Are there any songs that have pedal steel in them where the pedal steel doesn't turn the song into a country song?

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I'm just curious. It seems like it's an iron-clad rule of music that Anything + Pedal Steel = Country.

― Nick Mirov (nick), Friday, 24 October 2003 03:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Search- The Misunderstood

― Venus Glow (1411), Friday, 24 October 2003 03:44 (twenty-two years ago)

That guy, I can't remember his name... B.J. Cole? He's done pedal steel on masses of noncountry stuff, Bjork, Jah Wobble, etc. Though it'd be pretty impossible to turn people like that country. Also, am I wrong in thinking Johnny Cash virtually never had pedal steel on his records? I only have 5, I could be pretty wrong.

― Andrew Thames (Andrew Thames), Friday, 24 October 2003 03:47 (twenty-two years ago)

There's a couple reggae songs which feature Chinna Smith on a pedal steel geetar. Can't remember which, but they definitely don't sound countryish.

― oops (Oops), Friday, 24 October 2003 05:04 (twenty-two years ago)

There's lots of Jim O'Rourke songs like that. "Life Goes Off" is one such song.

― Famous Athlete, Friday, 24 October 2003 05:41 (twenty-two years ago)

Sneaky Pete Kleinow on "Shot Forth Self Living" by Medicine

― russ gamble, Friday, 24 October 2003 05:44 (twenty-two years ago)

Not sure it counts, but guitarist Simon Hinkler of the Mission UK (a band that could never be accused of dabbling in country music) played a pedal steel in the video for "Kingdom Come" (though nary a note from the instrument is actually heard on the recording). I suppose they just liked the way it looked.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Friday, 24 October 2003 05:50 (twenty-two years ago)

depeche mode, "the bottom line"

(prob. the only post-violator song of theirs that i can stand, BTW)

― Little Big Macher (llamasfur), Friday, 24 October 2003 05:55 (twenty-two years ago)

'Elements' by Lemon Jelly - From their 'Lost Horizons' album.

― john-paul, Friday, 24 October 2003 06:02 (twenty-two years ago)

Friends of Dean Martinez

― willem (willem), Friday, 24 October 2003 06:20 (twenty-two years ago)

"mindstream"-meat beat manifesto

― Michael B, Friday, 24 October 2003 06:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Alvin Stardust's Jealous Mind

― Jez (Jez), Friday, 24 October 2003 07:18 (twenty-two years ago)

Triffid 'Evil' Graham Lee played on the KLF chill out album.

Robert Randolph plays pedal steel in a decidely non-country ways -blues, gospel, etc

― mentalist (mentalist), Friday, 24 October 2003 07:55 (twenty-two years ago)

I think Steve Howe used pedal steel on several Yes tracks

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Friday, 24 October 2003 08:00 (twenty-two years ago)

erm... does Ry Cooder play pedal steel? If so, I'd say the first song on the buena vista social club album.

― M Carty (mj_c), Friday, 24 October 2003 08:09 (twenty-two years ago)

'One Of These Days' by the Pink Floyd.

― persecution smith, Friday, 24 October 2003 09:05 (twenty-two years ago)

Scorces/Charalambides for the psychedeic wandering non-country pedalsteel excursion

― autovac (autovac), Friday, 24 October 2003 09:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Yes track = "Going for the One", there might be others too

― dave q, Friday, 24 October 2003 09:27 (twenty-two years ago)

Any cod-Hawaiian film music?

― Matt DC (Matt DC), Friday, 24 October 2003 09:30 (twenty-two years ago)

*That guy, I can't remember his name... B.J. Cole?*

He did a thing at the Big Chill, with someone else. Kind of downtempo beats with pedal steel. Quite lovely.

― Jim Eaton-Terry (Jim E-T), Friday, 24 October 2003 09:40 (twenty-two years ago)

Several tracks from side two of "Apollo" by Brian Eno have pedal steel on them, this hardly makes them country. Again, the first track from "The serpent in quicksilver" by Harold Budd also has pedal steel and that's not exactly country either.

― Rob M (Rob M), Friday, 24 October 2003 09:55 (twenty-two years ago)

Another Yes one with pedal steel is To Be Over.

― Damian (Damian), Friday, 24 October 2003 10:01 (twenty-two years ago)

I once read that those songs on Apollo actually are meant to be country of a sort, as Brian Eno learned that the astronauts in question were listening to country music in their spacecraft the whole time.

Deep Blue Day is one of the most beautiful tunes of all time.

― M Carty (mj_c), Friday, 24 October 2003 10:05 (twenty-two years ago)

Polmo Polvo (I always type that wrong -- guy on Constellation) uses lots of pedal steel & it won't make you think of country.

― Mark (MarkR), Friday, 24 October 2003 11:50 (twenty-two years ago)

Luke Vibert + BJ Cole: 'Stop The Panic'. That's a whole album right there, with Viberts psy-fi bouncy electronica and Cole's excuisite playing.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Friday, 24 October 2003 11:55 (twenty-two years ago)

I think Queens of the Stone Age had a pedal steel player when I saw them, and they're about as non-country as it comes.

― M Carty (mj_c), Friday, 24 October 2003 12:25 (twenty-two years ago)

Garlic have a pedal steel player and I wouldn't call their stuff country, although I suppose the opening track on their Jam Sabbatical album, A Weird Wood Soul, comes close.

isn't there pedal steel on some Pavement records?

― MarkH (MarkH), Friday, 24 October 2003 12:50 (twenty-two years ago)

*Luke Vibert + BJ Cole: 'Stop The Panic'. That's a whole album right there, with Viberts psy-fi bouncy electronica and Cole's excuisite playing*

That's it. Fantastic live show, too. Awful visuals, great music.

― Jim Eaton-Terry (Jim E-T), Friday, 24 October 2003 13:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Stereolab, "Captain Easychord"

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 24 October 2003 13:44 (twenty-two years ago)

The Peach Head LP by Natural Calamity embraces the pedal steel and rejects the country that normally goes wid it.

― Barima (Barima), Friday, 24 October 2003 13:46 (twenty-two years ago)

Robert Randolph & The Family Band = hardly country music.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Friday, 24 October 2003 13:50 (twenty-two years ago)

I am also hoping that the new Stereolab LP will feature pedal steel, as it contains songs called "Cosmic Country Noir" and "Hillbilly Motobike."

― jaymc (jaymc), Friday, 24 October 2003 13:51 (twenty-two years ago)

prob. the only post-violator song of theirs that i can stand, BTW

You poor soul. (It is a great song, of course -- and Jaki L. from Can is the drummer!)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Friday, 24 October 2003 14:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Many Delusions songs (Seattle band who routinely open for Built to Spill tours).

― bucky wunderlick (bucky), Friday, 24 October 2003 14:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Scott Walker's cover of "Ain't No Sunshine", totally unexpected pedal steel solo.

― haterade, Friday, 24 October 2003 14:40 (twenty-two years ago)

Help me out here: a few years ago I heard a sample-based instrumental that was very moving made entirely out of a pedal steel guitar sample, which revealed itself as classic country song at the end. Until then, it sounded like a slow moving molasses orchestra (stretched the sample out, pitch shift). What was that!? It might have been from the early nineties. I'd do anything to hear it again. I also know the Verve toured with B.J. Cole in '98 after McCabe left, and Richard Ascroft has used him a few times his solo albums.

― Michael G, Friday, 24 October 2003 14:47 (twenty-two years ago)

there's pedal steel on Pavement's "Father to a Sister of Thought", but maybe Wowee Zowee is a country album.

― noodle vague (noodle vague), Friday, 24 October 2003 18:43 (twenty-two years ago)

Kraftwerk, "Ananas Symphonie"

― Sonny A. (Keiko), Friday, 24 October 2003 18:46 (twenty-two years ago)

I thought I saw a Super Furry Animal playing pedal steel at a show a few weeks ago, but it was a little tough to tell. It wudn't country, though

― mookieproof (mookieproof), Friday, 24 October 2003 19:00 (twenty-two years ago)

Ween, "Stay Forever"

There's k-loads of pedal steel on Phantom Power

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Friday, 24 October 2003 23:12 (twenty-two years ago)

When I saw undie rapper Buck 65 live a few months ago, he paid his pedal steel player $50 right there on stage to reimburse him for the drive down to Manhattan from Halifax! And no, it was not country music. Though it might've been a skimpy reimbursement, I'm not sure.

― chuck, Friday, 24 October 2003 23:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Wait, is it even POSSIBLE to drive from Halifax down to Manhattan? I'd have to check a map to make sure, but I suspect that would require a very long bridge. Or a very long Ontario, one or the other.

― chuck, Friday, 24 October 2003 23:59 (twenty-two years ago)

oh oh oh Led Zeppelin "What Is and What Should Never Be"! If it's actually pedal steel and not some other sort of steel.

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Saturday, 25 October 2003 00:49 (twenty-two years ago)

Red Rider- Lunatic Fringe

― earlnash, Saturday, 25 October 2003 02:28 (twenty-two years ago)

oh oh oh Led Zeppelin "What Is and What Should Never Be"! If it's actually pedal steel and not some other sort of steel.

It's just regular slide guitar.

― calstars (calstars), Saturday, 25 October 2003 05:06 (twenty-two years ago)

About half of Smog's stuff from Red Apple Falls and on has pedal steel that skirts the boundaries of country, and some can arguably called country, but songs like To Be Of Use have some tasteful pedal steel licks that don't countrify.

― D.J. Anderson, Saturday, 25 October 2003 05:58 (twenty-two years ago)

Uh, actually, nearly every U2 song between "War" and "Achtung, Baby" was played on a pedal steel that had been "doctored" in some way (and only Edge Evans and Daniel Lanois knows how)
Or so I've heard.

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Saturday, 25 October 2003 17:29 (twenty-two years ago)

"The Great Gig In The Sky" by Pink Floyd (and possibly more tracks on "Dark Side Of The Moon" as well)

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:07 (twenty-two years ago)

http://www.iclassics.com/data/selection/237226/2372269572l.jpg

― b zuraw (bryan zuraw), Saturday, 25 October 2003 23:05 (twenty-two years ago)

Sandy Bull on Jukebox School of Music = samba played on pedal steel!

Joe Goldmark (with the Mermen) on Amazing California Health and Happiness Show = surf music so hip, it's like the kelp forests have been psychedelicized

A Nigerian band has been using pedal steel in their high life music for decades (but I have to look up their name)

― bflaska, Saturday, 25 October 2003 23:13 (twenty-two years ago)

THat whole tour where Ween had the country guys made all of their non-country songs rock a bit more. But all of their stuff rocks ass anyways.

― Helltime Producto (Pavlik), Sunday, 26 October 2003 02:03 (twenty-two years ago)

sucks ass, I think you mean

― Andrew L (Andrew L), Sunday, 26 October 2003 14:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Kraftwerk, "Ananas Symphonie"

Steel guitar certainly but not technically a PEDAL steel guitar. Can use some sort of steel guitar on "Cascade Waltz" but if you listen to Can live tapes from around 1974-76, it's actually Irmin Schmidt who "plays" steel guitar - in fact he just uses it to make weird noises. Now I come to think of it, Cluster used a lot of steel guitar too - there must have been a job lot of them in Germany in the early 70s. Again, not really pedal steel tho.

― Dadaismus (Dada), Sunday, 26 October 2003 14:24 (twenty-two years ago)

Sun Cuty Girls "Radar 1941"
Roxy Music "Praire Rose" (more disco-glam county "joke" than sincere)
Jack Nitzsche & Ry Cooder stuff of Performance soundtrack
Brian Eno "Some of them are old" contains lovely slide moments, proving that he was at least aware of the power of the instruments unique timbre and pitch possibilities at that stage

an out on his own, Harry Partch

― george gosset (gegoss), Sunday, 26 October 2003 14:29 (twenty-two years ago)

oh, i forgot (yet how could i !)
Led Zeppelin - "In My time of Dying"

or Rolling Stones - "Torn and Frayed" (if that's not a country piss-take)

― george gosset (gegoss), Sunday, 26 October 2003 17:43 (twenty-two years ago)

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