Jess Hurt

Robert Ellis · Post by **Robert Ellis** » 15 Jan 2013 8:13 pm

Jess Hurt passed on last week a well known steel player from the toledo area .Will be missed by all who knew him ..

Jerry Overstreet · Post by **Jerry Overstreet** » 15 Jan 2013 8:17 pm

Sorry to hear that Robert. I met Jess several years ago and played some of the same shows with him over the years. He was a fine stylist and avid supporter of the steel guitar and the shows. Sad to hear he's gone.

Franklin · Post by **Franklin** » 15 Jan 2013 11:28 pm

So sorry to hear this.....Jess was a great guy......Paul

Robert Ellis · Post by **Robert Ellis** » 16 Jan 2013 6:07 am

I met Jess in 1974 He was just a great guy and would show you anything he new . I only lived 60 miles from him and now i am sorry i did not go to hear him more when i was younger. My interest changed from pedal steel to Rock and Roll..Jess had become too ill to carry that pedal steel around anymore so he played mostly at jam sessions on the Dobro. I only found out about his passing by another of his friends .I thought all of you might want to know ..Please keep playing this wonderful instrument ..I love hearing you all play no matter what level you are ....Bob

Chuck S. Lettes · Post by **Chuck S. Lettes** » 16 Jan 2013 8:16 am

Sad news. Jess loved the steel, and I always enjoyed visiting with him at the steel shows. My condolences to his family. Jess was one of the good guys.
Chuck

Mike Spaeth · Post by **Mike Spaeth** » 16 Jan 2013 11:04 am

I remember first seeing Jess at Scotty's in the mid to late 70's.The song I remember him playing is "Thanks for the Memories"

Yes Jess, Thank you for the memories!!!! You will be missed.

bruce fischer · Post by **bruce fischer** » 16 Jan 2013 2:55 pm

dale potter introduced us in the '70's @ scottys show and we were friends always, even tho we only saw each other once a year.
never a more humble & caring person ever.............
lovya jessie, may you be pikkin' in the heavenly band now. sitting right next to day...............
RIP my friend
bruce & lynn

Evelyn Whitney · Post by **Evelyn Whitney** » 16 Jan 2013 7:59 pm

So sorry to hear of Jess's passing..L T Zinn and Evelyn Whitney.

Dan Carr · Post by **Dan Carr** » 17 Jan 2013 1:22 pm

I was sorry to hear of Jess's passing. I had known him since 1969 when he played at Tremainsville Gardens with Tommy Lloyd up in Toledo. I knew he had Alzheimer's and was in a nursing home. I used to stop up and visit him every time I went to the Toledo area, he was staying just over the line in Michigan. He was a great player and a great friend.

Obituary (partial) I just found in the Toledo Blade:

Jesse F. Hurt, age 87, of Toledo, passed away, Sunday, January 13, 2013, at the Ohio Veterans Home of Sandusky, Ohio. He was born May 2, 1925, in McEwen, Tennessee, to parents Van Larkin and Frances (Hatcher) Hurt. His sibling's baby brother Paul Elisha, sisters Mary Eloise, and Theresa Collier, his wife Helen Marie Brown Hurt, and his daughter Debra Joan Lowrey all preceded him in death. His wife Helen was born in Toledo, in 1927.

A gathering will be held at the Reeb Funeral Home, Sylvania, Ohio on Saturday, January 19, 2013, from 11:00 a.m. until the memorial service will begin at 1:30 p.m. Interment with burial honors will be held at Calvary Cemetery, Toledo.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/toledo ... bLoggedOut

Jerry Brightman · Post by **Jerry Brightman** » 18 Jan 2013 7:21 am

I too was saddened to hear of Jess's passing. I would visit with him when I was in his area and yes, he did love the steel guitar so much.

Jerry

Donna Dodd · Post by **Donna Dodd** » 18 Jan 2013 9:30 pm

Donna
We are friends of Jess Hurt that just passed away. I would like to post his obit, which has lots of his past steel guitar history and would be of major interest to your readers. Bernie and I would so appreciate it. Thank you again.
Blessings Janet Watruba

Jesse Hurt - Obituary

Jesse F. Hurt, age 87, of Toledo, passed away, Sunday, January 13, 2013, at the Ohio Veterans Home of Sandusky, Ohio. He was born May 2, 1925, in McEwen, Tennessee, to parents Van Larkin and Frances (Hatcher) Hurt. His sibling's baby brother Paul Elisha, sisters Mary Eloise, and Theresa Collier, his wife Helen Marie Brown Hurt, and his daughter Debra Joan Lowrey all preceded him in death. His wife Helen was born in Toledo, in 1927.

Jesse was a member of the First Baptist Church of McEwen, TN. He was a WWII veteran serving in the US Navy on the USS Achelous ARL# 1 an LST converted into a repair ship, as a Mailman rating and Postmaster of this ship in the Mediterranean South Pacific area during 1944 and 1946. He worked for the Superior Spinning and Stamping Co from 1951 until retirement in 1987.

He moved from Tennessee to Adrian, MI in 1947, he moved to Toledo in 1948. Since that time, he has played the Steel guitar and dubro in many bands. He liked all kinds of music but played mostly Country and Bluegrass. It was just a sideline hobby that he dearly loved and his heart was always in his music. He said that the good Lord blessed him in so many ways in the joy of his music. He had to support his family and never gave it a thought to go to Nashville, as through the years he was fortunate to get to work on stage with some of the greatest names in country music, and that was satisfaction in itself.

His first recording was on a 45 on the Spangle Label and in the 80's he went to Nashville and recorded an album on the Maple Records Label that was accepted by that company's president Mr. Tom Shilstra. The recording did well.

Being a member of Aloha International Steel Guitar Club, Hawaiian Association Steel Guitar, The Pedal Steel Guitar Association, and the International Steel Guitar Convention he got to play in Honolulu, Winchester, Indiana, Joliet, ILL., and St. Louis, MO. He received the Appreciation award from the Pedal Steel Association Floral City, NY in St. Louis at the International Steel Guitar Convention 1998. At the ISGC, he received the Jerry Byrd, lifetime award of Achievement, 1999. He performed for the first time at the ISGC in 1978 and at the McEwen High School in the early 80's. He has hosted a benefit show for The Steel Guitar Hall of Fame annually since 1991 and received a recognition certificate for each of these years from the SGHOF. He has always prayed that his music would be as much blessing for those that heard him play as it was for him.

A gathering will be held at the Reeb Funeral Home, Sylvania, Ohio on Saturday, January 19, 2013, from 11:00 a.m. until the memorial service will begin at 1:30 p.m. Interment with burial honors will be held at Calvary Cemetery, Toledo.

To view the video of Jesse or send online condolences you may do so at

www.reebfuneralhome.com
Published in Toledo Blade on January 18, 2013

Evelyn Whitney · Post by **Evelyn Whitney** » 18 Jan 2013 9:49 pm

Thank you, Donna. That fills in a few gaps.

Mike Sigler · Post by **Mike Sigler** » 18 Jan 2013 10:04 pm

Rest easy Jess.... I will miss you friend
Mike

Whip Lashaway · Post by **Whip Lashaway** » 19 Jan 2013 8:38 am

Jess was my mentor. He was always honest with me and I respected his suggestions. I loved him like an uncle. He was such an inspiration to so many. He will be missed greatly.

Bob Cox · Post by **Bob Cox** » 20 Jan 2013 5:58 am

Rest in peace

Dan Carr · Post by **Dan Carr** » 20 Jan 2013 9:30 am

We went to Jess Hurt’s funeral on Saturday 1-19-13; he had passed away on 1-13-13. The Reeb funeral home in Sylvania, Ohio and his caretaker put on a very nice service for him. He was interned at Calvary Cemetery in Toledo with full military honors provided by the Lambertville, Michigan VFW Post 9856, of which he was a member.
Almost everyone who had ever played in bands with him or knew him in the Michigan-Ohio area showed up. We met some of the musicians he played with when I first met Jess in 1969 playing at Tremainsville Gardens with Glen Beeler and Tommy Lloyd. One of his favorite musicians photos was of himself with Ernest Tubb. All of his photo albums were on display around the room for viewing. A video of his life had been made and it showcased a selection of his photos and had him playing songs on his steel during the entire broadcast. A lot of his awards were also on display for viewing. One of his prized awards shown was the Jerry Byrd award he received in 1999 at the ISGC in St. Louis, Mo. He had also played at the ISGC several times over the years since 1978 and always enjoyed visiting the convention to hear his old friends play and speak with them. Additionally, there were lots of photos of his family on display.
A celebration of his life will be held within the next two weeks and notification will be posted on the internet telling of the date and location.

frank rogers · Post by **frank rogers** » 20 Jan 2013 11:23 am

Jess was a humble and gracious man, it was my pleasure, indeed, to have known him. Revelation 21:3-4

bruce fischer · Post by **bruce fischer** » 20 Jan 2013 2:28 pm

thank you all so much for the additional info.
bruce & lynn

DeWitt Scott · Post by **DeWitt Scott** » 23 Jan 2013 2:34 pm

I heard about Jess passing when I was in Phoenix. He was a friend to all who met him. He organized a Steel Guitar Hall Of Fame fund raising show for many years in Toledo. I remember one time I went to Gibsonburg, OH and put on a seminar for Joe Binder and that was the time that I bought my Rickenbacker Frypan from Joe. Joe played on the show for several years in a row. Jess was a true friend and I will miss him! Scotty

David Cubbedge · Post by **David Cubbedge** » 23 Jul 2013 8:38 am

Jess was a great guy and a friend to all. I remember him giving a couple pointers to this 'long haired youngster' back in the late 70s - and then he was very helpful in hooking me up with my Emmons in 2000. Those Steel Guitar Hall of Fame shows in Toledo were awesome and much missed today. I will never forget Jess Hurt, king of Steel in NW Ohio.

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Jess Hurt's funeral service 1-19-2013

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