Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame songwriter Jim McBride, known for writing tracks including Alan Jackson‘s “Chattahoochee” and “Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow,” died Tuesday (Jan. 6) at age 78, reports NBC affiliate WAFF in Huntsville, Ala.
The Huntsville native got his first guitar at age 21, and by the early 1970s, he had begun bringing his songs to Nashville. Some of his earliest songs were performed on the hit television series Hee Haw, and his first Hot Country Singles charting song came in 1979 with the Leon Everette-recorded “We Let Love Fade Away,” which reached No. 89. That same year, the Ruby Falls-recorded “I’m Gettin’ Into Your Love” reached No. 56. In 1980, Conway Twitty released “A Bridge That Just Won’t Burn,” which reached No. 3 on the Hot Country Singles chart the following year, and McBride soon moved to Music City.
He continued earning hits with Johnny Lee’s “Bet Your Heart on Me,” which in 1981 became McBride’s first song to reach No. 1 on the Hot Country Singles chart. The McBride-written, Waylon Jennings-recorded “Rose in Paradise” topped the chart in 1987.
Some of McBride’s biggest successes came through writing collaborations with Country Music Hall of Famer Jackson. The two wrote songs including “Chasin’ That Neon Rainbow,” “Chattahoochee,” “Someday,” “That’s All I Need to Know” and “(Who Says) You Can’t Have It All.” “Chattahoochee” was named song of the year (1994) and single of the year (1993) by the Country Music Association. The two collaborated on more of Jackson’s songs, including “Tropical Depression,” “Just Playin’ Possum” and “A House With No Curtains.”
“That simple lyric, that’s what I like, and that’s what Jim always brought,” Jackson told Billboard in 2017. “I think that’s why we connected well. If it’s the right words that mean something, they don’t have to be anything extraordinary. It’s a more natural feeling, and that’s what I’ve always liked about some of the great songwriters that I’ve loved.”
On social media, Jackson posted a remembrance of McBride on Instagram, writing, “Jim was a good man and a great and genuine songwriter. He understood country music and touched many with his songs. Jim and I wrote some of my favorite songs together and I don’t know if my career would have ended up quite the same without his help, inspiration, and encouragement in my early years. Thank you Jim, rest in peace.”
McBride is also known for writing songs including Wade Hayes’ top five hit “What I Meant to Say” and Tammy Cochran’s 2001 top 10 hit “Angels in Waiting,” as well as tracks recorded by artists including Keith Whitley, Louise Mandrell, Patty Loveless, Trace Adkins, Johnny Rodriguez, Travis Tritt, Collin Raye, Chris Young, George Jones, Lorrie Morgan, Alabama and Pam Tillis.
Hayes wrote of McBride on Facebook, “Jim was one of the finest men I ever met. This is a tough loss. Rest in peace my friend.”
McBride and Jackson earned some of their highest career honors in close proximity to each other. McBride was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2017, while Jackson was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame the same year. McBride was also a past president of the Nashville Songwriters Association International, and was inducted into the Alabama Music Hall of Fame in 2023.
