Barry Beckett
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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Barry Beckett (February 4, 1943 - June 10, 2009) born in Birmingham, Alabama was a keyboardist who worked as a session musician with several notable artists on their studio albums. He was also a record producer, most notably of albums by Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Dire Straits, Joe Cocker, John Prine, McGuinn - Hillman, The Staple Singers, Phoebe Snow, Etta James, T. Graham Brown, Lorrie Morgan, Eddy Raven, Delbert McClinton, Frankie Miller, Jerry Jeff Walker, Alabama, Hank Williams, Jr., Neal McCoy, Confederate Railroad, Phish, Tammy Graham, Sonia Dada, Ilse DeLange and others.
As part of the Fame rhythm section, some of their songs involved are "I Never Loved a Man" (Aretha Franklin), "Land of 1000 Dances" (Wilson Pickett), "Kodachrome" (Paul Simon) and "When a Man Loves a Woman" (Percy Sledge).
Along with the rest of "the Swampers", took to the road in 1973 in the expanded lineup of Traffic...the results of which can be heard on Traffic's live album On The Road.
He was involved in the "Muscle Shoals Sound", being a member of the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, and in 1969, one of the founders of the Muscle Shoals Sound Studio. The Sound studio produced such hits as "Torn Between Two Lovers" (Mary MacGregor) and "Smoke from a Distant Fire" Sanford-Townsend Band). Beckett moved to Nashville in 1982 to become A & R country music director for Warner Brothers Records and co-produced Williams, Jr.'s records with Jim Ed Norman. Beckett produced records independently after leaving Warner Brothers.
