435:'s Texas Troubadours. His first recording with Tubb, "Half a Mind (to Leave You)", became a hit record. In 1958, Emmons quit Tubb's band and moved to California. Eight months later, he returned to Nashville and rejoined the Texas Troubadours as the lead guitar player for the next five months, at which point he returned to the pedal steel guitar chair in the band. In 1962, he left Tubb to join Ray Price and the Cherokee Cowboys, replacing his long-time friend, steel-guitarist
415:. Emmons recalls that he first used this split-pedal innovation on Ernest Tubb's "Half a Mind (to Leave You)". Emmons' name is on a US patent for a mechanism to raise and lower the pitch of a string on a steel guitar and return to the original pitch without going out of tune. Prior to his invention, the problem of a string going out of tune after stretching to raise pitch, and loosening to lower the pitch had been a vexing problem in the design of the instrument. Emmons and
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450:" as the title cut of his forthcoming album. Emmons' bluesy pedal steel intro and solo bridges on the song are now considered among the most innovative and iconic sounds in country music lore. After trying without success to get Shot Jackson interested in his new guitar design ideas, Emmons left Sho-Bud in 1963 and formed the Emmons Guitar Company.
439:. His first recording with Price in September, 1962, produced the hit song, "You Took Her Off My Hands". On this song Emmons used another of his major steel guitar innovations, adding two "chromatic" strings (F# and D#) to the E9 tuning. These "chromatic strings" have since become part of the standard 10-string pedal steel guitar tuning.
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were among his first musical influences. By age fifteen, his playing had progressed considerably. In those teenage years, he started spelling his first name "Buddie" just because he wanted to have six letters each of his first and last names. This was only a temporary whim, but his name may appear in
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Emmons has three granddaughters, Crystal, Nikia, (who died in 2004) and
Brittany, and two grandsons, Levon and Buddie III. Emmons' wife Peggy often accompanied him to steel guitar shows and conventions, and helped Buddy meet fans and sell recordings and videos. She died on December 19, 2007. Emmons
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heard Emmons playing with Casey Clark and offered him a job with his band, so at the age of 18, in July, 1955, Emmons moved to
Nashville. Dickens's band was then a popular act in country music, with complex arrangements and fast twin guitar harmonies. Dickens arranged for his band to record several
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Emmons made significant innovations to the steel guitar, adding two additional strings and an additional pedal, changes which have been adopted as standard in the modern-day instrument. His name is on a US patent for a mechanism to raise and lower the pitch of a string on a steel guitar and return
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Emmons' son, Larry, from his first marriage, later became a professional musician, playing bass with Ernest Tubb. According to a 1965 interview, Emmons and his second wife, Gigi "have two children, Buddie Gene and Tami." In 1967, he married his third wife, Peggy, who brought twin girls, Debbie and
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About 2001, Emmons began suffering from a repetitive motion injury to his right thumb and wrist, which caused him to stop playing for over a year. He did not to return to regular recording session work, but did record with some artists he had known for many years, such as Ray Price,
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allow the player to change the pitch of one or more strings while playing the instrument. A separate volume pedal is also used, compensating for the attack and decay of the strings for a smooth, constant or creative near-constant volume.)
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487:. Beginning in 1974, Emmons became a regularly featured performer at the annual International Steel Guitar Convention in St. Louis, and was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 1981.
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under the name The
Country Boys. The first tunes recorded included three of Emmons's originals, two of which, "Raising the Dickens" and "Buddie's Boogie", became steel-guitar standards.
423:("SHOt-BUDdy") Company to design and build pedal steel guitars in 1956. In 1962, Emmons added two additional strings to the upper register of the E9 neck of the pedal steel guitar.
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Price soon appointed Emmons to be his bandleader, and Emmons created many of the arrangements on Price's recordings over the next several years. In early 1963 Price recorded
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chord. This "split-pedal" setup is now the standard pedal arrangement in the E9 tuning, since it allows greater musical flexibility than the earlier pedal setup pioneered by
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in 1981. Affectionately known by the nickname "Big E", Emmons' primary genre was
American country music, but he also performed jazz and Western swing. He recorded with
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In late 1956, Emmons contributed to the evolution of the pedal steel guitar by splitting the function of the two pedals that changed the pitch of certain strings from a
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formed the Swing Shift Band and began producing a series of CDs that included big band swing, Western swing, and original country songs. Emmons began touring with
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In 1956, Dickens dissolved his band to perform as a solo act. Emmons began doing recording sessions in
Nashville. One of his first studio sessions resulted in
461:. Emmons left the Cherokee Cowboys largely due to his disenchantment with Price's growing interest in performing pop-style country with string orchestrations.
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Emmons continued to record and tour with Price until 1967 and, between tours with Price, did recording session work with many
Nashville artists such as
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468:, offered him a job in his band in California. Emmons moved to Los Angeles, playing bass in Roger Miller's band and doing studio work on pedal steel.
327:, Indiana, which he attended for about a year. He then began figuring out how to play the country music that he heard on the radio. He has said that
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in a tribute called "The Big E: Salute to Buddy Emmons" featuring testimonials and performances by eminent musicians and hall of fame members.
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for occasional gigs, and then in 1978 they toured as the band
Redneck Jazz Explosion. On New Year's Eve 1978, they recorded the album
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All Music Guide to
Country: The Definitive Guide to Country Music - Vladimir Bogdanov, Chris Woodstra, Stephen Thomas Erlewine
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until his death. He struggled with alcohol and amphetamine dependency and credited his wife Peggy for aiding his recovery.
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in 1991, which continued until about 2001. He discontinued regular session work around 1998 to tour with The
Everlys.
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published sources spelled that way, including the song title "Buddie's Boogie". His parents bought him a triple-neck
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Emmons returned with Peggy to
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179:(January 27, 1937 – July 21, 2015) was an American musician who is widely regarded as the world's foremost
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In 1957, Emmons (by then nicknamed the "Big E" for both his 6-foot height and musical prowess) joined
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Liner notes to "Ray Price and The Cherokee Cowboys (Columbia BCD 15843 JK) written by Rich Kienzle.
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Liner notes to "Steel Guitar Jazz/Four Wheel Drive" (Steel Guitar Record Club #5), written by
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In 1976, Emmons recorded a highly regarded tribute to the great Western Swing artist
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Bored with high school, he left at age sixteen and moved with a childhood friend to
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Stringmaster steel guitar, and he began performing with local bands in South Bend.
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Kingsbury, Paul; McCall, Michael; Rumble, John, eds. (2012). "The Entries, A-Z".
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Also in 1977, he played steel guitar and resonator/dobro on Christian singer
789:. Country Music Hall of Fame® and Museum. September 21, 2013. Archived from
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Miller, Tim Sterner (2017). "Chapter 9". In Stimeling, Travis D. (ed.).
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Bogdanov, Vladimir; Woodstra, Chris; Erlewine, Stephen Thomas (2003).
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917:. Nashville, TN: Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from
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and arranged for lessons at the Hawaiian Conservatory of Music in
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died of a heart attack in Nashville, Tennessee on July 21, 2015.
319:, Indiana. When he was eleven years old, his father bought him a
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783:"Concert and Conversation: The Big E: Salute to Buddy Emmons"
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to the original pitch without going out of tune. He won the
1217:"Buddy Emmons, innovator on pedal steel guitar, dies at 78"
1194:"Buddy Emmons, innovator on pedal steel guitar, dies at 78"
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In 2013, two years before his death, he was honored by the
255:'s "Best Steel Guitarist" nine times, beginning in 1969.
836:"Steel Guitarist and Inventor Buddy Emmons Dead at 78"
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727:(2nd ed.). New York: Oxford University Press.
355:with pedals similar to the pedal steel guitar that
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814:"Remembering Steel Guitar Innovator Buddy Emmons"
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464:Meanwhile, Emmons' long-time friend, songwriter
1238:"Buddy Emmons, Steel Guitar Legend, Dies at 78"
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996:The Journal of Roots Music (nodepression.com)
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243:and was a widely sought session musician in
1118:"Buddy Emmons Credits - ARTISTdirect Music"
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399:Contributions to design of the steel guitar
1080:"What Other People Are Saying About Buddy"
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532:. This album was recorded in Nashville.
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351:. While he was with Clark, he bought a
676:"Steel Guitar Great Buddy Emmons Dies"
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1027:. New York: Oxford University Press.
183:of his day. He was inducted into the
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1024:The Oxford Handbook of Country Music
657:with Ray Pennington (Step One, 1992)
639:Christmas Sounds of the Steel Guitar
1192:McArdle, Terence (August 3, 2015).
887:Emmons, Buddy (November 29, 2013).
674:Betts, Stephen L. (July 30, 2015).
1326:American musical instrument makers
1259:"Buddy Emmons | Album Discography"
1215:McArdle, Terence (3 August 2015).
645:Swingin' from the 40s Thru the 80s
14:
724:The Encyclopedia of Country Music
1341:20th-century American guitarists
834:Morris, Edward (July 30, 2015).
552:Diana, from her first marriage.
294:Problems playing this file? See
276:
1226:– via washingtonpost.com.
992:"Buddy Emmons: An Appreciation"
990:Roland, Terry (July 30, 2015).
759:"The Steel Guitar Hall Of Fame"
1346:Country musicians from Indiana
1321:People from Mishawaka, Indiana
1:
1061:. Buddyemmons.com. 1937-01-27
946:. Buddyemmons.com. 1955-07-04
998:. Freshgrass. Archived from
606:Buddy Emmons Sings Bob Wills
513:In 1977, Emmons teamed with
1351:Flying Fish Records artists
1331:American country guitarists
1240:. Billboard.com. 1937-01-27
812:Hurt, Edd (July 30, 2015).
623:, playing the steel guitar.
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944:"Country Music Article 78"
787:countrymusichalloffame.org
305:Country Music Hall of Fame
1295:NAMM Oral History Library
185:Steel Guitar Hall of Fame
25:
895:. The Steel Guitar Forum
844:. Viacom. Archived from
567:A Prairie Home Companion
286:Emmons Steel Guitar Jazz
253:Academy of Country Music
1356:Mercury Records artists
893:bb.steelguitarforum.com
1336:Pedal steel guitarists
1291:Buddy Emmons Interview
915:"LITTLE JIMMY DICKENS"
519:Redneck Jazz Explosion
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35:Background information
1196:. The Washington Post
1002:on September 13, 2017
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181:pedal steel guitarist
578:Selected discography
535:In 1990, Emmons and
377:Little Jimmy Dickens
367:". (The pedals on a
221:Little Jimmy Dickens
150:Little Jimmy Dickens
80:Nashville, Tennessee
877:and Melvin Gregory.
793:on November 7, 2017
655:Swingin' by Request
635:(Flying Fish, 1979)
621:Don Francisco, 1977
614:(Flying Fish, 1977)
608:(Flying Fish, 1976)
541:The Everly Brothers
391:'s hit version of "
353:Bigsby steel guitar
315:Emmons was born in
197:The Everly Brothers
166:The Everly Brothers
1174:. Buddyemmons.Com!
1172:"Buddyemmons.Com!"
1144:. Backbeat Books.
1120:. Artistdirect.com
1059:"1965 CSR article"
889:"Buddie or Buddy?"
761:. Scottysmusic.com
369:pedal steel guitar
266:
112:Pedal steel guitar
63:Mishawaka, Indiana
1286:Official web site
1082:. Buddyemmons.com
972:. Buddyemmons.com
848:on August 2, 2015
585:Steel Guitar Jazz
380:instrumentals on
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247:and Los Angeles.
177:Buddy Gene Emmons
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1000:the original
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974:. Retrieved
970:"Ask Buddy!"
948:. Retrieved
923:. Retrieved
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897:. Retrieved
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875:Tom Bradshaw
850:. Retrieved
846:the original
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209:Roger Miller
193:Gram Parsons
176:
175:
123:Years active
75:(2015-07-21)
20:Buddy Emmons
1316:2015 deaths
1311:1937 births
633:Lenny Breau
600:Flying Fish
558:Johnny Bush
504:Gene Watson
477:Donna Fargo
433:Ernest Tubb
419:formed the
409:subdominant
405:tonic chord
389:Faron Young
361:Webb Pierce
349:Casey Clark
241:Ray Charles
213:Ernest Tubb
158:Ernest Tubb
146:Formerly of
140:Flying Fish
1305:Categories
1244:2015-07-30
1222:26 January
1178:2015-07-30
1157:2015-07-30
1124:2015-07-30
1086:2015-07-30
1065:2015-07-30
976:2015-07-30
950:2015-07-30
765:2015-07-30
701:20 January
662:References
481:Duane Eddy
473:Mel Tillis
448:Night Life
446:'s song, "
413:Bud Isaacs
357:Bud Isaacs
329:Jerry Byrd
325:South Bend
311:Early life
296:media help
100:Occupation
56:1937-01-27
41:Birth name
925:August 2,
899:April 21,
696:693532152
688:0035-791X
528:'s album
492:Bob Wills
437:Jimmy Day
317:Mishawaka
245:Nashville
225:Ray Price
154:Ray Price
127:1952–2015
1263:AllMusic
1006:June 23,
852:June 23,
797:June 23,
740:June 23,
618:Forgiven
530:Forgiven
103:Musician
631:, with
612:Buddies
602:, 1975)
592:, 1963)
590:Mercury
421:Sho-Bud
272:Anytime
136:Mercury
90:Country
1297:(2002)
1268:29 May
1148:
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560:, and
427:Career
365:Slowly
363:song "
338:Fender
239:, and
132:Labels
86:Genres
65:, U.S.
647:with
407:to a
1270:2017
1224:2017
1202:2017
1146:ISBN
1042:2017
1029:ISBN
1008:2017
927:2008
901:2021
854:2017
799:2017
742:2017
729:ISBN
703:2017
692:OCLC
684:ISSN
588:, (
506:and
483:and
457:and
331:and
94:jazz
70:Died
50:Born
1293:at
841:CMT
598:, (
395:".
211:,
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