Jerry Garcia and Toy Caldwell

[Barry Yasika]

I love those two guys. So many songs between the two of them that started not only me but countless other steel players who didn't even know what a steel guitar was in the day. Some of their licks are among the post popular licks out there. You hear them and immediately know exactly what song they're playing. I think that's awesome!! Both great players.

[Jerry Overstreet]

Yes, well count me in as one of those who were influenced by the music and steel guitar in the era played by these 2 and some others.

While I don't think either of them would rate themselves among the technicians of the steel guitar, their work certainly was inspiration for a lot of us country rockers, even rockers to get on the pedal steel. Many of us wouldn't even identify ourselves with a particular style of music interest as long as it was good music.

I think it was the sound that drew us to it, not particularly the expertise, but that it was up front in the music and struck a chord, so to speak, with us. Those of us who weren't particularly interested in traditional country music, might have even dismissed it were it not for this fringe music.

Even today, NPR radio stations will play what they call roots music which has a lot of pedal steel. These may not be the best known players and some just doing basic stuff.

This music with minimalist pedal steel execution still turns a lot of heads and opens a lot of ears. Most listeners don't really understand all the technical stuff, runs, licks etc. they just know they like the sound in the context of the music they like to listen to.

I think sometimes we experienced and musically educated are a little snobbish toward these minimalist players and sometimes forget what it's like to just hear the steel guitar in a song. It's just really about what moves us and gives us listening pleasure. Sometimes forget what drew us to the instrument in the first place.

I'd put Buddy Cage in the mix too as I listened to a lot of his stuff just about the time I was getting into pedal steel.

[Dave Hopping]

I see something of a parallel between Jerry and Toy, and proto six-string rockers like Bob Bogle and (my hero!) George Tomsco. They weren't technically adept players, but they sounded good enough to catch youthful ears, and simple enough that new players could get close to the licks. After that, the learning process took off on its own.

[Donny Hinson]

Simplicity, it's the "other side of the coin". Simplicity and technical wizardry, the yin and Yang of music, and steelplaying! While the fancy stuff pushes the boundaries, and challenges the intermediate player, the simple stuff is what beckons to the beginner. Some of my most favorite steel rides in songs are the simplest ones. Here’s a few songs in which the simple backup and rides really inspired me when I was starting out. And you can probably hear a similarity between these, and the stuff Jerry and Toy played:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpcA8j3Scjw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8etSlkrjXvE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HTfXj5JdB7Q

[Joachim Kettner]

To make it clear, I gave up on playing steel a few years ago, wasn't very good at E9, but in no way could I play C6. Then somebody gave me a Jeff Newman video on which he explained the basics of this tuning.
So later I was able to play this MTB song in which Toy uses the back neck:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pn0a4bzyDqk

[Dennis A Brown]

Little Pete from the Dillards' Wheatstraw Suite LP features Rodney Dillard on steel playing some basic fills and even a brief solo towards the end. Back in the day I was a bluegrass picker and hadn't heard much pedal steel so this track really caught my ear at the time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fvdpDc11Wg

[Mike McBride]

It just occurred to me that Jerry Garcia was missing his middle finger on his right hand. What fingers did he use to pick the steel?

[John Larson]

It just occurred to me that Jerry Garcia was missing his middle finger on his right hand. What fingers did he use to pick the steel?

Thumb, index, and ring it looks like.
https://youtu.be/ulARfcD9lcU?si=fx-CJw1zgeIczrKP

As for simplicity vs virtuosity I'd argue perhaps the most well regarded steel break of all time Tom Brumley on Buck Owens "Together Again" is astonishingly simple but it's absolutely beautiful and brilliant in its simplicity.

[David Weisenthal]

Garcia seemed to get quite good on the E9 pretty quickly. He was a natural musician for certain. workingmans dead is superb.

[Thornton Lewis]

More complicated ain't the same as better.

[Ron Hogan]

Tone to the bone, perfect tuning and intonation.[/b]

https://youtu.be/91Ln-aEUFrU

[Mike DiAlesandro]

Tone to the bone, perfect tuning and intonation.[/b]

https://youtu.be/91Ln-aEUFrU

[Daniel Flanigan]

I quite like those two guys.


Mr. Toy Caldwell, in particular, has been one of my favorite all-around musicians ever since I first bought MTB's debut record. His guitar playing was spectacular, with a very distinct feel and tone, and I always found his steel playing to be very good. Even though he didn't always have perfect intonation, he did always have great feel and sound, and he played steel parts that always fit the song very well. "In My Own Way" from "Where We All Belong", or "Keeps Me From All Wrong" from "Searchin' For A Rainbow" are just a couple songs with great steel parts that come to mind. I could go on all day about how much I dig the late, great Toy Caldwell. He's among my favorite musicians, right up there with Duane Allman, Dicky Betts, Allen Collins, Hughie Thomasson.


As for Jerry Garcia's steel playing, I always liked it. Especially his work on the first NRPS album, that's one of my very favorite albums. I also liked the steel work he did with The Dead, and of course his brief work with CSNY, but his time as a member of New Riders is, to me, the highlight of his career.


I know a lot of steel guitar guys tend to scoff at these players, pointing out that they weren't as good as dedicated steel players like Buddy Emmons, Jimmy Day, Lloyd Green or any of the other pedal steel greats. And of course they weren't as good as those players, but they also weren't primarily steel guitarists, and were full time touring musicians in very popular bands, and I think that the addition of pedal steel was a benefit to both of their bands, despite the fact that they weren't 100% perfect steel players.

[Daniel Flanigan]

So later I was able to play this MTB song in which Toy uses the back neck

That's a great song, I just gave that record one of my weekly listens last night. Another great song on which Toy used the C6 neck is "Too Stubborn" from "A New Life"

[John Larson]

Mr. Toy Caldwell, in particular, has been one of my favorite all-around musicians ever since I first bought MTB's debut record. His guitar playing was spectacular, with a very distinct feel and tone, and I always found his steel playing to be very good. Even though he didn't always have perfect intonation, he did always have great feel and sound, and he played steel parts that always fit the song very well. "In My Own Way" from "Where We All Belong", or "Keeps Me From All Wrong" from "Searchin' For A Rainbow" are just a couple songs with great steel parts that come to mind. I could go on all day about how much I dig the late, great Toy Caldwell. He's among my favorite musicians, right up there with Duane Allman, Dicky Betts, Allen Collins, Hughie Thomasson.

I first heard "Fire on the Mountain" some years back when I had set up a southern rock station on Pandora. That steel part is a key influence that led to getting a pedal steel and the intro was the very first thing I learned when I unboxed my steel.

In a totally weird coincidence one of my favorite Grateful Dead songs is the totally unrelated "Fire on the Mountain". Especially the one from the famous '77 Cornell show where it goes "Scarlet Begonias" > "Fire on the Mountain" > "Estimated Prophet"

[Jerry Overstreet]

I guess it's just me, but I cringe every time I see this topic title. Could someone please do the respectful thing and correct Toy Caldwell's name spelling in the title?

EDIT: Thank you!

[Tim Toberer]

Jerry Garcia was a fabulous banjo player as well. As someone who just started playing around with an E9 type tuning, and being a banjo player, I can say transitioning from the banjo to pedal steel seems very natural. Never heard of Toy Caldwell before this, thanks for the introduction!

[John Larson]

Jerry plays very nice steel on this cut from Bob Weir's album Ace "Looks Like Rain"
Some other favorites
"The Wheel" from Garcia, "Laughing" from David Crosby's
If Only I could Remember My Name", and "I Used to Be a King" from Graham Nash's Songs for Beginners

[Chris Templeton]

As for influencers, let's not forget Sneaky Pete Kleinow & Rusty Young.

[Daniel Flanigan]

As for influencers, let's not forget Sneaky Pete Kleinow & Rusty Young.

Yes, those guys were fantastic. May they both rest in peace. Man, I remember when I first heard Gilded Palace of Sin, from then on I was a lifelong fan of Mr. Kleinow, and his steel parts on the first two tracks of Jackson Browne's For Everyman record are still among my favorite steel parts ever recorded, such beautiful, flowing playing and a nice, slow phaser.


As for Rusty, his steel playing was always one of my favorite musical elements of POCO's records.


Another great steel player that should get far more recognition is Ben Keith. His simple yet beautiful steel parts always fit the song, and his style complemented Neil perfectly. Ben Keith was for Neil Young what David Lindley was for Jackson Browne; a perfect backing musician.

[Mike McBride]

Garcia here too:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KodbDQ3C8ng

[Dennis Montgomery]

I always laugh that it was Jerry who was my Dire Wolf and cost me a ton of money on pedal steels

I was in a Dead phase in '94 listening to Workingman's Dead/American Beauty/Garcia/etc, would hear Dire Wolf and think...man I really want to learn how to play that. I bought a PSG and a bunch of instruction books, had at it for a few months, gave up, sold it and went back to my other musical pursuits.

A few years later in '98 I was in a Dead phase again listening to Workingman's Dead/American Beauty/Garcia/etc, heard Dire Wolf and thought...man I know I can do it this time! Bought a PSG, dragged out my instruction books, had a go at it for a few months, gave up, sold it and went back to my other musical pursuits.

Repeated another time in '2005.

Finally when I started down that road again around 2017 there were more resources and I could find not only the tab but YT vids demonstrating exactly how to play Dire Wolf!

This time it finally stuck

I say Dire Wolf, but that wasn't the only rock/pedal steel song that made me want to learn to play (Pride of Cucamonga, Christine, the Stones Torn and Frayed, Yes' To Be Over, etc). But Dire Wolf was the only pedal steel song that made me want to take the next step and buy a PSG

[John Larson]

I just picked this up the other day and despite the audio being very raw in places Jerry's steel is front and center much of the time.
Dawn of the New Riders of the Purple Sage

[Daniel Flanigan]

Mr. Larson, my favorite steel playing of Jerry Garcia's was his time in NRPS, on their Eponymous debut record and the live shows from '69 to '71. Of course, Buddy Cage was also excellent from "Powerglide" on, but there's something special about the early NRPS with Jerry on steel.

[John Larson]

Mr. Larson, my favorite steel playing of Jerry Garcia's was his time in NRPS, on their Eponymous debut record and the live shows from '69 to '71. Of course, Buddy Cage was also excellent from "Powerglide" on, but there's something special about the early NRPS with Jerry on steel.

Same, I love both of their playing for totally different reasons. I love Buddy's gonzo approach and Jerry's banjo influenced chicken pickin'

Buddy's playing on Gypsy Cowboy is awesome.
especially on "Death and Destruction"

Plus is there a cooler picture in pedal steel guitar history than Buddy playing in front of the Grateful Dead's wall of sound.