Una Entertainment Department To Host Award-winning Muscle Shoals Producer Rick Hall

Apr. 25, 2013

Michelle Eubanks, UNA, at media@una.edu, 256.765.4392 or 256.606.2033

FLORENCE - Muscle Shoals music legend Rick Hall, one of the most prominent producers in the history of the recording industry, will be on the University of North Alabama campus at 3 p.m. Tuesday, April 30, for "Coffee Talk with Rick Hall." The free event is open to the public and will take place in The Mane Room, the UNA Department of Entertainment Industry's new performance venue at 310 N. Pine St. in downtown Florence. Hall has worked with best-selling artists such as Bobbie Gentry, Clarence Carter, Wilson Pickett, Etta James, Aretha Franklin, Otis Redding, Mac Davis, Alabama, the Osmonds and many others. "As the recent documentary film 'Muscle Shoals' illustrated, Rick Hall never quits," said Dr. Bob Garfrerick, a former Hall employee who now chairs the UNA Department of Entertainment Industry Chair. "His work ethic is a model for anyone who aspires to success in the music industry." All three UNA entertainment faculty members worked with Hall at FAME Recording Studios in Muscle Shoals before going into teaching. "So many of the things I learned from Rick Hall and my time at FAME I incorporate into my classes," said Janna Malone, UNA entertainment instructor and former FAME employee. Malone worked in administration for Hall's Muscle Shoals-based record label, publishing and management companies. "He has influenced, inspired and mentored so many songwriters, artists, musicians, engineers and producers, and he gave many of them their start in the music industry," she said. "He was driven by a strong desire to succeed, and being in his presence inspired me to do the same. " Most recently, Hall was featured in "Muscle Shoals," an award-winning documentary centered on his life and the early days of the Muscle Shoals recording industry. Hall has also completed an autobiography, "Hellbent for Fame" - co-written with Terry Pace, UNA's interim communications director and an adjunct instructor of English - that he hopes to have published in the coming year. For more information on "Coffee Talk With Rick Hall," call the UNA Department of Entertainment Industry at (256) 765-4342. A recent high-resolution photo of Rick Hall is available for your use on our image gallery at this link: http://www.unalionsden.com/archive/photo.php?id=6048