Paul Worley (born February 16, 1950 in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to ...

) is an American

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

and session

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

, known primarily for his work in

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

. Formerly a vice president at

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyou ...

, he later joined the staff of Warner Bros. Records' Nashville division as

chief creative officer A chief creative officer (CCO) is the highest ranking position of the creative team within a company. Depending on the type of company, this position may be responsible for the overall look and feel of marketing, media, and branding associated w ...

. Since leaving Warner in the early 2000s, Worley has worked mainly as a record producer for other acts, such as

Big & Rich Big & Rich is an American country music duo composed of Big Kenny and John Rich, both of whom are songwriters, vocalists, and guitarists. Before the duo's foundation, Rich was bass guitarist in the country band Lonestar, while Kenny was a sol ...

, as well as an occasional session guitarist. He is most widely known as the co- producer (with Victoria Shaw) of the self-titled debut album of

Lady Antebellum Lady A (formerly known as Lady Antebellum) is an American country music group formed in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2006. The group is composed of Hillary Scott (lead and background vocals), Charles Kelley (lead and background vocals, guitar) ...

(2008) and as one of the producers of their second album, '' Need You Now'' (2010). He also discovered the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) and ...

and, with

Blake Chancey Blake Chancey (born September 11, 1962) is an American record producer and music business executive, known primarily for his work in country music. Formerly an executive vice president and chief creative officer for Sony Music, he later formed a ...

, co-produced their first two albums.

Early life

Worley was born in Nashville in 1950. He graduated from

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

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, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

. On the recommendation of record producer

Jim Ed Norman Jim Ed Norman is an American musician, multi-platinum record producer, arranger and label-head. As an arranger and producer, he was one of the principal architects of the distinctive sound of West Coast 1970s pop and country rock. He was Preside ...

, he first played guitar on albums by

Janie Fricke Jane Marie Fricke ( ; born December 19, 1947), known professionally as Janie Fricke, is an American country music singer, songwriter, record producer, and clothing designer. She has placed seventeen singles in the top ten of the ''Billboard'' ...

Eddy Raven Edward Garvin Futch (born August 19, 1944), known professionally as Eddy Raven, is an American country music singer and songwriter. Active since 1962, Raven has recorded for several record labels, including ABC, Dimension, Elektra, RCA, Univer ...

, and

Mickey Gilley Mickey Leroy Gilley (March 9, 1936 – May 7, 2022) was an American country music singer and songwriter. Although he started out singing straight-up country and western material in the 1970s, he moved towards a more pop-friendly sound in the 19 ...

. Worley's first production credits included Riders in the Sky's ''Three on the Trail'' (1976) and

Gary Morris Gary Gwyn Morris (born December 7, 1948) is an American singer and stage actor who charted a string of hits on the country music charts throughout the 1980s. Morris is known for the 1983 ballad " The Wind Beneath My Wings", although his credits ...

' ''Why Lady Why'' (1983). Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Worley has produced or co-produced several country music albums, primarily by

artists. Through his association with the Dixie Chicks, Worley earned two

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

s for

Best Country Album The Grammy Award for Best Country Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality albums in the country music genre. Honors in ...

, both times for albums recorded by the

: 1998's '' Wide Open Spaces'' and 1999's '' Fly''. 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 to sign

, a country music duo composed of Big Kenny and

John Rich John Rich (born January 7, 1974) is an American country music singer-songwriter. From 1992 to 1998, he was a member of the country music band Lonestar, in which he played bass guitar and alternated with Richie McDonald as lead vocalist. After d ...

. Worley left Warner Bros. after the label did not sign Lady Antebellum, despite Worley's encouragement. When the band signed with

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

, Worley left Warner Bros. in order to produce the band. In early 2011, Worley shared with Lady Antebellum in four of 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 Olive Marie Osmond (born October 13, 1959) is an American singer, actress, television host, and a member of the show business family the Osmonds. Although she was never part of her family's singing group, she gained success as a country and pop ...

, the

Desert Rose Band The Desert Rose Band was an American country rock band from Los Angeles, California, founded in 1985 by Chris Hillman (formerly of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers), with Herb Pedersen and John Jorgenson. The original lineup inclu ...

Highway 101 Highway 101 was an American country music band founded in 1986 in Los Angeles, California. The initial lineup consisted of Paulette Carlson (lead vocals), Jack Daniels (guitar), Curtis Stone (bass guitar, vocals), and Scott "Cactus" Moser (dru ...

Martina McBride Martina Mariea McBride (née Schiff, born July 29, 1966) is an American country music singer-songwriter and record producer. She is known for her soprano singing range and her country pop material. McBride was born in Sharon, Kansas, and relo ...

The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is an American country rock band formed in 1966. The group has existed in various forms since its founding in Long Beach, California. Between 1976 and 1981, the band performed and recorded as the Dirt Band. Constant ...

Collin Raye Floyd Elliot Wray (born August 22, 1960) is an American country music singer, known professionally as Collin Raye, and previously as Bubba Wray. Under the latter name, he recorded as a member of the band The Wrays between 1983 and 1987. He made ...

Sara Evans Sara Lynn Evans (; born February 5, 1971) is an American country music singer and songwriter. She is also credited as a record producer, actress, and author. She had five songs reach the number one spot on the '' Billboard'' country songs cha ...

The Band Perry The Band Perry are an American band composed of siblings Kimberly Perry (lead vocals, guitar), Reid Perry (bass guitar, background vocals), and Neil Perry (mandolin, bouzouki, background vocals). They signed to Republic Nashville in August 200 ...

, and Jennette McCurdy.

Skyline Music Publishing

Along with Wally Wilson and two other partners, Worley founded a publishing company known as Skyline Music Publishing. Among the songwriters that have been signed to Skyline are

Hugh Prestwood Hugh Loring Prestwood (born April 2, 1942) is an American Hall of Fame songwriter, whose work is primarily in country music. He was discovered by Judy Collins, who gave him his first hit "Hard Time for Lovers", which was recorded in 1978. Prestw ...

(who wrote

Randy Travis Randy Bruce Traywick (born May 4, 1959), known professionally as Randy Travis, is an American country music and gospel music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. Active from 1978 until being incapacitated by a stroke in 2013, he has recor ...

' Number One single " Hard Rock Bottom of Your Heart"), Tammy Hyler (who has written for

), and

Russ Titelman Russ Titelman (born August 16, 1944, Los Angeles, California) is an American record producer and songwriter. He has to date won three Grammy Awards. He earned his first producing the Steve Winwood song " Higher Love", and his second and third f ...

. In 2012, Skyline writer Jon Stone co-wrote the

SESAC SESAC is a for-profit performance-rights organization in the United States. Founded in 1930 as the Society of European Stage Authors and Composers, it is the second-oldest performance-rights organization in the United States.

Song Of The Year, " A Woman Like You," recorded by

Curb Records Curb Records (also known as Asylum-Curb and formerly known as MCG Curb) is an American record label started by Mike Curb, originally as Sidewalk Records in 1963. From 1969 to 1973, Curb merged with MGM Records where Curb served as President of M ...

artist Lee Brice. 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, which is set to be released by Sony Music Nashville in 2013.

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 Stealing Angels was an American country trio, composed of Caroline Cutbirth, Tayla Lynn, and Jennifer Wayne. Their debut single, "He Better Be Dead," was released to radio on July 12, 2010, and debuted at number 59 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Co ...

later that year. In 2011, Skyville signed a distribution deal with

Sony Music Nashville Sony Music Nashville is the country music branch of the Sony Music Group. Based in Nashville, Tennessee, Sony Music Nashville includes its three country recording labels Arista Nashville, Columbia Nashville, and RCA Nashville, as well as ...

. Skyville currently specializes in artist development, working with up-and-coming talent in various capacities, including production, music publishing, and artist management.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Worley, Paul 1950 births American country guitarists American male guitarists Grammy Award winners Living people Musicians from Nashville, Tennessee American session musicians American country record producers Songwriters from Tennessee Guitarists from Tennessee 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from Tennessee 20th-century American male musicians American male songwriters