Zane Beck | |
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Birth name | Zane Beverly Beck |
Born | Clarksville, Arkansas, U.S. | December 24, 1927
Died | May 26, 1985 Little Rock, Arkansas | (aged 57)
Genres | Country |
Occupation(s) | Musician, steel guitar manufacturer |
Instrument | Pedal Steel Guitar |
Years active | 1947–1975 |
Zane Beverly Beck (1927–1985) was an American steel guitarist and builder of pedal steel guitars.[1] He is best known for his 1952 innovation of adding knee levers to the pedal steel guitar to alter the pitch of certain strings,[2]: 2 a feature which has become a standard on all modern-day instruments.[3]: 115 [1] Other inventors had patented crude knee-operated devices as far back as 1933, but none were successful. Beck revolutionized the concept into a durable and reliable mechanism and was the first to put knee levers on production guitars. He became a member of the International Steel Guitar Hall of Fame (1991).[4] As a musician, he performed on the Grand Ole Opry and Shreveport's Louisiana Hayride. Beck formed the ZB Music Company which manufactures steel guitars, later called BMI (Beck Musical Instruments).
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