Pedal steel guitarist Robert Randolph is on fire. When speaking of his performance at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards, the passion in his voice proves there’s music continuously surging through his veins.

“It didn’t really all sink in until I actually watched it on tape a couple days ago,” says Randolph of his televised performance on Feb. 8. “It was actually overwhelming to be a part of an elite class of musicians and singers and songwriters. To see how well I came across and the reception that we got was awesome.”

Randolph and his Family Band, which includes bassist Danyel Morgan and drummer Marcus Randolph, both cousins of Randolph, and organist Jason Crosby, were part of a special tribute to funk during the awards ceremony. Performing alongside OutKast and funk legends Earth, Wind & Fire and George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic, Randolph ruled the stage, captivating the crowd with his intense pedal steel guitar plucking.

His performance at the Grammys is something Randolph says will be hard, if not impossible, to top.

“Nothing to happen to my career from here on out [will] probably come close to that,” Randolph says.

Randolph’s love for the pedal steel guitar developed during his teenage years while performing at his church in Orange, N.J. Although he realized he had a talent, Randolph never dreamed of becoming a musician.

“I really wasn’t really trying to be a musician growing up,” Randolph says. “I just wanted to be a good player in my church. I didn’t think about going to be this guy who gets into the top 100 list of guitar players in Rolling Stone. Things just happened to me on accident.”

The urban neighborhood in which Randolph grew up was sheltered from any kind of rock ‘n’ roll. The guitarist says he listened to hip hop, R&B and gospel music. When he got a little older, his music preferences began to take a turn.

“The first time I started listening to blues was when I was about 20,” Randolph says. [At] 19, I started listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan. That basically turned my whole musical preference around.”

As Randolph grew, his music followed. By combining the elements of funk, rock, blues and gospel, the East Coast native took his talent from the church to the clubs of New York City. From there, Randolph gradually stepped up each performance until he was playing alongside the groove-based jam trio Medeski, Martin & Wood, with whom he later recorded an all-instrumental gospel/blues album.

Nowadays, his band is attracting a diverse group of fans. Everyone from blues fans to listeners of jam bands are captivated by the act and its ability to make a strong connection with its fans. Randolph says it’s the crowd’s participation and love for music that keeps his adrenaline rushing.

“By the audience participation and the crowd really rockin’ out and giving us a lot of adrenaline, it allows us to somehow come up with new songs right there onstage and do a lot more improvising,” Randolph says. “It’s always cool for me to have that interaction with the audience. You see people smiling and people really wanting to have a good time — and that’s what I feed off of.”

The fact the members of Robert Randolph and the Family Band are actually family also helps keep the energy going on stage.

“We’re all family, and we all know each other so well,” Randolph says. “It’s much easier to deal with family than it is friends. With us, there [are] no egos. Not one guy thinks [he’s] more important than the other, and that’s why we got to this point where we are today.”

Randolph says this strong family bond has held the band together and is a large factor in its success.

“We’ve been able to encourage one another as well as share our musical talents with one another,” he says. “That energy comes off onstage, and it comes through our music [and] even in our recording.”

Beginning in late March, Robert Randolph and the Family Band will be touring Europe with guitar legend Eric Clapton. The opportunity is something Randolph says he is looking forward to because Clapton is a musician whom Randolph greatly admires.

“It’s awesome to be on tour with [Clapton],” he says. “He is a guy who I’m really trying to pattern my career after in terms of his love for music and the fact that he loves to go out and perform live. He’s made so many records and done so many collaborations with people and has been able to stay out there in a world where today, a lot of music is focused toward young kids. He’s been able [to let] his popularity grow even further and the love for his music even wider.”

An upcoming European tour isn’t the only project the band members have to look forward to. Their recording of the Jimi Hendrix tune “Purple Haze” will be part of a tribute album to the guitar great. Randolph says there are also many other events coming up for the band.

“We’re getting so many calls, especially after the Grammys, about collaborations with so many artists, touring with bigger artists and making another record,” he says. “There’s just so much going on. We’re getting calls for playing with Brooks and Dunn to playing with Lenny Kravitz to playing with Aerosmith.”

Though Robert Randolph and the Family Band is shooting to stardom, the pedal steel guitarist says he knows he needs to stay grounded in order to keep the music alive. Randolph says the best advice he’s ever received was just to stay humble.

“If I just take a step back everyday and just be thankful for who I am and how I got here and remain humble, then there’s always room for growth,” Randolph says. “The sky is the limit to me as a musician and as a person.”

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Who: Robert Randolph and the Family Band, B.F. Burt and the Instigators

Where: Hotel Fort Des Moines Grand Ballroom

When: 9 p.m., Tuesday

Cost: $22.50