Joel Tepp

He majored in criminology at UC Berkeley, where he was a gymnast, a gold medalist on the pommel horse and a member of the 1968 NCAA national championship team along with Dan Millman (Way of the Peaceful Warrior).

Working out of Los Angeles, he transitioned to folk, rock and songwriter-based music in the mid-1970s, performing or recording with Bonnie Raitt, Leslie West, Iain Matthews, Danny O'Keefe, Spencer Davis Wendy Waldman and others.

While certainly facile in traditional blues and rock styles on that instrument, he has gradually developed a signature sound that includes elements of pedal steel and other various unusual harmonics and voicings.

In conjunction with his partner Matt Kramer, the two introduced or previewed many artists who have become mainstays in the music world including Tom Waits, Rikki Lee Jones, Karla Bonoff, Billy Vera and Gail Davies, among many others.

His recording credits include Jerry Garcia, Crazy Horse, John David Souther, Kate & Anna McGarrigle, several major films, television shows and much more.