John Fry is the founder of Ardent Music, LLC in Memphis, TN, which includes Ardent Studios, two record labels, Ardent Records (Christian label) and Ardent Music (mainstream label), 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, 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% 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.
Fry has served as national President of the Society of Professional Audio Recording Services (SPARS), Chairman of the Tennessee Film, Entertainment, and Music Commission, Chairman of the Memphis Film Commission, Chairman of the Memphis and Shelby County Music Commission, Vice-Chairman of the Memphis Music Foundation, Board Member of Visible School Music and Worship Arts College, President and National Trustee of the Memphis Chapter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (Grammy Organization), and Chairman of the University of Memphis Music Industry Advisory Board. He was the recipient of the 2006 Distinguished Achievement in the Creative and Performing Arts Award from the College of Communication and Fine Arts at the University of Memphis.
To date, Ardent has amassed over 70 gold and platinum albums and singles.