Pete Drake

The device that made Drake a sensation. Invented by fellow pedal steel player Bill West, it was later made commercially available under Drake's name, as can be seen in ads here and here. This September 2013 Vintage Guitar article gives a summary of its history.

The next talk box apparatus was instrumental in famed Nashville session man Pete Drake’s early-’60s act, which he called Talking Steel Guitar. Pedal-steel player Bill West made the contraption from an 8″ paper-cone speaker attached to a funnel with a plastic tube to speak into. Drake was seeking a new sound, and inspired by the Alvino Rey film, he used West’s creation on his 1964 hit single, “Forever,” and a subsequent LP. Drake’s novel sound sold more than a million copies and went gold.

He ultimately released several LPs of Talking Steel Guitar. As Drake explained the process to Douglas Green, “You play the notes on the guitar and it goes through the amplifier. I have a driver system so that you disconnect the speakers and the sound goes through the driver into a plastic tube. You put the tube in the side of your mouth then form the words with your mouth as you play them. You don’t actually say a word; the guitar is your vocal chords, and your mouth is the amplifier. It’s amplified by a microphone.” Drake soon began selling his Talking Music Actuator to other musicians.