Paul Franklin

Micky Byrne · Post by **Micky Byrne** » 29 Jul 2011 6:03 am

Well spoken Charles....and PER, as you said "In your honest opinion" more presence etc etc...well, I guess our opinions "DO" differ, as I'd imagine most of the forumites would too!! As Charles said, the Forum is not really a place to be a critic on a player's playing, be it tone or technique, especially to the exceptional Kalibre of Paul's playing!!...have a good day. BTW, I've visited your Country twice before (Gothenburg)..nice place

...take care and keep pickin'

Micky Byrne U.K.

Sho-Bud and Carter universals. Nashville 400 and Evans Fet 500 amps.

www.micky-byrne.co.uk

Thomas Ludwig · Post by **Thomas Ludwig** » 29 Jul 2011 8:31 am

this one is really from the heart

thanks for sharing

Ken Byng · Post by **Ken Byng** » 29 Jul 2011 8:51 am

Per Berner wrote:Spine chills and goosebumps galore! Dawn Sears must be THE best singer out there right now. Paul Franklin does a really good job too, almost as good as John Hughey did.

I wish PF would turn up the treble a notch or two, though – on everything he plays, live or on record. It would sound so much better!

Per
A few months back I sat right in front of Paul (about 4 feet away) and the tone that he got through his Little Walter rig was superb. Period.

You obviously like a tone biased with a heavy top end. That is not how Paul sets his equipment.

Adair Torres · Post by **Adair Torres** » 29 Jul 2011 4:13 pm

I think every one sets his equipment according to your own taste.

"Geniuses are people who have their own light."

===== Paul is one of them. =====

Kevin Mincke · Post by **Kevin Mincke** » 29 Jul 2011 4:29 pm

Dang, I think I'll hang it up or as Neil Young says "Think I'll pack it in"

Franklin · Post by **Franklin** » 30 Jul 2011 8:11 am

Wow.....You guys certainly know how to make a guys day....Thanks for the nice comments.

Per.....

Not that I owe you an explanation..... All of the musicians I know, including the ones you mentioned, not only altered their tone over the years to satisfy gig requirements, they sometimes alter it per song, or per job, as I have tried to do since the 70's........The ones I admire most, found an individual tonal and musical voice which helped them stand out from the crowd....Thats a key element for any studio player with a desire to get more gigs.

As for your opinion on my touch....I started out using the harder touch with more pick noise and was perfectly content until my mid twenties......After hearing Lloyd, John, Buddy, Day, and pretty much everyone else state that Jerry Byrd is the master of touch, I revisited my favorite Jerry Byrd LP, "Admirable Byrd" for a closer examination of the touch.... I heard exactly why he is considered the master of touch by all of those greats....IMO Whether its your cup of tea, or not, his touch is perfection compared to anyone else.........Since then, Jerry Byrd's ballad right hand stood out as the touch I strive towards....... Jerry hits the strings so smoothly with as much definition as any hard picker. You will rarely hear the sound of his picks on the strings of the ballads he recorded..........If you ever try playing in that world, you will find that mastering a technique like Jerry's is a constant lifetimes work to maintain. Out of all the players ballad techniques I've explored, I found his touch the most difficult to master. It requires constant nurturing because it requires exactness to the point of perfection to maintain a silky smooth touch. I'll probably continue on with that direction for the rest of my life until I believe I am there......

As for your opinion towards my tone.......Since the digital world, studio musicians in general have moved towards darker tones...For me, Its because I am trying to counter the harsh top end edge of the digital world...Of those who employ me, most prefer a warmer top end over the high edge you recommend.........That's one perspective, there is also the traditional perspective I have to consider....long before the twangy chicken picken sounds introduced in the mid sixties era which is the period of your tonal preference, The steel tones in country and swing music were darker and came from the warmth of the Bigsby pedal and lap steels through the less bright amps of that era.....This tonal direction best fits the live scene I am involved with........As for playing in a swing band (which is what those clips are from) a higher pitched tone would sound inappropriate to the genre, kinda like Vince and Andy playing Tele's on the gig instead of the deeper Jazz guitars they bring to the stage......My tone needs to match theirs for twin parts....

As for using more strings.....To use the old joke punch line...."I just pull out enough to win"

Just kidding.......

Thanks for listening.

PS As for the intent here......This was written in a kind voice.....No anger intended nor should any be applied......Thanks..........Paul

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 30 Jul 2011 9:50 am

Back in 1976 I was 21 and met Dwight Harris a friend of Jerry Byrd's. Dwight lived in the Detroit area and played on WJR back in the day with a little Rickenbacher 7 string. He had that kind of touch and tone.

He came over to my apartment to jam with the kids and taught us all a lesson. I'll have to dig out some of the tapes if I still have them.

I had a Sho-bud Professional at the time and what I played on it compared to Dwight was anything but professional.

Russ

Don Sulesky · Post by **Don Sulesky** » 31 Jul 2011 5:04 am

Wow

They sure did it right.
Don

Peter Nylund · Post by **Peter Nylund** » 31 Jul 2011 5:14 am

Per Berner wrote:
I wish PF would turn up the treble a notch or two, though – on everything he plays, live or on record. It would sound so much better!

I would be really happy if my tone was even close to that.

Gary Lee Gimble · Post by **Gary Lee Gimble** » 31 Jul 2011 5:56 am

I'd be happy if I could play 1/2 has as good as Peter

Charles Curtis · Post by **Charles Curtis** » 31 Jul 2011 12:54 pm

I'd be happy if I could play half as good as Gary.

Frank Freniere · Post by **Frank Freniere** » 31 Jul 2011 1:33 pm

Just got around to watching this - wow...

John Haspert · Post by **John Haspert** » 31 Jul 2011 7:03 pm

In my book, Mr. Paul Franklin walks on water of the Pedal Steel Guitar World. He is the consumate professional and if I could play any instrument 1 / 100'th as well as Paul; I would be in 7'th heaven. The part that has impressed me the most about him is that he considers the mastery of the instrument to be a constant effort. His dedication to learning and perfecting his talent is exemplary. His tone and technique are to die for! Paul- You Rock, You Swing....You really are the man.

Paul King · Post by **Paul King** » 31 Jul 2011 7:17 pm

I have played for over 30 years and heard many steel players. I absolutely find nothing wrong with Paul Franklins playing or tone. I am just blown away at how flawless his playing is. When it all said and done he will be considered one of the greats of all time. He already is in my books.

Ron Funk · Post by **Ron Funk** » 6 Aug 2011 7:35 pm

We all should feel very very fortunate that Paul takes time to always post most informative info on The Forum.

Thanks is such a small word - but can mean so much.

So Thanks Paul.

Tommy R. Butler · Post by **Tommy R. Butler** » 8 Aug 2011 10:26 pm

JF finger picks & Herco thumb pick?

Tom Stolaski · Post by **Tom Stolaski** » 8 Aug 2011 10:59 pm

Paul's post about tone and the sound of the picks hitting the strings reminds me of the the last time I saw Buddy Emmons play at Scotty's convention in 2006. They had big screen TV's on both sides of the stage with views of the hands and the feet. I was amazed at the volume pedal technique that I never noticed before. Every time Buddy hit a string, his volume pedal was in the up position. You never heard pick noise. This was slow or medium tempo E9th of course. The fast C6th stuff is a different story. The notes are going by so fast, you don't notice the sound of the picks hitting the strings.