Born William Pursell on June 9, 1926 in Oakland, CA, USA

Died at 3:43pm on Thursday, Sept 3rd, Nashville, TN of Covid related pneumonia

"My beautiful father, William Pursell passed, after a very fast, tough battle with Covid pneumonia. Our hearts are shattered, our lives changed forever. Please send prayers for strength to my family. While in the hospital, my father became a Catholic, something that has never happened in the Vanderbilt Covid ward. He said his entire life now made sense. This gives us some measure of peace. We know how many lives he touched, and he knew how much he was loved. Funeral arrangements will be announced as soon as we can, as we know how many people will want to pay tribute to this wonderful, unforgettable man who led such a rich and full life. He enriched all of ours. Dad, we love you forever."

- Daughter and recording artist, Laura Pursell

The legendary composer and musician, William "Bill" Pursell, was born in Oakland, California  and raised in Tulare. He studied composition at the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore and arranged for the U.S. Air Force Band while serving in World War II. Bill Pursell studied classical composition under Howard Hanson at the Eastman School of Music and earned a mastera in composition in the mid-fifties. His symphonic poem âśhrist Looking Over Jerusalemâť(the first movement of âśhree Biblical Scenes for Orchestraâť was the inaugural recipient of the Edward B. Benjamin Prize in 1953.

In 1960, Pursell moved to Nashville at the invitation of Eddy Arnold.  By 1962 he signed  as a solo artist with Columbia Records, who released the album "Our Winter Love" the following year. Pursell's "Our Winter Love" became one of the biggest selling recordings of 1963 and has carved out a small but meaningful niche for itself in the annals of pop history.  The title track reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100, #4 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and #20 on the Black Singles chart. The album reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100.  The arrangements for the album were made by Bill Justis and Pursell, and the orchestra was conducted by Grady Martin.  His follow up single âśovedâťreached Billboard position 121.  Pursell later recorded for Epic, Decca, Word, Henry Stoneâ™ Alston, Dot, and many other labels.  A highlight of his career was playing with Chet Atkins for the press corps dinner at the White House for President John F. Kennedy (Pictured Far right with other noted performers including Bob Moore, Buddy Harman, Shelley Winters, Alan King, Chet Adkins, and President Kennedy center).

Later that decade, he worked with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and taught at Tennessee State and Vanderbilt University.  Through the 1960s and 1970s, he continued to work as a session pianist to some of the most recognized names in the industry including Johnny Cash, Boots Randolph, Chet Atkins, Marty Robbins, Patsy Cline, Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, Johnny Paycheck, Hoover, Joan Baez, Eric Andersen, Scotty Moore, J.J. Cale, Willie Nelson, Dan Fogelberg, Bob Dylan and others.  He earned two Grammy nominations, one for his work on "Listen" for Ken Medema  in 1974 and the second for his arrangement of "We Three Kings" for National Geographic in 1978.  In 1980, ursell began his long career as a composition professor at Belmont University,  He was named Composer of the Year in 1985 by the Tennessee Music Teachers Association.  His Symphony no. 2, "Heritage," was commissioned by Victor Johnson and the Nashville Symphony and premiered in 1989.  As Belmont composition faculty, he shared his knowledge with talents such as Trisha Yearwood and Brad Paisley (to name a few) and in 1991 completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree (DMA) with distinction at Eastman School of Music.

Pursell is survived by stepdaughters Ellen Spicer andMargaret Pursell, and his children Laura Pursell and Bill Pursell.  He is preceded in death by daughter Sharon Pursell in 2012 and wife Julie Pursell in 2018. His daughter Laura is an actress and singer who has continued with family tradition and legacy with 5 albums including their 2015 CD together, "The Very Last Dance Hall Left in L.A." Like her father before her, she also gave a presidential performance  for Betty and President Gerald Ford.  They were collaborating on another album with a planned completion in 2020.

Pursell was named Professor Emeritus of Music when he retired from Belmont University School of Music in 2017 after 37 years of service.  You can read about his adventures in Crooked River City: The Musical LIfe of Nashville's William Pursell (2018, Terry Klefstad).

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to TheBelmont University School of Music William Whitney Pursell Scholarship in Composition: (615) 460-6408.  


The legendary composer and musician, Bill Pursell, proudly releases classics from the Maestro, with his CD entitled "MILLENNIUM."

Mr. Pursell is an American composer, who had a brief but successful career as a pop musician before continuing on as a session pianist to some of the most recognized names in the industry including Johnny Cash, Boots Randolph, Chet Atkins, Marty Robbins, Patsy Cline, Eddy Arnold, Jim Reeves, Johnny Paycheck, Hoover, Joan Baez, Eric Andersen, Scotty Moore, J.J. Cale, Willie Nelson, Dan Fogelberg, Bob Dylan and others. Years later, Pursell was named Composer of the Year by the Tennessee Music Teachers Association as a member of the faculty of the School of Music at Belmont University sharing his knowledge with talents such as Trisha Yearwood and Brad Paisley to name a few and completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree (DMA) at Eastman School of Music.

In 1962 he signed with Columbia Records, who released a full-length album of his entitled "Our Winter Love" the following year.  Pursell's "Our Winter Love" became one of the biggest selling recordings of 1963 and has carved out a small but meaningful niche for itself in the annals of pop history.  The album reached #15 on the Billboard on the strength of the popularity of the title track, which hit #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 in addition to hitting #4 on the Adult Contemporary chart and #20 on the Black Singles chart. The arrangements for the album were made by Bill Justis and Pursell, and the orchestra was conducted by Grady Martin.  His follow up single “Loved” reached Billboard position 121.  Pursell later recorded for Epic, Henry Stone’s Alston, and Dot.  A highlight of his career was playing for the press corp dinner at the White House for President John F. Kennedy (Pictured Far right with other noted performers including Bob Moore, Buddy Harman, Shelley Winters, Alan King, Chet Adkins, and President Kennedy center).

Today, his daughter, Actress and singer, Laura Pursell, continues with family tradition with the recent release of her latest CD, entitled "The Very Last Dance Hall Left in L.A." by Bill Pursell & Laura Pursell. She received her first national attention when she sang for Betty and President Gerald Ford, reaching international acclaim when she was invited to perform in St. Petersburg, Russia, Dublin Ireland.  Since then, she has recorded 5 albums and performed with some of the greatest jazz musicians on the west coast.

Bill Pursell was born in Oakland, California and raised in Tulare. He studied composition in Baltimore and arranged for the U.S. Air Force Band while serving in World War II. Bill Pursell studied classical composition under Howard Hanson at the Eastman School of Music and earned a master’s in composition in the mid-fifties. His symphonic poem “Christ Looking Over Jerusalem” (the first movement of “Three Biblical Scenes for Orchestra”) was the inaugural recipient of the Edward B. Benjamin Prize in 1953. Later that decade, he worked with the Nashville Symphony Orchestra and taught at Tennessee State.