Giving Two Late, Great Producer /Arrangers Their Due

Like most music critics & enthusiasts, I give so much attention to artists & songwriters that I sometimes neglect to properly credit other key players in the recording process. A pair of great producer/arrangers died last week, both at age 81. It's high time to spread some Muse of the Weird love around.

(1) Memphis-based Willie Mitchell produced many instrumental hits in the 1960's as well as the Rev. Al Green's irresistibly soulful romantic ballads ("Let's Stay Together" etc.) in the early 1970s. Owner of Royal Studio & the Hi Records label, Mitchell kept busy late in life producing newcomers like John Mayer as well as old-timers such as Solomon Burke & Buddy Guy. He crafted the string & horn arrangements for Rod Stewart's new R&B covers album. Mitchell was awarded a special Grammy in 2008 & has a Memphis boulevard named after him.

Born & raised in Mississippi, Mitchell was a trumpeter before evolving into an inspired & inspiring entrepreneur/producer. Willie Mitchell & his band frequently provided New Year's Eve entertainment for Elvis Presley at Graceland (now a shrine to the King of Rock 'n' Roll). Mitchell's survivor's include a son & 2 daughters. On NPR's "Fresh Air" last year Al Green discussed making his first records (rather bizarrely, a cover of The Beatles' "I Wanna Hold Your Hand") & how grateful he was to have met Willie Mitchell, who coaxed Green into letting his powerful originality emerge.

(2) Nashville-based arranger Sheldon Kurland "helped broaden the appeal of country music," writes Peter Cooper in his Tennessean obituary. A native of Brooklyn & a graduate of the Juilliard School in NY, Kurland came to Music City in 1964 to teach at Peabody College. He eventually played on thousands of Music Row sessions as a violinist/arranger in the heyday of the Nashville "countrypolitan" Sound, pioneered by producers Chet Atkins & Owen Bradley, which brought crossover success to many country artists through the 1970s & beyond.

Among his notable accomplishments, Kurland:
* arranged the strings on Waylon Jennings' beloved "Dreaming My Dreams" album;
* played regularly on ABC-TV's The Johnny Cash Show;
* toured with Neil Young & contributed to Young's classic "Comes a Time" album;
* enhanced Bob Dylan's "Self-Portrait" record;
* worked with such diverse luminaries as Willie Nelson, Jimmy Buffett, Hank Snow, Bobby Bare, Kris Kristofferson, Reba McEntire, Crystal Gayle & Dolly Parton.

Legendary producer 'Cowboy' Jack Clement said that Kurland "made Nashville string players a credible thing" at a time when Music City was still regarded as a hick backwater by many in the NY/LA music establishment. Kurland's son Peter (director of the Darkhorse Theater) & daughter Amy (ex-owner/operator of the famous Bluebird Cafe) also contributed to the cultural scene in Nashville; survivors include another daughter, Wendy.