The Steel Guitar Forum

Today I was listening to Jackson Browne doing a solo rendition of his tune, "These Days". At the end, he remarks to the audience that he feels "underdressed" without David Lindley.

What singers throughout music history would be, or would have been, "underdressed" without their steel player, on recordings or live?

Charlie Pride without Lloyd Green is one example that comes to mind. Any others?

Conway and Vince without John Hughey.

While there is only one Lloyd, I think Charlie is wearing Armani with Ronnie Miller behind him...

Merle, without Norm Hamlet.

George Strait - Mike Daley

Waylon - Moon

Loretta Lynn - Hal Rugg

Chris LeDrew wrote:Charlie Pride without Lloyd Green is one example that comes to mind. Any others?

I'm sure Joe Wright covered those parts quite well.

Ernest Tubb; of all the hundreds and hundreds of songs he recorded, I think he only did 3 or 4 without a steeler. In fact, I think his band drew more fans than he did a lot of times, but ol' Ern never seemed to mind.

Most all "stars" these days have so much ego, they would be mental cases if their band got that much attention!

Not trying to put a negative spin on this but i'm pretty certain that the above mentioned stars would have made it without a steel player but the steel certainly put the icing on the cake so to speak.

Hank without Don.

Buck without Moon or Brumley.

b0b,

With Charlie/Lloyd, I was thinking of the "Panther Hall"/60's studio recordings - the ones that made Charlie famous. Joe's live stint with Charlie was one he shared with several other steel players over the decades. Charlie has had some great steel players on the road with him, but I was thinking more of the classic combos, like Hal/Loretta and others mentioned above.

Donnie's so right about today's singers not daring to give a sideman any substantial credit for their sound. That's why most classic combos are from the era of real country as opposed to the cookie cutter GQ and Vanity Fair country stars of today.

One I thought of this afternoon was Ricky Skaggs without Bruce Bouton. I can't imagine Ricky's classic early 80's recordings without Bruce's rich, lively push-pull sound.

Giving credit where credit is due,Zona Jones is a newer artist and gives the go ahead to Jody Cameron all the time on stage.Stands right beside him and points to him so all will know whos playing.
To answer your post Price/Emmons.
Ray

Asleep At The Wheel without Lucky Oceans and John Ely to mention a few.

Joe Wright would sound pretty ordinary without Joe Wright

NO ROY NO EDDIE.


ernie

Mark Knopfler (dire straits) - Paul Franklin

Ray Price - Buddy Emmons

I went to a Roseanne Cash concert a few years ago which was pretty good until she did "Seven Year Ache" without a steel player. Her guitarist and keyboard player split the rides but I really missed the great steel work of the original recording. It bit the big one without a steel. Does anyone know who played steel on that record? Her guitar player did some fair sounding things at the start of the rides and then the keyboard player would do the "chromatic" parts like the steel player but it just didn't do it for me. Steve Earle's band was on the show too and he had a player who doubled on mandolin. I wish he'd loaned him to Roseanne...........JH in Va.

Hank DeVito

I dont know how many people know these bands, just to name a few because there are soo many, but they are true, "texas honky-tonk" and western swing bands where their steel players add ALOT to the band, and the bands wouldnt sound right without them :

Cornell Hurd Band - Scott Walls on steel
Dale Watson and his Lone Stars - Don Pawlak on steel
Miss Leslie and her Juke Jointers - Ricky Davis on steel (of course most of us know him)
Zona Jones and Swing West - Jody Cameron on steel

Years ago, at an "America" concert they played "Sister Goldenhair" without the steel. I know I missed the instrument...something was definitely missing, there was a hole...

Also... Ray Price/Jimmy Day too......

Barbie Benton.

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Oh, yeah!