Ben Keith | |
|---|---|
 Ben Keith on stage with Neil Young, Cologne 2009 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Bennett Keith Schaeufele |
| Born | March 6, 1937 Fort Riley, Kansas, United States |
| Died | July 26, 2010 (aged 73) La Honda, California, United States |
| Genres | Rock, folk rock, hard rock, country rock, pop |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer-songwriter, producer, session musician |
| Instrument(s) | Guitar, pedal steel guitar, dobro, banjo, vocals, keyboards, piano, saxophone, bass |
| Years active | 1950s–2010 |
| Labels | Reprise, Geffen |
| Formerly of | Neil Young, Great Speckled Bird |
Bennett Keith Schaeufele (March 6, 1937 – July 26, 2010), better known by his stage name Ben Keith, was an American musician and record producer. Known primarily for his work as a pedal steel guitarist with Neil Young, Keith was a fixture of the Nashville country music community in the 1950s and 1960s before working with numerous successful rock, country and pop artists as both a producer and versatile, multi-instrumentalist sideman for over four decades. Neil Young affectionately referred to him as "Long Grain" (a joking word play reference to a variety of Uncle Ben's Rice and to Ben's height). Keith was inducted into the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum in 2014.