45 Years Ago Today, Country Music Said Goodbye to the Post-World War II Producer Who Worked With Tennessee Ernie Ford and Nat King Cole
Country music marks the 45th anniversary of the death of Lee Gillette, a longtime Capitol Records producer who shaped the label's post-war country and pop output. Gillette died on 20 August 1981 at the age of 68 following a fall at his home in Los Angeles, capping a career that made him one of the first country producers to work regularly in Nashville and a key figure behind Capitol's success in both country and mainstream pop.
Born in Indianapolis in 1912, Gillette began as a musician before joining Capitol in 1945 at the invitation of co-founder Glenn Wallichs, running the label's country A&R division and working with acts including Tex Ritter, Merle Travis and Tennessee Ernie Ford. In 1950 he moved to pop A&R, where he built a close professional partnership with Nat King Cole that lasted until Cole's death in 1965, while also producing artists such as Dean Martin, Peggy Lee and Nelson Riddle. He co-founded the publishing company Central Songs and helped establish the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, before retiring from Capitol in April 1965 following Cole's death.
- Capitol Records producer Lee Gillette died 45 years ago on 20 August 1981.
- He produced country stars like Tex Ritter and Tennessee Ernie Ford.
- Long-time producer for Nat King Cole until Cole's 1965 death.
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Country music refers to Lee Gillette, a record producer whose work at Capitol Records in the decades after the Second World War helped shape both the country and pop genres. He is being remembered on the 45th anniversary of his death in 1981. Understanding him requires knowing his role behind the scenes: he was not a performer but the producer who selected material, guided sessions and built the careers of artists on Capitol's roster.
Gillette joined Capitol Records in 1945, running its country music division and working with artists such as Tex Ritter, Merle Travis and Tennessee Ernie Ford, at a time when Nashville's country scene was still developing. In 1950 he switched to pop music production, where he formed a long professional relationship with the singer Nat King Cole, as well as working with Dean Martin, Peggy Lee and arranger Nelson Riddle. He also helped set up the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences, the organisation now known for the Grammy Awards.
He retired from Capitol in 1965 after Cole's death, having spent two decades helping to define the sound of one of America's major record labels. The anniversary of his death serves as an occasion to look back on a career that connected country music's early Nashville era with the wider pop industry of the mid-20th century.