The Sound of Independence: Celebrating Stony Plain Records

One of the greatest joys of community radio is discovering the stories behind the music.

Few stories are more inspiring than that of Stony Plain Records, the independent Canadian label founded in Edmonton in 1976 by Holger Petersen and Alvin Jahns. What began around a kitchen table grew into one of the world’s most respected homes for roots, blues, folk and country music, proving that passion and integrity can outlast changing trends and technologies. Holger Petersen

Holger wasn’t simply a record executive. He was, and remains, a radio broadcaster with a lifelong love of the blues. His work on CKUA’s legendary Natch’l Blues and CBC’s Saturday Night Blues introduced generations of listeners to artists who might otherwise never have been heard. That combination of broadcaster, storyteller, producer and historian gave Stony Plain Records a unique identity: music first, business second.

To mark the label’s remarkable journey, Stony Plain released 35 Years of Stony Plain, a deluxe collection celebrating three and a half decades of extraordinary recordings. The set spans everything from blues legends and country pioneers to singer-songwriters and contemporary roots artists, reflecting the label’s wonderfully broad musical vision. It features names such as Ian Tyson, Maria Muldaur, Duke Robillard, Jeff Healey, Steve Earle, Emmylou Harris, Rory Block and many more.

Here at Berry Point Studio and GABE Radio, we feel a special kinship with that philosophy.

Like Holger Petersen, we believe that radio is about far more than playlists. It’s about preserving stories, supporting independent artists, introducing listeners to music they may never have discovered, and creating a place where conversations matter just as much as the songs themselves.

Long before streaming services and algorithms, passionate broadcasters built communities one record, one interview and one listener at a time. That spirit continues today.

As we build Airstreaming.org and GABE Radio, we’re grateful to stand on the shoulders of pioneers like Holger Petersen and the Stony Plain family, who demonstrated that independent voices can have an international impact while remaining deeply rooted in their communities.

Here’s to the next great conversation, the next great song, and the next artist waiting to be discovered.

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Where stories, music, and community come together.