Bennett Keith Schaeufele (March 6, 1937 – July 26, 2010), better known by his stage name Ben Keith, was an American musician and record producer. Known primarily for his work as a

pedal steel guitar The pedal steel guitar is a Console steel guitar, console-type of steel guitar with pedals and knee levers that change the pitch of certain strings to enable playing more varied and complex music than any previous steel guitar design. Like all s ...

ist with Neil Young, Keith was a fixture of the Nashville country music community in the 1950s and 1960s before working with numerous successful rock, country and pop artists as both a producer and versatile,

multi-instrumental A multi-instrumentalist is a musician who plays two or more musical instruments at a professional level of proficiency. Also known as doubling, the practice allows greater ensemble flexibility and more efficient employment of musicians, where ...

ist sideman for over four decades. Neil Young affectionately referred to him as "Long Grain" (a joking word play reference to a variety of Uncle Ben's Rice and to Ben's height). Keith was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.

Biography

Born in Fort Riley, Kansas, Keith later relocated to Bowling Green, Kentucky before working as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and the ...

. Keith's first big recording in Nashville was playing on Patsy Cline's 1961 hit " I Fall to Pieces". Keith first worked with Neil Young in 1971 on Young's ''

Harvest Harvesting is the process of gathering a ripe crop from the fields. Reaping is the cutting of grain or pulse for harvest, typically using a scythe, sickle, or reaper. On smaller farms with minimal mechanization, harvesting is the most labor-i ...

'' album. They were introduced by Elliot Mazer, the album's producer, who was looking for a session player in Nashville on short notice. They collaborated for nearly 40 years, during which time Keith played with Young on over a dozen albums and on numerous tours. Young co-produced Keith's 1994 album ''Seven Gates'', while Keith played the role of Grandpa Green in Young's movie ''Greendale'', a film accompaniment to Young's 2003 album of the same name. In addition to his work with Young, Keith worked with Terry Reid, Todd Rundgren,

Lonnie Mack Lonnie McIntosh (July 18, 1941 – April 21, 2016), known as Lonnie Mack, was an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. He was an influential trailblazer of blues rock music and rock guitar soloing. Mack emerged in 1963 with his breakthrough ...

, The Band, Blue, David Crosby, Graham Nash, Paul Butterfield, J. J. Cale, Linda Ronstadt, Warren Zevon, Ian and Sylvia,

Emmylou Harris Emmylou Harris (born April 2, 1947) is an American singer, songwriter and musician. She has released dozens of albums and singles over the course of her career and has won 14 Grammys, the Polar Music Prize, and numerous other honors, including ...

, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Tompall Glaser, Anne Murray and

Ringo Starr Sir Richard Starkey (born 7 July 1940), known professionally as Ringo Starr, is an English musician, singer, songwriter and actor who achieved international fame as the drummer for the Beatles. Starr occasionally sang lead vocals with the ...

. He served as the producer of Jewel's debut album '' Pieces of You'', and also worked as a solo artist. He toured with Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on their 2006

Freedom of Speech Tour Freedom is understood as either having the ability to act or change without constraint or to possess the power and resources to fulfill one's purposes unhindered. Freedom is often associated with liberty and autonomy in the sense of "giving on ...

. Keith died of a heart attack on July 26, 2010 while staying at Young's Broken Arrow Ranch in Northern California.

Discography

*''To a Wild Rose'' (En Point, 1984) *''Seven Gates: A Christmas Album by Ben Keith and Friends'' (1994)

References

External links

In Memory of Ben Keith: 1937 – 2010Music Web Express 3000 interview with Ben Keith
{{DEFAULTSORT:Keith, Ben 1937 births 2010 deaths American rock guitarists American male guitarists Record producers from Kansas Record producers from Tennessee Pedal steel guitarists People from Fort Riley, Kansas People from Nashville, Tennessee Musicians from Bowling Green, Kentucky Crazy Horse (band) members American session musicians Country musicians from Kentucky Singers from Kentucky Songwriters from Kentucky Rock musicians from Kentucky Guitarists from Kentucky Great Speckled Bird (band) members 20th-century American guitarists The Stray Gators members