Ben Keith
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Ben Keith | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | Bennett Keith Schaeufele |
Born | Fort Riley, Kansas, United States | March 6, 1937
Died | July 26, 2010 La Honda, California, United States | (aged 73)
Genres | Rock, folk rock, hard rock, country rock, pop |
Occupation(s) | Musician, singer-songwriter, producer, session musician |
Instruments | Guitar, pedal steel guitar, dobro, banjo, vocals, keyboards, piano, saxophone, bass |
Years active | 1950s–2010 |
Labels | Reprise, Geffen |
Associated acts | Neil Young, Great Speckled Bird |
Bennett Keith Schaeufele (March 6, 1937 – July 26, 2010), better known by his stage name Ben Keith, was an American musician and record producer. Known primarily for his work as a pedal steel guitarist with Neil Young, Keith was a fixture of the Nashville country music community in the 1950s and 1960s before working with numerous successful rock, country and pop artists as both a producer and versatile, multi-instrumentalist sideman for over four decades. Neil Young affectionately referred to him as "Long Grain" (a joking word play reference to a variety of Uncle Ben's Rice and to Ben's height). Keith was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.
Biography[]
Born in Fort Riley, Kansas, Keith later relocated to Bowling Green, Kentucky before working as a session musician in Nashville. Keith's first big recording in Nashville was playing on Patsy Cline's 1961 hit "I Fall to Pieces".[1]
Keith first worked with Neil Young in 1971 on Young's Harvest album. They were introduced by Elliot Mazer, the album's producer, who was looking for a session player in Nashville on short notice.[1] They collaborated for nearly 40 years, during which time Keith played with Young on over a dozen albums and on numerous tours. Keith played the role of Grandpa Green in the Neil Young feature-length movie Greendale, a film accompaniment released on DVD to Young's 2003 album of the same name.
In addition to his work with Young, Keith worked with Terry Reid, Todd Rundgren, Lonnie Mack, The Band, Blue, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Paul Butterfield, J. J. Cale, Linda Ronstadt, Warren Zevon, Ian and Sylvia, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Tompall Glaser, Anne Murray and Ringo Starr. He served as the producer of Jewel's debut album Pieces of You, and also worked as a solo artist.[2] He toured with Crosby Stills Nash & Young on their 2006 Freedom of Speech Tour.
Keith died of a heart attack on July 26, 2010 while staying at Young's Broken Arrow Ranch in Northern California.[1]
Discography[]
- To a Wild Rose (En Point, 1984)
- Seven Gates: A Christmas Album by Ben Keith and Friends (1994)
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "Ben Keith, Neil Young's steel guitarist: 1937–2010". Latimesblogs.latimes.com. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
- ^ "Ben Keith – Steel Guitar at the Cool Groove". Thecoolgroove.com. July 27, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
External links[]
- 1937 births
- 2010 deaths
- American rock guitarists
- American male guitarists
- Record producers from Kansas
- Record producers from Tennessee
- Pedal steel guitarists
- People from Fort Riley, Kansas
- People from Nashville, Tennessee
- Musicians from Bowling Green, Kentucky
- Crazy Horse (band) members
- American session musicians
- Country musicians from Kentucky
- Singers from Kentucky
- Songwriters from Kentucky
- Rock musicians from Kentucky
- Guitarists from Kentucky
- Great Speckled Bird (band) members
- 20th-century American guitarists