Warner Chappell Music’s leadership duo Carianne Marshall and Guy Moot have paid tribute to Thom Bell, who has died aged 79.
The Philadelphia soul pioneer died at home in Bellingham, Washington. No cause of death was given.
Posting on social media, Nile Rodgers described the songwriter and producer as "one of the greatest... of all time".
#RIPThomBell He is one of the greatest writers and producers of all time. My condolences go out to his family and friends. He was the architect of the relationship between #BernardEdwards & me as we were the band for the group New York City (I'm Doing Fine Now) a Thom Bell smash pic.twitter.com/Q56kJlzpsU
— Nile Rodgers (@nilerodgers) December 22, 2022
Bell worked on numerous hits including Betcha By Golly, Wow and You Make Me Feel Brand New by The Stylistics, and The Spinners’ Rubberband Man and Could It Be I’m Falling In Love.
In a statement, Warner Chappell COO & co-chair Carianne Marshall and CEO & co-chair Guy Moot, said: “We’re deeply saddened by the passing of legendary songwriter, arranger and producer Thom Bell. The Grammy Award-winning musical icon was part of the incomparable Gamble, Huff, and Bell songwriting team – known as the Mighty Three – the creators behind the groundbreaking ‘Sound of Philadelphia’. As the architects of Philly Soul, they topped the charts countless times, while building superstar careers and influencing generations of artists and songwriters. With a catalogue spanning more than 3,500 songs, they changed the course of musical culture forever.
“Throughout his prolific career, Thom wrote and produced an array of genre-defining hits alongside his writing partner Linda Creed, including Betcha By Golly, Wow, You Make Me Feel Brand New and The Rubberband Man. Other classics Thom worked on include I’ll Be Around, Could It Be I’m Falling In Love, and Ghetto Child, from the Spinners’ self-titled album, among many others.
“Thom has been a part of the Warner Chappell Music and Warner Music Group family for more than three decades and our entire Warner Chappell team will miss him beyond measure. His extraordinary legacy will continue to live on in the music that has filled so many of our hearts, and we will continue to celebrate Thom and share the incredible stories of his songs with the world. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and his longstanding musical partners Kenny and Leon.”
PHOTO: Kenneth Gamble, Leon A Huff & Thom Bell (Philadelphia International Records)
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