James Albert Beck (August 11, 1916 – May 3, 1956) was an American country music talent agent, record promoter, recording studio owner, A&R engineer, record producer, and music publisher from

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

. Born in

Marshall, Texas Marshall is a city in the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Harrison County, Texas, Harrison County and a cultural and educational center of the Ark-La-Tex region. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, the population of M ...

, Beck is credited with discovering and, in 1950, being the first to record

Lefty Frizzell William Orville "Lefty" Frizzell (March 31, 1928 – July 19, 1975) was an American country music singer-songwriter and honky-tonk singer. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1982. Frizzell released many songs that charted ...

. He is also credited for introducing Frizzell and Ray Price to Frank Jones (1926–2005) of

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music, Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese Conglomerate (company), conglomerate Sony. It was founded on Janua ...

, which led to their first major recording contracts.

Marty Robbins Martin David Robinson (September 26, 1925 – December 8, 1982), known professionally as Marty Robbins, was an American singer, songwriter, actor, multi-instrumentalist, and NASCAR racing driver. Robbins was one of the most popular and suc ...

recorded his first hit — " I'll Go on Alone" — at Beck's studio. Beck's studio also recorded a few hits by Carl Smith at his studio. Record labels and producers who recorded at Jim Beck Studios included

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

(via

Paul Cohen Paul Joseph Cohen (April 2, 1934 – March 23, 2007) was an American mathematician. He is best known for his proofs that the continuum hypothesis and the axiom of choice are independent from Zermelo–Fraenkel set theory, for which he was award ...

Bullet A bullet is a kinetic projectile, a component of firearm ammunition that is shot from a gun barrel. Bullets are made of a variety of materials, such as copper, lead, steel, polymer, rubber and even wax. Bullets are made in various shapes and co ...

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

, and

."Ray Price," by

Don Cusic Don Cusic (born ) is an American author, songwriter and record producer who is best known as a historian of U.S. popular music. He is the author of 28 books, most of them related to country music; they include biographies of performers like Eddy A ...

, '' The Western Way'' (magazine), Vol. 20, Issue 2, pg. 18 (Spring 2010)
Voices of the Country: Interviews With Classic Country Performers
'' Michael Streissguth,

Routledge Routledge () is a British multinational publisher. It was founded in 1836 by George Routledge, and specialises in providing academic books, journals and online resources in the fields of the humanities, behavioural science, education, law, and ...

pg. 147 (2004) Between 1954 and 1956,

Frankie Miller Francis John Miller (born 2 November 1949) is a Scottish rock singer-songwriter and actor. Miller wrote for and performed with many recording artists and is best known for his 1977 album ''Full House'', the singles "Be Good To Yourself", " D ...

recorded a series of singles for Columbia at Beck's studio.

Jim Beck Studio

Beck built his second studio – the "Jim Beck Studio" – in 1950 at 1101 Ross Avenue in Dallas."The Professional Work of Jim Beck,"
Roots of Country Music — ''The Internet Encyclopedia of Original Country Music'' (publisher) (retrieved May 1, 2013) His first studio had been on Main Street in Dallas.
by Jim Liddane,

Limerick Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...

, Ireland: International Songwriters Association

Norman Petty Norman Petty (May 25, 1927 – August 15, 1984) was an American musician, record producer, publisher, radio station owner, and considered to be one of the founding fathers of early rock & roll. Biography Petty was born in the small town of Clo ...

, who later built and ran his own recording studio, worked as a part-time recording engineer at the Jim Beck Studio.

Jim Beck Studio recording artists and session musicians

* Charlie Adams (born 1920) *

Charline Arthur Charline Arthur (also Charlene Arthur, née Charline Highsmith; September 2, 1929 – November 27, 1987) was an American singer of boogie-woogie, blues, and early rockabilly. In 1950, Arthur began work as a singer and a disc jockey at the Texas rad ...

(1929–1987) † *

Lee Bell Lee Bell (born 26 January 1983) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is currently manager of Crewe Alexandra. He began his career at Crewe Alexandra, also playing for Burton Albion, Mansfield Town and Mac ...

(de) (born 1927) † *

Mac Curtis Wesley Erwin "Mac" Curtis, Jr. (January 16, 1939 – September 16, 2013) was an American rockabilly musician. Biography Born in Fort Worth, Texas, Curtis began playing guitar at the age of 12, entering local talent competitions. In 1954, h ...

(1939–2013) † *

(1928–1975) † *

Johnny Gimble John Paul Gimble (May 30, 1926 – May 9, 2015) was an American country musician associated with Western swing. Gimble was considered one of the most important fiddlers in the genre. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999 i ...

(1926–2015) † *

Rudy Grayzell Rudy "Tutti" Grayzell (June 8, 1933 - November 26, 2019), also known as Rudy Gray, was a Rockabilly musician. He was born Rudolph Paiz Jimenez in Saspamco, Texas, and took his stage-name from his German great-grandmother. He first formed "The Bu ...

''(aka'' Rudy Gray; ''né'' Rudolph Paiz Jimenez; 1933-2019) † *

Buck Griffin Albert C. "Buck" Griffin (February 23, 1923 – February 14, 2009) was an American singer and songwriter. He was a popular performer live and on radio, though he never scored a hit on record, and was compared to Hank Williams and Conway Twitty. G ...

(1923–2009) † * Jimmy Heap ''(né'' James Arthur Heap; 1922–1977) † * Gene Henslee (de) * Johnny Hicks ''(né'' John Kenneth Hicks; 1918–1997) *

George Jones George Glenn Jones (September 12, 1931 – April 26, 2013) was an American country musician, singer, and songwriter. He achieved international fame for his long list of hit records, including his best-known song "He Stopped Loving Her Today", ...

(1931–2013) † * Neal Jones (Neal Gordan "Tywhop" Jones; 1922–2005) *

Merle Kilgore Wyatt Merle Kilgore (August 9, 1934 – February 6, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and manager. Born in Chickasha, Oklahoma, he was raised in Shreveport, Louisiana. At the time of his death, he was the personal manager of Hank Wil ...

(1934–2005) † * Sid King and the Five Strings (de) ''(né'' Albert Sidney Erwin; born 1936) *

Maddox Brothers and Rose The Maddox Brothers and Rose were an American country music group active from the 1930s to 1950s, consisting of four brothers, Fred, Cal, Cliff, and Don Maddox, along with their sister Rose; Cliff died in 1949 and was replaced by brother Henry. Orig ...

(born 1931) *

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

(born 1933) * Hoyle Nix (1918–1985) † *

Roy Orbison Roy Kelton Orbison (April 23, 1936 – December 6, 1988) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as ...

(1936–1988) † *

Leon Payne Leon Roger Payne (June 15, 1917 – September 11, 1969), "the Blind Balladeer", was an American country music singer and songwriter. Life He was born in Alba, Texas, United States. He was blind in one eye at birth, and lost the sight in the othe ...

(1917–1969) *

Webb Pierce Michael Webb Pierce (August 8, 1921 – February 24, 1991) was an American honky-tonk vocalist, songwriter and guitarist of the 1950s, one of the most popular of the genre, charting more number one hits than any other country artist during the ...

(1921–1991) † * Ray Price (1926–2013) † *

Jim Reeves James Travis Reeves (August 20, 1923July 31, 1964) was an American country and popular music singer-songwriter. With records charting from the 1950s to the 1980s, he became well known as a practitioner of the Nashville Sound. Known as "Gentleman ...

(1923–1964) † * Leon Rhodes (born 1932) † *

(1925–1982) † * Carl Smith (1927–2010) † * Hank Thompson (1925–2007) † *

Floyd Tillman Floyd Tillman (December 8, 1914 – August 22, 2003) was an American country musician who, in the 1930s and 1940s, helped create the Western swing and honky tonk genres. Tillman was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1970 a ...

(1914–2003) † * Billy Walker (1929–2006) † * Lew Williams (1934-2019) †

Producers who used Jim Beck Studios

Lew Chudd Lewis Robert Chudd (July 11, 1911 – June 15, 1998) was an American record label and radio executive who founded Imperial Records in 1946. The record company was influential in the development of rock and roll, with a roster of musicians including ...

(1911–1998) –

Imperial Records Imperial Records is an American record company and label started in 1947 by Lew Chudd. The label was reactivated in 2006 by EMI, which owned the label and back catalogue at the time. Imperial is owned by Universal Music Group. Early years to 19 ...

(1908–1970) –

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934 by Lewis, Jack Kapp, American Decca's first president, and Milton Rackmil, who later became American ...

Don Law Donald Firth Law (February 24, 1902 – December 20, 1982) was an English–American record producer and music business executive. He produced Robert Johnson's only recordings, and as head of Columbia Records' country music division later worke ...

(1902–1982) –

Engineers

(1927–1984) *

Jimmy Rollins James Calvin Rollins (born November 27, 1978), nicknamed "J-Roll", is an American former professional baseball shortstop, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies (–), Los Angeles Dodgers (), and Chicago White ...

Note † signifies artists who recorded or worked studio sessions at Jim Beck Studio (Partial Listing)

Death

Jim Beck died on May 3, 1956, at Baylor Hospital, after collapsing at his recording studio from accidentally inhaling

carbon tetrachloride Carbon tetrachloride, also known by many other names (such as tetrachloromethane, also IUPAC nomenclature of inorganic chemistry, recognised by the IUPAC, carbon tet in the cleaning industry, Halon-104 in firefighting, and Refrigerant-10 in HVAC ...

fumes''Certificate of Death: James A. Beck,'' Texas Department of Health, Bureau of Vital Statistics, File #24027 while he and his assistant

were cleaning recording equipment.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Beck, Jim American audio engineers Record producers from Texas 1916 births 1956 deaths People from Dallas American country music record labels Accidental deaths in Texas 20th-century American businesspeople Deaths by poisoning 20th-century American engineers