The Steel Guitar Forum

I just bought an old DVD from the Cheyenne Saloon series, recorded in the early-to-mid eighties (cost me about 80 cents, well worth it). Boxcar Willie does a bunch of songs with a really great backup band, but there are no musician credits.

The steel player is a tall, slim guy, looks to be mid-fifties+, plays an MSA Vintage with a big sticker "Everybody should have something to believe in. I believe I will have a beer" or something like that. The guitar player has the most PERFECT Telecaster tone imaginable; couldn't recognize him either. Average height guy, 30-40, hair just like Jimmie Crawford had back then, played a natural blond Tele.

Does anyone know?

Great tone from that Vintage XL.

The Steel Player is Harland Powell.

Chris Brooks wrote:Great tone from that Vintage XL.

This steel looks a lot like the 1975 MSA I traded in for my much newer Carter.

I loved Harlan's playing. So tasteful.

That's Chuck Jennings on guitar...

When I was with Moe Bandy we did a tour in Great Britain with "Boxie" and these fellers. Also in that band at the time were Dale Morris, Jr. and Leon Rausch. Boy did we have a time! As well as I can remember.

About 30 years ago I was at the club at what is now the Fiddler's Inn, I am not sure what it was called back then. A great great band was there, with a fabulous telecaster player.

Boxcar Willie was in the audience and they asked him to come up and sing. I never had thought much of Boxcar, I assumed he was a novelty act, was I ever wrong. He sang a bunch of songs and absolutely took the roof off the building, it was phenomenal.

There's one video where Boxcar is singing "Wabash Cannonball" and "I Love The Sound Of A Whistle" and Harland is playing a twelve string Mullen. In the video, Boxcar calls the steel guitar the Hawaiian pedal electric steel guitar

Mystery solved. Thanks guys!

Yeah Tommy is right. I played bass on the road for a year with Chuck Jennings and Harlan Powell when I was with Tony Douglas. That was right before they left Tony to play for Box about 1979. I sure do miss Harlan. He made it a point to come see me every year when he was on Christmas vacation with Boxcar. He said Boxcar gave them the whole month of December off for Christmas.
Chuck Jennings told me Harlan passed away a few years ago. Both of those guys were nuts in the motel rooms. They had their own comedy show picking on each other. Harlan played and sung 7 years with Sonny James before he started with Tony. Harlan had been playing bass for Tony and when I started playing bass Harlan went to steel. He was a great harmony singer.
Great musicians and singers on stage!

David Mitchell I agree with what you said about Harlin and Chuck. Both of them being from Dallas. Never met either of them but Harlin was an influence on me when he played steel for Sonny James. They were all in Dallas before Sonny James moved to Nashville.

Chubby Howard of Ohio also played for Boxcar. I don't know when or for how long. Chubby told me that He played for Boxcar.

Boxcar was businesses man. My wife,at the time, really liked even thought she was not a country fan. She went me the last time I got to play him before he moved to Branson. She really was impressed with his business style. That was at a Christmas party in Chickasha,Oklahoma. Matter of fact he took our bass player and drummer the Logan boys with him.

Getting back to Harlin he really was an early influence on me. This was before pedals.

Great stories fella's, i love Boxie, i still play him very often on ipod by choice, great music, i met him in the UK around 1991 ish, super nice and very serious about his craft, fairplay that's how it should be, no room for medocre and he let you know that. Box also lived in Lincoln Nebraska way back when.

I met Harland back in 86, by that time, he was playing a 12 string Mullen. He was also pretty funny. He used to do this drunk guy routine. I think he worked for Box up until Box died. I ran into Harland not long before he died. He seemed like a real nice man.

That MSA sounded so good. I noticed it to be a single coil
PU. Was he using a Session 400 back then??
Thanks

Boxcar really got his start at the Sip N' Nip in Euless Tx where I fronted the house band there. I remember him playing by himself in the corner, and he started using my band to back him.
We were a bunch of cowboy hippies playing trucker music and progressive country. Needless to say, we were pretty rough around the edges and Boxcar would let us know when we were too loud, or didn't play songs right...lol
He was a trip...but he was a true entertainer. He could put on a great show and have everyone's undivided attention, whether it was a family oriented show, or to a bunch of rowdy drunks in the Sip n' Nip. He could tell the funniest clean jokes, or he could tell the raunchiest jokes...and he could destroy hecklers! I have some really funny stories about him.
He taught me how to do the train whistle with my mouth.
Lecil was a good man....

Two of the finest I have ever known. There is just no way to think of all the good times we had. Harland tried his best to teach me to play steel, but there was no way to get there for me. Lost track of them after Box passed. They released 2 albums before going to work for Box. These were done as Chuck Jennings and the Travelers. If you can find a copy, Harland really shines on these.