Pedal steel (ZumSteel D10)

The pedal steel guitar is a type of electric guitar that uses a metal bar to "fret" or shorten the length of the strings, rather than fingers on strings as with a conventional guitar. Unlike other types of steel guitar, it also uses pedals and knee levers to affect the pitch, hence the name "pedal" steel guitar. The word "steel" in the name comes from the metal tone bar, which is called a "steel", and which acts as a moveable fret, shortening the effective length of the string or strings being plucked as the player moves it up and down the neck with one hand. The instrument is horizontal with the strings face up, and is typically plucked with thumbpick and fingers or (two or three) fingerpicks. The pedals are mounted on a cross bar below the body and the knee levers extend from the bottom of the guitar's body and are used to stretch or slacken the strings and thus change the pitch in the process of the guitar being played; the action of the pedals may either be fixed, or may be configurable by the player to select which strings are affected by the pedals. The pedal steel, with its smooth portamenti, bending chords and complex riffs, is one of the most recognizable and characteristic instruments of American country music.

While there are some fairly standard pedal assignments, many advanced players devise their own setups, called copedents. The range of copedents that can be set up varies considerably from guitar to guitar. Aftermarket modifications to make additional copedents possible are common.

The pedal steel was developed from the console steel guitar and lap steel guitar. Like the console steel, a pedal steel may have multiple necks, but the pedals make even a single-neck pedal steel a far more versatile instrument than any multiple-neck console steel.

Description[link]

A pedal steel guitar is typically rectangular in shape, and has no specific resonant chamber or conventional guitar body but only one or more guitar necks. These are mounted on a stand and equipped with foot pedals and usually knee levers. Many models feature two necks, the nearer to the player most often using a C6 tuning and the farther away using an E9 tuning. The most common configuration is one or two necks of ten strings each, but eight-string and twelve-string necks are also popular, and even models with 14 strings on one neck can be found. Three-neck instruments are less common than those with one or two, but are not unknown.

The pedals and/or knee levers (engaged by moving the knees left, right or vertically) on the underside allow the performer to tighten or relax one or more strings in combination to specific tuned notes, changing the instrument's tuning during performance.

History[link]

The pedal steel guitar is the latest development in a story that started with the invention of a technique of playing used in Hawaii in the late 19th century, wherein the strings were not fretted in the normal manner by the left hand, but rather by sliding an object such as a comb or the back edge of a knife blade along the strings above the neck of the guitar. Several people have been credited with the innovation.

The Hawaiian style of playing was very popular in the United States during the 1920s and 1930s. To increase the volume of the guitar, a resonator cone was added by the Dopyera Brothers to create the resophonic guitar (Dobro).

By the 30's, the hollow guitar body was abandoned for a flat slab of wood or metal and the addition of an electric pickup; this was the lap steel guitar. It was the first electric guitar to achieve commercial success. Several pioneering manufacturers of the electric guitar were first famous for their work on the then more popular electric steel guitar, among them Adolph Rickenbacker, Paul Bigsby and Leo Fender.

The limitations of chord shapes imposed by the use of the steel slide (or "tone bar") led to the addition of multiple necks, resulting in the console steel guitar. The Gibson Guitar Corporation used a system of pedals to change the tuning of the strings on one of their console steels beginning in 1940.^[1] This instrument, the Electraharp, had a cluster of pedals radiating from its left rear leg that operated similarly to the pedals on a harp. Alvino Rey was an early player of the Electraharp.^[1]

In about 1948, Paul Bigsby began making custom pedal steel guitars that featured pedals mounted to a rack between the front legs of the instrument.^[1] Speedy West got the second of Bigsby's creations, the first of his guitars to feature pedals, and used it extensively in his work with Jimmy Bryant. Zane Beck began adding knee levers to console steel guitars, and in 1952, added a set of four knee levers to Ray Noren's console steel.^[1] Beck's knee levers lowered the pitches of the strings they operated, which was an action opposite of what the pedals accomplished.^[1]

Around 1953, a console steel player named Bud Isaacs attached a pedal to one of the necks of his guitar. The function of the pedal was to change the pitch of two of the strings, whereby Isaacs would have two of the most common steel guitar tunings available on one neck. When he used this pedal to change his tuning while sustaining a chord during the recording of Webb Pierce's hit "Slowly," he touched off a revolution among steel guitarists. Isaacs used a Bigsby model for some time, however. ^[2]

The steel guitar seems to have an unusually high number of mechanically inclined players, and a period of extensive tinkering followed Isaac's initial idea. Two of these tinkering musicians were Buddy Emmons and Jimmy Day, and their playing and mechanical innovations alike have done more for the development of the pedal steel guitar than any other contributors.

Emmons and Day split the function of Isaac's pedal into two separate pedals and added two strings to fill in the gaps in the E9 tuning, bringing the number of strings to ten.^[2] Although Emmons' and Day's setups do the same thing, Emmons and Day used the opposite of each other's pedals to raise the strings. To this day, when one buys a pedal steel, the manufacturer will ask whether the player wants an Emmons Setup or a Day Setup. Emmons incorporated a third pedal to his setup, based on a change Ralph Mooney had used on his instrument.^[2] Emmons joined forces in 1957 with another steel-playing machinist named Harold "Shot" Jackson and formed the Sho-Bud company, the first pedal steel guitar manufacturer.^[3] Sho-Bud guitars incorporated all the innovations that had taken place during the 1950s, including Emmons's third pedal, Beck's knee levers, and ten strings. The single-neck pedal steel guitar was now standardized with three pedals and (up to) four knee levers.

Both lap and pedal steel guitars were closely associated with the development of country music and Western swing. The pedal steel's liquid, yearning sound has begun in recent years to be coveted by many modern musicians, beginning in jazz and blues. In particular the rising popularity of alternative country has brought the instrument's beautiful sound to a much wider audience, and it has been used in many different musical genres. Jùjú music, a form from Nigeria, uses pedal steel extensively.

A Concerto for Pedal Steel Guitar and Orchestra has been written by Los Angeles composer Michael A. Levine. It was premiered on April 16, 2005, in a performance by the Nashville Chamber Orchestra, with Gary Morse (of Dierks Bentley's and Dwight Yoakam's bands) as soloist, and Paul Gambill conducting. The piece is believed to be the first concerto ever written for the solo steel guitar.^{[citation needed]}

Playing[link]

A performer typically sits on a stool or seat at the instrument. The right foot is used mainly to operate a volume pedal. The left foot is primarily used to press one or more of the instrument's foot pedals. The knees are positioned under the instrument's body so that by moving them left, right or even vertically, they can push levers that are mounted from underneath the body of the steel guitar.

The strings are positioned high above the neck of the instrument. Rather than being pressed to a fret on the neck, the player's left hand holds a polished metal bar called the steel or "tone bar" on the strings. The steel can be slid up and down the length of the neck, while still touching (effectively fretting) the strings. This raises and lowers the pitch of the notes heard when the strings are played. If the bar is kept perpendicular to the neck (in the orientation of a fret), all strings touched have had their effective length changed equally. The technique of angling the bar so that the strings played are unequal in length and different intervals between the notes are played is called "slanting". The right hand plucks the strings, usually with a set of thumb and finger picks. A technique used by either hand to mute the vibration of the plucked strings is called "blocking" or muting. In combination with the variable volume pedal settings of the right foot different sonic effects are implemented. The volume pedal is used in many ways. One of the more prominent techniques used is to eliminate the attack of the string being plucked. The volume pedal is quickly rocked forward immediately after the string is plucked, effectively fading it from no volume to full volume and creating a new, smoother attack envelope.

The pedals and knee levers raise and lower the pitch of certain strings "on the fly" while the instrument is being played. The exact action of these pedals and levers—which strings are affected—can be set by the player to their preference.

Characteristic effects are obtained by changing pitch of one or more strings while other strings' pitches are static or change at differing rates. Melodic lines are composed primarily of dyads (two-note chords). In the E9 tuning, many characteristic idioms involve tonic-dominant and tonic-subdominant harmonic relationships.

Mastering the pedal steel guitar can take time due to its technical and complex harmonic innerworkings and unique physical techniques utilized to create the trademark sounds of the instrument. In country music, where the pedal steel guitar is most commonly heard, talented players are highly esteemed.

For a table of several tunings of the pedal steel guitar, see copedent.

See also[link]

Guitar portal

• Pedal Steel Guitar Association

References[link]

External links[link]

• The British Steelies Society Forum
• Steel Guitar Forum - A discussion site for pedal steel, lap steel, and related musical instruments
• Steel Guitar Jazz - A website featuring pedal and nonpedal steel guitar in jazz music - run by Jim Cohen
• www.pedalsteel.co.uk - website run by Bob Adams
• Pete Drake Member of the Musician's Hall of Fame for Steel Guitar

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Steel guitars

Robert Randolph and the Family Band
Robert Randolph
Background information
Origin	Orange, New Jersey, USA
Genres	Funk, Soul, Jam, Gospel, Sacred steel, blues
Years active	2001–present
Labels	Warner Bros. Records
Website	RobertRandolph.net
Members
Robert Randolph Danyel Morgan Marcus Randolph Adam Smirnoff Lenesha Randolph Brett Haas
Past members
John Ginty Jason Crosby

Robert Randolph and the Family Band is a multicultural American funk and soul band led by pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph. Other band members include drummer Marcus Randolph, bass guitarist Danyel Morgan, vocalist Lenesha Randolph, keyboardist and guitarist Brett Andrew Haas, and one of three rotating rhythm guitarists: Joey Williams of Blind Boys of Alabama, Adam "Shmeeans" Smirnoff, and Cousin Ray-Ray. Jason Crosby (keyboards and fiddle) and John Ginty (organ) are former members. Rolling Stone included Robert on their list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time.^[1]

Band history[link]

Frontman Robert Randolph was trained as a pedal steel guitarist in the House of God Church and makes prominent use of the instrument in the band's music. The instrument is referred to in many African-American Pentecostal churches as Sacred Steel. Randolph was discovered while playing at a sacred steel convention in Florida.

Randolph cites Stevie Ray Vaughan as a primary influence in his own technique and style.^{[citation needed]} The group's sound is inspired by successful 1970s funk bands such as Earth, Wind & Fire and Sly & the Family Stone, another multicultural band composed of former members of the Church of God in Christ.^{[citation needed]} Randolph himself has explained that in his adolescent years before his discovery by the secular community, he was almost completely unaware of non-religious music, saying "I never heard of The Allman Brothers Band, Buddy Guy, Muddy Waters, none of them. I wasn’t into that music, only the church thing."

Before releasing albums with The Family Band, Randolph was selected by avant-garde jazz organist John Medeski to join him and the North Mississippi Allstars on their 2001 jam project, The Word. Just prior to the release of The Word's debut album, Randolph was brought to the attention of music fans through an enthusiastic review^[2] by Neil Strauss in the New York Times in April 2001. On their first non-church tour of the East Coast, Randolph's new Family Band band opened for the North Mississippi Allstars and then rejoined the musicians after their set, with Medeski, as The Word.

The first Robert Randolph and the Family Band album, Live at the Wetlands, was released in 2002 on Family Band Records, recorded live on August 23, 2001, just prior to the club's closing. The band released their studio debut, Unclassified on August 5, 2003. They attracted the attention of Eric Clapton, and have subsequently toured as a supporting act with the English blues guitarist. Clapton later guested on their 2006 album Colorblind, playing on a cover of "Jesus Is Just Alright".

In 2002, they were hired by ABC to make the network's new NBA theme song. The song, "We Got Hoops", only appeared in three telecasts, though it was used throughout both the NBA and WNBA seasons during promotions for both leagues. In September 2003 Randolph was listed as #97 on Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time list. Robert entered the list following Leigh Stephens and directly preceding Angus Young.^[1] In February 2004 Robert Randolph and the Family Band along with the band O.A.R. released a cover version of Led Zeppelin's "Fool in the Rain", which was subsequently placed for purchase online in the iTunes Music Store. This version was played live with O.A.R. at their August 15, 2009 show at Madison Square Garden.

Their third album, Colorblind, was released October 10, 2006. The song "Ain't Nothing Wrong With That" was used in several commercials for NBC. In June 2008 the Discovery Channel used this same song in a popular promo entitled "It's All Good" for their summer lineup. The song "Thrill of It" was used throughout the 2007 college football season by ABC during their College Primetime games. They worked with producer T-Bone Burnett on their fourth studio album We Walk This Road, released in 2010. They released the supposed first single from that album entitled "Get There" but this song did not appear on the album. The first official single from the album is "If I Had My Way."

Live appearances[link]

This section needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (October 2010)

Randolph's concerts are known for their lively stage performances, with Randolph content to let the rest of the band play on while he dances. Dance is an integral part of the concerts. During "Shake Your Hips", women are encouraged to dance onstage. For the song "The March", Randolph leaves his instrument to instruct the crowd on how to properly perform the intricate dance move. In the band's earlier days, Randolph would temporarily stop the show if members of the audience were not dancing and appeared not to be enjoying themselves.^{[citation needed]}

Other noteworthy concert regulars involve the entire band trading instruments allowing each member to show off their musical proficiencies. When he becomes completely enthralled by his music, Randolph will kick the chair away from his pedal steel guitar and dance while he plays. A microphone is occasionally passed around the front row of the audience, so they can sing during the song "I Need More Love". Audience members are also called up on stage to sing ("Purple Haze") or be a guest guitarist for one song.

In 2004 Robert Randolph and the Family Band was the opening act on the Eric Clapton tour. They are featured prominently in the Clapton's Crossroads Guitar Festival DVD (2004). The band also appears on Bonnaroo Music Festival DVDs. The length of the concerts can vary greatly depending on what songs are played (the band does not use a set list) and how long jams last. Concerts go over the allotted time if the band and the audience are having fun. Most concerts don't have an intermission; instead, band members will exit the stage leaving one or two members a chance to shine with solos. The one time the band does stop is so the band can relax, get hydrated, and plan the encore. On October 9, 2004 Robert Randolph and the Family Band appeared on the PBS television show Austin City Limits.^[3]

Robert Randolph and the Family Band performed on the David Letterman Show on December 13, 2006, playing the song "Ain't Nothing Wrong With That." On January 24, 2007, they played in Dallas at Victory Plaza outside of the American Airlines Center as part of the 2007 NHL All Star game festivities. The band also played before the start of the 2007 NHL All-Star Game. The Family Band has opened for Dave Matthews Band for some shows on their 2002-09 tours. In 2005 Robert Randolph appeared on the Dave Matthews Band release Weekend on the Rocks. Robert Randolph has performed as a guest during the Dave Matthews Band set on songs such as "All Along the Watchtower", "Louisiana Bayou", "Stand Up", "Smooth Rider", "You Might Die Trying", and "Two Step", among others.

In 2007, Robert Randolph and the Family Band played at the inaugural South Padre International Music Festival. In 2008, They opened for Eric Clapton and were also one of four featured artists on the Music Builds Tour. Robert Randolph and the Family Band played in Oxford, Mississippi on April 25, 2009 as part of the 14th annual Double Decker Arts Festival. In 2009 Randolph also sat in on two live performances of Led Zeppelin's "Fool In The Rain" with the band O.A.R.. ^[3]

Soundtrack appearances[link]

• Paparazzi - "Going in the Right Direction"
• The Game Plan - "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"
• Stomp the Yard - "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"
• Grey's Anatomy - "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"
• NBA on ABC - "We Got Hoops"
• Saturday Night Football - "Thrill of It"
• NBA Live 07 - "Thrill of It"
• Malcolm in the Middle - "Going in the Right Direction"
• A series of Subway restaurant commercials - "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"
• Discovery Channel - "Ain't Nothing Wrong with That"

Guest appearances[link]

• "Garden of Love" and "Opportunity" - Demolition String Band on Pulling Up Atlantis
• "Oh My Lord" - Ringo Starr on Choose Love
• "Trinity" - Santana and Kirk Hammett of Metallica on All That I Am
• "I Am an Illusion" - Rob Thomas on ...Something to Be
• "Mas Y Mas" - Los Lobos on Live at the Fillmore (DVD version)
• "Mission Temple Fireworks Stand" - Sawyer Brown on Mission Temple Fireworks Stand
• "Out in the Woods" and "That's My Home" - Buddy Guy on Skin Deep
• "The Good Life" - Rachael Lampa on Rachael Lampa
• "Lay Lady Lay" - Buddy Guy on Bring 'Em In
• "Crosstown Traffic" - Soulive on Break Out
• "Cissy Strut", "Ruler of My Heart" and "Tell It Like It Is" - Dirty Dozen Brass Band on Medicated Magic
• "Train's A Comin'" - JD & The Straight Shot on Right On Time
• "Exodus" and "Louisiana Bayou" - Dave Matthews Band on Complete Weekend on the Rocks
• "Otherside" - Third Day on Revelation
• "I Want to Take You Higher" - Sly & The Family Stone on Different Strokes by Different Folks
• "There's No Tomorrow" - Elton John & Leon Russell on The Union

Other appearances[link]

In 1999, Arhoolie Records released Sacred Steel Live! including performances recorded live in two House of God Churches in 1998 and 1999 one of which was Robert Randolph performing “Without God“. In 2001, they released Train Don't Leave Me: The First Annual Sacred Steel Convention including performances recorded live March 31 - April 1, 2000, one of which was Robert Randolph performing “I Feel Like Pressing My Way“. In 2004, Robert Randolph and the Family Band covered "Purple Haze" for the album Power of Soul: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix. In 2009, Robert Randolph, along with The Clark Sisters, released a version of the song “Higher Ground” on the compilation album Oh Happy Day: An All-Star Music Celebration.^[4][5]

Discography[link]

• Live at the Wetlands, April 2002
• Unclassified, August 2003. U.S. #145
• Colorblind, October 2006. U.S. #75
• We Walk This Road, June 2010. U.S. #74
• Live In Concert, October 2011

Guest singles[link]

Music videos[link]

External links[link]

• Official Robert Randolph and the Family Band website
• Robert Randolph and the Family Band collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
• Interview: Robert Randolph December 28, 2006
• "Pedal power: Can Robert Randolph steel success?" The Hook #515, April 13, 2006

See also[link]

• Sacred Steel
• The Word

References[link]

Sarah Jory (born Sarah Elizabeth Jory, 20 November 1969, Reading, Berkshire, England) is an English musician and vocalist.

Early life[link]

Sarah Jory began to learn to play musical instruments at the age of five, when she obtained her first steel guitar.^[1]

In 1978, she was backed by the group Poacher when she was featured on the BBC Radio 2's Live from Golder's. Also at the age of nine, she joined the band Colorado Country after her father, Arthur Jory, secured her an audition. Jory played with the band for four years while completing her schooling. During this time, the band changed their name to Sarah and the Colorado Country. Jory's first album, Sarah's Steel Line, which she recorded with the band Poacher, was released by Crow Records in 1980, when she was eleven years old. After the album's release, she was asked to play at the Petersborough Festival of Music, having appeared earlier at Neil Coppendale's British Country Music Festival at the Brighton Centre.^[2]

At thirteen, Jory first visited the United States of America where she played at the Steel Guitar Convention in St. Louis with Buddy Emmons.^[2]

Musical career and honours[link]

From 1984 to 1992, Jory played thirteen steel guitar conventions in the US, appearing with Buddy Emmons, Lloyd Green and Paul Franklin and worked with Ricky Scaggs, Porter Waggoner and Gene Watson.^[2]

In 1985, the British Country Music Association voted Jory "The Most Promising New Act", followed by being voted the "Female Vocalist of the Year" for nine consecutive years by the BCMA. She also was voted "European Country Rock Entertainer of the Year". In 1995, 1996 and 1997, BCMA also voted her "British Female Vocalist of the Year".^[2]

In 1988, Jory worked in Bristol and formed her own professional band, opening for Eric Clapton in Dublin, among others and toured with Glen Campbell.^[2]

Jory played with the Van Morrison band during 2006 and 2009 and performed on his albums Keep It Simple and Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl and on the DVD Astral Weeks Live at the Hollywood Bowl: The Concert Film.

In 2009, she performed with the group Essence of Ireland.^[2][3]

Discography[link]

• Sarah's Steel Line (LP 1980)
• Sarah On Steel (LP 1984)
• Cross Country (LP 1985)
• The Way To Survive (LP 1987)
• Deep In The Heart Of Texas (CD 1988)
• Wind Beneath My Wings (EP 1988)
• No Time At All (LP 1988)
• Dallas City Lights (CD 1989)
• Sarah's Dream (CD 1990)
• Especially For You (LP 1990)
• New Rising Star (Video 1990)
• New Horizons (CD 1992)
• Never Had It So Good (SCD 1992)
• The Early Years 20 Steel Guitar Favourites (CD 1993)
• The Early Years 20 Classic Songs (CD 1993)
• Daniel O'Donnel & Friends Live (Comp. Video 1993)
• An Evening With Sarah (Video 1993)
• Web Of Love (CD 1994)
• The Best Of Country And Irish (Comp. CD 1994)
• Web Of Love (SCD 1994)
• Web Of Love (MC 1994)
• When You Walk In The Room (MC 1994)
• Love With Attitude (CD 1995)
• The Winners (Comp. CD 1995)
• Love With Attitude (MC 1995)
• If I Love You (SCD 1995)
• If I Had Any Pride Left At All (SCD 1995)
• When Promises Made Are Promises Kept (SCD 1995)
• Kiss My Innocence (CD 1999)
• Country Love Vol. 1 (Comp. CD 1995)
• The Best Of Country And Irish Live (Comp DVD 1999)
• Rhythm In The Rain (SCD 1999)
• Always The Same In Love (SCD 1999)
• Always The Same In Love (Video 1999)
• The Sarah Jory Band Live! (CD 2000)
• What I Really Meant To Say (CD 2003)
• Steelin' From The Blue Room (CD 2004)

Appearances with other artists:

• The Dean Brothers - Same Train Different Track(SCD 1995)
• Claire Gaynor - Devotion (CD 2000)
• Elkie Brooks - Live with Friends (CD 2006)
• Riem de Wolff - Back On Track (CD 2006)
• Bob The Builder - Built To Be Wild (DVD 2006)
• Elkie Brooks & Friends - Pearls (DVD 2006)
• Lucie Diamond - Kilimanjaro (SCD 2006)
• Alan West - Songs From A Neophyte (CD 2007)
• Chris Farlow - Hotel Eingang (CD 2008)
• Van Morrison - Keep It Simple (CD 2008)
• Nathan Carter - On The Road (CD 2008)
• Van Morrison - Astral Weeks: Live At The Hollywood Bowl(CD 2009)
• Van Morrison - Astral Weeks: Live At The Hollywood Bowl(DVD 2009)
• Mark Travis - Mother (SCD 2009)

References[link]

External links[link]

• Sarah Jory Official Website
• Sarah Jory at Last.fm
• Sarah Jory article
• allmusic: Sarah Jory - Discography

Daniel Lanois ( /lænˈwɑː/ lan-WAH;^[1] born September 19, 1951 in Hull, Quebec) is a Canadian record producer, guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. He has released a number of albums of his own work and has produced albums for a wide variety of artists, including Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Peter Gabriel, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, Brandon Flowers and Ron Sexsmith. Lanois is best known for his work with Brian Eno, the pair collaborating on a number of projects together and producing several platinum albums for U2, including The Joshua Tree. Three albums produced or co-produced by Lanois have won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, and four others received nominations.^[2]

As producer[link]

Lanois started his production career when he was 17,^[3] working in his own studio with his brother Bob Lanois in the basement of their mother's Ancaster, Ontario home, recording local artists including Simply Saucer. Later Daniel started Grant Avenue Studios in an old house he purchased in Hamilton, Ontario.^[4] He worked with a number of local bands, including Martha and the Muffins (for whom his sister Jocelyne played bass), Ray Materick, as well as the Canadian children's singer Raffi.

Lanois worked collaboratively with Brian Eno on some of Eno's own projects, one of which was the theme song for David Lynch's film adaptation of Frank Herbert's Dune. Eno invited him to co-produce U2's album The Unforgettable Fire. Along with Eno, he went on to produce U2's The Joshua Tree, the 1987 Grammy Award for Album of the Year, and some of the band's other works including Achtung Baby and All That You Can't Leave Behind, both of which were nominated for the same award but did not win. Lanois once again collaborated with U2 and Brian Eno on the band's most recent album, No Line on the Horizon. He was involved in the songwriting process as well as mixing and production.^[5]

Lanois' early work with U2 led to him being hired to produce albums for other top-selling artists. Bono recommended Lanois to Bob Dylan in the late 1980s; in 1989 Lanois produced Dylan's Oh Mercy. Eight years later Dylan and Lanois worked together on Time Out of Mind which won another Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1997. In his autobiographical Chronicles, Vol. 1, Dylan describes in depth the contentious but rewarding working relationship he developed with Lanois.^[6]

Lanois spent most of 1985 producing So, Peter Gabriel's Grammy-nominated, multi-platinum-selling album, released in 1986. Wrecking Ball, his 1995 collaboration with Emmylou Harris, won a 1996 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Folk Album. In 1998, he produced and appeared on Willie Nelson's album Teatro.

Lanois was working on Neil Young's record Le Noise in June 2010 when he was hospitalized after suffering multiple injuries in a motorcycle crash in the Silverlake area of Los Angeles.^[7] He has since recovered.

Lanois' production is recognizable and notable for its 'big' and 'live' drum sound, atmospheric guitars and ambient reverb.^[8] Rolling Stone called Lanois the "most important record producer to emerge in the Eighties."^[9]

As recording artist[link]

As well as being a producer, Lanois is also a songwriter, musician and recording artist. A number of his songs have been covered by other artists, including Dave Matthews, Jerry Garcia Band, Willie Nelson, Tea Party,Anna Beljin and Emmylou Harris, and his albums have had some success, particularly in Canada. Lanois plays the guitar, pedal steel, and drums. "Belladonna", an instrumental album released in 2005, was nominated for a Grammy.^[10] Lanois also provided an instrumental score for LOUDquietLOUD, a documentary about the Pixies.^[11] He contributed lead guitar on two songs of Bob Wiseman's 1995 Accidentally Acquired Beliefs.

Lanois premiered a documentary entitled Here Is What Is at the Toronto Film Festival on September 9, 2007. The film chronicles the recording of his album of the same name, and includes footage of the actual recording. The album Here Is What Is was released, first by download, then in compact disc, in late 2007 and early 2008. Soon after, Lanois released a three-disc recording called Omni.

In October 2009, Lanois started a project called Black Dub which features Lanois on guitar, Brian Blade on drums, and Daryl Johnson on bass, along with multi-instrumentalist/singer Trixie Whitley. They released a self-titled album in 2010.^[12] Daniel Lanois' Black Dub also appeared at the 2011 Bonnaroo Music Festival.

Recognition[link]

Daniel Lanois' star on Canada's Walk of Fame.

In 2005 he was inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame.^[13]

Discography[link]

Videography[link]

Production credits[link]

• Demo – Simply Saucer, 1974 (not released commercially until 1989, on the album Cyborgs Revisited)
• Blues and Sentimental – Jackie Washington, 1976 (As "Dan Lanois")
• Hobo's Taunt- Willie P. Bennett, 1977 (Engineered, as "Dan Lanois", with Bob Lanois)
• More Singable Songs – Raffi, 1977 (Recording credit as "Dan Lanois")
• Can't Wait For Summer – Ron Neilson, 1978
• Choice Cuts – Crackers, 1978 (As "Dan Lanois")
• Millionaires Millionaires, 1980 EP (As "Danny Lanois") (included two members of Teenage Head)
• This is the Ice Age – Martha and the Muffins, 1981
• Dream Away – Bernie LaBarge, 1981
• Mama Quilla, KKK, Angry Young Woman – 3-song 12" Album- 1982, Mama Quilla II
• Dance After Curfew – Nash the Slash, 1982
• Danseparc – Martha and the Muffins, 1982
• Ambient 4/On Land – Brian Eno, 1982
• Parachute Club – Parachute Club, 1983
• Apollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks – Brian Eno, 1983
• The Pearl – Harold Budd and Brian Eno, 1984
• Mystery Walk – M + M, 1984
• The Unforgettable Fire – U2, 1984
• Secrets and Sins – Luba, 1984
• Thursday Afternoon – Brian Eno, 1985
• Hybrid – Michael Brook, 1985
• Birdy – Peter Gabriel, 1985
• Voices – Roger Eno, 1985
• Power Spot – Jon Hassell, 1986
• So – Peter Gabriel, 1986
• The Joshua Tree – U2, 1987
• Robbie Robertson – Robbie Robertson, 1987
• Acadie – Daniel Lanois, 1989
• Oh Mercy – Bob Dylan, 1989
• Yellow Moon – Neville Brothers, 1989
• Home – Hothouse Flowers, 1990
• Achtung Baby – U2, 1991
• Flash of the Spirit – Jon Hassell and Farafina, 1992
• Us – Peter Gabriel, 1992
• The Last of the Mohicans – movie soundtrack, 1992
• For the Beauty of Wynona – Daniel Lanois, 1993
• Ron Sexsmith – Ron Sexsmith, 1994
• Wrecking Ball – Emmylou Harris, 1995
• Night to Night – Geoffrey Oryema, 1996
• Fever In Fever Out – Luscious Jackson, 1996
• Time Out of Mind – Bob Dylan, 1997
• Brian Blade Fellowship – Brian Blade, 1998
• 12 Bar Blues – Scott Weiland, 1998
• Teatro – Willie Nelson, 1998
• The Million Dollar Hotel – movie soundtrack, 2000
• All That You Can't Leave Behind – U2, 2000
• La Belle Vista - Harold Budd, 2003 (secretly recorded in Lanois Los Angeles living room)
• How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb – U2, 2004 (track "Love and Peace or Else")
• Dusk & Summer – Dashboard Confessional, 2006 (also produced by Don Gilmore)
• loudQUIETloud, A film about the pixies – movie soundtrack, 2006
• Back Where You Belong – Sinéad O'Connor, 2007.
• Snake Road – Bob Lanois
• No Line on the Horizon – U2, 2009 (plus songwriting credits).
• "Mind Games" & "Night Nurse" – Sinéad O'Connor, 2009.
• Mercy – Rocco DeLuca and the Burden, 2009.
• Flamingo – Brandon Flowers, 2010 (also produced by Stuart Price, Brendan O'Brien)
• Le Noise – Neil Young, 2010.

See also[link]

• Canadian Music Hall of Fame
• Music of Canada

Citations[link]

References[link]

• Entry from the Canadian Encyclopedia
• Daniel Lanois interview on Freethescene.com
• Jam.canoe.ca

External links[link]

• Official site
• Official site of Black Dub

This biographical article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. (November 2008)

Chris Hillman
Chris Hillman performing in 2004
Background information
Birth name	Christopher Hillman
Born	(1944-12-04) December 4, 1944 (age 67) Los Angeles, California
Genres	Folk, bluegrass, folk rock, rock, country rock, country
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, musician
Instruments	Bass guitar, mandolin, guitar, vocals
Years active	1960-present
Labels	Columbia, Sugar Hill, Asylum, A&M, Rounder
Associated acts	Scottsville Squirrel Barkers, The Hillmen, The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, Manassas, Souther Hillman Furay Band, McGuinn, Clark and Hillman, Desert Rose Band, Herb Pedersen, Tony Rice, Larry Rice, Chris Hillman & Herb Pedersen
Website	www.chrishillman.com

Christopher "Chris" Hillman (born December 4, 1944 in Los Angeles, California) was one of the original members of The Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent collaborator Gram Parsons Hillman was a key figure in the development of country rock, defining the genre through his work with The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers and the country-rock group Desert Rose Band.

Early years[link]

Hillman, the third of four children,^[1] spent his early years at his family's ranch home in rural northern San Diego County, approximately 110 miles (180 km) from Los Angeles. He has credited his older sister with exciting his interest in country and folk music when she returned from college during the late 1950s with folk music records by The New Lost City Ramblers and others. Hillman soon began watching many of the country-music shows on local television in southern California at the time such as Town Hall Party, The Spade Cooley Show and Cal's Corral. Hillman's mother encouraged his musical interests and bought him his first guitar; shortly thereafter he developed an interest in bluegrass, particularly the mandolin. At age 15 Hillman went to Los Angeles to see the Kentucky Colonels bluegrass band at the Ash Grove, and later convinced his family to allow him to travel by train to Berkeley for lessons from mandolinist Scott Hambly. Around this time, Hillman's father died.

He became known in San Diego's folk music community as a solid player; this won him an invitation to join his first band, the Scottsville Squirrel Barkers. The band lasted barely two years, only recording one album (Blue Grass Favorites, which was distributed in supermarkets); however, it has a posthumous reputation as the spawning ground for a number of musicians who went on to play in the Eagles, the Flying Burrito Brothers, the Byrds, Hearts & Flowers, and the Country Gazette. When the band broke up in late 1963 Hillman received an invitation to join the Golden State Boys, regarded as the top bluegrass band in southern California and featuring future country star Vern Gosdin, his brother Rex and banjoist Don Parmley (later of the Bluegrass Cardinals). Shortly thereafter the band changed its name to The Hillmen; soon Hillman was appearing regularly on television and using a fictitious ID, "Chris Hardin", to allow the underage musician into the country bars where many of his gigs were played. When the Hillmen folded, he briefly joined a spinoff of Randy Sparks' New Christy Minstrels known as the Green Grass Revival.

The Byrds[link]

At this point a frustrated Hillman considered quitting music and enrolling at UCLA when he received an offer from The Hillmen's former manager and producer, Jim Dickson, to join Jim (later Roger) McGuinn, David Crosby, Gene Clark and Michael Clarke in a new band, The Byrds. Hillman was recruited to play bass guitar, although he had never picked up the instrument before. Thanks to his bluegrass background, he quickly developed his own melodic style on the instrument. The Byrds' first single, a jangly cover of Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man", was an international hit and marked the birth of folk rock. During the mid-1960s the Byrds ranked as one of the most successful and influential American pop groups; they recorded a string of hits, including "Turn! Turn! Turn!", "Eight Miles High" and "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star".

Hillman kept a low profile on the band's first two albums, on which McGuinn and Clark shared lead vocals with Crosby adding high harmony. However, Clark's departure in 1966 and Crosby's growing restlessness allowed Hillman the opportunity to develop as a singer and songwriter in the group. He came into his own on the Byrds' 1967 album Younger Than Yesterday, co-writing and sharing lead vocals with McGuinn on the hit "So You Want to Be a Rock 'n' Roll Star". Hillman also wrote (and sang) the minor hit "Have You Seen Her Face", "Thoughts and Words", "Time Between" and "The Girl with No Name", the latter two demonstrating his bluegrass and country roots. Hillman's prominence continued with the Byrds' next album, The Notorious Byrd Brothers, on which he shared songwriting credit on seven of the album's eleven songs.

Pioneering country rock[link]

Internal strife dogged the Byrds, and by the beginning of 1968 the band was down to two original members (Hillman and McGuinn), with Hillman's cousin Kevin Kelley on drums. They then hired Gram Parsons to replace Crosby. Hillman and Parsons changed the Byrds' musical direction, helping to usher in a new genre known as country rock when they recorded the album Sweetheart of the Rodeo. Once again Hillman seemed to recede into the background, leaving most of the vocals to Parsons and McGuinn and concentrating on bass and mandolin. Parsons left the band shortly thereafter; Hillman brought in former Kentucky Colonels guitarist Clarence White as a replacement, but this lineup was short-lived when Hillman himself left a few weeks later.

The Flying Burrito Brothers[link]

Hillman teamed with Parsons again (this time as vocalist, guitarist and songwriter) to form the Flying Burrito Brothers. Further honing their pioneering country-rock hybrid sound by combining the energy, instrumentation and attitude of rock and roll with the issues and themes of country music, the Burritos recorded the landmark The Gilded Palace of Sin followed by 1970's Burrito Deluxe. Parsons was out of the lineup by June 1970 (replaced by future Eagles guitarist Bernie Leadon) when the band toured Canada as part of the Festival Express tour, with Hillman reverting to bass guitar. Hillman stayed with the band for two less-successful records, bringing in the Byrds' Michael Clarke and future Firefall singer Rick Roberts for another short-lived lineup.

1970s[link]

Before the Flying Burrito Brothers disbanded, Hillman joined Stephen Stills' band Manassas; he remained with Manasses until 1973, when he briefly rejoined the original lineup of the Byrds for a reunion album on Asylum Records. In 1974, Hillman teamed with singer-songwriter Richie Furay (who co-founded Buffalo Springfield and Poco) and songwriter J. D. Souther (who co-wrote much of the Eagles' early repertoire) in the Souther-Hillman-Furay Band. The trio never quite gelled, and broke up in 1975 after two albums and internal squabbles.

Hillman released two solo albums, Slippin' Away and Clear Sailin', which included several songs co-written with Crawdaddy magazine editor Peter Knobler. One of their songs, "Step on Out," was recorded by The Oak Ridge Boys on their 1985 album and became the title cut. He was also an in-demand studio musician, playing and singing on sessions for Gene Clark, Dillard & Clark, Poco, Dan Fogelberg and others. After an early 1977 British tour reunited him with Roger McGuinn and Gene Clark, the trio stayed together for two McGuinn-Clark-Hillman albums (on which Hillman continued his songwriting collaboration with Knobler) and one under the McGuinn-Hillman name, with a hit single in 1979's "Don't You Write Her Off".

Desert Rose Band[link]

By the early 1980s Hillman had returned to his bluegrass and country roots, recording two acclaimed (mainly acoustic) albums for Sugar Hill Records with singer/guitarist/banjo player Herb Pedersen (a former member of The Dillards). Soon after, Hillman and Pedersen formed the Desert Rose Band; this proved to be Hillman's most commercially-successful post-Byrds project. Their first LP, an eponymously titled 1987 outing, generated two Top Ten country hits in "Love Reunited" (written with Steve Hill), "One Step Forward" and the number-one single "He's Back and I'm Blue." From 1987 until late 1993 the band recorded seven albums and had a string of 16 country-music hits (the majority of which were in the country Top Ten) and a number of Academy of Country Music awards before disbanding in 1994. As Hillman said, "We definitely quit while we were ahead."

The Desert Rose Band reunited when John Jorgenson performed with Hillman, Herb Pederson, Jay Dee Maness and Bill Bryson on May 2, 2008 at the Station Inn in Nashville. This lineup is the best known, and includes all of the original members present on the hit albums from the 1980s. At this show, Hillman said it was the first time they had played together in 19 years. They went through a string of DRB hits but were unable to play "He's Back and I'm Blue" because Hillman said he had forgotten the words. This sold-out show prompted Hillman and the band to play a handful of other reunion shows at clubs and music festivals throughout the U.S. Several of these were recorded for inclusion on a live album, which Hillman hopes to release in the U.S. and Europe. If released, this will be the Desert Rose Band's only live album.

1990s and beyond[link]

At the peak of the Desert Rose Band's success, Hillman began appearing infrequently with McGuinn. A duet recorded by the pair for the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's Will The Circle Be Unbroken Vol. II album, "You Ain't Going Nowhere", reached the Country Top 10 in 1989. Soon the pair joined Crosby in a reformed Byrds, playing a handful of club dates. In 1990 they appeared at a tribute to Roy Orbison, performing "Mr. Tambourine Man" with the song's composer Bob Dylan. That same year the Byrds cut four new songs for inclusion in a career-spanning box set, and in 1991 they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1996 Hillman reunited with Desert Rose Band alumnus Herb Pederson for the CD Bakersfield Bound. Like a Hurricane (1998) and three bluegrass-flavored releases on Rounder Records with Pedersen, Larry Rice and Tony Rice followed. He appeared on the 1999 album Return of the Grievous Angel: A Tribute to Gram Parsons in a duet with Steve Earle on "High Fashion Queen" (which Hillman wrote with Parsons). After a brief hiatus Hillman and Pedersen returned with Way Out West (2002), a 17-track collection of country, roots rock and Americana; this was followed by The Other Side (2005). In 2005 he also performed "Crazy from the Heart" on the Bellamy Brothers' album, Angels and Outlaws, Vol. 1.

As of early 2010 Hillman has been "recovering from extensive spinal surgery, and hopes to be back touring soon", according to his wife Connie.

Discography[link]

• The Scottsville Squirrel Barkers Blue Grass Favorites Crown Records (1962)
• The Hillmen The Hillmen (1969) Together Records

Contains material recorded in 1963-64. Reissued in 1981 and 1995 on Sugar Hill

The Byrds[link]

• Mr. Tambourine Man (1965) Columbia
• Turn! Turn! Turn! (1965) Columbia
• Fifth Dimension (1966) Columbia
• Younger Than Yesterday (1967) Columbia
• The Notorious Byrd Brothers (1968) Columbia
• Sweetheart of the Rodeo (1968) Columbia
• Byrds (1973) Asylum

The Flying Burrito Brothers[link]

• The Gilded Palace of Sin (1969) A&M
• Burrito Deluxe (1970) A&M
• The Flying Burrito Brothers (1971) A&M
• Last of the Red Hot Burritos (1972) A&M
• Close Up the Honky Tonks (1974) A&M
• Honky Tonk Heaven (1974) Ariola
• Sleepless Nights (1976) A&M
• Farther Along (1988) A&M
• Dim Lights, Thick Smoke, and Loud, Loud Music (1987) Edsel
• Out of the Blue (1996) A&M

Manassas[link]

• Manassas (1972) Atlantic
• Down the Road (1973) Atlantic
• Pieces (2009) Rhino

The Souther-Hillman-Furay Band[link]

• The Souther Hillman Furay Band (1974) Asylum
• Trouble in Paradise (1975) Asylum

McGuinn, Clark & Hillman[link]

• McGuinn, Clark & Hillman (1979) Capitol
• City (1980) Capitol
• Return Flight I (1992) Edsel
• Return Flight II (1993) Edsel
• Three Byrds Land in London (1997) Windsong
• The Capitol Collection (2007) Capitol

McGuinn/Hillman[link]

• McGuinn / Hillman (1981) Capitol

Ever Call Ready[link]

• Ever Call Ready (1985) Maranatha! Music

The Desert Rose Band[link]

• The Desert Rose Band (1987) Curb/MCA
• Running (1988) Curb/MCA
• Pages of Life (1990) Curb/MCA
• A Dozen Roses – Greatest Hits (1991) Curb/MCA
• True Love (1991) Curb/MCA
• Traditional (1992) Curb/MCA
• Life Goes On (1993) Curb
• Live at Nevada County Fairgrounds with Emmylou Harris (8-03-1986) Bootleg C

Chris Hillman & Herb Pedersen[link]

• Bakersfield Bound (1996) Sugar Hill
• Way Out West (2003) Back Porch Records
• At Edwards Barn (2010) Rounder Records

Larry Rice, Tony Rice, Chris Hillman & Herb Pedersen[link]

• Out of the Woodwork (1997) Rounder
• Rice, Rice, Hillman & Pedersen (1999) Rounder Records
• Running Wild (2001) Rounder Records

Solo artist[link]

• Slippin' Away (1976) Asylum
• Clear Sailin' (1977) Asylum
• Morning Sky (1982) Sugar Hill
• Desert Rose (1984) Sugar Hill
• Like a Hurricane (1998) Sugar Hill
• The Other Side (2005) Sovereign Records

Singles[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official homepage
• 2003 Interview