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 ...

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

Buck Owens and the Buckaroos Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006), known professionally as Buck Owens, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and band leader. He was the lead singer for the Buckaroos, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, which had 21 ...

Cryin' Time ''Cryin' Time'' is an album by blues pianist and vocalist Otis Spann recorded in Chicago in 1968 and released by the Vanguard Records, Vanguard label.Together Again". His solo on "Together Again" received particular acclaim by critics. Brumley later spent a decade with

Ricky Nelson Eric Hilliard Nelson (May 8, 1940 – December 31, 1985) was an American musician, songwriter and actor. From age eight he starred alongside his family in the radio and television series ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet''. In 1957, he bega ...

and performed on "

Garden Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

" and the ''

In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 ''In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969'' is a live country rock album by Ricky Nelson recorded in Los Angeles during four dates at The Troubadour in late 1969. The album featured the debut of the Stone Canyon Band, which included Randy Meisner, ...

'' album. In the 1960s Brumley purchased the manufacturing rights to

Zane Beck Zane Beverly Beck (1927–1985) was an American steel guitarist and builder of pedal steel guitars. He is best known for his 1952 innovation of adding knee levers to the pedal steel guitar to alter the pitch of certain strings, a feature which has ...

's first pedal steel model and formed the ZB Guitar Company. Brumley later relocated the company to Texas, near his home in Kingsland where he managed the organization in his later years. He received an

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

award for "Top Steel Guitarist" in 1966. Brumley was featured on the cover of ''Steel Guitarist'' Magazine in 1980, and is a member of the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame. His father was

Albert E. Brumley Albert Edward Brumley (October 29, 1905 – November 15, 1977) was an American shape note music composer and publisher, prolific in the genre of southern gospel. Biography Brumley was born near Spiro, Oklahoma on October 29, 1905, into a famil ...

, a noted gospel music songwriter and the composer of the classic "

I'll Fly Away "I'll Fly Away" is a hymn written in 1929 by Albert E. Brumley and published in 1932 by the Hartford Music company in a collection titled ''Wonderful Message''.Richard Matteson, Jr.''The Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book'' Mel Bay Publications, 2006 ...

".

Early life

Brumley was born on December 11, 1935, in Stella, Missouri, the third of six children. His father was

Albert E. Brumley Albert Edward Brumley (October 29, 1905 – November 15, 1977) was an American shape note music composer and publisher, prolific in the genre of southern gospel. Biography Brumley was born near Spiro, Oklahoma on October 29, 1905, into a famil ...

, a composer and music publisher whose wrote over 700 gospel songs, including "

I'll Fly Away "I'll Fly Away" is a hymn written in 1929 by Albert E. Brumley and published in 1932 by the Hartford Music company in a collection titled ''Wonderful Message''.Richard Matteson, Jr.''The Bluegrass Picker's Tune Book'' Mel Bay Publications, 2006 ...

" and " Turn Your Radio On". The father was member of the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame(1970) and the Gospel Music Hall of Fame(1972). All six of his children played musical instruments but the father, who had an eighth grade education, made sure his children were well-rounded; they played sports as well as music and they all worked in the family business assembling songbooks in Powell, Missouri. Tom started playing the bass as a teenager with his brothers Al, Bill, Bob and Jackson who formed "The Brumley Brothers Band" that performed at pie suppers and local music festivals. Tom received his first steel guitar by mail-order in 1954. He played jobs using it without knowing how to tune it, using a straight E major. He met a steel player in

Joplin, Missouri Joplin is a city in Jasper County, Missouri, Jasper and Newton County, Missouri, Newton counties in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. The bulk of the city is in Jasper County, while the southern portion is in Newton County. J ...

who showed him how to tune to an C6 tuning. To learn new steel guitar " licks" Brumley listened to

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 ...

's

Grand Ole Opry The ''Grand Ole Opry'' is a weekly American country music stage concert in Nashville, Tennessee, founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as a one-hour radio "barn dance" on WSM. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment (a divis ...

regularly and duplicated what he heard on the radio. One such broadcast featured

Bud Isaacs Forrest "Bud" Isaacs (1928–2016) was an American steel guitarist who made country music history in 1954 as the first person to play pedal steel guitar on a hit record. He is known for his playing his innovative technique on Webb Pierce's 1954 re ...

. Brumley said "I turned my bar every way in the world, but I couldn't duplicate his sound". It wasn't until Isaacs played live in Joplin, Missouri, that Brumley went backstage and saw his first

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 ...

. Isaacs let him play it. The pedals altered the pitch of certain strings allowing notes and chords that were impossible to achieve on the lap steel that Brumley had been playing. He served two years in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

, stationed in Germany, and during that period he decided to pursue a career as a musician. He worked at his father's music publishing company after completing his military service.Mclellan, Dennis
"Tom Brumley dies at 73; steel guitarist for Buck Owens and Rick Nelson"
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', February 6, 2009. Accessed February 5, 2009.

With Buck Owens

Tom Brumley's brother, Al Brumley Jr., had been signed by

Capitol Records Capitol Records, LLC (known legally as Capitol Records, Inc. until 2007) is an American record label distributed by Universal Music Group through its Capitol Music Group imprint. It was founded as the first West Coast-based record label of note ...

and Tom was asked to play steel guitar at a 1963 recording session.

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006), known professionally as Buck Owens, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and band leader. He was the lead singer for the Buckaroos, Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, which had 21 ...

happened to be at the session and heard Brumley play, saying that he would hire him to play if he ever had the chance. At the time, Brumley lived in

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North ...

and played at clubs in the area, but moved to

Kingsland, Texas Kingsland is a census-designated place (CDP) in Llano County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,030 at the 2010 census, up from 4,584 at the 2000 census. Texas Ranch to Market Road 1431 runs through the community. Geography Kingsland i ...

, to work with his father-in-law, Rollie Spencer, at his construction firm. After the move to Texas, Brumley got a call to play with Owens; his reluctance to be back on the night scene at bars was mitigated by Mr. Spencer, who told him, "You know, if you don't do this, you'll wish you had. So I want you to try it. You can always come back to Kingsland, but at least you'll know what you want to do and won't be sorry". Thin and boyish, Brumley worked for Buck Owens during the height of Owens' popularity from 1963 until 1969 and performed on some of Owens' biggest recordings including "

Cryin' Time ''Cryin' Time'' is an album by blues pianist and vocalist Otis Spann recorded in Chicago in 1968 and released by the Vanguard Records, Vanguard label.Under Your Spell Again "Under Your Spell Again" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Buck Owens. The song peaked at number 4 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles chart. Chart performance Buck Owens Ray Price Johnny Rivers W ...

", "

Foolin' Around ''Foolin' Around'' is a 1980 American comedy film, comedy romance film, romance sport film directed by Richard T. Heffron and starring Gary Busey and Annette O'Toole. The film was shot on location in Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minnesota, St. Pa ...

" and " Together Again". His performance on "Together Again" has been considered "one of the finest steel guitar solos in the history of country music", as described in an obituary by

Country Music Television Country Music Television (CMT) is an American pay TV network owned by Paramount Media Networks, a division of Paramount Global. Launched on March 5, 1983, as Country Music Television, CMT was the first nationally available channel devoted to coun ...

. Music writer Mark Deming echoed that statement, saying the solo was "widely celebrated as among the greatest pedal steel solos". According to the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', his "pure" steel guitar sound was known in the music industry as "The Brumley Touch". He received an

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country music ...

award for "Top Steel Guitarist" in 1966. Buck Owens could be a difficult man to work for, according to his biographer Eileen Sisk who said, "He was prone to drastic mood swings". Brumley became good friends with Buck Owens' parents, whom he held in high regard. Owens' mother told Brumley that

Ray Charles Ray Charles Robinson Sr. (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential singers in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Ge ...

had called to ask Brumley to do an album with him; in fact, he had phoned two or three times. Buck Owens had declined the request without ever mentioning the matter to Brumley even though Owens had no exclusive contract with Brumley. The band's grueling schedule was hard on Brumley. He developed ulcers that required surgery. At six feet tall, his weight dropped from 150 to 132 pounds.

Steel guitar manufacturing

After leaving Buck Owens, Brumley decided to get into the steel guitar manufacturing business. In the 1960s Brumley purchased the manufacturing rights to

Zane Beck Zane Beverly Beck (1927–1985) was an American steel guitarist and builder of pedal steel guitars. He is best known for his 1952 innovation of adding knee levers to the pedal steel guitar to alter the pitch of certain strings, a feature which has ...

's first pedal steel model, the "ZK", and formed the ZB Guitar Company with investor Bill Sims. After several months of getting the company organized, Brumley received an offer to tour with

Rick Nelson Rick may refer to: People *Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name *Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality *Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and mycol ...

and the Stone Canyon Band. He and Sims agreed to let Sims manage the company while Brumley would promote the ZB brand with the cachet of playing that guitar with Nelson. Almost immediately, the Stone Canyon band and Nelson cut ''

In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 ''In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969'' is a live country rock album by Ricky Nelson recorded in Los Angeles during four dates at The Troubadour in late 1969. The album featured the debut of the Stone Canyon Band, which included Randy Meisner, ...

'' which became a landmark achievement for Nelson with a large boost in popularity. Ultimately, Brumley became sole owner of the guitar company in 1978 and relocated the factory to

Kingsland, Texas Kingsland is a census-designated place (CDP) in Llano County, Texas, United States. The population was 6,030 at the 2010 census, up from 4,584 at the 2000 census. Texas Ranch to Market Road 1431 runs through the community. Geography Kingsland i ...

. He sold the company to Basil Smith in 1985.

With Rick Nelson

In 1969, Rick Nelson hired Brumley to play in his "Stone Canyon Band", so named for a street address in

Sherman Oaks Sherman Oaks is a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California located in the San Fernando Valley, founded in 1927. The neighborhood includes a portion of the Santa Monica Mountains, which gives Sherman Oaks a lower population density than ...

where they rehearsed. The band's musical signature was its prominent use of the pedal steel guitar, an instrument still relatively exotic to rock & roll. After two interim steel players, Brumley was hired just days before they were set to record the live album ''

In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969 ''In Concert at the Troubadour, 1969'' is a live country rock album by Ricky Nelson recorded in Los Angeles during four dates at The Troubadour in late 1969. The album featured the debut of the Stone Canyon Band, which included Randy Meisner, ...

'' . Beginning with a commitment of doing only four shows, Brumley ended up performing with Nelson for a decade. Brumly said, "The way we started out, every night he elsonwould add a little more steel uitarto the tunes being played . . . We didn't rehearse back then". With Nelson, Brumley liked the fact that "everything was first class"; the musicians traveled by air and they performed only 80 to 100 days a year, much less than the grueling schedule of Buck Owens. In a 2005 interview, Brumley called it "a godsend being asked to join Rick's band, and I still think "

Garden Party A party is a gathering of people who have been invited by a host for the purposes of socializing, conversation, recreation, or as part of a festival or other commemoration or celebration of a special occasion. A party will often feature ...

" was a highlight of my recording career". Country music singer

Marty Stuart John Marty Stuart (born September 30, 1958) is an American country and bluegrass music singer, songwriter, and musician. Active since 1968, Stuart initially toured with Lester Flatt, and then in Johnny Cash's road band before beginning work as a ...

, speaking of Brumley, said "He was also, in my opinion, one of the cornerstone guys that kind of bridged country music and rock'n'roll, as well, with his Rick Nelson works". One of the Brumley's bandmates in the Stone Canyon Band was

Randy Meisner Randall Herman Meisner (born March 8, 1946) is a retired American musician, singer, songwriter and founding member of the Eagles. Throughout his professional musical career, Meisner's main role was that of bassist and backing high-harmony vocal ...

, a founding member of the

Eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...

who was co-author and vocalist of the Eagles' " Take It To The Limit". Meisner was with them for some time and performed with them on the ''Troubadour'' album. Brumley left Nelson because the touring schedule kept getting heavier, by then 180 days per year, with plans to increase it after a new manager was brought on board. Brumley was also eager to return home to Kingsland and manage his guitar company.

Later career

During a short hiatus from working with Rick Nelson, Brumley played pedal steel guitar on Guthrie Thomas' album ''Lies and Alibis'' (1976). He spent three years with

Chris Hillman Christopher Hillman (born December 4, 1944) is an American musician. He was the original bassist of and one of the original members of the Byrds, which in 1965 included Roger McGuinn, Gene Clark, David Crosby and Michael Clarke. With frequent ...

and

The Desert Rose Band The Desert Rose Band was an American country rock band from Los Angeles, California, founded in 1985 by Chris Hillman (formerly of the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers), with Herb Pedersen and John Jorgenson. The original lineup included Bil ...

during the early 1990s. In 1989, Brumley retired from touring to rejoin his brother, Al Brumley Jr. to form the "Brumley Family Music Show" at the 76 Music Hall in

Branson Branson may refer to: Places ;Canada * Branson, Toronto ;United States * Branson, Missouri, a popular tourist destination in the Ozark Mountains * Branson, Colorado * Branson City, California * The Branson School, in Ross, California * Warrenpoi ...

(1989 to 2003). The show included Tom's sons Todd and Tommy. He performed or recorded with artists including

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

, Guthrie Thomas,

Merle Haggard Merle Ronald Haggard (April 6, 1937 – April 6, 2016) was an American country music singer, songwriter, guitarist, and fiddler. Haggard was born in Oildale, California, toward the end of the Great Depression. His childhood was troubled af ...

,

Dwight Yoakam Dwight David Yoakam (born October 23, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter, actor, and film director. He first achieved mainstream attention in 1986 with the release of his debut album '' Guitars, Cadillacs, Etc., Etc.''. Yoakam had considerab ...

,

Chris Isaak Christopher Joseph Isaak (born June 26, 1956) is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and occasional actor. He is widely known for his breakthrough hit and signature song "Wicked Game", as well as other songs such as "Blue Hotel", "Baby D ...

,

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

,

Martina McBride Martina Mariea McBride (née Schiff, born July 29, 1966) is an American country music singer-songwriter and record producer. She is known for her soprano singing range and her country pop material. McBride was born in Sharon, Kansas, and relocat ...

,

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

, Ray Price and

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

. Brumley was inducted into the Texas Steel Guitar Hall of Fame, the International Steel Guitar Hall of Fame, and the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame. In 1999, he was asked to record with the

Light Crust Doughboys The Light Crust Doughboys is an American Western swing band from Texas, United States, organized in 1931 by the Burrus Mill and Elevator Company in Saginaw, Texas. The band achieved its peak popularity in the few years leading up to World War II. ...

by invitation of Doughboys

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

-winning artist-producer

Art Greenhaw Art Greenhaw (born July 14, 1954) is an American musician, record producer and audio engineer who was awarded the Grammy Award in 2003 for the Best Southern, Country or Bluegrass Gospel Album for ''We Called Him Mr. Gospel Music: The James Bl ...

, a lifelong fan of Brumley. The recordings took place over a several-year period in Branson and Dallas, and spanned several musical genres including gospel, country, country-rock and patriotic music. Four albums were released featuring Brumley with the Doughboys between 2000 and 2005. In 2009, the album entitled ''The R&B Americana Album: Soul Cats Meet Hillbilly Cats'', was released just months after Brumley's death. It was a collaboration of Brumley, Larry "T-Byrd" Gordon, and Art Greenhaw. Brumley died at age 73 on February 3, 2009, at Northeast Baptist Hospital in

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

, a little more than a week after experiencing a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

. He was survived by his wife of 48 years, Rolene, two sons, a daughter, six grandchildren and a great-grandson.

Notes

References

External links

An interview with Tom Brumley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brumley, Tom 1935 births 2009 deaths People from Newton County, Missouri American country guitarists American male guitarists Steel guitarists The Desert Rose Band members Guitarists from Missouri Bakersfield sound 20th-century American guitarists Country musicians from Missouri 20th-century American male musicians