Tommy Detamore, the pedal steel guitarist and record producer whose playing and studio work shaped hundreds of country and Americana albums across four decades, died on 5 August. He was 70.
His wife, Sandra Detamore, announced the death, which she said was sudden. They had been married 41 years.
How did his career begin?
Born in Charlottesville, Virginia, on 8 September 1955, Detamore played guitar in local bands through school and college before taking up the pedal steel in 1976, studying under Buddy Charleton.
He moved to Texas in 1981 to play with Darrell McCall, joining Moe Bandy’s band the following year and touring the United States and Europe for seven years. He appeared on the Grand Ole Opry, Hee Haw and Nashville Now.
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 1976 | Takes up pedal steel guitar |
| 1982 | Joins Moe Bandy’s touring band |
| 1991 | Founds Cherry Ridge Studio, Floresville, Texas |
| 2001 | Grammy nomination for work on Poultry in Motion |
| 2008 | Will Rogers Award, Record Producer of the Year |
Who was Tommy Detamore?
Tommy Detamore was an American pedal steel guitarist, record producer and recording engineer who died on 5 August 2026 at the age of 70. Born in Charlottesville, Virginia, on 8 September 1955, he took up the pedal steel guitar in 1976 and moved to Texas in 1981, joining Moe Bandy’s touring band the following year for a seven-year period. In 1991 he founded Cherry Ridge Studio in Floresville, Texas, where he produced and engineered recordings for artists including Ray Price, Ronnie Milsap, Johnny Bush, Doug Sahm, the Texas Tornados, Jim Lauderdale, Robert Earl Keen and Sunny Sweeney. His engineering and performance on Bill Kirchen’s Poultry in Motion received a Grammy nomination for Best Country Instrumental in 2001, and he was named Record Producer of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists in 2008. He was inducted into the Texas Steel Guitar Hall of Fame and is survived by his wife Sandra and their son Thomas.
What was Cherry Ridge?
Detamore founded Cherry Ridge Studio in Floresville, Texas, in 1991, and it became a destination for artists seeking a particular Texas country sound. He worked there as producer, engineer and player, often all three on the same record.
The client list ran from established figures such as Ray Price, Ronnie Milsap and Johnny Bush to Doug Sahm and the Texas Tornados, and on to contemporary artists including Robert Earl Keen, Jim Lauderdale and Sunny Sweeney.
What was he recognised for?
His engineering and playing on Bill Kirchen’s Poultry in Motion drew a Grammy nomination for Best Country Instrumental in 2001. The Academy of Western Artists named him Record Producer of the Year in 2008, and he was inducted into the Texas Steel Guitar Hall of Fame.
Between 2009 and 2012 he was a featured performer in the classic country revue San Antonio Rose Live at the Aztec Theatre in San Antonio.
A career behind the console
Detamore built his reputation in a role that rarely carries a name on the front of a record. Producers and session players shape how music sounds without appearing in the credits most listeners read, and his four decades of work sit inside hundreds of albums released under other artists’ names.
The pedal steel itself occupies similar territory. It is the instrument most associated with the sound of country music and among the most difficult to play, requiring simultaneous control of pedals, knee levers and a hand-held bar.
His family said they had been celebrating a recording he produced receiving platinum certification shortly before he died, and are planning a public celebration of his life.
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Sources for this report
The Redline News Desk
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