The legendary pedal steel guitar player and inventor Buddy Emmons was unable to finish writing his own story because “he feared his old demons might return.” He agreed that Steve Fishell could finish his memoirs posthumously though, and Fishell has done a marvelous job.

Buddy Emmons grew up in Indiana and his father bought him his first steel guitar because he liked the sound. An early steel teacher claimed Buddy was “arrogant, couldn’t handle discipline, and would never get anywhere with music.” He taught himself instead, played with his father (on guitar) practiced relentlessly and more than mastered the instrument at a young age. Buddy liked proving people wrong.

Always reticent, Buddy learned to express himself through the pedal steel, “His steel vocabulary is fluid, clean, smooth, rich and his choice of notes full of wisdom.” And his influence goes further than his virtuosic playing. Buddy was responsible for the design and manufacturing of new instruments. “Buddy heard new sounds in his head, and then he changed the pedal steel so he could play them.”

Buddy backed and played with and influenced many musicians, both in and out of country music. (Most chapters have songs that Buddy played on as mentioned in the chapter). As fellow steel player Buck Reid said: “He was put on this planet to do just what he did.”

To read this book is to share in the admiration so many had for Buddy Emmons. ( )