Ben Keith, Longtime Neil Young's Sideman and Pedal Steel Guitarist, Dies at 73

(read &  listen below for Ben Keith  &  Great Speckled Bird)
 

Ben Keith: 1937 - 2010
Bridge Benefit Concert 2008(pix right)


Ben Keith, Neil Young's long time band mate and friend, has passed away. Ben was 73.

Ben Keith, was a multi-talented musician who Neil Young first met in Nashville in February 1971 when Neil was recording the multi-platinum LP Harvest. Legend has it that Neil asked bassist Tim Drummond if he knew any pedal-steel players in town. Tim contacted Ben, who lived in town and off he went to the studio: "I didn't know who anyone was, so I asked, who's that guy over there?" and was told "that's Neil Young".

Neil Young often referred to Ben Keith as "Brother Ben".

from Neil Young News

Ben Keith, a longtime sideman for Neil Young, died earlier this month, according to Undercover.com.au. While the actual date and cause of death are still unknown, Keith was a revered session musician and producer who played pedal steel guitar on Young's classic album 'Harvest.' He was 73.

Keith got his start as a session musician in the late 1950s, playing on Patsy Cline's 'I Fall to Pieces.' He met and befriended Young when they both appeared on 'The Johnny Cash Show' and was recruited in 1971 for 'Harvest.' Keith continued to tour and record with the singer on albums as recently as 2009's 'Fork in the Road.'

In addition to his steady work with Young, the acclaimed pedal steel guitarist played in sessions for artists like Ringo Starr, Todd Rundgren, Warren Zevon, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, among others. As a producer, he produced Jewel's debut album 'Pieces of You,' which also featured Young collaborators Spooner Oldham and Tim Drummond. Keith was also a member of the Pegi Young Band and had reportedly been producing a second volume of songs for Jerry Lee Lewis' 'Last Man Standing.
'spinner.com' by John D. Luerssen

http://www.neilyoung.com/

Neil Young Biography Wikipedia

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Neil Young Music Videos

Neil Young Biography

tonite's the night !!

Ben (Benjamin) Keith (1937-2010) was born on March 6 1937 in Fort Riley, Texas, as Bennett Keith Schaeufele. An American pedal steel guitarist, from Bowling Green, Kentucky Ben worked as a session musician in Nashville in the late 1950s and 1960s. He is most famous for his work with Neil Young, both in stage shows and on albums

such as Harvest, "Journey Through The Past", "Time Fades Away", "On The Beach", Tonight's the Night, "American Stars 'n' Bars", Comes A Time, "Hawks 'n' Doves", "Old Ways", "Freedom",Harvest Moon, "Silver and Gold", Prairie Wind, "Chrome Dreams II", and the live albums "Unplugged" and "Road Rock Vol. 1". He played the role of "Grandpa Green" in the Neil Young feature length movie Greendale, released on DVD. He has also worked with Terry Reid, Todd Rundgren, Lonnie Mack, The Band, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Paul Butterfield, J. J. Cale, Linda Ronstadt, Warren Zevon, Ian and Sylvia, Hungry Chuck, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Anne Murray and Ringo Starr. He is also known as the producer of Jewel's debut album Pieces of You and as a solo recording artist. He toured with Crosby Stills Nash & Young on their 2006 Freedom of Speech tour. Ben passed away in July of 2010.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia



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Ben Keith
&
Great Speckled Bird


Great Speckled Bird was a pioneering country-rock band that originated in Canada in 1969. Ian and Sylvia (Ian Tyson and Sylvia Tyson), a well-known folk duo who rose to popularity in the early sixties, began making records in Nashville around 1968. Ian and Sylvia wanted to form their own band that played in a progressive country style. They formed Great Speckled Bird (there was no "the" in front of it), a group that was part of the country-rock movement that emerged in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

Original members of the band were:
Amos Garrett, guitar; Bill Keith, steel guitar; Ken Kalmusky, bass and Ricky Marcus, drums. Ian and Sylvia were the lead vocalists and Ian played guitar. Sylvia sometimes played piano. One of the most interesting aspects of the group was that it was rarely recognized by the media by its correct name. Ian and Sylvia Tyson were so well-known as a duo that it seemed to be impossible to merge their identity into a country-rock band. All you have to do is take a look at the LP on Ampex and you will see their intentions for the group's name. It seemed the media was determined to reject the idea. This trend continues today in much of the reviews of the film Festival Express. If mentioned at all, the group is either referred to as "Ian and Sylvia and the Great Speckled Bird" or just as "Ian and Sylvia." Of course, Ian and Sylvia finally gave up on the idea with their Columbia LP You Were On My Mind when the recording artists were listed as Ian and Sylvia with Great Speckled Bird.


In 1969 Bill Keith was replaced on steel guitar by Buddy Cage (As one of the New Riders of the Purple Sage) and Ricky Marcus was replaced on drums by N.D. Smart. They recorded their first LP, Great Speckled Bird, in Nashville that year. It was issued on the new Ampex label (Ampex A10103) produced by Todd Rundgren, and engineered by Charlie Tallent. On those sessions, David Briggs played piano and Norbert Putnam played bass. Great Speckled Bird had their own logo designed by Walt Kelly, the cartoonist who created the comic strip Pogo. An extremely limited edition of 25 prints of the character was made, each signed by the artist.

In January, 1970, Ian replaced Ken Kalmusky on bass with Jim Colegrove, reuniting him with N.D. Smart. This band toured the United States and Canada, playing concerts, clubs that included The Troubador in L.A., The Village Gate in New York, The Cellar Door in D.C., Mr. Kelly's in Chicago and various rock festivals. They appeared on The Johnny Cash Show (the show was episode 40, aired on November 11, 1970), played Expo '70 in Osaka, Japan and performed on the legendary Festival Express tour across Canada that summer.
This above picture is from Calgary, July, 1970, Festival Express,

Great Speckled Bird (with special guests), L-R: Buddy Cage, steel; Jerry Garcia, guitar; Ian Tyson, guitar; Jim Colegrove, bass; Delaney Bramlett, guitar; Sylvia Tyson, vocal; Amos Garrett, guitar.

(other screenshots see here)

On returning to Toronto from Festival Express the band opened the four-year run of the CTV weekly television series, Nashville North, which became The Ian Tyson Show. The first season of the series was aired in various markets in the United States in 1970 under the title Nashville Now.

In the fall of 1970, Jeff Gutcheon joined Great Speckled Bird to play piano on the television show. Amos Garrett left the group to join Geoff and Maria Muldaur's new band in Woodstock. Amos was replaced by Toronto guitarist, David Wilcox. The next member to leave was Buddy Cage, who left to perform and record with Hog Heaven, Anne Murray, and The New Riders of the Purple Sage. Buddy was replaced on steel by Ben Keith.
This group performed on The Ian Tyson Show for the next two years. In 1972 they recorded an LP for Columbia titled You Were On My Mind (Columbia KC31337). The same players in this band also recorded for Bearsville Records as Hungry Chuck.
(Read More : the cool groove)

download the whole story of
Great Speckled Bird -(Ampex, 1969)
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Great Speckled Bird - Canada's Country-Rock Originator1969
Ben Keith - Steel Guitar at the Cool Groove
Ben Keith  From Wikipedia
Ben Keith with Neil Young watch video, clips,
Neil Young Rocks Australia

Ben Keith has been member of Neil Young's band since the early 1970s. Here he is interviewed by Pauline Stroosnijder for Culttv, outside the Amstel Hotel in Amsterdam, June 2009.

Ben Keith's last appearance with Neil Young at Bridge School Benefit 2009

Neil Young and Band

(Spooner Oldham, Ben Keith, Pegi Young, Rick Rosas, Karl Himmel)

Bridge School Benefit - October 25, 2009

Shoreline Amphitheatre - Mountain View, California

 Down by the River .

RIP Ben

Never Forgoten!!!

"Comes A Time" To See you Again  !!

Danny Whitten - guitar
Comrie Smith - rhythm guitar
Ben Keith - pedal steel
Rufus Thibodeaux - fiddle
Jack Nitzsche - keyboards
Bruce Palmer - bass
Dewey Martin - drums
Nicolette Larson - backing vocals
David Briggs - producer
LA Johnson - videographer
Bruce Berry - roadie

R.I.P.

Neil Young "Words" Nottingham 2009 (Ben Keith on pedal steel guitar)

neil young no hidden path Madrid Spain 2008

.. εζησε ..οσο μπορουσε λεύτερος ...!!

μια ζωή στο Δρόμο ...

Τεράστιο το έργο του ...

και ανάμεσα σ'αλλα ..

συνυπεύθυνος για κείνο το αξεπέραστο .... Θερισμό ενα φυλαχτό του Neil ..
που ξεκίνησε πίσω στα 1972 ..με το album ''Harvest''

για να συνεχίσει once again με το Harvest Moon 1992 ..
να περάσει στο Silver & Gold του 2000

μιά τριλογία ..
Οδοιπορικό / Κατάθεση ..

Προσευχή απο την ζωή !!!

"Harvest"

Did I see you down
With your mother in so much pain?

I was almost there

at the top of the stairs

With her screamin' in the rain.

Did she wake you up

to tell you that

It was only a change of plan?

Dream up, dream up,

let me fill your cup

With the promise of a man.

Did I see you walking with the boys

Though it was not hand in hand?

And was some black face

in a lonely place

When you could understand?

Did she wake you up

to tell you that

It was only a change of plan?

Dream up, dream up,

let me fill your cup

With the promise of a man.

Will I see you give

more than I can take?

Will I only harvest some?

As the days fly past

will we lose our grasp

Or fuse it in the sun?

Did she wake you up

to tell you that

It was only a change of plan?

Dream up, dream up,

let me fill your cup

With the promise of a man.

(From 1972 album ''Harvest'')

 

                 

"Natural Beauty"

 

On the roller coaster ride

That my emotions have to take me on

I heard a newborn baby cry

Through the night.

I heard a perfect echo die

Into an anonymous wall

of digital sound

Somewhere deep inside

Of my soul.

A natural beauty should be preserved

like a monument to nature

Don't judge yourself too harsh,

my love

Or someday you might find

your soul endangered

A natural beauty should be preserved

like a monument to nature.

Amazon

You had so much

and now so much is gone

What are you gonna do

With your life?

What a lucky man.

To see the earth

before it touched his hand

What an angry fool

To condemn.

One more night to go

One more sleep

upon your burning banks

A greedy man never knows

What he's done.

A natural beauty should be preserved

like a monument to nature

Don't start yourself too short,

my love

Or someday you might find

your soul endangered

A natural beauty should be preserved
like a monument to nature.

Went to the rodeo today

I saw the cowgirls

lined up on the fence

A brand new Chevrolet

A brand new pair of seamless pants.

We watched the moment of defeat

Played back over on the video screen

Somewhere deep inside

Of my soul.

A natural beauty should be preserved

like a monument to nature.

( From 1992 album ''Harvest Moon'')

'' Silver & Gold ''

Workin' hard every day

Never notice how the time slips away

People come, seasons go

We got something that'll never grow old

I don't care if the sun don't shine

And the rain comes pourin' down on me and mine

'Cause our kind of love

Never seems to get old

It's better than silver and gold

I used to have a treasure chest

Got so heavy that I had to rest

I let it slip away from me

Didn't need it anyway.

So I let it slip away.

I don't care if the sun don't shine

And the rain comes pourin' down on me and mine

'Cause our kind of love

Never seems to get old

It's better than silver and gold

I don't care if the sun don't shine

And the rain comes pourin' down on me and mine

'Cause our kind of love

Never seems to get old

It's better than silver and gold

in a young girl's town

(From 2000 album '' Silver & Gold '')