Speedy's "Afternoon Of A Swan" (Update: lesson ava

Lap steels, resonators, multi-neck consoles and acoustic steel guitars

Moderator: Brad Bechtel

User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Speedy's "Afternoon Of A Swan" (Update: lesson ava

Post by Mike Neer »

(Update: I didn't want to start a new thread on this, but I have finally gotten around to creating a tab/notation package for this tune with a backing track. I am in the process of rendering a video, so it will be available with the video soon)
http://www.steelinfromthemasters.com/?p=519

This is my favorite all-time steel guitar tune. One of the very first records I ever got into with steel guitar was Speedy's Guitar Spectacular, which I still think is a pinnacle in steel guitar recordings. The compositions, the mood and the playing are all sublime.

Anyway, here's my take on it adapted for non-pedal steel. This is the first adaptation of it, it is surely bound to change. This will be in my next DVD/tab book. It is the hardest tune I've ever played yet, as the original was done on a Fender 1000 and Speedy was pedal-happy on this tune.

Clinesmith S-8 recorded direct into a Boss BR-8, along with acoustic rhythm, Telecaster and bass accompaniment.

http://www.mikeneer.com/swan.mp3
Last edited by Mike Neer on 5 Sep 2011 1:42 pm, edited 3 times in total.
User avatar
Eric Ebner
Posts: 238
Joined: 3 Aug 2007 2:39 pm
Location: Texas Republic
Contact:

Post by Eric Ebner »

Very cool... and enjoyable. This tune is spilling into the hallway at my work... People walk by and smile. Kind of one-of-those tunes;-)
Peter Lindelauf
Posts: 223
Joined: 27 Mar 2010 8:29 am
Location: Penticton, BC

Post by Peter Lindelauf »

Well played, Mike. Enjoyed that song a lot--especially the ascending run.
...but you are the music / while the music lasts (TS Eliot)
User avatar
Chuck S. Lettes
Posts: 2242
Joined: 14 Aug 2000 12:01 am
Location: Denver, Colorado

Post by Chuck S. Lettes »

Well done, Mike. It's great that the Speedy West spirit is not forgotten. Hope to see you next year at the Dallas show.
Chuck
User avatar
Andy Volk
Posts: 10251
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Boston, MA
Contact:

Post by Andy Volk »

One of my all-time favorite steel guitar albums too; fantastic vibe and playing.

You've really done quite an incredible job of making a Clinesmith into a Fender 1000 yet without slavishly copying Speedy, Mike. Way cool! I look forward to the book/DVD.
User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Post by Mike Neer »

Thanks, guys. Hopefully after playing it for a week I'll get it all smoothed out. I just arranged this yesterday and I'm still working from memory, and still always looking to tweak it. It is very difficult to play it down from top to bottom at this point.

The tuning is just a plain vanilla C6, tons of slants, some of them huge.
User avatar
Gerald Ross
Posts: 3205
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Contact:

Post by Gerald Ross »

:D :D :D :D :D
Gerald Ross
'Northwest Ann Arbor, Michigan's King Of The Hawaiian Steel Guitar'

A UkeTone Recording Artist
Image

CEO, CIO, CFO - UkeTone Records
Gerald's Hawaiian Steel Guitar/Ukulele Website
User avatar
Nils Fliegner
Posts: 82
Joined: 31 Mar 2009 9:01 am
Location: Germany

Post by Nils Fliegner »

The tuning is just a plain vanilla C6


Does that mean, hi to low: E-C-A-G-E-C-A-G? Greetings from Germany.
User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Post by Mike Neer »

Nils Fliegner wrote:
The tuning is just a plain vanilla C6


Does that mean, hi to low: E-C-A-G-E-C-A-G? Greetings from Germany.
Yes, except low string F.
User avatar
Doug Beaumier
Posts: 15642
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Northampton, MA
Contact:

Post by Doug Beaumier »

Nice playing, Mike. That Clinesmith has a real vintage tone. Love it!
Bill Hatcher
Posts: 7252
Joined: 6 Nov 1998 1:01 am
Location: Atlanta Ga. USA

Post by Bill Hatcher »

Nice! Vintage sounding.
User avatar
Steve Cunningham
Posts: 814
Joined: 30 Jul 2008 7:48 am
Location: Atlanta, GA

Post by Steve Cunningham »

Man, that sure is sweet Mike!
Del Bonn
Posts: 65
Joined: 13 Feb 2008 5:22 pm
Location: Missouri, USA

Post by Del Bonn »

Thank you, Mike, for sharing this with us. It is certainly one of the best examples of fine steeling I've heard for some time!
I am not familiar with this song and would like to give it a try. Can you tell me, please, how I may obtain a copy of the sheet music? (Piano, voice, & chord) I predate tablature and never did learn it.
-Musical Del
User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Post by Mike Neer »

Del, I'm afraid there's no sheet music that I know of. I learned it by ear. Thanks for the compliment.
User avatar
Paul Bostic
Posts: 106
Joined: 26 Mar 2010 9:12 pm
Location: Grants Pass, Oregon, USA

Post by Paul Bostic »

Beautiful performance Mike!
60's & 70's country rock is my favorite, Martin & Taylor acoustic, Fender & Washburn electric, Rickenbacher BD 8 lap steel, violin.
User avatar
CrowBear Schmitt
Posts: 11624
Joined: 8 Apr 2000 12:01 am
Location: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France
Contact:

Post by CrowBear Schmitt »

Nice tune & nice playing Mike
i did'nt know that Speedy played stuff like that
it reminds me of Joaquin Murphey's style
User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Post by Mike Neer »

CrowBear Schmitt wrote:Nice tune & nice playing Mike
i did'nt know that Speedy played stuff like that
it reminds me of Joaquin Murphey's style
Not only did Speedy play stuff like that, he composed it. In my opinion, Speedy composed the greatest steel guitar music.
User avatar
Andy Volk
Posts: 10251
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Boston, MA
Contact:

Post by Andy Volk »

I'm totally in agreement, Mike. Speedy was much more than only edge-of-your-seat solos and special effects. Here's "Slow & Easy", one of my favorite Speedy tunes .... fabulous from every angle: composition, tone, phrasing, recording quality, you name it. Very few steel guitar albums - even by the very best players - grab me the way Speedy's solo albums do.

https://home.comcast.net/~aevolk/music/SlowAndEasy.mp3
User avatar
Andy Volk
Posts: 10251
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Boston, MA
Contact:

Post by Andy Volk »

Here's a link to an audio interview with Speedy. What a humble, positive person he was!

http://hasilatemyjerky.mypodcast.com/20 ... 69690.html
User avatar
CrowBear Schmitt
Posts: 11624
Joined: 8 Apr 2000 12:01 am
Location: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France
Contact:

Post by CrowBear Schmitt »

Thanx for the heads up Mike & Thanx as well to you Andy :D
User avatar
Doug Beaumier
Posts: 15642
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Northampton, MA
Contact:

Post by Doug Beaumier »

I met Speedy in 1981 shortly after he had his stroke. Although he could no longer play, his love for the steel guitar was evident. He had a lot of road stories... he knew everyone and everyone knew him. I was very impressed that he took the time to chat with a young nobody like me!
User avatar
Andy Volk
Posts: 10251
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Boston, MA
Contact:

Post by Andy Volk »

You can also heck out some rare early 1950s Speedy solos with Johnny Horton here ...

http://scratchyattic.blogspot.com/2009/ ... -west.html
User avatar
Mike Neer
Posts: 10990
Joined: 9 Dec 2002 1:01 am
Location: NJ
Contact:

Post by Mike Neer »

Again, just wanted to recommend that you purchase a copy of Speedy West's "Guitar Spectacular" record. b0b stocks it as Item # C-074 (CD). To me, it's Speedy's finest work. I've owned it on vinyl since Stetson reissued it in the 80s. This record apparently has some strange history behind it, too, which I wasn't aware of before:

"Guitar Spectacular was legendary pedal steel player Speedy West's last official "solo" album. Augmented by an extraordinary group of session players including guitarists Roy Lanham and Billy Strange, bassist Red Wootten, drummer Earl Palmer, and pianist/accordion player Billy Liebert, it suffered due to a manufacturers glitch that saw side one repeated on both sides of the album. Despite a re pressing, the damage had already been done, as record stores demanded their money back. The music contained within the "fully realized" version of Spectacular was more than worthy of its moniker, as West sounds more comfortable here than on any session in his career. Whether they're tearing it up on Western swing barnburners like "Double or Nothing" and "Wild and Woolly West" or taking it slow as molasses on lazy diversions like "Sunset at Waikiki," this crystal clear recording deserves the cocked ears of a much larger audience than the one it received in 1962."
Herb Steiner
Posts: 12505
Joined: 4 Aug 1998 11:00 pm
Location: Spicewood TX 78669
Contact:

Post by Herb Steiner »

Mike
Excellent performance and true to the spirit of the tune. Bravo.
HS
My rig: Infinity and Telonics.

Son, we live in a world with walls, and those walls have to be guarded by men with steel guitars. Who's gonna do it? You? You, Lt. Weinberg?
Ambrose Verdibello
Posts: 22
Joined: 24 May 2005 12:01 am
Location: New York, USA

Post by Ambrose Verdibello »

The entire 'Guitar Spectacular' LP is included on CD 3 of the 4 CD Bear Family collection of Speedy West and Jimmy Bryant, 'Flamin Guitars.' It's a fantastic set of music.

Terrific rendition of 'Afternoon...' Mike.
Post Reply