pedal steel
noun
variants
or pedal steel guitar
plural pedal steels or pedal steel guitars
: a box-shaped electric steel guitar with legs that has usually 10 strings which can be altered in pitch by the use of pedals and which are plucked while being pressed with a movable steel bar
[Ben] Keith broke into the business playing pedal steel on Patsy Cline's "I Fall to Pieces" …—
Kevin Dettmar
compare hawaiian guitar, lap steel
Kevin DettmarExamples of pedal steel in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
She’s joined on the track by banjo player and acoustic guitarist Dillon Hodges, drummer Bryan De Leon, electric guitarist Matthew Tomasi, fiddler Donny Carpenter, organist Steven Colyer, and pedal steel player Todd Beene.
—Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 4 June 2025
In the summer of 2014, Chris and Morgane, along with co-producer Dave Cobb, Stapleton’s drummer Derek Mixon and bassist J.T. Cure, and special guests Mickey Raphael on harmonica and Robby Turner on pedal steel guitar entered RCA’s famed Studio A in Nashville.
—Deborah Evans Price, Billboard, 29 May 2025
He’ll be backed by his band Good Dog, featuring pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz (a frequent Frisell collaborator), bassist Tony Scherr, and drummer Kenny Wollesen.
—Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 15 May 2025
Davis’ band on the album included Manchester, percussionist Dan Davis, violist and violinist Elisabeth Fuchsia, drummer and pianist Will Lawrence, bassist and saxophonist Jim Marlow, pedal steel player Christopher May, and violinist Aaron Rosenblum.
—Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 7 May 2025
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Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 4 June 2025
In the summer of 2014, Chris and Morgane, along with co-producer Dave Cobb, Stapleton’s drummer Derek Mixon and bassist J.T. Cure, and special guests Mickey Raphael on harmonica and Robby Turner on pedal steel guitar entered RCA’s famed Studio A in Nashville.
—Deborah Evans Price, Billboard, 29 May 2025
He’ll be backed by his band Good Dog, featuring pedal steel guitarist Greg Leisz (a frequent Frisell collaborator), bassist Tony Scherr, and drummer Kenny Wollesen.
—Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 15 May 2025
Davis’ band on the album included Manchester, percussionist Dan Davis, violist and violinist Elisabeth Fuchsia, drummer and pianist Will Lawrence, bassist and saxophonist Jim Marlow, pedal steel player Christopher May, and violinist Aaron Rosenblum.
—Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 7 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for pedal steel
Cite this Entry
“Pedal steel.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pedal%20steel. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.
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