Paul Mickelson

Mickelson was born and grew up in Burbank, California.[1][2] He began music lessons at the age of nine.[1] His broadcast career commenced at the age of 16, when as a member of the Burbank Foursquare Church he was the organist for the church's weekly program Challenge to Youth on KMPC.[1] Mickelson began recording at the age of eighteen; his first session took place with the NBC pipe organ in Hollywood.[3] At the time of his first recording session he was appearing on 20 local radio shows each week as an organist.[2]

Mickelson joined the Billy Graham crusade as organist in 1950 and stayed until September 1957, leaving Graham in order to concentrate on recording activities on a full-time basis.[1][4] He signed as a recording artist to RCA Victor Records in 1953, and also became A&R director for religious music.[2][4] He was with RCA until 1958, when he joined Word Records as an artist and vice president responsible for A&R.[4] Mickelson founded Supreme Records in 1961, which—including subsidiaries Console Records and Cornerstone Records—became one of the largest American labels devoted to sacred music until it was absorbed by Zondervan Publishing.[1][5][6][7]

Later in life he was a concertizing representative for Church Organ Systems.[8] He had joined the Seventh-Day Adventist church by 1997, and was organist for the denomination's 2000 General Conference Session.[9][10]

Mickelson died on October 21, 2001, of a myocardial infarction while visiting Sacramento, California.[1] At the time of his death he was a member of the United Community Church in Glendale, California.[1]

A church publication opined that a Mickelson recording was "unusual" in that it was "spirited but not swingy; reverent, but not pious".[11] Billboard stated that Mickelson's initial Supreme Strings album was a surprise in the religious field, as the beauty of the arrangement and performance was unsurpassed in the popular field.[12] Most Supreme Records albums contain artistic participation by Mickelson, either as pianist or organist accompianment, or as arranger and conductor.[13] The majority of his organ output uses full theater organ registrations.[13] Although his recorded output is strictly religious in nature, he was known to play a few popular tunes at pipe organ "jam sessions" held in Los Angeles.[13]

He provided arrangements for Pat Boone, Tony Fontane, Jerome Hines and Ethel Waters.[3][14] In all, more than 700 of his arrangements were recorded.[15][16]

Mickelson was able to purchase multiple organs of note, including the organ from NBC's Hollywood Studios (the organ he first used to record as a solo artist) and the Robert-Morton unit from MCA's Whitney recording studios.[3][17]

In addition to his music career, Mickelson was an ordained minister.[7] Mickelson was married to Barbara Mickelson at the time of his death.[1]

• Paul Mickelson at Find a Grave