Willie Mitchell died he was 81

Willie Mitchell  was an American soul, R&B, rock and roll,pop and funk record producer and arranger, who ran Royal Recording in Memphis, Tennessee. He was best known for his Hi Records label of the 1970s, which released albums by a large stable of popular Memphis soul artists, including Mitchell himself, Al Green, Syl Johnson andAnn Peebles He was 81. Mitchell's son, Lawrence Mitchell, said his father suffered a cardiac arrest on Dec. 19.

(March 1, 1928 – January 5, 2010)

Willie Mitchell owned Royal Studio where Buddy Guy, John Mayer and many others recorded their music.


In the 1970s, Mitchell also owned Hi Records of Memphis, the label that produced some of Green's biggest hits. Green, also from Memphis, was flying to Australia and unavailable for comment Tuesday.


At Hi, Mitchell was responsible for several instrumental hits of the 1960s and helped the careers of Green and singer Ann Peebles in the 1970s. Even in later years, Mitchell stayed busy at his studio, working with then-emerging talents like Mayer and Anthony Hamilton.
Most recently, he wrote string and horn arrangements for Rod Stewart's new album of R&B covers, and produced a still-unreleased album from soul kingpin Solomon Burke.
He received a Trustees Award from the Grammy Foundation in 2008.
A trumpeter, Mitchell and his band provided the musical entertainment at several New Year's Eve parties for Elvis Presley at Presley's Graceland home. A Memphis boulevard was named in his honor in 2004.

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