James Wallace Williamson, Jr.

September 23, 1935 - January 20, 2011

Jim Williamson, who engineered enduring recordings by Merle Haggard, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash and numerous others, died at his Nashville-area home on Thursday, January 20, 2011. Mr. Williamson was 75 and suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. As a recording engineer, Mr. Williamson masterfully captured and blended voices and instruments in the studio. He recorded Loretta Lynn's "Coal Miner's Daughter," Tammy Wynette's "Stand by Your Man," Gene Watson's "Farewell Party," Haggard's That's The Way Love Goes" and many more. "He knew his craft really well, and he made great sounding records," said Garth Fundis, a colleague of Mr. Williamson who produced albums for Trisha Yearwood, Don Williams, Keith Whitley and others. "Jim was often the calm in midst of the storm: If there was one person in the room who had it together, it was probably him." Mr. Williamson's composure was evidenced during a three-hour Gene Watson session in which only 10 minutes remained. Watson wanted to attempt one more song, though it seemed unlikely that the musicians would be able to learn and perform a brand new composition in 10 minutes time, much less that Mr. Williamson would be able to record the song with accuracy and clarity. But the engineer did his job, the musicians delivered in one take, and "Farewell Party" became a Top 10 Billboard country hit single in 1979. On the session for Dylan's "Rainey Day Women #12 & 35," Mr. Williamson calmly adjusted microphones in the dark (Dylan had mandated dim lights) and documented a whirl of woozy noise that sounded like a raucous party, as Dylan repeated his admonition, "Everybody must get stoned." Born in North Carolina in 1935, Mr. Williamson moved to Nashville in the 1950's, taking a job at Nicholson's Hi-Fi store. He worked as an engineer at WSM-TV before shifting to Columbia Records, where he helped on sessions for Cash, The Statler Brothers, Kris Kristofferson and others. According to writer and music historian Tom Roland, Mr. Williamson was among the first Nashville engineers to ask musicians to work with headphones. Mr. Williamson also worked at Decca Records and at Woodland Sound Studios, and he became a manager at Jack Clement Studios. He oversaw renovation of Clement's building, which was renamed Sound Emporium. "He was one of the finest engineers I ever worked with in Nashville," Haggard told Roland. Haggard worked with Mr. Williamson for more than a decade. Mr. Williamson married Edith Flowers in 1961, and they were due to celebrate their 50th anniversary this September. He is survived by Edith; daughter Debbie Williamson of San Deigo; daughter Suzy Pender of Nashville, six grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. At Mr. Williamson's request, a private memorial will be held for his family, with no public funeral.