Ben Keith, steel guitarist who played with Patsy Cline and Neil Young, dies

Ben Keith, 73, a veteran steel guitarist who played on Patsy Cline's 1961 hit "I Fall to Pieces" before befriending Neil Young and going on to play on more than a dozen of the Canadian rocker's albums, died July 26 while staying at musician Neil Young's ranch in Northern California. Director Jonathan Demme, who directed the concert films "Neil Young Trunk Show" (2010) and 2006's "Heart of Gold," said Mr. Keith had a heart attack.

For "Neil Young Trunk Show," shot in Pennsylvania at a stop on Young's 2007-08 concert tour, Young said a key reason he chose to tour with Mr. Keith, bassist Rick Rosas and Crazy Horse drummer Ralph Molina, rather than convening the full, hard-rocking Crazy Horse band, was that "I can do more variety this way, because Ben plays so many instruments."

Demme said Mr. Keith was "an elegant, beautiful dude, and obviously a genius. He could play every instrument. He was literally the bandleader on any of that stuff."

Recently Mr. Keith had been touring with Young's wife, Pegi, in support of her second solo album, "Foul Deeds," for a handful of West Coast performances. He'd played this year with Neil Young on his first completely acoustic tour in several years.

Mr. Keith met Young in 1971 in Nashville, where the rocker was working on what would become his commercial breakthrough album, "Harvest." Mr. Keith came to the recording studio at the invitation of drummer Tim Drummond, whom Young had asked to find a steel guitarist for the sessions. When Mr. Keith arrived, "I didn't know who anyone was, so I asked, 'Who's that guy over there?' and was told, 'That's Neil Young.' "

In a 2006 interview, Mr. Keith recalled, "I came in and quietly set up my guitar -- they had already started playing -- and started playing. We did five songs that were on the 'Harvest' record, just one right after the other, before I even said hello to him."

Young, in a 2005 interview, remembered that "when we did 'Old Man' and talked about what he could play, I said, 'Try to play those single notes and make it sound doubled. Just ride those babies all the way through there, that's a great sound.' "

The sound Mr. Keith came up with became a signature of Young's folk- and country-slanted material.

Their association continued through Young's "Tonight's the Night," "Comes a Time," "Harvest Moon," "Greendale" and "Chrome Dreams II" albums, among others. Mr. Keith also was featured as an actor, in the role of Grandpa Green, in Young's film of the stage production of the "Greendale" concept album.

Bennett Keith Schaeufele was born in Fort Riley, Kan. He was a popular session player in Nashville for years, both before and after connecting with Young. He also played live or in the studio with artists including Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Ringo Starr and David Crosby.

Mr. Keith also produced Jewel's debut album, "Pieces of You." Among his recordings, Mr. Keith released "Seven Gates" in 1994, a holiday collection in which he accompanied such high-profile friends as Johnny Cash, songwriter J.J. Cale, and Neil and Pegi Young.

Information on Mr. Keith's survivors was not available.

-- Los Angeles Times