Toy Caldwell

Toy Caldwell (13 November 1947 - 25 February 1993) was a guitar player who played with the Marshall Tucker Band between 1973 and 1983. He later formed the Toy Caldwell Band and released an eponymous CD in 1992; the record was later renamed "Son of the South" by Southern rock luminary and Caldwell's personal friend, Charlie Daniels. Caldwell died of heart disease in 1993. Toy was from Spartanburg, SC. The brother of Tommy Caldwell, he had served in the United States Marine Corps in Vietnam and was injured in 1967.

Guitar style and legacy

Caldwell quickly gained recognition among his fans and peers for his unique guitar style, which relied on him using his only his thumb as a pick. He drew inspiration from several genres, most notably rock, blues, jazz, and country, an amalgam of styles that led some critics to compare him to Dickey Betts of the Allman Brothers Band.Who|date=August 2007 Caldwell also played steel guitar, an example of which can be heard on the song "See You Later, I'm Gone". Caldwell helped popularize the bright country-rock style of playing that characterized the sound of many Southern rock groups.Fact|date=August 2007

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