The Steel Guitar Forum

Who is this guy? I really like his minimalist playing.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIUSikXex5w&feature=fvw
Also, what kind of steel is that? I just heard a song on our local NPR station from a new album he has coming out called "Beg borrow and steal" that had great pedal steel. Maybe the same guy??

Looks like a Williams 400 Series

Greg Leisz usually plays with Ray but that is not him- BJ Cole?.

Eric Heywood

Yep, Mr. Haywood is correct...

That's right- Eric has been doing that as well.

Both Eric and Greg played on the new record.

Nice backup voicings and solo.
Eric Heywood also was the steel man on the Pretenders-"Break Up the Concrete" album, his work there is not so subtle as it is here, as may be expected on a more rocked out country-ish trip. Nicely bookends the variety of touch and tone that the steel is doing here.
There was a nice article about Eric Heywood in one of the last print issues of No Depression magazine in which he identified his steel as an 11 string Williams. I tried counting the strings on the steel in the video and it appears to my eyes that it is an 11 stringer. 11th string being the root note of the E.
Thanks for posting the link to the video, makes me want to get the Ray LaMontagne album album now too.

Seeing Eric playing with Son Volt in a tiny club a few years ago made me want to take up pedal steel. He has great taste and a unique sound and approach.

Here's the Eric Heywood interview in No Depression magazine...

Eric was in the shop awhile ago and was asking about amps. After I demo'ed a couple in the Peavey line he was shaking his head and said that it was not the sound he was looking for- he wanted a "dirtier" sound (for the lack of a better description)- and, after hearing what he did with Son Volt I realized what he was talking about.

In the Youtube at 3:43 there is a view of the amp... a Deluxe Reverb?

edit: I looked at the interview... road amp is likely a rented BF Deluxe reissue.

Great link, thanks for the video!

I saw Eric with Son Volt and his amp at that show was a Vox AC50. It sounded GREAT.

I believe Eric's main amp now is a Savage Rohr 15 made up in Minnesota. They make killer amps!

Anyone recognize the tuner mount he has on there? You can see it clearly around 0:50 And 1:15. I think it's just a boss or something in a gray mount. I was looking to do the same thing, but can't find anything about it.