Musicians make music. Producers make records. In the early days of recorded music, the producer was the "artists-and-repertoire man," or A&R man, for short. A powerful figure, the A&R man chose both who would record and what they would record. His decisions profoundly shaped our musical tastes. Don Law found country bluesman Robert Johnson and honky-tonk crooner Lefty Frizzell. Cowboy Jack Clement took the initiative to record Jerry Lee Lewis (while his boss, Sam Phillips, was away on business). When Ray Charles said he wanted to record a country-and-western album, Sid Feller gathered songs for his consideration. The author's extensive interviews with music makers offer the fullest account ever of the producer's role in creating country music. In its focus on recordings and record production, Producing Country tells the story of country music from its early years to the present day through hit records by Hank Williams, George Jones, Patsy Cline, Buck Owens, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Waylon Jennings, and Merle Haggard, among many others.

List of IllustrationsAcknowledgmentsIntroductionBiographical SketchesOverture: What Is a Record Producer?CUTTING TRACKS: CAPTURING THE PERFORMANCE, 1927-1949Various, RCA Country Legends: The Bristol Sessions, Vol. 1 (1927) and "A Satisfied Mind" (1954)Various, Roots n' Blues: The Retrospective 1925-1950Bill Monroe, The Essential Bill Monroe and His Bluegrass Boys 1945-1949Bob Wills, The Essential Bob Wills 1935-1947Gene Autry, The Essential Gene Autry (1933-1946)Robert Johnson, The Complete Recordings (1936-1937)Tex Ritter, "Jingle, Jangle, Jingle" (1942)The Maddox Brothers and Rose, America's Most Colorful Hillbilly Band, 1946-1951T. Texas Tyler, "Deck of Cards" (1946)Tex Williams and His Western Caravan, "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)" (1947)The Dinning Sisters, "Buttons and Bows" (1947)Merle Travis, Folk Songs of the Hills (1947)Dale Evans, "Don't Ever Fall in Love with a Cowboy" (1949)Interlude: The Producer as DirectorTAPING TRACKS: CREATING THE PERFORMANCE, 1950-1966Lefty Frizzell, Look What Thoughts Will Do (1950-1965)Martha Carson, "Satisfied" (1951)Hank Williams, "I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive" (1952)Tex Ritter, "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me)" (1952)Kitty Wells, "It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels" (1952)Elvis Presley, "That's All Right" (1954)The Louvin Brothers, "When I Stop Dreaming" (1955)Ferlin Husky, "Gone" (1956)Merle Travis, The Merle Travis Guitar (1956)Elvis Presley, "Blue Moon" (1956) and Elvis Presley (1956)The Million Dollar Quartet, The Complete Million Dollar Quartet (1956)Billy Lee Riley, "Flyin' Saucers Rock and Roll" and "Red Hot" (1957)Roy Orbison, The Sun Years (1956-1958)Don Gibson, "I Can't Stop Loving You" and "Oh, Lonesome Me" (1957)Jerry Lee Lewis, "Whole Lotta Shakin' Goin' On" (1957)The Everly Brothers, "Bye Bye Love" (1957)Johnny Cash, "Home of the Blues" (1957)Bill Monroe, "Scotland" (1958)Buddy Holly, "Rave On" and "That's My Desire" (1958)Del Wood, Rags to Riches (1959)George Jones, "White Lightning" (1959)Jim Reeves, "He'll Have to Go" (1959)Buck Owens, "Excuse Me (I Think I've Got a Heartache)" (1960)Brenda Lee, "I'm Sorry" (1960)Floyd Cramer, "Last Date" (1960)Hank Thompson, Hank Thompson at the Golden Nugget (1961)Jim Reeves, "The Blizzard" (1961)Elvis Presley, "Little Sister" (1961)Patsy Cline, "I Fall to Pieces" and "Crazy" (1961)Ray Stevens, "Santa Claus Is Watching You" (1962)Bobby Bare, The Essential Bobby Bare (1962)Ray Charles, Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music (1962)Dickey Lee, "Patches" (1962)Hank Snow, "I've Been Everywhere" (1962)Johnny Cash, "Ring of Fire" (1963)Ernest Tubb, "Thanks a Lot" (1963)Elvis Presley, "It Hurts Me" (1963)Dave Dudley, "Six Days on the Road" (1963)Patsy Cline, "Faded Love" (1963)Brook Benton, On the Countryside (1964)Roger Miller at RCA, Platinum and Gold Collection (1960-1961)Roger Miller at Mercury, Golden Hits (1964-1969)Merle Haggard and the Strangers, Strangers (1965)Glen Campbell, Song Demos (1965) and "I Knew Jesus (Before He Was a Star)" (1973)The Essential Porter Wagoner and Dolly Parton, The Essential Dolly Parton, and The Essential Connie Smith (1965)Chet Atkins, "Yakety Axe" (1965)Joe Tex, "Hold What You Got," (1965)Bob Dylan, Highway 61 Revisited (1965)Charley Pride, "The Snakes Crawl at Night" (1965)Bob Dylan, "Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" (1966)Jerry Lee Lewis, "Memphis Beat" (1966)Interlude: Studio MattersMULTITRACKING: CONSTRUCTING THE PERFORMANCE, 1967-1991Otis Redding, "(Sittin' on) The Dock of the Bay" (1967)John Hartford, "Gentle on My Mind" (1967)The Byrds, Younger Than Yesterday (1967)Jack Reno, "Repeat after Me" (1967)Jeannie C. Riley, "Harper Valley P.T.A." (1968)Conway Twitty, "Next in Line" (1968)Porter Wagoner, "The Carroll County Accident" (1968)Johnny Cash, Johnny Cash at Folsom Prison (1968)Dusty Springfield, Dusty in Memphis (1969)Loretta Lynn, "Coal Miner's Daughter" (1969)Roger Miller, "Me and Bobby McGee" (1969)Elvis Presley, Memphis 1969 Anthology: Suspicious Minds (1969)Ray Price, "For the Good Times" (1970)Kenny Rogers, Kenny Rogers & the First Edition Greatest Hits (1971)The Allman Brothers, The Allman Brothers Band at Fillmore East (1971)Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Will the Circle Be Unbroken (1972)Al Green, "For the Good Times," I'm Still in Love with You (1972)Charlie Rich, It Ain't Gonna Be That Way-The Complete Smash Sessions (1965-66)xCharlie Rich, "Behind Closed Doors" (1973)B. J. Thomas, "Hooked on a Feeling" (1973)Don Williams, The Definitive Collection (1973)Tompall Glaser, The Great Tompall and His Outlaw Band (1976)Waylon Jennings, Lonesome, On'ry and Mean (1973)Waylon Jennings, Honky Tonk Heroes (1973)Willie Nelson, Phases and Stages (1974)Dolly Parton, "Jolene" (1974)George Jones and Tammy Wynette, "(We're Not) The Jet Set" (1974)Eagles, Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975The Earl Scruggs Revue, Anniversary Special (1975)Tom T. Hall, "I Like Beer" (1975)The Statler Brothers, "Flowers on the Wall" (1975)George Jones and Tammy Wynette, "Golden Ring" (1976)Jennifer Warnes, "Right Time of the Night" (1976)Jerry Lee Lewis, "Middle Aged Crazy" (1977)Crystal Gayle, "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue" (1977)Anne Murray, "You Needed Me" (1978)Mel Tillis, I Believe in You (1978)Merle Haggard, Back to the Barrooms (1980)George Jones, "He Stopped Loving Her Today" (1980)George Strait, Strait Country (1981)Merle Travis, Travis Pickin' (1981)Reba McEntire, Unlimited (1982)Hank Williams Jr., "A Country Boy Can Survive" (1982)George Strait, "Amarillo by Morning" (1983)George Strait, Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind (1984)Reba McEntire, My Kind of Country (1984)Vern Gosdin, "I Can Tell by the Way You Dance (You're Gonna Love Me Tonight)" (1984)Mekons, Fear and Whiskey (1985)Reba McEntire, "Whoever's in New England" (1986)Steve Earle, Guitar Town (1986)Lyle Lovett, Lyle Lovett (1986), Pontiac (1987), and Lyle Lovett and His Large Band (1989)Nanci Griffith, Kathy Mattea, "Love at the Five and Dime" and "Goin' Gone" (198687)Dwight Yoakam, Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc. (1986)Keith Whitley, "Miami, My Amy" (1986)Restless Heart, Wheels (1986), and Alan Jackson, Here in the Real World (1989)Merle Travis, Rough, Rowdy and Blue (1986)Lucinda Williams, Lucinda Williams (1988)Michelle Shocked, Short Sharp Shocked (1988)Clint Black, Killin' Time (1989)Kathy Mattea, "Where've You Been" (1989)Kenny Rogers, Something Inside So Strong (1989)Garth Brooks, Garth Brooks (1989)Garth Brooks, No Fences (1990)Suzy Bogguss, Aces (1991)Marty Brown, High and Dry (1991)Hal Ketchum, Past the Point of Rescue (1991)Brooks & Dunn, "Brand New Man" (1991)Pam Tillis, Put Yourself in My Place (1991)Reba McEntire, For My Broken Heart (1991)Jimmie Dale Gilmore, After Awhile (1991)Interlude: The Writer as Producer-An Interview with Bobby BraddockENCODING TRACKS: COMPOSITING THE PERFORMANCE, 1992-PRESENTBrooks & Dunn, "Boot Scootin' Boogie (Dance Mix)" (1992)Wynonna Judd, Wynonna (1992)Joy Lynn White, Between Midnight & Hindsight (1992) and Wild Love (1994)John Anderson, Seminole Wind (1992)Cowboy Junkies, Black Eyed Man (1992)Iris DeMent, Infamous Angel (1992) and My Life (1993)Eddy Arnold, Last of the Love Song Singers: Then and Now (1993), et al.Nanci Griffith, Other Voices, Other Rooms (1993)Various, Tulare Dust: A Songwriters' Tribute to Merle Haggard (1994)The Mavericks, What a Crying Shame (1994)John Michael Montgomery, "I Swear" (1994)Lyle Lovett, I Love Everybody (1994)Alejandro Escovedo, Thirteen Years (1994)Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys, Jumping from 6 to 6 (1994), Swingin' West (1995); The Derailers, Reverb Deluxe (1997)Vince Gill, "Go Rest High on That Mountain" (1995)The Bottle Rockets, The Brooklyn Side (1995)Jerry and Tammy Sullivan, At the Feet of God (1995)Herb Jeffries, The Bronze Buckaroo (Rides Again) (1995)Blue Mountain, Dog Days (1995)Faith Hill, It Matters to Me (1995)Dwight Yoakam, Gone (1995)Deana Carter, "Strawberry Wine" (1996)Various, Rig Rock Deluxe: A Musical Salute to the American Truck Driver (1996)Cowboy Junkies, Lay It Down (1996)Trace Adkins, "Every Light in the House Is On" (1996)Joy Lynn White, The Lucky Few (1997)k. d. lang, Drag (1997), and Chris Whitley, Dirt Floor (1998)Clint Black, Nothin' But the Taillights (1997)George Strait, One Step at a Time (1998)Emmylou Harris, Spyboy (1998)Jim Lauderdale, Whisper (1998)Lucinda Williams, Car Wheels on a Gravel Road (1998)Robert Earl Keen Jr., Walking Distance (1998)Jonboy Langford & the Pine Valley Cosmonauts, Salute the Majesty of Bob Wills (1998)Vince Gill, The Key (1998)Randy Travis, You and You Alone (1998)Dixie Chicks, Wide Open Spaces (1998) and Fly (1999)Mandy Barnett, I've Got a Right to Cry (1999)Hal Ketchum, Awaiting Redemption (1999)The Derailers, Full Western Dress (1999)The Bottle Rockets, Brand New Year (1999), and Shania Twain, Come on Over (1997)John Prine, In Spite of Ourselves (1999)Montgomery Gentry, Tattoos & Scars (1999)Allison Moorer, The Hardest Part (2000)The Yayhoos, Fear Not the Obvious (2001)Tim McGraw, Set This Circus Down (2001)Norah Jones, Come Away with Me (2002)Montgomery Gentry, You Do Your Thing (2004)George Strait, It Just Comes Natural (2006)Various, Crazy Heart: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack (2010)Index