Owsley (musician)
Encyclopedia
William Reese "Will" Owsley III (March 6, 1966 – April 30, 2010), known professionally as Owsley, was an American singer-songwriter
, best known as for his work as guitarist
in Amy Grant
's touring band. His solo albums won critical acclaim and one Grammy Award
nomination. He was also a record producer
and a recording engineer.
in a musical household. His father was the drum major
of the Million Dollar Band
, the marching band of the University of Alabama
; his mother was a singer and stage actress; his sister was a classically trained pianist, and his brother was a rock guitarist. Owsley graduated from The Rectory School
and attended the Blue Ridge School
. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee
in 1987.
Owsley started playing guitar at age nine. He was a fan of Kiss
and of Todd Rundgren
, but mostly practiced Eddie Van Halen
and Steve Morse
licks note-for-note. With his father's mentorship, he played snare drum
in the Anniston High School marching band, whilst continuing his passion for guitar, playing in his high school jazz band and in top-40 cover bands at local venues. Later, when he began writing his own songs, they were more similar to the style of The Beatles
. As a guitarist, he also cited influences such as Chet Atkins
, Jimi Hendrix
and Robert Johnson.
, appeared in various of his videos on MTV
, and was part of Spence's groundbreaking Nashville showcases that landed him 14 label offers. Nashville music executive Scott Siman
encouraged Owsley to pursue his own writing and performing, which is why he declined an offer by Amy Grant
in the late 1980s to become her guitarist.
Together with Millard Powers
, he founded the power pop
band The Semantics
, which included Jody Spence and Ringo Starr's son, Zak Starkey
. They were signed to Geffen Records
by John Kalodner
. The band recorded an album entitled Powerbill in 1993, which was never released in the U.S for being "too pop for alternative and too alternative for pop." It eventually got distributed in Japan
in 1996. Fine-tuning the album under the tutelage of producer and manager
Peter Asher
for four years taught him much about the production process and about management. Suddenly being dropped from the label left the band members destitute and broke.
Amy Grant turned out to have heard tapes of The Semantics and she contacted Owsley in 1994 to let him know how much she liked it, and to ask him to join her as her guitarist on the House of Love
tour. Owsley would subsequently hold the position of tour guitarist for 16 years, until his death. He would later also co-write and record various songs with her. Through his work with producer Mutt Lange, Owsley was introduced to Shania Twain
. Over the years, he would tour with her as guitarist and harmony singer, with appearances on many national television shows and awards programs. Owsley went on to work with many mainstream and Christian
artists, often in the country
genre. During the 1990s, he among others worked with Vince Gill
, Michael W. Smith
, Chris Rodriguez
, dc Talk
(for whom he also produced), the Neville Brothers, Vanessa L. Williams
, and Wynonna.
and in it built a home recording studio. In 1998, it led to the release of his self-titled solo album
on Not Lame Recordings
. It was co-produced by Millard Powers
and Jeff Balding
. Doug Morris
of Universal Music Group
picked it and proposed the album to be rerecorded, but Owsley insisted that it simply needed to be remixed by either Tom Lord-Alge
, Bob Clearmountain
or Andy Wallace
. Tom Lord-Alge signed on, together with J.R. McNeely. The eponymous album Owsley got re-released on March 23, 1999 under Giant Records.
Many of the songs on the album are about Anniston, Alabama, where he was born and lived until he was 21, and his longing to the town. With the first single off the album being "Coming Up Roses", Owsley sent the entire staff of Giant a red rose and a Valentine's Day
card, expressing his hopes that things were "coming up roses" for all. The single didn't catch on, but "I'm Alright" later did score a minor hit. Recorded almost entirely on a vintage Studer A-80 (2-inch, 16-track of which one defective) tape machine in his home studio on Hobbs Road in Nashville, Tennessee
, it garnered him a Grammy Award nomination for Best Engineered Album
. The album would be labeled one of the best pop records of the '90s. During the ensuing tour, he among others joined the Pat McGee Band
and Fountains of Wayne
, whose bassist Adam Schlesinger
Owsley has recorded with in later years.
, on the indie record label
Lakeview Entertainment on February 24, 2004, five years after his first solo album. It was ready in 2003, but got delayed in part due to legal difficulties with his former label, Giant Records. The album had a heavier and more mature sound compared to his debut. Be With You was chosen as single, but despite some rotation on triple-A
radio stations, it never reached the greater audience. The album was recorded over the span of three years, using a variety of recording formats, in his new home studio in Franklin, Tennessee
and a number of studios in Tennessee
. Owsley played multiple roles on it, including that of producer
. It was entirely mixed by Paul David Hager, and dedicated to Owsley's maternal grandmother, the late Alys O. Boozer. A cover of Paul McCartney
's "Band on the Run
", which Owsley recorded for a 2001 tribute album
, was included as a hidden track.
, and the first major label to distribute music only through digital downloads
. It led to the release of the combined single
Psycho / Upside Down in 2005. That same year, Owsley contributed the cover song "Got a Lot on My Head" to Substitution Mass Confusion, a tribute album in honor of The Cars
.
player and less frequently as bassist and keyboardist. He among others recorded with Faith Hill
, Michael McDonald
, Charlotte Church
, Jump5
, Natalie Grant
, David Phelps
, James Ingram
, Rodney Crowell
, MercyMe
, The Katinas
, Nate Sallie
, Graham Colton
, and Kenny Loggins
. Producer John Fields arranged for Owsley to back various Disney
stars, such as Miley Cyrus
, Selena Gomez
, Demi Lovato
, the Jonas Brothers
, and Luke Benward
.
Besides being a musician, Owsley also continued producing and engineering. He co-produced Kevin Max
's 2007 album The Blood
and toured with him. He played various instruments on Chris Sligh
's 2008 album Running Back to You and produced several songs on it. In the last two years of his life, Owsley occasionally worked as a session guitarist for Andy Sturmer
's movie soundtracks. In 2009, Owsley made a version of "When Lonely Comes Around" (Grant/Owsley), sung and recorded by himself, available to fans for free.
fan. He himself played soccer and lacrosse
and competed in cross country running
in his formative years. As an adult, Owsley was a reasonably good golfer and tennis player, as well as an outstanding table tennis
and billiard player. Whenever he was on tour and playing a club that had a billiard table, he'd often pick-up a game prior to going on stage to perform. He was also a very good horseman and owned several Tennessee Walking Horses over the years.
Owsley had a great passion for telling jokes. He was widely known for his great sense of humor, as well as being a terrific mimic, skilled at closely imitating people. He also was a fan of card tricks and coin illusion tricks and worked for years to hone his skills in illusion. Whenever he was in Los Angeles, he frequently visited the Magic Castle, located in Hollywood.
Owsley was an American Civil War
buff. He was very knowledgeable on the subject and loved to interact with others who were interested in it as well. On many occasions, he helped to reenact
specific battles.
Owsley was a Christian and was a member of the Village Chapel in Nashville, TN.
Owsley was an avid collector of vintage guitars, amplifiers, microphones and mic preamps for his studio. At one time, he had a very large collection.
; he was 44. The Tennessean
reported the cause of death as "an apparent suicide." He is survived by his two sons Walker and Liam from his previous marriage with Rebecca Walker.
Owsley solo
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
, best known as for his work as guitarist
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
in Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
's touring band. His solo albums won critical acclaim and one Grammy Award
Grammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
nomination. He was also a record producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
and a recording engineer.
Early life and influences
Owsley was born and raised in Anniston, AlabamaAnniston, Alabama
Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...
in a musical household. His father was the drum major
Drum Major
A drum major is the leader of a marching band, drum and bugle corps, or pipe band, usually positioned at the head of the band or corps. The drum major, who is often dressed in more ornate clothing than the rest of the band or corps, is responsible for providing commands to the ensemble regarding...
of the Million Dollar Band
Million Dollar Band (marching band)
The Million Dollar Band is the official name for the marching band for the University of Alabama, located in Tuscaloosa. The entire band performs at all home games, while varying in size for away games or games in neutral sites...
, the marching band of the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
; his mother was a singer and stage actress; his sister was a classically trained pianist, and his brother was a rock guitarist. Owsley graduated from The Rectory School
The Rectory School
The Rectory School is an independent, coeducational, junior boarding and day school in Pomfret, Connecticut, USA. The school was founded by Rev. Frank H. Bigelow in 1920...
and attended the Blue Ridge School
Blue Ridge School
Blue Ridge School is a private, all-male boarding school for students grades 9-12 in Saint George, Virginia, near Charlottesville. The school was founded in 1909 by the Reverend George P. Mayo. About 190 students attend Blue Ridge from 33 states and ten foreign countries, with many from Virginia...
. He moved to Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
in 1987.
Owsley started playing guitar at age nine. He was a fan of Kiss
KISS (band)
Kiss is an American rock band formed in New York City in January 1973. Well-known for its members' face paint and flamboyant stage outfits, the group rose to prominence in the mid to late 1970s on the basis of their elaborate live performances, which featured fire breathing, blood spitting,...
and of Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren
Todd Harry Rundgren is an American multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and record producer. Hailed in the early stage of his career as a new pop-wunderkind, supported by the certified gold solo double LP Something/Anything? in 1972, Todd Rundgren's career has produced a diverse range of recordings...
, but mostly practiced Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen
Edward Lodewijk "Eddie" Van Halen is a Dutch-American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
and Steve Morse
Steve Morse
Steven J. "Steve" Morse is an American guitarist and composer, best known for his work in the hard rock band Deep Purple since 1994. He began his career to form the unique styled instrumental rock band Dixie Dregs in the 1970. Morse's musical inspiration comes from country, funk, jazz fusion, and...
licks note-for-note. With his father's mentorship, he played snare drum
Snare drum
The snare drum or side drum is a melodic percussion instrument with strands of snares made of curled metal wire, metal cable, plastic cable, or gut cords stretched across the drumhead, typically the bottom. Pipe and tabor and some military snare drums often have a second set of snares on the bottom...
in the Anniston High School marching band, whilst continuing his passion for guitar, playing in his high school jazz band and in top-40 cover bands at local venues. Later, when he began writing his own songs, they were more similar to the style of The Beatles
The Beatles
The Beatles were an English rock band, active throughout the 1960s and one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music. Formed in Liverpool, by 1962 the group consisted of John Lennon , Paul McCartney , George Harrison and Ringo Starr...
. As a guitarist, he also cited influences such as Chet Atkins
Chet Atkins
Chester Burton Atkins , known as Chet Atkins, was an American guitarist and record producer who, along with Owen Bradley, created the smoother country music style known as the Nashville sound, which expanded country's appeal to adult pop music fans as well.Atkins's picking style, inspired by Merle...
, Jimi Hendrix
Jimi Hendrix
James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix was an American guitarist and singer-songwriter...
and Robert Johnson.
Early career and The Semantics (1986–1998)
Prior to developing his own band and solo work, he was added to the band of Judson SpenceJudson Spence
Judson Spence is an American pop music singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist based in Nashville, Tennessee. He originally gained fame when he released his eponymously titled debut solo effort on Atlantic Records in 1988...
, appeared in various of his videos on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, and was part of Spence's groundbreaking Nashville showcases that landed him 14 label offers. Nashville music executive Scott Siman
Scott Siman
Scott Foster Siman is a leading American country music entertainment executive based in Nashville, Tennessee. He is president of RPM Management and co-owns RPM Music Group, a Nashville music publishing company...
encouraged Owsley to pursue his own writing and performing, which is why he declined an offer by Amy Grant
Amy Grant
Amy Lee Grant is an American singer-songwriter, musician, author, media personality and actress, best known for her Christian music. She has been referred to as "The Queen of Christian Pop"...
in the late 1980s to become her guitarist.
Together with Millard Powers
Millard Powers
Avery Millard Powers III is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and grammy nominated recording engineer.-Early history:...
, he founded the power pop
Power pop
Power pop is a popular musical genre that draws its inspiration from 1960s British and American pop and rock music. It typically incorporates a combination of musical devices such as strong melodies, crisp vocal harmonies, economical arrangements, and prominent guitar riffs. Instrumental solos are...
band The Semantics
The Semantics
The Semantics were a band from Nashville, Tennessee, formed by Jody Spence, Millard Powers and Will Owsley. Their music is generally regarded as power pop, combining elements of 70s pop and southern rock.- History :...
, which included Jody Spence and Ringo Starr's son, Zak Starkey
Zak Starkey
Zak Starkey is an English rock drummer. He is the son of Beatles drummer Ringo Starr and Starr's first wife Maureen Starkey Tigrett. He is also well known for his unofficial membership in the English rock band The Who, with whom he has performed and recorded since 1996. He is also the third...
. They were signed to Geffen Records
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...
by John Kalodner
John Kalodner
John David Kalodner is a retired American A&R executive. His achievements included signing Foreigner, AC/DC, Peter Gabriel and Phil Collins to Atlantic Records in the seventies....
. The band recorded an album entitled Powerbill in 1993, which was never released in the U.S for being "too pop for alternative and too alternative for pop." It eventually got distributed in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
in 1996. Fine-tuning the album under the tutelage of producer and manager
Talent manager
A talent manager, also known as an artist manager or band manager, is an individual or company who guides the professional career of artists in the entertainment industry...
Peter Asher
Peter Asher
Peter Asher is an English guitarist, singer, manager and record producer. He first came to prominence in the 1960s as a member of the vocal duo Peter and Gordon before going on to a successful career as a record producer.-Early life:He was born at the Central Middlesex Hospital, a child actor and...
for four years taught him much about the production process and about management. Suddenly being dropped from the label left the band members destitute and broke.
Amy Grant turned out to have heard tapes of The Semantics and she contacted Owsley in 1994 to let him know how much she liked it, and to ask him to join her as her guitarist on the House of Love
House of Love (album)
House of Love is the 14th album by singer-songwriter Amy Grant, released in 1994 .House of Love was Amy's follow-up to her quintuple-platinum 1991 release Heart in Motion. Although House of Love sold less than half of what its predecessor sold, it similarly combines pop music with Christian values...
tour. Owsley would subsequently hold the position of tour guitarist for 16 years, until his death. He would later also co-write and record various songs with her. Through his work with producer Mutt Lange, Owsley was introduced to Shania Twain
Shania Twain
Shania Twain, OC is a Canadian country pop singer-songwriter. Her album The Woman in Me , brought her fame and her 1997 album Come On Over, became the best-selling album of all time by a female musician in any genre, and the best-selling country album of all time. It has sold over 40 million...
. Over the years, he would tour with her as guitarist and harmony singer, with appearances on many national television shows and awards programs. Owsley went on to work with many mainstream and Christian
Christian music
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely across the world....
artists, often in the country
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
genre. During the 1990s, he among others worked with Vince Gill
Vince Gill
Vincent Grant "Vince" Gill is an American neotraditional country singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman to the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s, and as a solo artist beginning in 1983, where his talents as a...
, Michael W. Smith
Michael W. Smith
Michael Whitaker Smith is a Billboard top ten Billboard Hot 100 recording artist and Grammy Award-winning American singer-songwriter, composer, and actor. He is one of the best-selling and most influential artists in Contemporary Christian music. Smith also has achieved a considerable amount of...
, Chris Rodriguez
Chris Rodriguez
-Biography:Rodriguez was born on March 7, 1960, in Bronx New York, and moved to Nashville, becoming a veteran of the scene in the early 1990s. His debut album, Beggar's Paradise, was released by Sony in 1999, by which time he had collaborated on projects with country and CCM acts such as Amy Grant,...
, dc Talk
Dc Talk
DC Talk , is a Grammy-winning Christian rock music trio. The group was formed in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1987 by Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Max Smith. They have released five major studio albums together: DC Talk , Nu Thang , Free at Last , Jesus Freak , and Supernatural...
(for whom he also produced), the Neville Brothers, Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa L. Williams
Vanessa Lynn Williams is an American pop-R&B recording artist, producer, dancer, model, actress and showgirl. In 1983, she became the first woman of African-American descent to be crowned Miss America, but a scandal generated by her having posed for nude photographs published in Penthouse magazine...
, and Wynonna.
Owsley (1999)
With the money he earned working with Amy Grant and Shania Twain, he bought a house in Green Hills, TennesseeGreen Hills, Tennessee
Green Hills is an area in Nashville, Tennessee. Although there were some preliminary plans toward making it an incorporated town in the late 1950s and early 1960s, these plans were never completed....
and in it built a home recording studio. In 1998, it led to the release of his self-titled solo album
Owsley (album)
- Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , guitars , bass , producer , engineer , assistant mixer Additional instruments: Echoplex , Mellotron , Wurlitzer piano , Hammond B-3 , Chamberlin , piano...
on Not Lame Recordings
Not Lame Recordings
Not Lame Recordings was a Ft. Collins, Colorado, United States based independent record label specializing in power pop releases. The company was started by Bruce Brodeen in November 1994 but it shut down per November 24, 2010. The reasons Brodeen mentioned were a career switch combined with...
. It was co-produced by Millard Powers
Millard Powers
Avery Millard Powers III is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and grammy nominated recording engineer.-Early history:...
and Jeff Balding
Jeff Balding
Jeff Balding is an American audio engineer, mixer and record producer. Primarily known for his work with country music acts such as Faith Hill, Trace Adkins, and LeAnn Rimes, Balding has also worked with top rock acts such as Megadeth and Giant, as well as pop stars such as Amy Grant and Celine...
. Doug Morris
Doug Morris
Doug Morris is an American music executive. He is the current Chairman and CEO of Sony Music Entertainment. He previously served as Chairman and CEO of the Universal Music Group from 1995 to 2011.-Life and career:...
of Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
picked it and proposed the album to be rerecorded, but Owsley insisted that it simply needed to be remixed by either Tom Lord-Alge
Tom Lord-Alge
Tom Lord-Alge is a four-time Grammy Award–winning record producer and mixer. He is the youngest of Vivian Lord's five children, Mark Lord-Alge, Lisa Lord-Alge, Chris Lord-Alge, Jeff Lord-Alge and Tom Lord-Alge...
, Bob Clearmountain
Bob Clearmountain
Bob Clearmountain is an award-winning American music engineer, mixer and producer. He has worked with many prominent names in music including Bruce Springsteen , The Rolling Stones , Bryan Adams , Robbie Williams Bob Clearmountain is an award-winning American music engineer, mixer and producer. He...
or Andy Wallace
Andy Wallace (producer)
Andy Wallace is a Grammy Award-winning music studio engineer with a long track record of successful productions, beginning with the 1986 production of the Run-DMC/Aerosmith collaboration on "Walk This Way" with Rick Rubin...
. Tom Lord-Alge signed on, together with J.R. McNeely. The eponymous album Owsley got re-released on March 23, 1999 under Giant Records.
Many of the songs on the album are about Anniston, Alabama, where he was born and lived until he was 21, and his longing to the town. With the first single off the album being "Coming Up Roses", Owsley sent the entire staff of Giant a red rose and a Valentine's Day
Valentine's Day
Saint Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on February 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs named Saint Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496...
card, expressing his hopes that things were "coming up roses" for all. The single didn't catch on, but "I'm Alright" later did score a minor hit. Recorded almost entirely on a vintage Studer A-80 (2-inch, 16-track of which one defective) tape machine in his home studio on Hobbs Road in Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, it garnered him a Grammy Award nomination for Best Engineered Album
Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
The Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical has been awarded since 1959. The award had several minor name changes:*In 1959 the award was known as Best Engineered Record - Non-Classical...
. The album would be labeled one of the best pop records of the '90s. During the ensuing tour, he among others joined the Pat McGee Band
Pat McGee Band
The Pat McGee Band is a rock band from Richmond, Virginia. Formed by frontman Pat McGee, who attended Longwood University in Farmville, VA. On the heels of his solo release From the Wood in 1995, the Pat McGee Band signed with Warner Bros. Records subsidiary Giant Records in 1999...
and Fountains of Wayne
Fountains of Wayne
Fountains of Wayne is an American power pop band that formed in New York City in 1996. The band consists of members Chris Collingwood, Adam Schlesinger, Jody Porter and Brian Young.-Early years:...
, whose bassist Adam Schlesinger
Adam Schlesinger
Adam Schlesinger is an American songwriter, composer and record producer. He has been nominated for Oscar, Tony, Emmy, Grammy , and Golden Globe Awards. He is also a winner of the ASCAP Pop Music Award....
Owsley has recorded with in later years.
The Hard Way (2004)
Owsley released his second album, The Hard WayThe Hard Way (Owsley album)
- Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , backing vocals , electric guitars , acoustic guitar , bass , piano , producer , engineer...
, on the indie record label
Independent record label
An independent record label is a record label operating without the funding of or outside the organizations of the major record labels. A great number of bands and musical acts begin on independent labels.-Overview:...
Lakeview Entertainment on February 24, 2004, five years after his first solo album. It was ready in 2003, but got delayed in part due to legal difficulties with his former label, Giant Records. The album had a heavier and more mature sound compared to his debut. Be With You was chosen as single, but despite some rotation on triple-A
Adult album alternative
Adult album alternative is a radio format. A spinoff from the album-oriented rock format, its roots trace to the 1960s and 1970s from the earlier freeform and progressive formats....
radio stations, it never reached the greater audience. The album was recorded over the span of three years, using a variety of recording formats, in his new home studio in Franklin, Tennessee
Franklin, Tennessee
Franklin is a city within and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 62,487 as of the 2010 census Franklin is located approximately south of downtown Nashville.-History:...
and a number of studios in Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. Owsley played multiple roles on it, including that of producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
. It was entirely mixed by Paul David Hager, and dedicated to Owsley's maternal grandmother, the late Alys O. Boozer. A cover of Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
's "Band on the Run
Band on the Run (song)
"Band on the Run" is the title song from Paul McCartney & Wings' acclaimed Band on the Run album. The single sold one million copies in 1974 in the United States, where it reached number 1, and it went to number 3 in the United Kingdom...
", which Owsley recorded for a 2001 tribute album
Tribute album
A tribute album is a recorded collection of cover versions of songs or instrumental compositions. Its concept may be either various artists making a tribute to a single artist, a single artist making a tribute to various artists, or a single artist making a tribute to another single artist.There...
, was included as a hidden track.
Psycho / Upside Down (2005)
In 2004, he entered into an agreement with UMe Digital, a new label in the Universal Music GroupUniversal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
, and the first major label to distribute music only through digital downloads
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
. It led to the release of the combined single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
Psycho / Upside Down in 2005. That same year, Owsley contributed the cover song "Got a Lot on My Head" to Substitution Mass Confusion, a tribute album in honor of The Cars
The Cars
The Cars are an American rock band that emerged from the early New Wave music scene in the late 1970s. The band consisted of lead singer and rhythm guitarist Ric Ocasek, lead singer and bassist Benjamin Orr, guitarist Elliot Easton, keyboardist Greg Hawkes and drummer David Robinson...
.
Session work (2005–2010)
In the 2000s, Owsley continued work as a session guitarist, (backing) vocalist, mandolinMandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
player and less frequently as bassist and keyboardist. He among others recorded with Faith Hill
Faith Hill
Faith Hill is an American country singer. She is known both for her commercial success and her marriage to fellow country star Tim McGraw. Hill has sold more than 40 million records worldwide and accumulated eight number-one singles and three number-one albums on the U.S...
, Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald (singer)
Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan...
, Charlotte Church
Charlotte Church
Charlotte Maria Church is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress and television presenter. She rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching into pop music in 2005. By 2007, she had sold more than 10 million records worldwide including over 5 million in the United States...
, Jump5
Jump5
- History :Siblings Brandon and Brittany Hargest had competed on the same dance team as Lesley Moore, and were familiar with Chris Fedun and Libby Hodges through the competitive dance circuit. The mother of Hodges held an open casting call to find additional members to form a new pop group with her...
, Natalie Grant
Natalie Grant
Natalie Grant is a singer-songwriter of contemporary Christian music. Her work has gained prominence, including four consecutive Dove Awards for best female artist, and with her signature song, Held...
, David Phelps
David Phelps
David Norris Phelps is an American Christian vocalist, songwriter and vocal arranger, who is best known for singing tenor in the Gaither Vocal Band. He has also released several solo albums, including four Christmas collections...
, James Ingram
James Ingram
James Ingram is an American soul musician. He is best known as a vocalist. He is also a self-taught musician who plays piano, guitar, bass, drums and keyboards...
, Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell
Rodney Crowell is a Grammy Award-winning musician, known primarily for his work as a singer and songwriter in country music....
, MercyMe
MercyMe
MercyMe is an American Christian rock band founded in Greenville, Texas. The band consists of vocalist Bart Millard, keyboardist James Bryson, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul....
, The Katinas
The Katinas
The Katinas are a Contemporary Christian music group. The family of five brothers hails from American Samoa, and moved to Washington, USA after the death of their mother in 1988. The group's members sang in church as children, and began playing fairs, soon moving up to nationwide slots opening for...
, Nate Sallie
Nate Sallie
Nate Allen Sallie is a Contemporary Christian music singer. He is signed to Curb Records.-Background:...
, Graham Colton
Graham Colton
Graham Colton is an American singer-songwriter from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma most widely known for his hit song "Best Days", featured on the television series American Idol and Kyle XY...
, and Kenny Loggins
Kenny Loggins
During the next decade, Loggins recorded so many successful songs for film soundtracks that he was referred to as, King of the Movie Soundtrack.He began with "I'm Alright" , "Mr. Night", and "Lead the Way" from Caddyshack...
. Producer John Fields arranged for Owsley to back various Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
stars, such as Miley Cyrus
Miley Cyrus
Miley Ray Cyrus is an American actress and pop singer-songwriter. She achieved wide fame for her role as Miley Stewart/Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel sitcom Hannah Montana....
, Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez
Selena Marie Gomez is an American actress and singer best known for portraying Alex Russo in the Emmy Award-winning Disney Channel television series Wizards of Waverly Place...
, Demi Lovato
Demi Lovato
"She’s got the range, the full emotional spectrum, incredible control… Vocally, she’s the best thing Disney’s had since Christina Aguilera."—Producer Toby Gad on Demi Lovato's vocals...
, the Jonas Brothers
Jonas Brothers
The Jonas Brothers are an American boy band. The band gained its popularity from the Disney Channel children's television network. From the shore region of New Jersey, the band consists of three brothers: Paul Kevin Jonas II , Joseph Adam Jonas , and Nicholas Jerry Jonas...
, and Luke Benward
Luke Benward
Luke Aaron Benward is an American teen actor and singer, best known for his starring role as Billy Forrester in How to Eat Fried Worms and as Charlie Tuttle in the 2008 Disney Channel Original Movie, Minutemen. He also played the role of "Nicky" in Mostly Ghostly: Who Let the Ghosts Out? and...
.
Besides being a musician, Owsley also continued producing and engineering. He co-produced Kevin Max
Kevin Max
Kevin Max Smith is an American singer, songwriter, and poet. He is best known for being a member of the Christian pop group dc Talk...
's 2007 album The Blood
The Blood (album)
The Blood is an album by Christian music artist Kevin Max that was released December 26, 2007.-Overview:Unlike Max's previous albums , The Blood is a gospel album instead of having his usual rock stylings...
and toured with him. He played various instruments on Chris Sligh
Chris Sligh
Charles Christopher Sligh is an American singer; songwriter and producer who was a finalist on the sixth season of American Idol, finishing in tenth place.-Early years:...
's 2008 album Running Back to You and produced several songs on it. In the last two years of his life, Owsley occasionally worked as a session guitarist for Andy Sturmer
Andy Sturmer
Marvin Andrew Sturmer is an American musical artist, writer and producer. He was one of the founding members of the band Beatnik Beatch, which led to the formation of Jellyfish.- Jellyfish :...
's movie soundtracks. In 2009, Owsley made a version of "When Lonely Comes Around" (Grant/Owsley), sung and recorded by himself, available to fans for free.
Personal life
In sports, Owsley was a huge University of Alabama footballAlabama Crimson Tide football
|TeamName = Alabama football |Image = Alabama Crimson Tide Logo.svg |ImageSize = 110 |Helmet = Alabama Football.png |ImageSize2 = 150 |CurrentSeason = 2011 Alabama Crimson Tide football team...
fan. He himself played soccer and lacrosse
Lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport of Native American origin played using a small rubber ball and a long-handled stick called a crosse or lacrosse stick, mainly played in the United States and Canada. It is a contact sport which requires padding. The head of the lacrosse stick is strung with loose mesh...
and competed in cross country running
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
in his formative years. As an adult, Owsley was a reasonably good golfer and tennis player, as well as an outstanding table tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
and billiard player. Whenever he was on tour and playing a club that had a billiard table, he'd often pick-up a game prior to going on stage to perform. He was also a very good horseman and owned several Tennessee Walking Horses over the years.
Owsley had a great passion for telling jokes. He was widely known for his great sense of humor, as well as being a terrific mimic, skilled at closely imitating people. He also was a fan of card tricks and coin illusion tricks and worked for years to hone his skills in illusion. Whenever he was in Los Angeles, he frequently visited the Magic Castle, located in Hollywood.
Owsley was an American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
buff. He was very knowledgeable on the subject and loved to interact with others who were interested in it as well. On many occasions, he helped to reenact
American Civil War reenactment
American Civil War reenactment is an effort to recreate the appearance of a particular battle or other event associated with the American Civil War by hobbyists known as Civil War reenactors or Civil War recreationists...
specific battles.
Owsley was a Christian and was a member of the Village Chapel in Nashville, TN.
Owsley was an avid collector of vintage guitars, amplifiers, microphones and mic preamps for his studio. At one time, he had a very large collection.
Death
Owsley died April 30, 2010 at Williamson County Hospital in Franklin, TennesseeFranklin, Tennessee
Franklin is a city within and the county seat of Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 62,487 as of the 2010 census Franklin is located approximately south of downtown Nashville.-History:...
; he was 44. The Tennessean
The Tennessean
The Tennessean is the principal daily newspaper in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. Its circulation area covers 39 counties in Middle Tennessee and eight counties in southern Kentucky....
reported the cause of death as "an apparent suicide." He is survived by his two sons Walker and Liam from his previous marriage with Rebecca Walker.
Discography
The Semantics- 1996: Powerbill
Owsley solo
- 1999: OwsleyOwsley (album)- Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , guitars , bass , producer , engineer , assistant mixer Additional instruments: Echoplex , Mellotron , Wurlitzer piano , Hammond B-3 , Chamberlin , piano...
- 2004: The Hard WayThe Hard Way (Owsley album)- Personnel :* Will Owsley – vocals , backing vocals , electric guitars , acoustic guitar , bass , piano , producer , engineer...
- 2005: Psycho / Upside Down (digital downloadMusic downloadA music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
only)
Cover versions by other artists
- AvalonAvalon (band)Avalon is an American contemporary Christian vocal quartet who has earned multiple RIAA-certified gold records, sold four million albums, and released 22 number one Christian hits.- 1995–1997: Formation of Avalon and A Maze of Grace :...
recorded Be With You for their 2004 album The CreedThe CreedThe Creed is the eighth album released by Christian vocal group Avalon, their fifth studio project. It is the first Avalon album to include Greg Long , who replaced Michael Passons after his unexpected departure in mid-2003...
under the title I Wanna Be With You. The lyrics were slightly altered. - Trevor Morgan, who toured with Owsley as bassist, recorded his own version of Upside Down (Morgan, Dillon O'Brian, Owsley) as the opening track for Wonderlight (2004).