Soon after, songwriter Boudleaux Bryant heard one of Lord's demo tapes and passed it on to Columbia Records, which signed him in 1953.

He began releasing country and rockabilly hits for Columbia, and in 1955 joined Ozark Jubilee, an ABC-TV program based in Springfield, Missouri.

In 1960, the Jubilee was canceled and Lord moved to Nashville, where he was immediately offered a spot on the Grand Ole Opry.

Under the auspices of WSM-TV, he also hosted a weekly syndicated half-hour program featuring popular country artists.

In 1969, Lord left Nashville and went into semi-retirement from the music industry to devote time to his family and his interests in real estate and insurance.