Steve Fishell

Classes for Tuesday, February 24, 2026 Will Transition to Online/Remote Classes

The West Haven area has received a significant snowfall with 16 inches of snow already on the ground. Due to this and the extensive campus clean-up operations that will need to take place: All in-person day and evening classes scheduled for Tuesday, February 24, 2026 will transition to being held online or remotely..

Campus operations for residential students will be modified based on expected conditions. Separate messages will be sent from various offices and departments regarding changes to normal hours of operation. Current students, faculty, and staff can find the latest information about operations on (login required).

Only essential employees, as previously determined by their respective department leaders, should report to campus. All other employees should fulfill the requirements of their role remotely.

Residential students should be prepared to move their vehicles, if requested, for snow removal operations. If you are parked on a public street in West Haven, please move your vehicle off-street as a snow parking ban has been issued prohibiting vehicles from parking on all public streets. A list of off-street parking lots can be found on the .

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Music Adjunct Faculty
Nashville Study Away Program

Music Department
College of Arts and Sciences

Education

B.S., Music Industry and English, Middle Tennessee State University

Courses Taught

MUSR 3332 Music Production

About Steve

Steve Fishell is a Nashville-based musician, record producer, author, executive, entrepreneur, and educator known for his extensive work in the country and Americana music scenes. A prominent pedal steel guitarist, Fishell toured and recorded as a member of Emmylou Harris's Hot Band for a decade starting in 1980. His credits include recording sessions with Dolly Parton, Lainey Wilson, Chris Stapleton, Eric Church, Linda Ronstadt, John Prine, and Mavis Staples.

As a producer, Fishell has earned multiple #1 records and a GRAMMY® Award in 2005 for the compilation Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs of Stephen Foster. He has produced Billboard chart-topping singles for artists Pam Tillis (guiding her to a 1994 CMA Female Vocalist of the Year award), Radney Foster, and Charlie Major. Fishell also achieved platinum sales status for Tillis and Major.

In 2022, the University of Illinois Press published Fishell’s biography Buddy Emmons: Steel Guitar Icon, which chronicles the life and technical innovations of the legendary pedal steel player. Fishell produced the 2013 tribute album The Big E: Salute to Buddy Emmons, donating its proceeds to the Country Music Hall of Fame. He also collaborated with the Country Music Hall of Fame on their recent exhibition “Western Edge: The Roots And Reverberations Of Los Angeles Country-rock.”

In 2017, Fishell co-founded Imagine Recordings, a venture that presents live recording sessions for private groups to observe on Nashville’s Music Row. Last year Imagine Recordings produced over 50 sessions.

Fishell served for two years as A&R Director at Rising Tide/Universal in Nashville. He later joined independent label Sugar Hill Records, serving there in an A&R capacity for four years.

In 2017, Fishell returned to academia, attending Middle Tennessee State University, where he earned a B.S. degree in Music Industry and English, graduating summa cum laude.

Fishell has been a member of the University’ of New Haven’s adjunct faculty since 2016, teaching Music Production to students taking part in the Nashville Study Away Program. He is also an adjunct instructor at New York University.

Fishell is married to music executive Tracy Gershon. They have two children.

Publications

Buddy Emmons: Steel Guitar Icon

Awards

GRAMMY® Award
Best Traditional Folk Album
Beautiful Dreamer: The Songs Of Stephen Foster
(Producer)

In the Media

Vicki Green's conversation with Grammy-winning producer, former A&R executive, and veteran musician Steve Fishell

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum Hosts Book Talk with Steve Fishell on Famed Steel Guitarist Buddy Emmons; Celebrates Fishell's Charitable Support of the Museum - Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

Steel is a Fretboard Journal podcast that dives deep into the world of the steel guitar. On Episode 3, we chat with Steve Fishell, a pedal steel player, a Grammy-winning record producer, and the author of the biography Buddy Emmons: Steel Guitar Icon. Steve held down the steel guitar chair in the '80s incarnation

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