Puttin' the Pedal to the Metal

by Jim Meyer

The heart and soul of any good country song is the pedal-steel guitar. Think of Don Helms’ distinctive playing on just about any classic Hank Williams, Sr. recording. In the 1950s and 60s, the legendary Ernest Tubb provided a showcase for two of the all-time great pedal-steel players – in his band The Texas Troubadours: Buddy Emmons and his successor, Buddy Charleton (who died last month at the age of 72).

Here’s a sample of Charleton tearing it up with guitarist Leon Rhodes:

And here’s (sorry, embedding isn't available for this video) Emmons at the 1997 International Steel Guitar Convention in St. Louis.

I’d just moved to Washington, DC, in 1985, and I saw in the paper that Emmons was playing that evening in a bar somewhere out in the Virginia countryside. It cost me $60 to drive out there and back in a taxi, but it was worth every cent. I sat right down front, and watched The Master at work.

I’d have done the same to see Buddy Charleton, but I never got the chance.