This is what happens after not playing steel since 1991

[Don Brown, Sr.]

Just a reminder of what Not to do, if you want to stay on top of things, when it comes to your steel playing, regardless whether or not you're nothing much or one of the best. If you don't stay with it, you'll lose it all.

click here

click here

I'm finding that making any kind of a comeback even for my own enjoyment in home recording is a very hard thing to do.

Where does time go, when you get older? 1991 is a long time ago, but seems like it was no more than a couple of years.

I'm open to all kinds of remarks whether good, bad or indifferent. Criticisms serve to make one try all that much harder to get it right.

So have at it, I promise not to be offended.
Don

[Charles Davidson]

Don,it's true if you don't use it you lose it. I played sixstring for years before I played steel. Not bragging just stating a fact, I was above average,made a living for almost thirty years on guitar, Started playing steel maybe twenty years ago,have'nt touched a guitar since,[sure regret it] I could'nt sit in with a three chord front porch jam band on guitar today.By the way don't sound like you have lost too much tho. YOU BETCHA,DYK?BC.

[Alan Brookes]

Talking about not using it and losing it, I had a nasty touch of this the other day. I've been using a bar for so long now that I picked up a 12-string guitar and found I rattled all over the place. The muscles in my left hand couldn't hold down the strings firm enough. I've been doing some hand exercises since then, and I'm getting back to how I used to be, but my hand has been aching like a teenager who just started playing.

[Allan Jirik]

You're being too hard on yourself, it sounds good. I quit in 1981 and just got back into steel last year, 29 years away from it. I played dobro, banjo and mandolin in the interim. Now I'm having so much fun I wish I hadn't quit but I had my reasons at the time. Funny thing though- the first time around I lowered my E's with RKL and now I'll be playing along with a tune and invariably try to get the 7th chord with that lever (LKR does it now). Talk about an ingrained response after all those years! Anyway, keep playing and enjoying the steel. I tell people that I'm trying "to get back to my former level of mediocrity." That always brings a laugh.

[Roger Francis]

Sounds good Don, keep it up. Your probably not satisfying yourself which is a good thing cause it makes you want to practice harder. I criticize my self alot and i haven't stop playing since i started in 1975, so keep playing, you got the talent

[Bobbe Seymour]

................tell me about it,

[Dana Blodgett]

Don, I can relate to what you're feeling! I quit playing for 21 years,even though I still played the guitar and Uke. Your playing sounds really good to my ear. If you are anything like me, you are your own worst critic! I've been back at it for about a year and a half now, I'm making progress but I still think I suck! If I played half as good as you I'd be happy! Keep goin' after it.

[Don Brown, Sr.]

Gosh, I'm really sorry for taking so long to reply.

Thanks for all of the uplifts, I'll be trying to do a little better each time. As I've been reading the different replies, it seems that I'm not alone in finding out how things go after, years of not playing.

And Bobbe, is just as good now as he was years, years, and more years,,,, Back in time...

Gosh, Charles, Alan, Allan Jirik, Roger, Bobbe Seymour, & Dana. Hope I didn't leave anyone out!

Thanks for all of the uplifts. I'm finding out I sure can use lots at this point and time.

I do promise I'll try harder each time to try and improve on the previous. As long as I can accomplish that, I'll know I'm still going in the right direction.

I believe, the most frustrating for me is in not being able to use my right leg for those changes. Not caring about the changes I never had before, but I'd sure like having the use of my F#'s to G, and my second and ninth, string lowers, to where they'd work in conjunction with the pedals and Left knees. But, using my right leg for anything other than the volume pedal is (this time around) out of the equation. As is, using my left leg for the vertical. So I am at a bit of a disadvantage, by todays standards. And, I will admit, "that" (at times) is a bit frustrating.

So my setup (I have use of) is, really quite simple:
"A Partial Emmons Setup"

LKL: 4 & 8 Lower
LKR: 4 & 8 Raise
Pedals: A, B, C

Bobbe, I too, chose to regress back to the high G on C6.

Thanks again to everyone, you're all too kind.

Don

[Tony Prior]

common thing I guess..

I sold my Twin and Sho-Bud Pro III around 9o or so..played only Bass and Guitar for the next 10 years, didn't even own a Steel. Around 2000 or so I ran across the "Black Album" and played it..

well within 3 months I had 3 Steels an amp and a V Pedal..started practicing like crazy..

but..

lost a ton of right hand dexterity which basically still has not returned. I was 10 years older and getting older everyday..I had to adjust my style of playing to match what my right hand could manage. There is no way the right hand alternate style of picking was ever going to return,it came back somewhat but it's not the same. that's what 10 years of no practice will do to ya...

[Don Brown, Sr.]

Tony, Your right. Everything is so much different. Just playing to backup tracks, (for me) is a whole new experience. I suppose for the ones coming along who are used to using tracks, it's much easier. But even though good, nothing beats good live backup. So I've got a whole lot of (new to me) things going on.

But it is (now) fun again, just trying to get over the shakes from the time I hit the record button. Playing live on stage or during recordings never bothered me back in the day.

I think what makes it now, fun again, is in knowing that I have no time limit to be here or there, and it's on my own terms, and days when I feel up to it.

But I do find it challenging. Especially working with a limited copedent. Besides, it keeps me out of trouble....

[Mat Rhodes]

When I was practicing pedal steel for anywhere from 3-5 hours a day, there came a point after doing it for a few years that the "fun" part of it started to diminish in relation to the "proficiency" part. The better I got at it, the less fun and mysterious it became.

I packed it up about year-and-a-half ago and took up nonpedal. It's a totally new game now and I'm not nearly as good at it as I thought I was at PSG, but the fun factor is up to the same level as it was when I first started on PSG. Especially since I no longer have to disassemble and haul that beast to gigs!

[Don Brown, Sr.]

Matt, Whatever works for the benefit of doing something you enjoy, and challenges to oneself, are always the best way to improve.....