Jeff Newman (January 7, 1942 – April 7, 2004) was an American
country musician who played the
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 ...
. He was a veteran Nashville session player. Together with his wife, Fran, he operated the Jeffran College of Pedal Steel Guitar outside Nashville for many years. His "Top Gun" boot camp (one on one instruction for five days) was an exceptional learning experience. His instructional material remains available through Steel Guitars Canada and popular as of 2017. Newman was inducted into the International
Steel Guitar Hall of Fame The Steel Guitar Hall of Fame is an organization established in the United States in 1978 to recognize achievement in the art of playing the steel guitar. The organization's stated purpose is: In 1984, the organization was incorporated as a nonprofi ...
in 1999.
Career
He started a school for steel guitar players in Nashville Tennessee which carried his name.
Newman said that The Jeffran College of Pedal Steel Guitar was the only school of its kind in the world.
Newman appeared on the cover of Steel Guitarist Magazine #3 in September 1979. The magazine called Newman, "Steel's Foremost Instructor".
Death
Newman was an airplane pilot, and he died on April 7, 2004 while trying to land an aircraft in Watertown,
Tennessee. While he was attempting to land the plane it began spiraling and he lost control. He was the only person on the plane.
Newman had a commercial pilot license and was piloting his
Ultralight aircraft
Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and conventional three-axis control aircraft with ailer ...
.
Discography
*''Music to Get C6th By''; pedal steel instructional record, Jeffran Music, 1969
*''Steelin Feelin''; pedal steel instructional record and book, Jeffran Music, 1970?
*''Slidin' Smoke'' (with dobro player
Mike Auldridge),
Rounder Records
Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by Al ...
, 197
*''Music To Steel By''; pedal steel instructional record and book, Jeffran Music, 1969
References
External links
Jeffran College Newman's instructional website
Steel Guitars Canada Jeff's Instructional Material
Video Jeff Newman - Right Hand Alpha course sample
1942 births
2004 deaths
American country guitarists
American male guitarists
Pedal steel guitarists
20th-century American guitarists
20th-century American male musicians
{{US-guitarist-stub