The Truckers need a new pedal steel player

[kickinwing]

I lurk here occasionally, and post with far even less regularity, but I knew that this would mostly fall on deaf ears if I posted this on the Phish message board that I usually post on, so here I am.

My first Drive By Truckers show was at Bonnaroo 2008, a show which was hot and crowded, and I had no particular feelings towards it one way or another. I say this to not only point out that I unfortunately missed out on the Truckers with Jason Isbell, but to also put into context the lineup that I came to know and love when I started seeing them, which had Neff on the steel. Later that year, my buddy convinced me to drive to Richmond to see them at The National in Richmond, which was the show that turned me into a huge fan.

I'm writing this post, after a few too many, listening to songs like World of Hurt, getting a little sentimental wishing there was still a pedal steel in the band. I've seen the band once post-Neff, and Jay Gonzalez is doing a great job filling in the blanks, but the pedal steel's absence has been very unfortunate to say the least.



Maybe I'm just drunk and rambling, and let me know if I am, but I feel like the pedal steel added so much to the bands sound.

[Clams]

Couldn't agree more (and I'm totally sober). It's such a critical element of some their best songs and I miss it.

[211poundsofpork]

Does anyone else disagree here? I thought this had been discussed here before. I for one am glad that the pedal steel is gone for now. It has been really overused the past several years and draining the rock show. I'm saying this and John Neff is to me one of the highlights of Go-Go Boots. I love the new album and the new vibrancy it shows to me. I also love the contributions Jay has brought to the band and can't wait to see him grow more into his role. Yeah, I miss Isbell sometimes but life goes on.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Does anyone else disagree here? I thought this had been discussed here before. I for one am glad that the pedal steel is gone for now. It has been really overused the past several years and draining the rock show. I'm saying this and John Neff is to me one of the highlights of Go-Go Boots. I love the new album and the new vibrancy it shows to me. I also love the contributions Jay has brought to the band and can't wait to see him grow more into his role. Yeah, I miss Isbell sometimes but life goes on.

I disagree as well and I lov pedal steel. I just don't think it's needed live.

[brett27295]

I never cared for the pedal steel at live shows, I personally prefer the sound of 3 guitars at the Rock Show. I appreciate its use in the studio though.

[dbtfan4life]

i fuckin disagree its time for rock. Ive been pedal steeled out

[Kudzu Guillotine]

I love the pedal steel (live and in the studio) and feel that it's always been an a big part of the Truckers sound, at least it was when I first got into them in the late 90's. I'm sure when the time is right and it's warranted again, it's very likely to make a return even if it's not John Neff playing it.

[RolanK]

I love pedal steel. Both in a live and studio setting. I also love lots of bands that doesn't use pedal steel, including DBT. I also love how the "new" line-up has re-vitalised DBT. I don't think EO would have been the same album with the previous line up. There's so much rocking going on now, especially in the rythm section that I don't really hear how the pedal would have fit on those songs.

[allisonsdc]

I knew that this would mostly fall on deaf ears if I posted this on the Phish message board that I usually post on

As a fellow PTer, I will say you're most definitely right about that. Sometimes even discussions about Phish fall on deaf ears in that cesspool

I'm a huge fan of the pedal steel, it's my favorite instrument. When I heard Neff was leaving DBT I was disappointed, and I hoped they would replace him (preferably with the guy from T Hardy Morris). But, I can't say I miss the pedal steel on EO, and I've seen three shows so far on the current tour and I didn't miss the pedal steel at all. It would be nice to hear some songs with pedal steel at shows, but DBT's catalog of songs, with and without pedal steel, is so solid that I've come to the conclusion that it isn't necessary, at least for me.

[ramonz]

I'm sure when the time is right and it's warranted again, it's very likely to make a return even if it's not John Neff playing it.

Agree. I'm a big fan of the pedal steel (more on the records than live), but the band's gotta mix things up, explore, grow, etc. in order to miss it. All things in due time.

[John A Arkansawyer]

Screw pedal steel. Does Jay play violin? If not, why not?

[John A Arkansawyer]

Screw pedal steel. Does Jay play violin? If not, why not?

[Duke Silver]

If that's what it takes to get Santa Fe and The Opening Act back into regular rotation, I'm all for it.

[Zip City]

Easy solution: Jay learns pedal steel

[chickenwingpuke]

I loved it and miss it bad.

[heartbreaker1976]

I thought I would miss it, but I don't...not at all...

[Zip City]

I don't necessarily miss it on EO. There's nothing to miss.

I do miss it on certain songs live (Living Bubba, Ghost to Most, etc.)

[RoyHandcuff]

Totally agree. I would love for them to have a steel player. Preferably someone who could switch between steel and lead guitar. As much as I think Jay has grown in his role, the current line up is in my humble opinion not the strongest lead-wise.

[Hud]

I have enjoyed the current 'rock show' VERY much and I will certainly continue to do so. DBT continues to be one of the best live acts in music

the pedal steel is so sweet on many songs not being played these days and would enjoy the return someday, If it would help to change up the setlist.

But like any business/band, they do it their way. If I want it my way, I should start my own band

[dbtfan4life]

3 guitars are way better!!

[RevMatt]

I loved the sound of the band post-Isbell and caught some flak here for dubbing it "The Neff Era". Yes, I am aware that he was an original member of the band and was on their first ever tour. But I call BTCD -- GGB "The Neff Era" because the band seemed to deliberately go for a tighter sound that made his slide, lead guitar and pedal steel the center piece. It was perfect in so many ways, especially since it coincided with the band playing more theater size venues and appearing on such nationally televised shows like Austin City Limits. In those years they proved that the band was more than a raukus countrified punk rock outfit with good lyrics. Everybody's playing seemed to rise several notches.

However, in the long term they did lose some crucial aspects of their sound. This is a band that cut its teeth constantly touring out of a van delivering rowdy sets in small rooms. If The Replacements were southern boys who could hold their liquor they might have sounded like Drive By Truckers did in the late 90's. Neff's surprise resignation and the "rediscovery" of the Alabama Ass Whuppin' master tapes led to a reassessment of their sound. Patterson's immediate response to Neff leaving was to say that the band never really replaces anybody. When Rob Malone left they added Jason Isbell who was given the freedom to carve out his own niche in the band. When Isbell left they allowed Neff, who was a touring member at that time, to play a much bigger role in their sound. When Neff left they decided not to add a new member but to go on as a five piece with Jay Gonzalez playing the third guitar on the songs that need that three guitar attack. Also, with Neff out of the band Gonzalez has an opportunity to put some more elaborate piano and organ parts into the songs. "Pauline Hawkins" is Jay at his best.

My opinion on rock bands with long careers is that there are two types. The first are in The Ramones mode. They have a signature sound that stays consistent throughout the years. Bands like The Cramps, Motorhead and The Smithereens all fit in this category. The major difference between albums is not the sound but the overall quality of the songs. When a band like Motorhead changes guitarists they get another guy like Fast Eddie Clark who fits in with their sound. The second category are bands whose sound evolves and changes throughout the course of their careers. Fleetwood Mac, The Eagles, The Clash and The Replacements fit this category. So do Drive By Truckers. Bands like these need to evolve and change in order for things to remain fresh. Otherwise the principle players would get bored. When they replace a member they look closely at what he or she brings to the table and decide whether that person can contribute something new and fresh to their sound. Drive By Truckers could have replaced Neff with another slide/steel player and made another BTCD or GGB. But I don't think the prospect of a year of heavy touring behind the same sound they had since 2007 was something that seemed interesting to Patterson, Cooley and Brad. Instead, they decided to go back to their days as a five piece indie outfit. They added Matt Patton who is a far more energetic and hard rock bass player than Shonna Tucker who, IMO, has a more refined country/soul style that was perfect for albums like BTCD and GGB but a little out of place on records like ABAAC and TBTD.

[drommel56]

I love it all... Isbell era, SRO, steel guitar, and the current shenanigans. I would love to see Jay whip out the squeeze box at a rock show tho.

[frontrow]

I have to say that I miss the pedal steel.
The last few years I would tell friends that the Truckers were a counry/southern rock band, but the country seems to have slipped away.

[Cole Younger]

I don't miss the pedal steel. Like so embody already said, it seemed like they started to overuse it. To me it's a great sound but one that has to be used sparingly. Too much of it just bogs things down to me. I thought I would miss it a lot more on A Ghost To Most but I've seen it played live since Neff walked off and I really did t miss it.

I've really come to like BTCD over the years. I like it a lot. But I'm glad that every record didn't start to sound like that. It was cool as something new and fresh and unexpected but not as anything more than that. Neff is a great musician but two of my least favorite Trucker records were made during that period. There was just something about the approach they took that I personally didn't care for as much. It felt strained to me somehow. I'm not blaming it all on Neff even though it sounds like that's exactly what I'm doing.

I'm really glad things have worked out the way they have. I know this band is capable of doing a lot of different things and doing them well. But when I enjoy them the most and when they seem like they are having the most fun is when they aren't trying to do too much and are just operating as a straight ahead, lean and mean, rock band.

[Hud]

It would be great if a pedal steel played could sit in now and then, like one night of a 2 night run

[John A Arkansawyer]

Well, I did my share. I lobbied Jay to pick up the violin. We'll see how that goes.

[oilpiers]

Obviously we can't expect everything. This is just the latest phase. Are there times a pedal steel would be great? Of course. But this particular lineup is pretty damn hard to complain about. Jay's keyboards are great, and he is no slouch on lead. I really like the addition of Patton on bass. No third songwriter is a plus. The ping pong of Hood and Cooley is perfect. At least this band can survive member changes and retain a legit identity as DBT. That is one hell of a lot to be thankful for.

[cortez the killer]

Couldn't agree more (and I'm totally sober). It's such a critical element of some their best songs and I miss it.

I'm semi-sober & I semi-agree with this statement. The pedal steel does elevate some of their better songs. I do miss it, too. But to suggest they need a new pedal steel player is a bit over the top. It would be nice if they could bring one into the mix in a manner like they had Spooner lend his keys to the Dirt Underneath/BTCD era. Love me a stray Stray Gator. Neff ain't coming back. I loved his contributions to the band and he filled a valuable role when Jason & the band split ways. To suggest Jay simply fills that role is unfair to him. A session player/tour fill-in seems like a more logical answer to the "pedal steel problem." Someone should contact the dude from Promised Land Sound/Natural Child and see if that would interest him.

[Iowan]

I'm a little split on this one.

The rock songs rock harder than I've ever seen them rock with the current line up, but it definitely takes the Santa Fe's and Living Bubba's of the world to new heights. I don't know how feasible Cortez's option is, but it's one that would have the flexibility to add the pedal steel right where it hits the hardest, and not dilute the other tracks.

I do think that during the GGB tour, things were starting to get a little sonicaly cluttered, particularly the heavy organs on songs that never had a ton (or any) organs. I'd want them to be careful of that bringing something else back into the mix. There is a beauty in the straightforward power of what they're doing right now.

[dbtfan4life]

agreed!! I first saw the DBT back in 2005 3 hard rockin guitars thats what got me hooked