Lincoln Wayne "Chips" Moman (June 12, 1937 – June 13, 2016) was 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, and songwriter. He is known for working in R&B,

pop music Pop music is a genre of popular music that originated in its modern form during the mid-1950s in the United States and the United Kingdom. The terms ''popular music'' and ''pop music'' are often used interchangeably, although the former descri ...

and

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, ...

, operating American Sound Studios and producing hit albums like

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the " King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. His ener ...

's 1969 ''

From Elvis in Memphis ''From Elvis in Memphis'' is the tenth studio album by American rock and roll singer Elvis Presley. It was released by RCA Records on June 17, 1969. It was recorded at American Sound Studio in Memphis in January and February 1969 under the direc ...

'' and the 1985 debut album for The Highwaymen. Moman won 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 pr ...

for co-writing " (Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song", a 1975 hit for B.J. Thomas.

Music career

Early years

Moman was born in LaGrange, Georgia.Edd Hurt, "Chips Moman: The Cream Interview", ''Nashville Cream'', August 17, 2012
Retrieved 15 June 2016 After moving to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mo ...

, as a teenager, he played in the road band of Warren Smith, before moving to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

around 1957 with Johnny Burnette's band and then touring with Gene Vincent. While in Los Angeles, he played

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...

on sessions recorded at the Gold Star Studios.

1960s

Returning to Memphis, he began an association with Satellite Records (later Stax Records), helping find the disused

movie theater A movie theater (American English), cinema (British English), or cinema hall ( Indian English), also known as a movie house, picture house, the movies, the pictures, picture theater, the silver screen, the big screen, or simply theater is a ...

on McLemore Avenue that became the Stax headquarters. He worked as the company's

recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproductio ...

and produced their first

hit single A hit song, also known as a hit record, hit single or simply a hit, is a recorded song or instrumental that becomes broadly popular or well-known. Although ''hit song'' means any widely played or big-selling song, the specific term ''hit record' ...

, Carla Thomas's 1960 " Gee Whiz (Look at His Eyes)". He also produced the first single for the Stax

subsidiary A subsidiary, subsidiary company or daughter company is a company owned or controlled by another company, which is called the parent company or holding company. Two or more subsidiaries that either belong to the same parent company or having a ...

label A label (as distinct from signage) is a piece of paper, plastic film, cloth, metal, or other material affixed to a container or product, on which is written or printed information or symbols about the product or item. Information printed ...

Volt, "Burnt Biscuits" b/w "Raw Dough," by the Triumphs, whose members included future soul star

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

and

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer's ...

Howard Grimes Howard Lee Grimes (August 22, 1941 – February 12, 2022) was an American drummer, best known as a member of the Hi Rhythm Section on records by Al Green, Ann Peebles and others in the 1970s. Life and career Born in Memphis, Tennessee on August 2 ...

. Leaving Stax in 1964 after a monetary dispute with label founder Jim Stewart, he began operating his own Memphis

recording studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enou ...

American Sound Studio The American Sound Studio was a recording studio located in Memphis, Tennessee which operated from 1964 to 1972. Founded by Chips Moman, the studio at 827 Thomas Street came to be known as American North, and the studio at 2272 Deadrick Street c ...

. At American Sound, he, along with

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 themsel ...

Reggie Young Reggie Grimes Young Jr. (December 12, 1936 – January 17, 2019) was an American musician who was lead guitarist in the American Sound Studio house band, The Memphis Boys, and was a leading session musician. He played on various recordings with a ...

and

Bobby Womack Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing gui ...

, bassists Tommy Cogbill and

Mike Leech Mike may refer to: Animals * Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum * Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off * Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and document ...

, pianists and

organists An organist is a musician who plays any type of organ. An organist may play solo organ works, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers or instrumental soloists. In addition, an organist may accompany congregational ...

Bobby Woods and Bobby Emmons, and

Gene Chrisman, recorded

the Box Tops The Box Tops is an American rock band formed in Memphis in 1967. They are best known for the hits " The Letter", " Cry Like a Baby", "Choo Choo Train," and " Soul Deep" and are considered a major blue-eyed soul group of the period. They perfo ...

(" Soul Deep"),

, Merrilee Rush, Mark Lindsay ( Paul Revere and the Raiders), Sandy Posey (notably "Born a Woman" and "

Single Girl ''Single Girl'' is a song written by Martha Sharp. It was an international hit for American singer Sandy Posey from late 1966 to early 1967. The song Like ''Born a Woman'', which was also written by Martha Sharp, ''Single Girl'' contained some s ...

"),

Joe Tex Yusuf Hazziez (born Joseph Arrington Jr.; August 8, 1935 – August 13, 1982), known professionally as Joe Tex, was an American singer and musician who gained success in the 1960s and 1970s with his brand of Southern soul, which mixed the styl ...

Wilson Pickett Wilson Pickett (March 18, 1941 – January 19, 2006) was an American singer and songwriter. A major figure in the development of soul music, Pickett recorded over 50 songs which made the US R&B charts, many of which crossed over to the ''Bil ...

Herbie Mann Herbert Jay Solomon (April 16, 1930 – July 1, 2003), known by his stage name Herbie Mann, was an American jazz flute player and important early practitioner of world music. Early in his career, he also played tenor saxophone and clarinet (inclu ...

, Roy Hamilton, and

Petula Clark Petula Sally Olwen Clark, CBE (born 15 November 1932) is an English singer, actress, and composer. She has one of the longest serving careers of a British singer, spanning more than seven decades. Clark's professional career began during the ...

. During this period Moman established a songwriting partnership with fellow Memphis producer and songwriter

Dan Penn Dan Penn (born Wallace Daniel Pennington, November 16, 1941) is an American songwriter, singer, musician, and record producer, who co-wrote many soul hits of the 1960s, including " The Dark End of the Street" and "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" w ...

. The pair co-wrote "

Do Right Woman, Do Right Man "Do Right Woman, Do Right Man" (also written "Do Right Woman — Do Right Man") is a song written by Chips Moman and Dan Penn, and made famous by Aretha Franklin. Her version was released on February 10, 1967. ''Rolling Stone'' listed it as number ...

", recorded by

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Referred to as the " Queen of Soul", she has twice been placed ninth in '' Rolling Stone''s "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". Wit ...

, and "

The Dark End of the Street "The Dark End of the Street" is a 1967 soul song, written by songwriters Dan Penn and Chips Moman and first recorded by James Carr. History and original recording The song was co-written by Penn, a professional songwriter and producer, and Mo ...

", which became the best-known song of the

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest att ...

singer James Carr. Moman also played guitar on Franklin's recording sessions at the

FAME Studios FAME (Florence Alabama Music Enterprises) Studios is a recording studio located at 603 East Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, an area of northern Alabama known as the Shoals. Though small and distant from the main recording locations of the ...

in Muscle Shoals. In the 1960s, Moman worked for Stax Records before founding the

, and later worked extensively in

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 th ...

. As a record producer, Moman was known for recording

Tammy Wynette Tammy Wynette (born Virginia Wynette Pugh; May 5, 1942 – April 6, 1998) was an American country music artist, as well as an actress and author. She is considered among the genre's most influential and successful artists. Along with Loretta ...

, Carla Thomas, and Merrilee Rush, as well as guiding the career of the Box Tops. As a songwriter, he was responsible for

standards Standard may refer to: Symbols * Colours, standards and guidons, kinds of military signs * Standard (emblem), a type of a large symbol or emblem used for identification Norms, conventions or requirements * Standard (metrology), an object t ...

associated with

, James Carr,

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

, and B. J. Thomas, including the Grammy-winning " (Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song". He was also a session guitarist for Franklin and other musicians.

1970s

During the late 1960s and early 1970s, American Sound became one of the most successful recording studios in the country, producing more than 120 charting singles by pop, soul, and country artists and at one point contributing over a quarter of the hits on the ''

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 adverti ...

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. Moman produced

's 1969

album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

, ''

'' – described as "arguably resley'sbest album". The album included hit songs "

In the Ghetto "In the Ghetto" (originally titled "The Vicious Circle") is a 1969 song recorded by Elvis Presley and written by Mac Davis. It was a major hit released in 1969 as a part of Presley's comeback album, and also on the single release of " Any Day Now ...

", "

Suspicious Minds "Suspicious Minds" is a 1968 song written and first recorded by American songwriter Mark James. After this recording failed commercially, it was cut by Elvis Presley with producer Chips Moman, becoming a No. 1 song in 1969, and one of the most ...

", and "

Kentucky Rain "Kentucky Rain" is a 1970 song written by Eddie Rabbitt and Dick Heard and recorded by Elvis Presley. It was recorded at American Sound Studio and features then session pianist Ronnie Milsap. Other musicians on the record include Bobby Wood on ...

". During this time, Moman had a record label American Group Records (AGP), distributed by

Amy Amy is a female given name, sometimes short for Amanda, Amelia, Amélie, or Amita. In French, the name is spelled ''" Aimée"''. People A–E * Amy Acker (born 1976), American actress * Amy Vera Ackman, also known as Mother Giovanni (1886– ...

Mala Mala may refer to: Comics * Mala (Amazon), an Amazon from Wonder Woman's side of the DC Universe * Mala (Kryptonian), a villain from Superman's corner of the DC Universe Films and television * ''Mala'' (1941 film), a Bollywood drama film * , ...

Bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...

. Moman left Memphis in 1971 and briefly operated a studio in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

. He moved to

, where he married fellow songwriter

Toni Wine Toni Wine (born June 4, 1947 in Washington Heights, New York City, United States) is an American pop music songwriter, who wrote songs for such artists as The Mindbenders (" A Groovy Kind of Love"), Tony Orlando and Dawn (" Candida"), and Checkm ...

in 1974, and where he produced and (with fellow producer Larry Butler) co-wrote a hit for B. J. Thomas, " (Hey Won't You Play) Another Somebody Done Somebody Wrong Song" (1975). This effort earned Moman a

. He also co-wrote " Luckenbach, Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)" for Waylon Jennings, and produced albums by

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'' (1978 ...

, Gary Stewart,

Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, ...

, and

Later years

After a brief return to Memphis in the mid-1980s, during which time his attempt to open a new studio floundered, he settled in LaGrange, Georgia, where he operated another

. Moman recorded the first demo cut on the song " Always on My Mind". Mark James was working for him as a session musician and Wayne Carson was in the studio recording songs, Carson asking the co-writers to add a bridge to the song that Moman insisted it needed. The musicians felt the song was complete, but Moman refused to record it unless they came up with a bridge on the studio's old piano. The two-line bridge was then added. The song was passed to Elvis via a bodyguard and, consequently, it was not recorded by the studio despite originating in it. However, Moman produced Willie Nelson's version years later. Moman also produced ''

Highwayman A highwayman was a robber who stole from travellers. This type of thief usually travelled and robbed by horse as compared to a footpad who travelled and robbed on foot; mounted highwaymen were widely considered to be socially superior to fo ...

'', the first studio album released by

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

supergroup The Highwaymen, comprising

Kris Kristofferson Kristoffer Kristofferson (born June 22, 1936) is a retired American singer, songwriter and actor. Among his songwriting credits are " Me and Bobby McGee", " For the Good Times", " Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down", and " Help Me Make It Through the ...

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

, and

. ''Highwayman'', released through

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

in 1985, was the group's first and most successful album.

Death

Moman died on 13 June 2016, the day after his 79th birthday, at a hospice in LaGrange, Georgia."Legendary record producer Chips Moman dies at the age of 79", ''WMC'', June 14, 2016
/ref> He had been suffering from a

lung disease The lungs are the primary organs of the respiratory system in humans and most other animals, including some snails and a small number of fish. In mammals and most other vertebrates, two lungs are located near the backbone on either side ...

and died of emphysema."Legendary producer and songwriter Chips Moman dies, aged 79", ''The Guardian'', 15 June 2016
/ref>

References

*Hardy, Phil and Laing, Dave (1995). ''The Da Capo Companion to 20th-Century Popular Music''. New York: Da Capo Press. . *Kennedy, Jackie (2010) '' LaGrange Daily News''; ''Highway for the Highwayman as county honors songwriter''

External links

Interview with Chips MomanGeorgia EncyclopediaBiography at Memphis Music Hall of Fame
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moman, Chips 1937 births 2016 deaths Musicians from Memphis, Tennessee Songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state) Songwriters from Tennessee Record producers from Georgia (U.S. state) Record producers from Tennessee American blues guitarists American country guitarists American soul guitarists American male guitarists American session musicians Deaths from emphysema Grammy Award winners Guitarists from Tennessee Guitarists from Georgia (U.S. state) People from LaGrange, Georgia 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from Tennessee Country musicians from Georgia (U.S. state) 20th-century American male musicians American male songwriters