The Steel Guitar Forum

Just got the sad news of the passing of Grady Martin.A giant in the recording world and most likely made the sound that got me hooked on C&W all those years ago.
Brendan

Thanx for the post! So sad to learn the bad news. This man was light years ahead of his time when he joined the Opry during the 40's. His styling.....his technique like the late Jimmy Bryant has never been equalled.

Any word as to the cause of death? Not being morbid...illness/accident?

I grew up listening to him play GREAT guitar on the Marty Robbins Gunfighter Ballad and Trail Songs albums. I "borrowed" some of his guitar licks and couldn't figure out alot more of them. Maybe he's playing behind Marty again!

Ray, I think the Paper said some type of heart failure.

------------------
Regards, Craig

Here is the obit.................Grady Martin, guitarist who did it all, dies at 72 >

Grady Martin, shown in an undated photo, was a legendary studio musician.
By PETER COOPER
Staff Writer
Grady Martin, the guitar wizard who helped fashion the sounds of such stars
as Willie Nelson, Joan Baez, Roy Orbison, Patsy Cline and Johnny Cash, died
Monday.
One of the most renowned, inventive and historically significant session
musicians in country music history suffered an apparent heart attack at his
Lewisburg, Tenn., home. He was 72.
Mr. Martin, like his cohorts in Nashville's famed A-Team of studio musicians,
remains unclaimed by the Country Music Hall of Fame. But many of country's
most legendary artists point to Mr. Martin's contributions as invaluable and
unprecedented.
''Grady realized, though he never bragged about it, that he was special,''
said Merle Haggard, who grew up idolizing Mr. Martin and came to use his
guitar work on songs including What Am I Gonna Do (With The Rest Of My Life),
A Place To Fall Apart and No Reason To Quit. ''He understood some things
about music that nobody else understood. And when he'd put that down on your
record, it was like a gift.''
''He was my friend, he was one of the greatest guitar players ever, and I
will miss him,'' Nelson said on learning of Mr. Martin's death.
In surveying Mr. Martin's career, his peers remain incredulous that one man
could envision GÇö let alone execute GÇö the stylistically disparate guitar
parts for which he is known.
''He didn't use one recognizable sound,'' said Bob Moore, a lifelong friend
of Mr. Martin's who played bass with him on thousands of recording sessions.
''What he did was so varied, but the things he came up with were always
outstanding, no matter the style. I think he's the single greatest guitar
player we've had here in Nashville.''
Mr. Martin's delicate, nylon-string guitar graces Marty Robbins' El Paso, and
his thrusting, fuzz-toned guitar solo churns through Robbins' Don't Worry
(the latter probably was the first of its kind, influencing generations of
distortion-happy guitarists). His fiery rockabilly solos helped bring Johnny
Horton songs, including Honky Tonk Man and Cherokee Boogie, into popular
favor. And his melodic leads may be heard on recordings by Nelson, Cline,
Orbison, Baez, Jim Reeves, Carl Smith, Elvis Presley, Loretta Lynn, Brenda
Lee and numerous others.
''I'm broken-hearted today,'' said Lee, who was a child when she and producer
Owen Bradley began using Mr. Martin on sessions for songs including I'm Sorry
and Break It To Me Gently. ''I first met Grady when I was about 9 years old,
and he was such a bear of a man and so stoic that he scared me to death.
Later on, I learned what a big teddy bear he was.
''I wouldn't do a session without him. Owen knew not to even call a session
if Grady couldn't do it. Grady could switch gears so quickly. He could play
something that'd make you weep, and then the next minute play something
that'd make you jump for joy.''
In addition to his guitar prowess, Mr. Martin was proficient on bass and
fiddle. He grew up in Lewisburg and began playing recording sessions when he
was 15. In 1946, he made his Grand Ole Opry debut, performing with the Bailes
Brothers Band. His late 1940s and early 1950s work included backing Little
Jimmy Dickens hits such as Country Boy and Hillbilly Fever, recordings that
featured innovative twin-guitar lines he constructed with fellow guitar
wizard Jabbo Arrington.
While most of his legacy was built as a sideman, Mr. Martin recorded
instrumental singles and LPs for Decca Records and Monument Records, and he
participated in several Decca albums as a member of Nashville pop band Slew
Foot Five.
Throughout the 1960s, Mr. Martin reigned as a Nashville guitar virtuoso with
an irascible, no-nonsense attitude. Producers often designated him the
''session leader,'' meaning that he oversaw the musicians and directed the
instrumental arrangements for many songs.
''He had a big reputation to live up to,'' Haggard said of Mr. Martin's role
on Music Row. ''He was like Wyatt Earp down there, man. He was everybody's
hero.''
Having worked on sessions with everyone from Red Foley to Kris Kristofferson,
Mr. Martin eventually returned to live performance. After a stint with Jerry
Reed, he began what would become a 16-year-long string with Willie Nelson,
recording Always On My Mind and On the Road Again. Mr. Martin was reportedly
the model for the character played by Slim Pickens in the movie Honeysuckle
Rose, starring Nelson and loosely based on his career.
In 1983, Nelson played host to a Grady Martin tribute, and he also performed
in Mr. Martin's honor in April 2000 at Ryman Auditorium, when Mr. Martin was
given a Chetty award for significant instrumental achievement. The award was
given during Chet Atkins' Musician Days, which celebrated musicians of
importance.
Monday evening, Mr. Martin suffered what family members think was a heart
attack. He was taken by ambulance to Marshall Medical Center and was
pronounced dead on arrival.
''I think Grady never got his due, maybe because he was a bit of an outlaw,''
Haggard said. ''He drank a little of this, did a little of this and that, and
could be cantankerous. But he was one of the greatest guitar players that
ever lived. He'd lay out something that you'd wish you'd thought of, and
people would copy him later.
''I remember when Grady played a guitar part on a song of mine called A Place
To Fall Apart. He took one whack at it, and (acclaimed guitarist Roy Nichols)
was there with me at the soundboard. We knew what he played was great, but I
looked at Roy and said, 'Roy, I believe me or you might could have played
that?' Roy said, 'Maybe now we could, but not until after that (guy) played
it. 'Cause he just showed us how.' ''
Lawrence Funeral Home and Cremation Services in Chapel Hill is in charge of
the funeral. Arrangements for a memorial service have not been completed.
Survivors include 10 children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.

Here are some of the country music recordings that feature Grady Martin's
guitar work:GÇó El Paso, recorded by Marty Robbins.GÇó Making Believe, recorded
by Kitty Wells.GÇó Four Walls, recorded by Jim Reeves.GÇó On The Road Again,
recorded by Willie Nelson.GÇó I'm Sorry, recorded by Brenda Lee.GÇó Don't Worry,
recorded by Marty Robbins.GÇó For the Good Times, recorded by Ray Price.GÇó
Satin Sheets, recorded by Jeanne Pruett.GÇó Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy,
recorded by Red Foley.GÇó Help Me Make It Through the Night, recorded by Sammi
Smith.

Mike.
What's Gço'???
Thanx.

Yeah Mike,
What does Gco [heck, I can't even type it]
mean???

ChipsAhoy<FONT SIZE=1 COLOR="#8e236b"><p align=CENTER>[This message was edited by CHIP FOSSA on 06 December 2001 at 04:23 PM.]</p></FONT>

It happens sometimes when something is pasted in and the text format is different.
A way to avoid this is to copy stuff to an email, then got the format option and changing the text to 'plain text' this gets rid of any hyperlinks, etc.
That's how I copy all my emails when I save them in text folders as I get emails and copy and paste indfo from all over the internet, where different formats and text programs are common.

I did a small bio on Grady for a newsletter, sorry to see another great go, man what a tough year it has been.

Grady is one of the few, if not the only musician, to have his record on virtually every juke box in the country for more than 50's running.

His hit song: "Happy Birthday"......

It's a little Dixie Land sounding....kinda like that of Red Foley's old records of that erra.

There are many recordings that Grady performed on,,that didnt receive the credit
that they deserved.

One I can think of is his great playing on an
Elton Britt LP "Somethin For Everyone" where Grady shows his expertise as he has done so many times before.

One song in particular is a favorite of mine,
I Never Knew What It Meant To Be Lonesome"

Gradys unique style and virtuosiity is heard
on this LP.

He is one of the GREAT one's,,,and will always wear that crown. This LP is on ABC Paramount and the last LP Elton recorded prior to his passing.

All the greats are in "heaven" Grady will be welcome in Gods Kingdom. Rest in Peace Grady.