In July 1923, John Carson released the first successful country music record in history. Director of recordings Ralph Peer considered the material “pluperfect awful” on account of Carson’s singing style and the record’s subpar audio; Carson had stood far from the microphone and the entire warehouse he played in could be heard echoing. Peer was so embarrassed he avoided assigning catalogue numbers. However, he was obligated to ship five hundred copies to Carson’s upcoming fiddler’s convention. These sold out with great demand for more. After national sales hit half a million, Peer opted to bring Carson back to the studio, and the success prompted other major record labels to explore cutting country music. John Carson’s first session cut only two sides. This is from Carson’s second studio session and contains the first song recorded that session, When You and I Were Young, Maggie.