Paul Worley
{{short description|American record producer and session guitarist (born 1950)}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name = Paul Worley
| image =
| caption =
| image_size =
| background = non_vocal_instrumentalist
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1950|02|16}}
| origin = Nashville, Tennessee, U.S.
| instrument = Guitar
| genre = Country
| occupation = Record producer
Guitarist
| years_active = 1975-present
| associated_acts = Big & Rich
Dixie Chicks
Lady Antebellum
Martina McBride
| website =
}}
Paul Worley (born February 16, 1950{{cite magazine |url=http://www.allbusiness.com/retail-trade/miscellaneous-retail-retail-stores-not/4631121-1.html |title=Of His Many Hats, Producer/exec Paul Worley Prefers His Guitarist Cap |access-date=2008-01-07 |last=Cromer |first=Ben |date=1998-04-18 |magazine=Billboard}} in Nashville){{cite web |url=http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep10/articles/lady-a.htm |title=Paul Worley: Producing Lady Antebellum |access-date=2010-08-25 |last=Tingen |first=Paul |date=September 2010 |work=Sound on Sound}} is an American record producer and session guitarist, known primarily for his work in country music. Formerly a vice president at Sony BMG,{{cite web |url=http://www.bizjournals.com/nashville/stories/2004/11/22/daily4.html |title=Paul Worley partner in Skyline Music Publishing |access-date=2008-01-07 |date=2004-11-22 |work=Nashville Business Journal}} he later joined the staff of Warner Bros. Records' Nashville division as chief creative officer.{{cite magazine |url=http://www.allbusiness.com/retail-trade/miscellaneous-retail-retail-stores-not/4655195-1.html |title=Warner Bros. Revamps Nashville Staff |access-date=2008-01-07 |last=Stark |first=Phillis |date=2002-08-03 |magazine=Billboard}} Since leaving Warner in the early 2000s, Worley has worked mainly as a record producer for other acts including Big & Rich, as well as an occasional session guitarist. He is mostly known as the co- producer (with Victoria Shaw) of the self-titled debut album of Lady Antebellum (2008) and as one of the producers of their second album, Need You Now (2010). He also discovered the Dixie Chicks and with Blake Chancey, co-produced their first two albums.
Early life
Worley was born in Nashville in 1950. He graduated from Vanderbilt University with a degree in philosophy.
Musical career
=Producer and session musician=
Paul Worley began his career in the late 1970s as a session guitarist in Nashville. On the recommendation of record producer Jim Ed Norman, he first played guitar on albums by Janie Fricke, Eddy Raven, and Mickey Gilley. Worley's first production credits included Riders in the Sky's Three on the Trail (1976) and Gary Morris' Why Lady Why (1983).{{cite web |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p139773|pure_url=yes}} |title=Paul Worley: Credits |access-date=2008-01-07 |work=Allmusic}} Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Worley has produced or co-produced several country music albums, primarily by country music artists.
Through his association with the Dixie Chicks, Worley earned two Grammy Awards for Best Country Album, both times for albums recorded by the Dixie Chicks: 1998's Wide Open Spaces and 1999's Fly.{{cite web |url=http://www.cmt.com/artists/news/1472372/20030606/dixie_chicks.jhtml |title=TV Takeover Caps Banner Year for Dixie Chicks |access-date=2008-01-07 |last=Orr |first=Jay |work=CMT}}{{dead link|date=July 2024|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}{{cite web |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p139773|pure_url=yes}} |title=Paul Worley: Grammy Awards |work=Allmusic}} Worley also played guitar on the Chicks' debut single "I Can Love You Better". After becoming chief creative officer at Warner Bros. Records in 2002, Worley helped sign Big & Rich, a country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich.{{cite web |url=http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Big-Rich-Biography/44B87EBE7296517548256EB4000A23D8 |title=Big & Rich biography |access-date=2008-01-07 |work=Sing365.com}}
Worley left Warner Bros. after the label did not sign Lady Antebellum, despite Worley's encouragement. When the band signed with Capitol Records, Worley left Warner Bros. in order to produce the band. In early 2011, Worley shared in four wins with Lady Antebellum at the 2010 Grammy Awards: Best Country Album, Record of the Year, Song of The Year, and Best Country Song. In addition to Morris, the Dixie Chicks, and Lady Antebellum, Worley has produced or co-produced albums and singles by Marie Osmond, The Desert Rose Band, Highway 101, Martina McBride, the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Collin Raye, Sara Evans, The Band Perry, and Jennette McCurdy.
=Skyline Music Publishing=
Along with Wally Wilson and two other partners, Worley founded a publishing company, Skyline Music Publishing. Among the songwriters that have signed to Skyline are Hugh Prestwood (who wrote Randy Travis' Number One single "Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart"), Tammy Hyler (who has written for Collin Raye), and Russ Titelman.{{cite web |url=http://top40-charts.com/news.php?nid=20741&string=Randy |title=Skyline Music Publishing Inks Deak with Award-Winning Songwriter Hugh Prestwood |access-date=2008-01-07 |date=2006-02-10 |work=Top 40 Charts}} In 2012, Skyline writer Jon Stone co-wrote the SESAC Song Of The Year, "A Woman Like You," recorded by Curb Records artist Lee Brice.SESAC Celebrates Songwriters & Publishers at the 2012 Nashville Music Awards --http://www.sesac.com/Events/Event_News_Details.aspx?id=1794 Also in 2012, Skyline writers The Henningsens were awarded BMI awards for two singles recorded by Valory Music Group's The Band Perry, "You Lie" and "All Your Life." Worley also produced The Henningsen's debut album, to be released by Sony Music Nashville in 2013.{{cite web |url=http://www.musicnewsnashville.com/hudson-moores-fireworks-lands-at-1 |title=Hudson Moore's "Fireworks" Lands At #1 - Music News Nashville |website=www.musicnewsnashville.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927183856/http://www.musicnewsnashville.com/hudson-moores-fireworks-lands-at-1 |archive-date=2013-09-27}}
=Skyville Records and artist development =
In 2010, Worley, Wilson, and Skyline partner Glen Morgan formed the independent record label Skyville Records. The label's first release was Stealing Angels later that year.Paul Worley Forms Skyville Records, Debuts Stealing Angels -- http://theboot.com/paul-worley-skyville-records-stealing-angels/ In 2011, Skyville signed a distribution deal with Sony Music Nashville.{{cite web|title=Skyville Records Inks Distribution Deal With Sony Music Nashville |url=http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/86338/skyville-records-inks-distribution-deal-with-sony-|date=January 25, 2011|website=All Access|access-date=January 23, 2015}} Skyville specializes in artist development, working with up-and-coming talent in production, music publishing, and artist management.
References
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Category:American country guitarists
Category:American male guitarists
Category:Musicians from Nashville, Tennessee
Category:American session musicians
Category:American country record producers
Category:Songwriters from Tennessee
Category:Guitarists from Tennessee
Category:20th-century American guitarists
Category:Country musicians from Tennessee