Longtime Country Music Favorite Dead at 63: RIP to Robby Turner

Steel guitar legend Robby Turner, who played with artists including Waylon Jennings, The Highwaymen and Chris Stapleton, died on Sept. 4. He was 63 years old.

Robby’s son, Bobby Turner, confirmed the news of his father’s death on Facebook, writing at the time, “My father gained his wings about an hour ago.” The musician, known as the “Man of Steel” in the industry, was surrounded by loved ones at the time of his passing in what his son called “the perfect sendoff.”

“We’re sad, but we know he’s walking without any help, and he’s no longer in pain,” Bobby continued. “Thank you everyone for reaching out to me and visiting him. He loved you all.”

Robby is known for his work with Jennings as well as The Highwaymen, which also featured Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson and Johnny Cash in addition to Jennings. Robby not only contributed to the country supergroup’s 1990 project The Highwayman 2 and their 1995 album The Road Goes On Forever, but he also played on several of Jennings’ solo albums and became the Country Music Hall of Famer’s go-to steel guitar player until his death.

Robby recalled his time working with Jennings on the Country Music Hall of Fame’s Nashville Cats series in 2019, saying, “Waylon never really told us what to do…we just played until he smiled.”

When it came to performing with The Highwaymen, he added, “That was the greatest band that you could ever ask to play with…the American rhythm section and those four guys. Sometimes I would literally pinch myself, it was like a dream…it was one of the highlights of my life.”

The Country Music Hall of Fame paid tribute to Robby as a “pedal steel guitar prodigy whose soulful playing was an emotional signature of recordings and live performances” by Jennings, The Highwaymen, Johnny Paycheck, The Chicks, Chris Stapleton, Sturgill Simpson, and many others.

“He called his deep connection with the instrument a ‘desire of the heart,’” the Hall of Fame wrote in its tribute.

Robby’s love of steel guitar sparked with his musical family, as parents Doyle and Bernice Turner played the steel guitar and rhythm guitar, respectively, in Hank Williams’s Drifting Cowboys band from 1944 to 1946. Robby joined his father’s band on drums when he was only 6 years old, and just three years later backed the Wilburn Brothers.

Robby’s most prominent work may have been with Jennings and The Highwaymen, but he remained in demand throughout the years, also appearing on recordings by Jim Lauderdale, Lee Ann Womack, Marty Stuart, Yelawolf, and more. He also released his own projects throughout the years, including 1996’s Man of Steel and 1998’s Steel Country.