Kenny Chesney concert video on CMT

Bill Sampler · Posted 7 Jun 2005 8:03 am

This is probably an old subject, but does anyone know who Kenny Chesney's steeler is in his "Back Where I Come From" concert video? I saw it this past weekend on CMT.

He played a beautiful red Zum and had several great close up shots.

Jim Phelps · From: Mexico City, Mexico

My old friend Jim Bob Gairrett has been playing with KC for quite a while now. Wish he was into computers so I might hear something from him now and then.

Gaylon Mathews · From: Jasper, Georgia

Jim,

As you know, we are on tour with Chesney. Jim Bob says hey. He had a few old stories about you two. He wanted to know how you were doing, where you were living and so forth. If you'd like, send me an email and I'll see to it that Jim Bob gets it.

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www.gaylonmathews.com

Gretchen Wilson
www.gretchenwilson.com

GFI Ultra D-10, Fender Steel King, GHS Strings, SteelSeat.com

Brett Day · From: Pickens, SC

Jim, that was definitely Jim Bob Gairrett playing on Kenny's "Back Where I Come From" concert. Before Jim Bob joined Kenny's band, he played for Sammy Kershaw and in the seventies, Jim Bob and his brothers formed the Gairrett Brothers Band. Brett, Emmons S-10, Morrell lapsteel, GFI Ultra D-10

Jim Phelps · From: Mexico City, Mexico

Thanks Gaylon, that's really nice news. I've asked here on the forum for years if anyone knows how to get in touch with Jim Bob, to say Hey for me, etc. and yours is the first reply I've received. Maybe the rest were afraid I was going to ask for a job or something!

Please tell Jim Bob I've wanted to say hello to him and his brothers John and Darrel for years but can't find any of them, hope they're all well, we had good times in the past and it's great to see Jim doing so well with Kenny.

I'll put the rest in an email. Thanks again.

Bill Sampler · Posted 7 Jun 2005 12:26 pm

Thanks alot for the info guys!

Jim Phelps · From: Mexico City, Mexico

Bill, if you feel you've got the info you wanted now and I may slightly hijack your thread....?

A little story about Jim Bob and his brothers.

You guys who say you don't read posts that are more than a few lines are excused.

Jim Bob Gairret was my first "crash-course" on the pedal steel guitar.

I was in a happy-hour band in Texas when Jim Bob came through with his brothers in their Garrett Brothers Band (I think that's how they spelled it then), as the night band, as they did quite often on this circuit.

I'd never heard them yet but our leader had already been telling me how great a band they were before they even got there this time and how fantastic this Jim Bob kid was on the steel, how he was something like only 18 or 19 years old when he played (beautifully) on their album.

Hearing all that, I was already jealous. I was several years older than Jim Bob though still in my 20's (wow...where does the time go?) and very insecure about my playing, with good reason...I'd been playing pedal steel for several years but not very seriously, only on a couple songs a night, the rest on regular guitar. I knew maybe 3 licks on the steel, played 98% of the stuff on regular guitar. I thought of myself as a guitar player who could play a little steel, even though I'd messed around with steel for as long as I had guitar. I was a better guitarist and knew it, and therefor put steel second, at that time, but that was to change soon.

When Jim Bob and his Garrett Brothers Band came through, I listened to them play after our set, and it was true, they were great, and Jim Bob was great, plus they were all nice guys too. I quickly got over my initial twinges of jealousy I had felt before even meeting them, and we all became friends.

This was great for me, because the band I'd been playing with fell apart and was replaced by another band, and this new band hired me to play steel with them full-time. I told them I only knew about 3 licks and they said "no problem, you'll learn more". Listening to Jim Bob when his band came through was my course on pedal steel.

Up to then I'd never sat down and really tried to learn steel licks from other players or records, (which explains why I knew about 3 licks) but I listened to Jim Bob and tried to rip-off everything I could, and he knew I was attempting to rip off his stuff and he was only complimentary about it, saying things like, "man, it's amazing how far you've come in such a short time". That's cuz I was so impressed with Jim Bob's playing and trying to steal (steel?) all I could of it. Of course I never could play it like he could, and still can't.

Those who don't know Jim Bob's playing real well, I can tell you this guy can play the sweetest sounds you've ever heard and then turn around and be really innovative and modern too. To be honest, I still have a few things in my playing that came from Jim Bob, and he still does them better.

Anyway, just wanted to publicly say THANKS to Jim Bob Gairret and his brothers John and Darrell (and drummer Shorty Spang, wherever he is!) for so graciously allowing me to blatantly attempt to cop his style in my beginnings of becoming serious on the pedal steel, and for the fun times they let me sit-in with the band. They were a class act.

[This message was edited by Jim Phelps on 08 June 2005 at 01:12 PM.]

Ken Thompson · From: Great Falls, Montana, USA

Thanks for the story Jim. I used to listen to the Garrett Brothers Band whenever I could since they were from the Billings area. I heard them several times and was awestruck. They also had the coolest 5th wheel trailer and pickup setup. I think one brother lives in a small farming community. I had heard he still played a little around that area but that information is a couple of years old.

I was a fan of Jim Bob before country was cool and would love to sit down with him someday and talk. Not likely that will happen since KC has probably gotten big enough that Montana is not even on his radar anymore. I did see him a couple of years ago and of course the crowd went nuts when Jim Bob was introduced.

To anyone that see's Jim Bob, tell him Montana says hi.

Alan Keach · From: Texas, USA

country has always been cool!!!

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