Legendary country music writer and producer Billy Sherrill died Aug. 4 in Nashville at the age of 78. Sherrill's daughter, Catherine Lale, confirmed Sherrill's death to The New York Times shortly after his passing, saying it "came after a short illness."
Sherrill is best known for being the music producer who worked with Tammy Wynette and George Jones to usher in a new music sound described as "Countrypolitan" in the 1960s and '70s.
"Genius is the most overused word in the music business, but with Billy Sherrill, you can't use it enough," songwriter Bobby Braddock told Variety.
Michael Kosser, who wrote the book "How Nashville Became Music City, U.S.A.," added, "No Nashville record producer ever dominated his era the way Billy Sherrill dominated the '70s. His secret was recording great songs. As he was known to say, quoting Shakespeare, 'The play's the thing.'"
Born on Nov. 5, 1936, in Phil Campbell, Ala., Sherrill, who was the son of an evangelical preacher, begin playing the piano and singing during his childhood. He led a blues band during his teenage years and released records under his name that went unnoticed.
In 1962, he was hired by Sam Phillips to help manage Sun Records' Nashville studio and later became a producer at Epic Records,
Sherrill also worked with Charlie Rich, Ronnie Milsap, Johnny Paycheck, Elvis Costello and Ray Charles, according to the Washington Post. He also signed Wynette, Barbara Mandrell and Janie Fricke to record deals.
Songs Sherrill produced included Rich's "The Most Beautiful Girl" and "Behind Closed Doors" and Jones' "He Stopped Loving Her Today" (1980). In 1966, he also won a Grammy Award for co-writing David Houston's "Almost Persuaded." In 2008, Sherrill was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville.
Sherrill is survived by his wife, Charlene, his daughter and two grandchildren.
