Thinking about selling everything

[Kevin Lichtsinn]

Do not give up and don't sell a thing. Pick out a song that you like. Find the chords to it via one of the many websites on the web such as http://www.roughstock.com/cowpie/songs/b/. Learn the chord grips and then put the CD into your player and play along. Just play the chords til you get that down. Have fun and relax...........

[Larry Bressington]

Clinton...It sound like you have become heavily disillusioned...Go back to the basics, forget all the instructions of what's right and wrong for now, and all the overwhelming info out there. You need to get some 'Love' back for what you started out, and at the point of giving up, don't worry about all the rights and wrongs for now, it won't matter if you give it up!!

Find that old song that once had you wanting it so bad, and just play along,shut out the rest of the world and computers and all the overwhelming material and such, you and this guitar have to warm up soon with raw soul or a divorce is un-stoppable.

If you have a loaded rig as a beginner, cable tie up all the knee's and dis-connect all the pedals except A+B pedal and E lowers lever, there is enough Love there to last a lifetime, and then you can grow into more if you need to, many pro's don't out-grow that!

100's of Classic steel guitar lick's were played by the greats without any pedals being pressed, and sometimes just the bar vertically laying over a chord position,say fret 8 at C major, and a chosen set of strings selected, find all these beauties first and get back to the basic's of Love!

[Lisa Wyrick]

Clinton- How can you give up with this much feedback and encouragement from fellow steel lovers?
You said you have teacher, that is rare for so many. My teacher is great; teaches at my level and is extremely patient.I find it helpful to have homework so I am accountable for next time.
Having never played any musical instrument before, theory is a big mystery- I bought Mark van Allen's E9 theory CDs and listen to them on my drive to work, great stuff. Also,playing a very simple riff/intro was very rewarding,to play something that sounded cool gave me hope.
Let me know if I can share some basic material that will get you back on track.

[Keith Howard]

This seems to be the "post of the week" so I better chime in. First, I play in a band with a phenomenal, 26 year old, guitar player. Hears a song and plays it back note for note first time. Plays everything from Haggard to Santana with all the right chops and the right tone. He gets mad at himself and I say "if I was you I'd just quit"... He gets madder and plays even better.

On to my point. 1 year ago I was the bass player in a band me and a buddy have had since 1988. We've played on and off ever since then but pretty steady for the past 5 years. Then I decided to buy a Steel. This left 3 guys disappointed and one guy (that I started the band with) optimistically cautions. He loves the steel but probabaly doubted my ability to play it well enough to move from bass. Point is, I didn't have much positive reinforcement even from the guys I play with every week. I told them that I hoped to be playing it with the band within 2 to 3 years. I'd had it about a month when I first played it at a jam session. About 4 months when I first played it with my band (just one set) and about 6 or 7 months into this journey we found a new bass player.

Now... I am just a little above mediocre but nothing moves me forward faster than playing live in the clubs. I sure make my share of mistakes but allot of times when I listen to the recordings I'm trying to figure out what in the hell I played and how it did it. Sounds great but I never practiced it or "learned it". I just felt it and played it when it felt right.

Back up several months. I played it 10 hours the first day I got it. 4 to 8 hours a day, seven days a week for the next several months and so on. I have to work tremendously hard at learning intro's, signature fills or leads etc...

Of all the crazy things I did, the first day, I found Mickey Adams on You Tube. I watched his video on Highway 40 Blues (sounds crazy now) but I watched it dozens of times and dove in to it. It took several days to get just the first few notes. Every day I'd go back and watch that video and try to add a few more notes (for months). One day, I just played it all (and smiled). I worked on this song every single day as part of my overall practice routine. Now that I'm getting faster and better at pick blocking I'm almost ready to taclke it with the band. Somehow, in the process of working on that song everyday... everthing about my playing got better. I emailed Mickey recently and said "you don't know me but you tought me to play pedal steel".

Thanks Mickey... Thanks to Joe Barcus and several others who share so much for us newbies to learn from.

Clinton... If I was you, I'd just quit!

[Pete Conklin]

Clinton, with this instrument it is REAL easy to become overwhelmed with all the pedals and knee levers in the beginning. That happened to me when I first got a steel but I didn't realize till I sold and got away from it for a while. Perhaps that's whats going on with you. I'm not suggesting you sell ur steel, I'm suggesting take a few steps back and just focus on the A/B pedals for now. There's tons of music that can be played with just those two pedals. Then you can start to incorporate everything else slowly. JMHO.

[Jim Reynolds]

Clinton, what ever you do don't quite. I am 72 years old. I started to learn to play the steel in 1985. I fell in love with it, while stationed in Germany and heard Jimmy Day play for Ray Price. in 1964. It was 20 years before I bought one. I did play regular guitar, and sang in bands. Worked with Wade Jackson, (Sonewall Jacksons, brother and met him.) I met Orlo Thompson Bass, Marlo Thompson, Ferlins current wife) and was given the invitation to come to Nashville, and been offered a recording carrier. I chose to stay in the service with a wife and four kids at the time. Orlo and I became very good friend. I also knew Jeannie Seely here in PA in 53-57. Her name then was Marlyn Seely. I never gave up my love for the steel. I retired from the service in 78, moved back to PA after about 3 yrs, I seen an old Fender 1000 sitting in a music store and bought it, along with Winnie Book. In it he said don't buy a 10 string and went on about that. So I took it back, and it just so happened I had met up with a player from Hermitage Pa to teach me pedal steel. He had connection with the wife of someone who just passed away and had a Sho-Bud ProIII. I bought it, and from 86 to 93 I hD LESSONS. (nOW REMEMBER I ALREADY PLAY RHYTHYM GUITAR, AND ALSO BASS. I worked with it 18-20 hrs a day. (The job I had permitted it)then we moved. Acouple months later our daughter, huband and kids moved with us. The steel was put away for about 3 yrs, then we moved to Cumming, Ga. Now I have room, well, two granddaughters moved in with us from our other daughter. The steel was put away again. after 7 yrs, we moved back to PA to take care of my wife's father. Small house 2 bedroom, quess what no place for steel. This was in 2003, I finally got fed up and sold everything, and I had a lot of stuff. That lasted about 6mo, then I started buying back. I now have a MSA Classic XL S-10 3x4, One-Stag S-10 3x4.
The MSA is to heavy to carry, so I got the Stage One ZUM. Very nice guitar just wish I could make a few lever changes. Enough said. Just don't give it up, it is only for you anyway. I have no one here to play with, and most now days are the same. Just hang inb there

[CrowBear Schmitt]

a few years back a fellow gets hold of me wanting a psg
fine, i got him a vg GFI student model
next year he wanted a vintage SD10 pro model
so i got him an LDG
the year after, he tells me he'd like a very good D10
ok - so i found him a Zum
well the next year that rolled in, he told me he wanted to sell all his steels
he explained that all the while being faithful to the pedal,.....
he decided on a bicycle
(one does'nt keep fit pickin' on a steel )

now, i tell certain "potential" buyers over 50, you sure you don't want to play harmonica ?
save you a lot of time & money

So Clinton, yes! sell all your stuff, close the book, open another one
once you have made your decision, we can close this thread ok ?
.........lol ( humor ok ? )

it's a privilege to manage to make sense & sound good on such a contraption
it does'nt seem to be given to all
heck ! everybody's tellin' ya' to hang on & stick w: it
somebody's gotta tell you to
Hang it up !...

[Gene Jones]

My post about thinking about selling my stuff was off topic from the original post, so I am deleting it. If I decide to follow up I will originate a new thread.

[Clinton Damron]

I can't see me selling anything (unless its to buy a new guitar)
I'll get around to tinkering with it again.

[Nick Koff]

I just bought my first pedal steel guitar. I sat down to it for the first time today. I do love it. I figure in about 2-3 years I should be starting to just about be okay. I don't have six hours a day for her so maybe it'll be five. But I do love this guitar.



Wish me luck, boys. And any advice anyone wants to offer will be gladly read.

[Ron Kirby]

Clinton, I would give the steel more time. Dick Wood offered to help you. He can teach you new licks and that would help keep you more interested in playing and learning.

[Mickey Adams]

Right on Keith!!!....

[Dick Wood]

Clinton,I will be at Pearl's Saturday and invite you to come out and see what fun you might be missing if you decide to drop the idea of playing steel.

If you can't make it to Pearl's,I will be at the Longhorn Saloon just down the street on Sunday 3-3-13 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm subbing in with the Joe King Band.Right after Joe King will be the Chris McCandless band with David Biggers on Steel.

I used to go out when I was learning and listen to other players to just talk to them,look at their equipment and maybe steal a lick or two during the night.

The offer still stands on those free lessons.

Hope to see you Saturday or Sunday.

[Clinton Damron]

Clinton,I will be at Pearl's Saturday and invite you to come out and see what fun you might be missing if you decide to drop the idea of playing steel.

If you can't make it to Pearl's,I will be at the Longhorn Saloon just down the street on Sunday 3-3-13 from 1:30 to 3:00 pm subbing in with the Joe King Band.Right after Joe King will be the Chris McCandless band with David Biggers on Steel.

I used to go out when I was learning and listen to other players to just talk to them,look at their equipment and maybe steal a lick or two during the night.

The offer still stands on those free lessons.

Hope to see you Saturday or Sunday.

I don't know how I missed your post but I did.

I was talked into selling my Rains so I am down to 1 guitar now. I did buy another amp, so I guess I'm not ready to give up just yet.

I will be busy the next 2 weekends with hunting turkeys but I'm looking to start learning something again. I'll pm my number for you to give me a call to try to get something going.


I'd like to thank everybody for the kind words and encouragement.

[Billy Carr]

Starting to learn steel in 1971 at 14 years old with no help was a long road. I did have something that put me to another level though. It's probably out of print now but Niel Flanz did an instructional steel album for Sho-Bud, late 60's I think. I woreout two albums listening and studying every lick, intro, turnaround and finger exercises he put in the record. That is what set me in motion to copy the Nashville sound. He had things by Weldon Myrick, Buddy Emmons, Hal Rugg, Lloyd Green and others right there. Shortly after working on the SB album, I met John Hughey at a CT concert. He encouraged me to stay with it. A Texas steelman, Bobby Bowman, had married into our family during the same period. He was actually the very first one to help me get started. Now here in 2013, we're still friends and he's the that put me in touch with the ETS guitars with Larry Agan and Bud Carter. Of course, we lost Larry in an automobile accident recently. Getting back, the Sho-Bud album was my secret to getting ahead faster on steel. That's also where I learned my first speed pickin' things from. Finally at age 19, I was super fast and could pretty much hear something and play it. Now at 55, I like to play ballads and slow songs. I've picked up at least one lick or note from almost every steelman I've listened to in 42 years. As I jokingly say, my steel membership is the lifetime kind. I'll quit when I'm gone! It's a long road, stay with it. It'll fall into place.

[Storm Rosson]

Billy, that album was my only source of instruction for a year or so. I still have a vinyl copy as I got Lynn Wooldridge in Roswell who sold me my Pro II ,to get me a couple more copies after my first got so scratchy it was unlistenable.....

[Dick Wood]

Clinton,I sent you a PM.

DW