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Topic: Byron Berline |
Herb Steiner
From:
Spicewood TX 78669
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Posted 10 Jul 2021 8:11 pm |
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Byron has passed away, according to his FB page and friends. I don't know the cause of his death, more information to follow. I believe he was 77 years of age.
I've known Byron since 1966 and am saddened by his passing. He was an inspiring musician onstage and a gentleman offstage.
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My rig: Infinity and Telonics.
Son, we live in a world with walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with steel guitars. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg? |
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Skip Edwards
From:
LA,CA
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Posted 10 Jul 2021 9:26 pm
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Terrible news... so sad.
Vaya con Dios, Byron. You were the best... |
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K Maul
From:
Hadley, NY/Hobe Sound, FL
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Posted 11 Jul 2021 9:06 am
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Fantastic, nice man and great player! I believe it was just his birthday. We met on an “art train†going through the Alps in Austria and did some playing. Later I played his festival in Guthrie OK and his concert venue above the music store in Guthrie. My respect and awe for him is boundless. He taught Arnold Schwarzenegger how to play fiddle for a an early film role, too. Amazing person.
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KEVIN MAUL: Airline, Beard, Clinesmith, Donner, Evans, Excel, Fender, Fluger, GFI, Gibson, Hilton, Ibanez, Justice, K+K, Live Strings, MOYO, National, Oahu, Peterson, Quilter, Rickenbacher, Sho~Bud, Supro, TC, Ultimate, VHT, Williams, X-otic, Yamaha, ZKing. |
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Bob Watson
From:
Champaign, Illinois, U.S.
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Posted 11 Jul 2021 2:09 pm
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| I'm sorry to hear this sad news. I saw him play back in the mid 1970's in a little club and it was a very memorable show, as good as it gets. As time went on and I learned more and more about his career I came to realize how lucky I was to see a musician of his caliber playing in my favorite watering hole at the time. May He RIP. |
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Ben Elder
From:
La Crescenta, California, USA
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Posted 11 Jul 2021 3:55 pm
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I got back to going to Guthrie on my Oklahoma City home visits in the fall of 2019. I'd been staying close to the city for years as my parents were in decline. I stopped by the new store (after the disastrous fire) and Byron gave me a Byron's 2019 Comeback Tour t-shirt. The pandemic wiped out travel plans since then, but I never thought the last visit would be...the last visit. I was lucky to know Byron here in Southern California and he was easy for me to find in his new home since 1996. I am overwhelmed at his sudden passing. The world is a more destitute place for the loss of this musical giant and wonderful man. I hope he's jamming with his dad and Mr. Monroe now.
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"Gopher, Everett?" |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 12 Jul 2021 3:28 am
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I have seen and heard him with guitar player Dan Crary back in the eighties.
Here's a nice appreciation from bass player Lee Sklar (here, he also plays examples of Byron's playing with Albert Lee and J.D. Manness, him and others):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWTt-XTEAUE
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Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Stu Schulman
From:
Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)
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Posted 12 Jul 2021 3:54 am
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Oh No,Godspeed Byron!
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Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952. |
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Carl Williams
From:
Oklahoma
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Posted 12 Jul 2021 7:22 am
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| Had the privilege to visit with Byron at his Double Stop Fiddle Shop back in ‘96-97 timeframe on two occasions. Really enjoyed hearing him recall his early playing days...just him and I sitting around in the shop. Truly one of the Great Fiddlers of our time...RIP Byron...Carl |
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Jim Fogle
From:
North Carolina, Winston-Salem, USA
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Craig Stock
From:
Westfield, NJ USA
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Kenny Davis
From:
Great State of Oklahoma
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Posted 13 Jul 2021 7:24 pm
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This is tough...Byron meant so much to our community, and the world in general. Always a welcoming smile and a willingness to sit down and pick and share a good story. Being around him didn't feel like you were around the preeminent Bluegrass fiddle player of our time! I consider myself fortunate to have been able play with him at his original Music Hall as well as numerous jam sessions since he moved to Oklahoma. He loved kids and tirelessly supported music scholarships to help them develop their talents.
After he discovered I was an amateur photographer, he enlisted me to take his band promo photos and later be the official OIBF photographer in the early 2000's. I thought I'd share some personal favorite's of him.
This shows how much he enjoyed the youngin's!
Heaven's spotlight shines on you now!
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Best lyric in a country song: "...One more, Moon..." |
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 14 Jul 2021 11:46 am
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So great. He has a nice book that’s worth a read! I cut some tracks at his place in Guthrie with an artist. We tracked live in the upstairs room and I also played steel live on the tracks. A career highlight for me was after we finished a take on a ballad he smiled and said to me “Man, that was one soulful steel guitar solo…â€. I cherish that and rest easy, sir.
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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Michael Breid
From:
Eureka Springs, Arkansas, USA
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Posted 17 Jul 2021 7:51 am
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| I read where Byron passed from complications of Covid-19. Wonder if he was vaccinated, and it was too late? |
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Ben Elder
From:
La Crescenta, California, USA
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Posted 17 Jul 2021 8:54 am
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-0-
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"Gopher, Everett?"
Last edited by Ben Elder on 18 Jul 2021 7:41 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Bill L. Wilson
From:
Oklahoma, USA
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Posted 17 Jul 2021 8:50 pm Rest In Peace Byron.
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 Me,JD,Byron,Dave and Steve at Studio 7 in OKC. |
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Jim Sliff
From:
Lawndale California, USA
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Posted 26 Jul 2021 11:22 am
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This news hit hard. I had the opportunity of jamming with Byron, John Hickman and Allen Wald between shows when our band was opening for Sundance at the old Sweetwater in Redondo Beach CA. Byron didn't give a damn if you were a hotshot picker or a rookie guitar thrasher - if you LIKED to play and knew some tunes, he'd find the time to jam with you - and was one of the most encouraging bandleaders I've ever encountered.
A tremendous player - but mainly a great guy!
RIP Byron
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No chops, but great tone
1930's/40's Rickenbacher/Rickenbacker 6&8 string lap steels
1921 Weissenborn Style 2; Hilo&Schireson hollownecks
Appalachian, Regal & Dobro squarenecks
1959 Fender 400 9+2 B6;1960's Fender 800 3+3+2; 1948 Fender Dual-8 Professional |
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