Bill Walker

Bill Walker, known for his graceful touch as a composer and arranger, died on May 26, 2022. He was 85. Born and raised in Australia and employed by RCA Victor in South Africa, Walker relocated to Nashville in 1964 to work with Jim Reeves. However, the Country legend was killed in a plane crash on the same weekend Walker arrived. Eddy Arnold then helped establish Walker as a notable arranger and composer on lush recordings like 1965’s “Make the World Go Away.” After serving as music director of The Johnny Cash Show, Walker produced Donna Fargo’s “The Happiest Girl in the Whole U.S.A.,” the 1972 ACM Single of the Year. In the 1990s, Walker lent his orchestral composition talent to TNN’s top-rated The Statler Brothers Show.