Brandon Bell (recording engineer)

Last updated
Brandon Bell
BrandonBell.jpg
Background information
Origin Heber Springs, Arkansas, U.S.
GenresBluegrass, Country, Americana, Rock, and Folk
Occupation(s)Engineer, Mix Engineer, Producer
Years active2005 - present
Websitemixerbell.com

Brandon Bell is an American Grammy Award winning recording engineer, mix engineer and producer based in Nashville. [1] [2] His credits include Brandi Carlile, Alan Jackson, Sarah Jarosz, Joni Mitchell, Steep Canyon Rangers, Zac Brown Band, Janis Ian, The Highwomen, Foo Fighters, Tanya Tucker, Parker McCollum, Earl Scruggs, Reba McEntire, Alison Krauss and Union Station, Brandy Clark, Billy Strings, Dierks Bentley, Miranda Lambert, Allison Russell, and Blackberry Smoke.

Contents

Bell graduated from Middle Tennessee State University in 2004. In 2014, he was hired as the studio director and chief engineer at Southern Ground Nashville, owned by recording artist, Zac Brown from the Zac Brown Band. Since 2020, Bell has been working independently.

He has been featured as a special guest on music industry podcasts: Recording Studio Rock Stars [3] and Surviving The Music Industry with Brandon Harrington. [4]

Bell is a member of The Recording Academy and sits on a committee of the Audio Engineering Society. [5]

Education

Bell graduated from Heber Springs High School in Heber Springs, Arkansas. He earned a Bachelor of Science in Recording Industry degree at Middle Tennessee State University. [6] MTSU honored Bell in 2023 for his achievements in the recording industry.

Selected discography

YearAlbumArtistCredit [2]
2006 Like Red on a Rose Alan Jackson Engineer
2008The Ultimate Collection: Live at the Ryman Earl Scruggs Engineer
2010 Up On The Ridge Dierks Bentley Engineer, mixing assistant
2011Daybreak Sierra Hull Engineer, mixing, editing
2011 Rare Bird Alert Steve Martin & The Steep Canyon RangersEngineer
2011 Follow Me Down Sarah Jarosz Engineer
2012 Home Dierks Bentley Assistant, engineer
2012 Nobody Knows You The Steep Canyon Rangers Engineer, mixing
2014 Sonic Highways Foo Fighters Studio Assistant
2017 Welcome Home Zac Brown / Zac Brown Band Engineer, mixing
2019Ridin' High....Again Jack Ingram Engineer, mixing
2019 The Highwomen The Highwomen Engineer
2020Hollywood Gold Parker McCollum Engineer
2020Now I Don't KnowAdam ChaffinsEngineer, producer [7]
2021The Marfa Tapes Miranda Lambert, Jack Ingram and Jon Randall Engineer
2023In These Silent Days Brandi Carlile Engineer

Awards

Bell has received two nominations for Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical with Gary Paczosa. The first in 2006 for Alan Jackson's Like Red on a Rose (which is also Gold Certified by RIAA) [8] [1] and the second in 2011 for Sarah Jarosz's Follow Me Down. [1]

He won the Grammy Award for Best Bluegrass Album in 2013 for his work on Steep Canyon Rangers’ album Nobody Knows You [1] and again in 2025 for Live Vol. 1 by Billy Strings. [9]

He engineered Brandi Carlile's lead single Right on Time, from the Album In These Silent Days. The single received Grammy nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Solo Performance in 2022.

Bell was nominated for Audio Engineer of The Year for the 2022 ACM Awards. [10] He also engineered The Marfa Tapes which was nominated for Best Country Album at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.

In 2023, Bell won the Grammy Award for Best Americana Album for his work as an engineer on Brandi Carlile's album In These Silent Days. The album also received the Grammy nomination for Album of the Year. Carlile's single "Broken Horses" won Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards. "You and Me on the Rock" was nominated for Record of the Year, Best Americana Performance, and Best American Roots Song.

In 2024, Bell won a Grammy Award for Best Folk Album for his work on Joni Mitchell's album At Newport. Allison Rusell's album The Returner and Brandy Clark's album Brandy Clark were each nominated for Best Americana Album. He contributed additional engineering to Billy Strings' album Me/And/Dad, which was nominated for Best Bluegrass Album.

YearAwardRecipient/Artist/WorkAwardResult
2025Grammy AwardsBilly Strings - Live Vol. 1Best Bluegrass AlbumWon
2024JUNO Awards Wiliam Prince - Stand in the Joy Contemporary Roots Album of the YearWon
2024Grammy Awards Joni Mitchell - At Newport Best Folk AlbumWon
2024UK Americana Music Awards Allison Russell - The Returner International Album of the YearWon
2024Grammy Awards Allison Russell - The Returner Best Americana AlbumNomination
2024Americana Music Awards Brandy Clark - Brandy Clark Album of the YearNomination
2024Grammy Awards Brandy Clark - Brandy Clark Best Americana AlbumNomination
2023Grammy Awards Janis Ian - The Light At The End Of The Line Best Folk AlbumNomination
2023Grammy AwardsBrandi Carlile - “You And Me On The Rock”Record of the YearNomination
2023Grammy AwardsBrandi Carlile “In These Silent Days”Album of the YearNomination
2023Grammy Awards Brandi Carlile - In These Silent Days Best Americana AlbumWon [11]
2022Americana Music AwardsBrandi Carlile - In These Silent DaysAlbum of the YearNomination
2022Grammy Awards Miranda Lambert - Marfa Tapes Best Country AlbumNomination
2022Grammy AwardsBrandi Carlile - "Right On Time"Record of the YearNomination
2021ACM AwardsBrandon BellAudio Engineer of the YearNomination [10]
2020UK Americana Music AwardsThe Highwomen - "The Highwomen"International Album of the YearWon
2020Americana Music Awards The Highwomen - "The Highwomen" Album of the YearWon
2019Grammy Awards the Wood Brothers - One Drop of Truth Best Americana AlbumNomination
2019Grammy AwardsMike Barnett - Portraits In FiddlesBest Bluegrass AlbumNomination
2014Grammy Awards Sarah Jarosz - Build Me Up From Bones Best Folk AlbumNomination
2014Americana Music AwardsSarah Jarosz - Build Me Up From BonesAlbum of the YearNomination
2013Grammy Awards Steep Canyon Rangers - Nobody Knows You Best Bluegrass AlbumWon [11]
2012Grammy Awards Steve Martin - Rare Bird Alert Best Bluegrass AlbumNomination
2011Grammy Awards Sarah Jarosz - Follow Me Down Best Engineered Album, Non-ClassicalNomination [12]
2011Academy of Country Music Awards Dierks Bentley - Up On The Ridge Album of the YearNomination
2010Country Music Association Awards Dierks Bentley - Up On The Ridge Album of the YearNomination
2010Grammy Awards Dierks Bentley - Up On The Ridge Best Country AlbumNomination
2008Grammy Awards Earl Scruggs - The Ultimate Collection: Live at the Ryman Best Bluegrass AlbumNomination
2007Grammy AwardsAlan Jackson - Like Red On A RoseBest Country AlbumNomination
2007Grammy Awards Alan Jackson - Like Red on a Rose Best Engineered Album, Non-ClassicalNomination

Years reflect the year in which the Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Brandon Bell". GRAMMY.com. 2020-11-23. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
  2. 1 2 "Brandon Bell | Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2024-02-06.
  3. ↑ "RSR188 - Brandon Bell - Recording Zac Brown and Alan Jackson at Southern Ground Nashville". Recording Studio Rockstars. 2019-04-12. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  4. ↑ "Brandon Bell". Surviving the Music Industry Podcast. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  5. ↑ "Nashville AES Section". www.aes.org. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  6. ↑ "2013 President's Biennial Report". Issuu. 14 February 2013. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
  7. ↑ "Adam Chaffins Revisits "Further Away" With An Acoustic Version & Video Featuring Brit Taylor". The Country Note. 2020-08-28. Retrieved 2021-05-01.
  8. ↑ "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  9. ↑ "2025 GRAMMYs: See The Full Winners & Nominees List | GRAMMY.com". grammy.com. Retrieved 2025-02-03.
  10. 1 2 "Academy of Country Music | Nominees". www.acmcountry.com. Retrieved 2022-02-18.
  11. 1 2 Greenburg, Zack O'Malley. "Grammy Winners 2013: The Full List". Forbes. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
  12. ↑ "Production Grammy Nominees Announced". ProSoundNetwork.com. 2011-12-01. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.