Joseph Henry "T Bone" Burnett III (born January 14, 1948) is an American

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure. Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

guitarist A guitarist (or a guitar player) is a person who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of guitar family instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselve ...

and

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

. He rose to fame as a guitarist in

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

's band during the 1970s. He has received multiple

Grammy award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

s for his work in film music, including for '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2000), '' Cold Mountain'' (2004), '' Walk the Line'' (2005) and '' Crazy Heart'' (2010); and won another Grammy for producing the studio album '' Raising Sand'' (2007), in which he united the contemporary bluegrass of Alison Krauss with the

blues rock Blues rock is a fusion music genre that combines elements of blues and rock music. It is mostly an electric ensemble-style music with instrumentation similar to electric blues and rock (electric guitar, electric bass guitar, and drums, sometimes w ...

Robert Plant Robert Anthony Plant (born 20 August 1948) is an English singer and songwriter, best known as the lead singer and lyricist of the English rock band Led Zeppelin for all of its existence from 1968 until 1980, when the band broke up following th ...

(ex-

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are c ...

). Burnett helped start the careers of

Counting Crows Counting Crows is an American rock band from San Francisco, California. Formed in 1991, the band consists of guitarist David Bryson, drummer Jim Bogios, vocalist Adam Duritz, keyboardist Charlie Gillingham, David Immerglück, bass guitarist ...

, Los Lobos, Sam Phillips and

Gillian Welch Gillian Howard Welch (; born October 2, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. She performs with her musical partner, guitarist David Rawlings. Their sparse and dark musical style, which combines elements of Appalachian music, bluegrass, count ...

, and he revitalized the careers of Gregg Allman and Roy Orbison. He produced music for the television programs ''

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

'' and ''

True Detective ''True Detective'' is an American anthology crime drama television series created and written by Nic Pizzolatto. The series, broadcast by the premium cable network HBO in the United States, premiered on January 12, 2014. Each season of the ...

''. He has released several solo studio albums, including '' Tooth of Crime'', which he wrote for a revival of the play by Sam Shepard.

Early life

The only child of Joseph Henry Burnett Jr. and Hazel Perkins Burnett, Burnett was born in St. Louis,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, in 1948, and raised in Fort Worth,

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. His grandfather worked as secretary for the

Southern Baptist Convention The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a Christian denomination based in the United States. It is the world's largest Baptist denomination, and the largest Protestant and second-largest Christian denomination in the United States. The wo ...

. His father wanted to be a pro athlete and was courted by the

Brooklyn Dodgers The Brooklyn Dodgers were a Major League Baseball team founded in 1884 as a member of the American Association before joining the National League in 1890. They remained in Brooklyn until 1957, after which the club moved to Los Angeles, Californ ...

, but instead, he got a job in Fort Worth with the Tandy Corporation. Burnett was brought up in the Episcopal Church of his mother. He forgot the origin of his nickname, which he uses without a dash. Burnett learned golf at an early age. When he was seven years old, he played at the

Texas Christian University Texas Christian University (TCU) is a private research university in Fort Worth, Texas. It was established in 1873 by brothers Addison and Randolph Clark as the Add-Ran Male & Female College. It is affiliated with the Christian Church (Disciple ...

course. He idolized golf pro Ben Hogan, who was from Fort Worth. Burnett and the other boys occasionally watched him practice at the

driving range A driving range is a facility or area where golfers can practice their golf swing. It can also be a recreational activity itself for amateur golfers or when enough time for a full game is not available. Many golf courses have a driving range att ...

. Burnett was on the golf team at Paschal High School. In 2014 he participated in the professional tournament at Pebble Beach.

Burnett's musical roots

Burnett discovered music through his parents' 78 RPM phonograph records of Louis Armstrong,

Count Basie William James "Count" Basie (; August 21, 1904 – April 26, 1984) was an American jazz pianist, organist, bandleader, and composer. In 1935, he formed the Count Basie Orchestra, and in 1936 took them to Chicago for a long engagement and th ...

Duke Ellington Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz pianist, composer, and leader of his eponymous jazz orchestra from 1923 through the rest of his life. Born and raised in Washington, D.C., Ellington was ba ...

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, i ...

, Mahalia Jackson, Dinah Washington, and the songs of

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway and in film. Born to ...

. He was drawn to music that took him to unconventional places, and he felt no compulsion to stick to one genre. He heard

Peggy Lee Norma Deloris Egstrom (May 26, 1920 – January 21, 2002), known professionally as Peggy Lee, was an American jazz and popular music singer, songwriter, composer, and actress, over a career spanning seven decades. From her beginning as a vocalis ...

Hank Williams Hank Williams (born Hiram Williams; September 17, 1923 – January 1, 1953) was an American singer, songwriter, and musician. Regarded as one of the most significant and influential American singers and songwriters of the 20th century, he reco ...

and

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developm ...

on the radio, was influenced by

Buddy Holly Charles Hardin Holley (September 7, 1936 – February 3, 1959), known as Buddy Holly, was an American singer and songwriter who was a central and pioneering figure of mid-1950s rock and roll. He was born to a musical family in Lubbock, Texas ...

, and revered

Johnny Cash John R. Cash (born J. R. Cash; February 26, 1932 – September 12, 2003) was an American Country music, country singer-songwriter. Much of Cash's music contained themes of sorrow, moral tribulation, and redemption, especially in the later s ...

. He was smitten by the music of

Howlin' Wolf Chester Arthur Burnett (June 10, 1910January 10, 1976), better known by his stage name Howlin' Wolf, was an American blues singer and guitarist. He is regarded as one of the most influential blues musicians of all time. Over a four-decade car ...

Skip James Nehemiah Curtis "Skip" James (June 9, 1902October 3, 1969) was an American Delta blues singer, guitarist, pianist and songwriter. AllMusic stated: "This emotional, lyrical performer was a talented blues guitarist and arranger with an impressive ...

, the Stanley Brothers and Jimmy Reed. He also learned about music through his friend, Stephen Bruton. Bruton's father was a jazz drummer who owned a music store on the

campus, where the boys spent many weekends. Bruton, a

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and usually made of plastic, or occasionally animal skin. Early forms of the instrument were fashi ...

ist, revealed his interest in

bluegrass music Bluegrass music is a genre of American roots music that developed in the 1940s in the Appalachian region of the United States. The genre derives its name from the band Bill Monroe and the Blue Grass Boys. Like mainstream country music, it la ...

and field recordings from the 1920s and 1930s. Burnett was enamored with the live version of the song "Wrought Iron Rag" by the

Dixieland Dixieland jazz, also referred to as traditional jazz, hot jazz, or simply Dixieland, is a style of jazz based on the music that developed in New Orleans at the start of the 20th century. The 1917 recordings by the Original Dixieland Jass Band ...

revival band Wilbur de Paris and His New New Orleans Jazz. The boys would sneak into clubs to hear bands. At around the same age, Burnett picked up the guitar. Overwhelmed by seeing the Beatles on ''

The Ed Sullivan Show ''The Ed Sullivan Show'' is an American television program, television variety show that ran on CBS from June 20, 1948, to March 28, 1971, and was hosted by New York City, New York entertainment columnist Ed Sullivan. It was replaced in Septembe ...

'', he started

garage band Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

s with Bruton. After graduating from high school in 1965, they spent most of their time at Sound City, a recording studio in the basement of a radio station where Burnett became fascinated by recording. He wrote and produced his first song, "Free Soul", with the Loose Ends under the name Jon T. Bone. His parents had divorced when he was in high school, and his father, with whom he was living, died in 1967. He attended Texas Christian University briefly, then dropped out to work as an

artists and repertoire Artists and repertoire (colloquially abbreviated to A&R) is the division of a record label or music publishing company that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists (singers, instrumentalist ...

(A&R) agent.

Pursuing music

Burnett produced and played drums on "Paralyzed", the novelty hit by the Legendary Stardust Cowboy. As part of the pseudonymous group Whistler, Chaucer, Detroit, and Greenhill, he appeared on and produced ''The Unwritten Works of Geoffrey, Etc.'' ( Uni, 1968). During the same year, he produced six songs for a group of friends who called themselves "The Case Hardy Boys". Later this band would move to Los Angeles and become known first as "The Fare", then "El Roacho", and would have songs produced by Burnett, Daniel Moore and Steve Katz. He moved to Los Angeles and recorded '' The B-52 Band & the Fabulous Skylarks'' (Uni, 1972) under the name J. Henry Burnett. In 1975 and 1976, he toured with Bob Dylan's

Rolling Thunder Revue The Rolling Thunder Revue was a 1975–1976 concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan with numerous musicians and collaborators. The purpose of the tour was to allow Dylan, who had now become a major recording artist and concert perfor ...

. When the Revue ended, Burnett and two other members of Dylan's band, David Mansfield and Steven Soles, formed

The Alpha Band The Alpha Band was an American rock band, formed in July 1976 from the remnants of Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue. Entry for ''The Alpha Band''. AllMusic. Accessed May 21, 2009. Band members were T-Bone Burnett, Steven Soles, and David Mansf ...

, which released three albums: ''The Alpha Band'' (1976), ''Spark in the Dark'' (1977), and ''The Statue Makers of Hollywood'' (1978). Burnett and singer-songwriter Sam Phillips were married in 1989 and divorced in 2004. He produced many of her albums, including '' Martinis & Bikinis'' and ''

Cruel Inventions ''Cruel Inventions'' is the sixth studio album by American singer and songwriter Sam Phillips. Critical reception ''Cruel Inventions'' received mostly favorable reviews from critics. At ''Entertainment Weekly'', David Browne gave the album an A ...

''. He married Callie Khouri in 2006. He has three daughters, including one from his marriage to Phillips.

Solo work

In 1980, Burnett released his first post-Alpha Band solo album, '' Truth Decay'', produced by Reggie Fisher, on the Takoma Records label. ''Truth Decay'' was a

roots rock Roots rock is a genre of rock music that looks back to rock's origins in folk, blues and country music. It is particularly associated with the creation of hybrid subgenres from the later 1960s, including blues rock, country rock, Southern roc ...

album described by the ''

Rolling Stone Record Guide ''The Rolling Stone Album Guide'', previously known as ''The Rolling Stone Record Guide'', is a book that contains professional music reviews written and edited by staff members from ''Rolling Stone'' magazine. Its first edition was published in 1 ...

'' as "mystic Christian blues". In 1982, his ''Trap Door'' EP (also produced by Reggie Fisher), released on the

Warner Brothers Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American Film studio, film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, Califo ...

label, yielded the FM radio hit "I Wish You Could Have Seen Her Dance". Burnett toured after the release of ''Trap Door'', opening several dates for

The Who The Who are an English rock band formed in London in 1964. Their classic lineup consisted of lead singer Roger Daltrey, guitarist and singer Pete Townshend, bass guitarist and singer John Entwistle, and drummer Keith Moon. They are conside ...

, leading a band that featured Mick Ronson on guitar. His 1983 album '' Proof Through the Night'', whose song "When the Night Falls" got some FM airplay, and his 1987 album ''

The Talking Animals ''The Talking Animals'' is an album by T Bone Burnett, released in 1988. The guest musicians include Peter Case, Bono, and Tonio K, among others. Reception Brett Hartenbach of AllMusic thought that "even with a few less than stellar songs, '' ...

'' were more in the vein of 1980s

new wave music New wave is a loosely defined music genre that encompasses pop-oriented styles from the late 1970s and the 1980s. It was originally used as a catch-all for the various styles of music that emerged after punk rock, including punk itself. Late ...

, while his self-titled 1986 album was an album of acoustic

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

. His 1992 album ''

The Criminal Under My Own Hat ''The Criminal Under My Own Hat'' is an album by T Bone Burnett that was released in 1992. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Contemporary Folk Album. Reception Music critic Mark Deming of Allmusic praised the album and was "easily T ...

'' tended toward

adult album alternative Adult album alternative (also triple-A, AAA, or adult alternative) is a radio format. See pages 9 and 10Mills, Joshua. "A New Radio Music Format: Rock for Prosperous Adults" New York Times, Feb 28 1994, p. 2. ProQuest. Web. Accessed September 4, 2 ...

music. ''Proof Through the Night'' was reissued by Rhino Records' Handmade Music in a limited edition of 5,000 on May 29, 2007, in an expanded version. The double CD also included the EPs ''

Trap Door A trapdoor is a sliding or hinged door in a floor or ceiling. It is traditionally small in size. It was invented to facilitate the hoisting of grain up through mills, however, its list of uses has grown over time. The trapdoor has played a pivot ...

'' and '' Behind the Trap Door''. In 2006, he released two albums. '' The True False Identity'' was his first album of new songs since 1992, and ''

Twenty Twenty – The Essential T Bone Burnett ''Twenty Twenty'' is a 2006 compilation album by T Bone Burnett, chronicling Burnett's entire career, including recordings by The Coward Brothers (Burnett's collaboration with Elvis Costello) and The Alpha Band. Track listing Disc 1 # "Humans ...

'' was a 40-song career retrospective. In 2019, he released '' The Invisible Light: Acoustic Space'' with Jay Bellerose and

Keefus Ciancia Keith Ciancia, better known as Keefus Green or Keefus Ciancia is an American musician, composer and music producer. He has won an Ivor Novello Award and been nominated for an Emmy. Along with his long time creative collaborator, T Bone Burnett, ...

. Some of Burnett's recordings were among hundreds of others whose material was destroyed in the 2008 Universal fire.

Production and other professional activities

Producing

Burnett's production credits include ''

How Will the Wolf Survive? ''How Will the Wolf Survive?'' is the first major label album of Los Lobos, released in 1984. In 1989, ''How Will the Wolf Survive?'' was ranked at number 30 on ''Rolling Stone'' magazine's list of the 100 greatest albums of the 1980s. It was ra ...

'' (Slash/Warner Bros., 1984) by Los Lobos, ''

King of America ''King of America'' is the tenth studio album by British rock singer and songwriter Elvis Costello, credited to "The Costello Show featuring the Attractions and Confederates" in the UK and Europe and to "The Costello Show featuring Elvis Costel ...

'' (Columbia, 1986) by

Elvis Costello Declan Patrick MacManus OBE (born 25 August 1954), known professionally as Elvis Costello, is an English singer-songwriter and record producer. He has won multiple awards in his career, including a Grammy Award in 2020, and has twice been nom ...

, '' Martinis & Bikinis'' (Virgin, 1994) and '' Fan Dance'' (Nonesuch, 2001) by Sam Phillips, '' Raising Sand'' (Rounder, 2007) by

and Alison Krauss, '' Life, Death, Love and Freedom'' (Hear Music, 2008) by

John Mellencamp John J. Mellencamp (born October 7, 1951), previously known as Johnny Cougar, John Cougar, and John Cougar Mellencamp, is an American singer-songwriter. He is known for his catchy brand of heartland rock, which emphasizes traditional instrumen ...

, ''

The Diving Board ''The Diving Board'' is the twenty-ninth studio album by English musician Elton John. It is the second of his studio releases since 1979's '' Victim of Love'' without any of his regular band members. The album was released in the United Kingdom ...

'' (Capitol, 2015) by

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

, and the soundtracks ''

The Big Lebowski ''The Big Lebowski'' () is a 1998 crime comedy film written, produced, and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. It stars Jeff Bridges as Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski, a Los Angeles slacker and avid bowler. He is assaulted as a result of mistake ...

'', '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'', '' Cold Mountain'' and '' Crazy Heart''. In 1985, Burnett collaborated with Elvis Costello on the single "The People's Limousine", using the moniker "The Coward Brothers". In 1987, he produced Roy Orbison's two-record album, '' In Dreams: The Greatest Hits'' and two songs of '' Mystery Girl''. Also in 1997, he wrote songs for the Sam Shepard play '' The Tooth of Crime: Second Dance,'' which premiered

off-Broadway An off-Broadway theatre is any professional theatre venue in New York City with a seating capacity between 100 and 499, inclusive. These theatres are smaller than Broadway theatres, but larger than off-off-Broadway theatres, which seat fewer th ...

in New York City with Vincent D'Onofrio and Kirk Acevedo. An album of these songs, '' Tooth of Crime'', was released in May 2008, featuring guitarist Marc Ribot, Sam Phillips and David Poe, whose self-titled debut Burnett also produced that year. According to Burnett, he was inspired by the music of

while composing songs for the updated version of Shepard's play. In April 2006, he announced that his first concert tour in nearly two decades would begin on May 16 in Chicago at

The Vic Theatre The Vic Theatre is a music venue located in Chicago, Illinois. Vic Theatre can easily accommodate 1,400 people or with a seated capacity of 1,000. History Vic Theatre, designed by architect John Eberson, opened in 1912 as the Victoria Theatre. ...

. Around the same time, jazz singer

Cassandra Wilson Cassandra Wilson (born December 4, 1955) is an American jazz singer, songwriter, and producer from Jackson, Mississippi. She is one of the most successful female Jazz singers and has been described by critic Gary Giddins as "a singer blessed ...

released an album of blues songs, '' Thunderbird'' (2006), which was produced by Burnett. He wrote one of the album's songs and co-wrote another with

Ethan Coen Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

. He produced music for the remake of the film '' All the King's Men''. In 2006, he produced Brandi Carlile's '' The Story'' album, the title song of which became a minor hit and was featured on a special broadcast of ABC-TV's ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into ...

''. Carlile's guitarist and bassist, twins Tim and Phil Hanseroth, respectively, used instruments from Burnett's private collection during the "live" recordings in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. Th ...

, British Columbia. In early 2008,

Pete Townshend Peter Dennis Blandford Townshend (; born 19 May 1945) is an English musician. He is co-founder, leader, guitarist, second lead vocalist and principal songwriter of the Who, one of the most influential rock bands of the 1960s and 1970s. Towns ...

announced that Burnett was to go into the studio that fall to help produce an all-covers album for

. However, on a May 15, 2008, episode of the NPR radio show ''

All Songs Considered ''All Songs Considered'' is a weekly online multimedia program started in January 2000 by NPR's ''All Things Considered'' director Bob Boilen. At first, the show featured information and streaming audio about the songs used as bumper music on '' ...

'', Burnett threw that project into question. He stated that Townshend had indicated in a blog that he was putting all his projects on hold. In 2009, Burnett produced albums for Moonalice and Grace Potter and the Nocturnals. In that same year, he also produced Elvis Costello's album '' Secret, Profane & Sugarcane'' as well as co-writing the song "Sulfur to Sugarcane" with Costello. Burnett produced a collaboration album by

and

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock and ...

. John, Russell and

Bernie Taupin Bernard John Taupin (born 22 May 1950) is an English songwriter, singer and visual artist. He is best known for his long-term collaboration with musician Elton John, a songwriting partnership that is one of the most successful in history. Ta ...

(John's lyricist) wrote songs together in late 2009. The album, '' The Union'', was recorded in January 2010 and released in October 2010. In 2010, Burnett produced Gregg Allman's album ''Low Country Blues'', released in January 2011. In 2014, Burnett produced Punch Brothers' fourth studio album, '' The Phosphorescent Blues'', which was released in January 2015. In 2016, he produced the Italian bluesman

Zucchero Fornaciari Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his elementary teach ...

's album ''

Black Cat A black cat is a domestic cat with black fur that may be a mixed or specific breed, or a common domestic cat of no particular breed. The Cat Fanciers' Association (CFA) recognizes 22 cat breeds that can come with solid black coats. The Bomba ...

''. In 2016, T Bone produced '' Jupiter Calling'' by

the Corrs The Corrs are an Irish family band that combine pop rock with traditional Irish themes within their music. The group consists of the Corr siblings, Andrea (lead vocals, tin whistle, mandolin, ukulele), Sharon (violin, keyboards, vocals), Caro ...

; a record that received mixed reviews, but encapsulated the core of their sound and songwriting ability. In July 2018, he produced Sara Bareilles' ''

Amidst the Chaos ''Amidst the Chaos'' is the sixth studio album by American singer-songwriter Sara Bareilles, released on April 5, 2019, through Epic Records. The lead single from the album, "Armor", was released digitally on October 26, 2018. The album debuted ...

'' in Los Angeles.

Code

In 2008, it was reported that Burnett "started a new venture called Code, which aims to do for music what

THX THX Ltd. is an American company that develops the eponymous high fidelity audio/visual reproduction standards for movie theaters, screening rooms, home theaters, computer speakers, gaming consoles, car audio systems, and video games. Founded ...

did for movie-theater sound: set standards that ensure the best possible quality." He is opposed to the trend of brighter and more compressed processing, sufficiently so, that he essentially retired from the music business around 1995–1996 and pursued an opportunity to work in theater with Sam Shepard, leading to his work on several films. The audio format known as Code involves the simultaneous release of multiple sound formats, thus avoiding much of the processing which happens when sound is converted from one format to another. The first album produced with Code was '' Life, Death, Love and Freedom'' (2008) by John Mellencamp.

Work in films

In 1992, Burnett worked on some songs with his friend River Phoenix for the movie '' The Thing Called Love''. He was the coach of Samantha Mathis. In 2000, Burnett produced the soundtrack and wrote the score for the

Coen Brothers Joel Daniel Coen (born November 29, 1954) and Ethan Jesse Coen (born September 21, 1957),State of Minnesota. ''Minnesota Birth Index, 1935–2002''. Minnesota Department of Health. collectively known as the Coen brothers (), are American film ...

film ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?''. The award-winning soundtrack featured music from Emmylou Harris, Alison Krauss, Ralph Stanley, Gillian Welch and others performing traditional American

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

, blues and bluegrass—reminiscent of Burnett's 1986 self-titled release. The album was a hit, garnering numerous industry awards from the Grammys, the

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country musi ...

, and the

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

. The album was a commercial success and sold almost eight million copies, according to ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

''. A documentary film, '' Down from the Mountain'', was made of a benefit concert of the soundtrack performed by the artists on the album; Burnett figures prominently in the film. For producing the soundtrack albums for these two films, and for his wife Sam Phillips's album '' Fan Dance'', Burnett won the 2002 Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical. Burnett went on to produce the less popular

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

soundtrack to the Coens' '' The Ladykillers''. In 2004, under the name "Henry Burnett", he arranged "I Wish My Baby Was Born" and wrote "Like a Songbird That Has Fallen" and "

The Scarlet Tide "The Scarlet Tide" is a song written by T-Bone Burnett and Elvis Costello and performed by Alison Krauss from the 2003 film '' Cold Mountain'' According to Costello, Burnett "always said 'Scarlet Tide' was an anti-fear song." The song was nominate ...

" for the movie ''Cold Mountain''. "Scarlet Tide", co-written with Elvis Costello and performed by Alison Krauss, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Song and won BAFTA's Anthony Asquith Award for Achievement in Film Music. In 2005, he composed the score for

Wim Wenders Ernst Wilhelm "Wim" Wenders (; born 14 August 1945) is a German filmmaker, playwright, author, and photographer. He is a major figure in New German Cinema. Among many honors, he has received three nominations for the Academy Award for Best Doc ...

' film '' Don't Come Knocking''. In 2005, he worked with actors

Joaquin Phoenix Joaquin Rafael Phoenix (; né Bottom; born October 28, 1974) is an American actor. He is known for playing dark and unconventional characters in independent films. He has received various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Acad ...

and

Reese Witherspoon Laura Jeanne Reese Witherspoon (born March 22, 1976) is an American actress and producer. The recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, she ...

for their singing roles as

and June Carter Cash in the film ''Walk the Line''. Witherspoon won the

Academy Award for Best Actress The Academy Award for Best Actress is an award presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is given to an actress who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role in a film released that year. ...

for her role in the film, giving special thanks to Burnett in her speech for "helping her realize her lifelong dream of being a country music singer". He also produced that film's soundtrack album and wrote its score. In 2009, Burnett collaborated on music for the movie '' Crazy Heart'', winning a

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are accolades bestowed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association beginning in January 1944, recognizing excellence in both American and international film and television. Beginning in 2022, there are 105 members of t ...

, an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment in ...

, and a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

for the song "The Weary Kind", which he composed with Ryan Bingham. Burnett was also a producer of the film, along with Jeff Bridges and

Robert Duvall Robert Selden Duvall (; born January 5, 1931) is an American actor and filmmaker. His career spans more than seven decades and he is considered one of the greatest American actors of all time. He is the recipient of an Academy Award, four Gold ...

. In 2012, he was the executive music producer for ''The Hunger Games'' soundtrack, and wrote the track "Safe and Sound" himself. In 2013, he was the executive music producer for the Coen brothers' film ''

Inside Llewyn Davis ''Inside Llewyn Davis'' () is a 2013 period black comedy musical drama film written, directed, produced, and edited by Joel and Ethan Coen. Set in 1961, the film follows one week in the life of Llewyn Davis, played by Oscar Isaac in his breakt ...

''.

Real estate development

With Bert Mathews, Burnett is the co-founder of Cloud Hill Partnership, a company that planned to redevelop Herschel Greer Stadium in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and t ...

. The proposed redevelopment of the site included music and art space, a community center, open park space and affordable housing. The Cloud Hill proposal was abandoned in January 2018 after archaeologists determined that undisturbed areas on the edge of the Greer property, but not part of the stadium itself, were the unmarked burial sites of slaves forced to build the adjacent

Fort Negley Fort Negley was a fortification built by Union troops after the capture of Nashville, Tennessee during the American Civil War, located approximately south of the city center. It was the largest inland fort built in the United States during the wa ...

Awards and honors

Grammy Awards

* Producer of the Year, Non-Classical (2001, 2004) * Record of the Year: " Please Read the Letter" (2008) * Album of the Year: '' O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2001), '' Raising Sand'' (2008) * Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: ''O Brother, Where Art Thou?'' (2001), '' Cold Mountain'' (2004), '' Walk the Line'' (2006), '' Crazy Heart'' (2010) * Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album: ''Raising Sand'' (2008) * Best Traditional Folk Album: '' Down from the Mountain'' (2001) * Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album: '' A Wonderful World'' (2004) * Best Traditional Blues Album: '' One Kind Favor'' (2008) * Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media: "

" (2004), " The Weary Kind" (2010) * Best Song Written for Visual Media: " Safe & Sound" (2012)

Other awards

In 2010, Burnett won several awards for the movie ''Crazy Heart''. He and Ryan Bingham shared the Academy Award for Best Original Song and the Golden Globe Award for Best Song for " The Weary Kind". The song won them a Critics' Choice Award and won Burnett a

Satellite Award The Satellite Awards are annual awards given by the International Press Academy that are commonly noted in entertainment industry journals and blogs. The awards were originally known as the Golden Satellite Awards. The award ceremonies take plac ...

from the International Press Academy. For the score, Burnett and Stephen Bruton won an award from Los Angeles Film Critics Association and Burnett won the

Frederick Loewe Frederick Loewe (, originally German Friedrich (Fritz) Löwe ; June 10, 1901 – February 14, 1988) was an Austrian- American composer. He collaborated with lyricist Alan Jay Lerner on a series of Broadway musicals, including '' Brigadoon'', ...

award. He shared the award for Best First Feature at the Independent Spirit Awards with the producers (

, Rob Carliner and Judy Cairo) and director Scott Cooper. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in performing arts from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which r ...

in May 2019.

Solo discography

Compilations

Alpha Band discography

Film and television discography

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Burnett, T Bone 1948 births Record producers from Texas American country singer-songwriters American rock singers American rock songwriters American male songwriters Best Original Music BAFTA Award winners Eels (band) members The Golden Palominos members Grammy Award winners Golden Globe Award-winning musicians Best Original Song Academy Award-winning songwriters Living people People from Fort Worth, Texas Singer-songwriters from Texas Musicians from St. Louis Singer-songwriters from Missouri Arista Records artists Columbia Records artists Universal Music Group artists Warner Records artists