Revered Musician & Producer Tommy Detamore Passes At 70

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Renowned pedal steel player, engineer and producer Tommy Detamore passed away on Aug. 5. He was 70.

The Charlottesville, Virginia native played guitar in local bands through high school and college and in 1981 moved to Texas to play steel guitar with Darrell McCall. A year later he joined Moe Bandy‘s band, playing steel guitar and touring across the U.S and internationally for nearly a decade, and making numerous radio and TV appearances including The Grand Ole Opry, Hee Haw, Nashville Now and New Country, among others.

As a producer, Detamore had a number of hits on the Americana and Texas Music charts, including the No. 1 singles “Lucky Arms” and “Your Heart Turned Left (& I Was on the Right)” for Jason Allen. He produced, mixed and mastered over 150 albums, and played on over 300 projects. Throughout his over 30-year career, he worked with dozens of artists including Ray Price, Micky Dolenz, Ronnie Milsap, Johnny Bush, Jim Lauderdale, Doug Sahm, The Texas Tornados, Gary P. Nunn, Augie Meyers, Robert Earl Keen, Sunny Sweeney, Rick Trevino, Raul Malo, Kevin Fowler, The Derailers, Gary Nicholson, and many more.

He was also a featured performer in the classic country show San Antonio Rose Live which ran from 2009-2012 at the Aztec Theatre on the Riverwalk in San Antonio. Detamore owned and operated Cherry Ridge Studio in Floresville, Texas since 1991. He was a member of the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame, and was honored at the Cowtown Society of Western Music ceremony in Wichita Falls, Texas on July 25 with the Hero of Western Swing award.

He is survived by his wife Sandra and son Thomas.

Lorie Hollabaugh
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