Rick Hall, the producer who forged the Southern soul style known as the Muscle Shoals sound, died on Tuesday at his home in Muscle Shoals, Ala. He was 85.

His wife, Linda Kay Hall, said the cause was prostate cancer.

Mr. Hall turned small-town Alabama into a crucible of soul, country, pop and rock after he founded FAME Studios in 1959 in Florence, Ala. FAME stands for Florence Alabama Music Enterprises, although in 1961 the studio moved to nearby Muscle Shoals, where it remains. Mr. Hall also started FAME Publishing, which would amass a substantial catalog of hits, and FAME Records.

Mr. Hall’s versatile output drew on Southern roots — country, blues, R&B, gospel — and on his instincts for concisely emotive storytelling, lean arrangements and solid grooves. He was a proud taskmaster in the studio.