, Stand Up! Records, which eventually replaced -ismist entirely.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Machnik</span> American record producer

John F. Machnik is an American record producer and recording engineer from Madison, Wisconsin. He was the owner of Sleepless Nights Recording Studios from 1989 to 2001.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Suicide Squeeze Records</span> US record label

Suicide Squeeze Records is a Seattle, Washington-based independent record label that releases rock, pop, and metal music. Suicide Squeeze releases content on vinyl, CD, cassette, and digital. The label has also released comedy and performance art CD and DVDs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rory Scovel</span> American comedian and actor

Rory J. Scovel is an American comedian, actor, and writer. He released his first stand-up comedy album Dilation in 2011. He has since released the stand-up specials The Charleston Special (2015), Rory Scovel Tries Stand-Up for the First Time (2017), Live Without Fear (2021), and Religion, Sex, and a Few Things in Between (2024).

Dan Schlissel is an American record producer from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and founder of the record labels Stand Up! Records, which specializes in comedy, and -ismist Recordings, which focused on punk and alternative rock from Nebraska and nearby Midwestern states. Schlissel won a Grammy as producer of Lewis Black's 2006 album The Carnegie Hall Performance, and was nominated for his work on Black's two Grammy-nominated albums, Luther Burbank Performing Arts Center Blues and Anticipation. He is known for his work with Black and other comics including Doug Stanhope, Maria Bamford, Marc Maron, and Mitch Hedberg, and helping release the debut record of Iowa metal band Slipknot.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jimmy Shubert</span> American stand-up comedian and Actor

Jimmy Shubert is a stand-up comedian from Philadelphia now living in Los Angeles. He is known for being part of Sam Kinison's "Outlaws of Comedy," as a 2014 finalist on Last Comic Standing, and for acting roles on shows such as The King of Queens, Entourage, and ER, and movies including Go and Mr. and Mrs. Smith.

Chris Maddock is an American stand-up comedian from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He has released two albums and a DVD on Dan Schlissel's Stand Up! Records, most recently 2020's Country Music Legend, which reached No. 5 on the iTunes comedy chart.

Doug Mellard is an American stand-up comedian.

William C. "Bill" Young was an American stand-up comedian from Minneapolis, Minnesota. Young appeared on three comedy albums released by Stand Up! Records, including the posthumous career retrospective Eat the Cake!, released in 2023.

References

  1. 1 2 Snyders, Matt (2008-05-21). "Indie comedy label Stand Up! has produced the edgiest comedy in the country". City Pages. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  2. ↑ Hendrickson, Tad (2016-09-28). "Meet the Minnesotan who helped launch the careers of Lewis Black and other comedy stars". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  3. ↑ Joe Randazzo (2 June 2015). "An Interview With Dan Schlissel". Funny on Purpose: The Definitive Guide to an Unpredictable Career in Comedy: Standup + Improv + Sketch + TV + Writing + Directing + YouTube. Chronicle Books LLC. pp. 159–. ISBN   978-1-4521-3559-5.
  4. 1 2 3 Marc Maron (2018-09-03). "Episode 947: Dan Schlissel". WTF with Marc Maron (Podcast). Retrieved 2020-04-01.
  5. 1 2 Schaust, Sam (2018-05-10). "The Long Play: Why Stand Up! Records' Dan Schlissel Won't Stop Printing Comedy on Wax". Twin Cities Business. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  6. 1 2 John Wenzel (December 2009). Mock Stars: Indie Comedy and the Dangerously Funny: Easyread Large Edition. pp. 209–. ISBN   978-1-4587-4742-6.
  7. 1 2 3 Roth, David (2019). "The Art of the Laugh with Stand Up! Records and Dan Schlissel". TPT Originals. PBS. Twin Cities PBS. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  8. 1 2 3 Wood, Drew (2018-07-12). "Q&A with Dan Schlissel of Minneapolis Label Stand Up! Records". Mpls.St.Paul Magazine. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  9. ↑ John Machnik at AllMusic . Retrieved 2020-04-18.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Austen, Jake (August 2013). "Slissel". Roctober. Chicago.
  11. 1 2 Matteson, Cory (2013-08-03). "Comedy record producer learned the ropes in Lincoln". Lincoln Journal Star . Lincoln, Nebraska . Retrieved 2020-02-20.
  12. ↑ Dan Schlissel at AllMusic . Retrieved 2020-02-28.
  13. ↑ "Artists: Lewis Black". The Recording Academy . Retrieved 2020-02-22.
  14. 1 2 Steinberg, Don (2012-04-12). "Laugh Tracks: Once a '60s-'70s Relic, the Comedy Album Is Back". Wall Street Journal. New York. Retrieved 2020-04-03.
  15. ↑ Wenzel, John (2014-05-29). "Jokes on Wax: Inside Comedy's Vinyl Resurgence". Vulture. New York. Retrieved 2020-04-03.
  16. 1 2 Smith, Rod (30 September 2007). "A Man Walks Into A Bar". City Pages. Minneapolis. Archived from the original on 2007-09-30. Retrieved 2020-02-25.
  17. ↑ Mehta, Raghav (2015-04-17). "Stand Up! Records Releases Rare Joan Rivers Album for Record Store Day". City Pages. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-03-09.
  18. ↑ Drew Friedman at AllMusic . Retrieved 2020-04-03.
  19. ↑ Pia Guerra at AllMusic . Retrieved 2020-04-03.
  20. 1 2 Lara Smith (17 April 2019). "Dan Schlissel: For the Record". Comedy Wham (Podcast). Comedy Wham. Retrieved 20 February 2020.
  21. ↑ Bond, John-Michael (2019-04-26). "Lashonda Lester's Posthumous Shondee Superstar Documents A Comedy Genius Taken Too Soon". Paste. Retrieved 2020-02-09.
  22. ↑ Baumgartner, Jeff (2015-08-31). "Mediarazzi cuts costs of connected-TV plays: vendor 'levels the playing field' for smaller producers, developing apps for less than $10,000". Broadcasting & Cable. 145 (29). NewBay Media LLC.
  23. ↑ "About the Akumal Comedy Festival". Akumal Comedy Festival. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  24. ↑ Walsh, Paul (2014-12-02). "Twin Cities comic dies after fall from ruins in Mexico". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved 2020-03-02.
  25. ↑ "Tartan Details - Stand Up! Records". The Scottish Register of Tartans. Retrieved 2020-02-22.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.