Pete Drake

Pete Drake, born Franklin Drake, emerged as the preferred steel guitarist whenever rock performers such as Bob Dylan and Beatles associates ventured to Nashville for sessions. Though he scored a Top 30 single with “Talking Steel” in 1964, Drake issued scant material under his own name. He instead relied on the signature mellow timbre of his instrument to bolster projects by others. Beyond sessions with country figures such as Marty Robbins, Bobby Bare, Johnny Cash, the Louvin Brothers, Dolly Parton, and Ernest Tubb, he introduced the steel guitar to rock contexts, appearing on releases by Buddy Holly, the Everly Brothers, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Elvis Presley. His contributions graced landmark tracks including Lynn Anderson’s “(I Never Promised You A) Rose Garden,” Charlie Rich’s “Behind Closed Doors,” and Tammy Wynette’s “Stand By Your Man.” Drake also featured prominently on Dylan’s John Wesley Harding, Nashville Skyline, and Self Portrait; in addition he produced Ringo Starr’s country effort Beaucoups of Blues, assembled its band, and contributed to George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass.

Raised as the son of a Pentecostal minister, Drake launched his professional path in the family outfit the Drake Brothers alongside his siblings; one brother, Jack, later performed with Ernest Tubb’s Texas Troubadors for nearly twenty-five years. Drake’s lyrical steel work quickly established him among Atlanta’s leading young instrumentalists. In the mid-1950s he performed in a band alongside future country stars Jerry Reed, Doug Kershaw, Roger Miller, and Joe South. Although the ensemble never recorded, the experience prompted Drake’s relocation to Nashville in 1959. His association with Elvis Presley commenced in May 1966 during the How Great Thou Art album and extended beyond a year, encompassing soundtrack work on the films Double Trouble, Clambake, and Speedway.

In the late 1970s Drake founded his own imprint, First Generation Records, and recruited Ernest Tubb, who had exited MCA after thirty-five years; the label issued The Legend and the Legacy in 1977. The album presented new versions of Tubb’s signature songs and featured guest appearances by Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Paycheck, Charlie Daniels, Conway Twitty, Marty Robbins, Loretta Lynn, Vern Gosdin, George Jones, Merle Haggard, and Johnny Cash. Drake occasionally took center stage himself, issuing the solo collection Steel Away, a set of pop-gospel standards, and a self-titled album that offered steel-guitar renditions of songs by Dylan and the Beatles.