Billy Mack Ham (February 4, 1937 – June 20, 2016) was an American music impresario, best known as the manager, producer, and image-maker for the blues-rock band

ZZ Top ZZ Top is an American rock band formed in Houston, Texas, in 1969. For almost 56 years, it consisted of vocalist-guitarist Billy Gibbons, drummer Frank Beard (musician), Frank Beard, and bassist-vocalist Dusty Hill prior to his death in 2021. ZZ ...

. Ham also gained prominence in the country music world by discovering and managing multi-platinum singer-songwriter

Clint Black Clint Patrick Black (born February 4, 1962) is an American country music singer, songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. Signed to RCA Nashville in 1989, Black's debut album '' Killin' Time'' produced four straight number one singles ...

Career

Ham began his career as a singer, releasing a single, "Wanderer," on

Dot Records Dot Records was an American record label founded by Randy Wood (record producer), Randy Wood and Gene Nobles that was active between 1950 and 1978. The original headquarters of Dot Records were in Gallatin, Tennessee. In its early years, Dot sp ...

in 1960. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' called the song a "bright rocker" with a "sensational backbeat." In 1968, Ham was working as a record promoter for Bud Daily Distributing when he saw the Moving Sidewalks, the band that would become ZZ Top, perform at a

Doors A door is a hinged or otherwise movable barrier that allows ingress (entry) into and egress (exit) from an enclosure. The created opening in the wall is a ''doorway'' or ''portal''. A door's essential and primary purpose is to provide secu ...

concert in

Houston Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...

, and went backstage to compliment them. When the Moving Sidewalks decided to fire their manager, they recruited Ham to replace him. Ham was instrumental to ZZ Top's success, co-writing songs, constructing their image, and producing every one of the group's albums from their debut through 1996's '' Rhythmeen''. Ham and ZZ Top parted ways in 2006. Ham also saw success in management and publishing outside of ZZ Top. His Lone Wolf Management produced such artists as

and Point Blank, and songwriters signed to his Hamstein Music publishing company scored 100 Top 10 country singles, including 60 number ones.

Personal life and death

On July 2, 1991, Ham's wife, 48-year-old Cecile Ham, was in a drugstore parking lot in Houston when she was kidnapped and murdered by 22-year-old Spencer Corey Goodman, a recently paroled repeat offender. Goodman was apprehended five weeks later following a high-speed chase where he crashed Cecile's stolen car. He was convicted of murder, sentenced to death, and executed by

lethal injection Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium) for the express purpose of causing death. The main application for this procedure is capital punishment, but t ...

on January 18, 2000. Ham witnessed the execution. Ham died on June 20, 2016, at his home in

Austin, Texas Austin ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat and most populous city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and W ...

, aged 79.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ham, Bill 1937 births 2016 deaths Record producers from Texas People from Waxahachie, Texas ZZ Top