Legendary Steel Guitarist Kayton Roberts Has Passed Away at 83

Legendary steel guitarist Kayton Roberts has passed away at age 83, CMT shares.

Roberts was a member of Hank Snow’s Rainbow Ranch Boys band from 1968 until Snow’s death in 1999, and he also played with country greats like Marty Stuart, Randy Travis, Ricky Skaggs, Alison Krauss, the Cox Family, Aaron Tippin, Riders in the Sky and Billy Joe Shaver over the years.

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Roberts was born on Nov. 25, 1933, in Ona, Florida, receiving his first guitar in elementary school and playing with his father’s country band. He continued to play with groups in Florida before Snow’s fiddle player, Chubby Wise, introduced Roberts to Snow. Roberts joined Snow’s group as a rhythm guitarist for one year before switching to the steel guitar.

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The musician has released several of his own albums and was inducted into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame in 2012.

The Hendersonville Standard shares that Roberts is survived by his sister, Alberta Spring, his children, Louie Roberts, Jan Roberts-Williams and Martin Roberts, as well as five grandchildren, Adam, Natalie, Samuel, Jaima and Jordan.

Photo Credit: Twitter / @BucklesandBulls