It was in the mid-60s when I first met Lee Wheeler.
At the time I was located in the San Juan Islands north of Seattle, just getting into the music business there and working my way up on the local club circuits. The club I was working in at the time was also a restaurant and could re-open their doors after the bar closed. Musicians would come from miles around to enjoy breakfast consider clown around and shoot the bull.
After this we would jump in our cars and head for Portland Oregon, about a four hour run south. The jam sessions there began at wee-thirty and would run all day Sunday and Sunday night. We did our best not to miss one. Remembering some of the musicians from that area at the time, there were Gene and Patsy Pullin and Gene Breeden, a guitar player who later ended up in Nashville for some time come to mind. “nuther fella’, a guitar player comes to mind called “Granny Goose†who was into the pills so much that the drug stores in the area had an ongoing notice on him.
On one of these trips to Portland I met Lee Wheeler and although I was fascinated by the steel guitar at this time I had not yet begun to learn to play one. Sure did love the sound though.
As my career began to unfold I added the five string banjo to my repertoire of instruments and began learning the steel guitar. My heroes at the time were Ralph Mooney and Buddy Emmons of course because he had all the lessons available. Also loved Curly Chocker and there was a blind fellow out of Spokane Washington named Neil Livingston who completely played the fire out of that instrument. Sweet. Another of my favorites is an old boy named Rick Dunn who hails from South Carolina but now lives in the Pacific Northwest. Rick did travel with me on the road a bit and is also a good friend of Johnny Galvin. Great guitar player and monster steel guitar player.
By the time Nashville came up in the headlights of my career I’d gotten to the point where I had a comfort zone on the steel itself. At the time I was playing a single necked 10 string Show Bud which I liked a lot. Anyway it was at this time that I ran across Lee Wheeler again. Lee had set up shop and was building steel guitars in Nashville. Whenever I got the chance I’d stop by and watch his work in progress and shoot the bull.
Although I played steel at the time, I still hired a full-time steel player for the band. The one thing that irritated me the most was steel guitars that would not stay in tune and I’m sad to say steel guitar players who incessantly attempted to tune them while I was trying to front a show. My one criteria for a new steel guitar was one that would stay in tune.
At the time, Lee was experimenting with what he called tempered aluminum. It was his claim that being tempered aluminum it didn’t respond to changes in heat and cold and other outside variables as much as the wood or aluminum that was being used at the time. It was at this time when he was modifying the keys and had it down to where a set of 10 actually took up less space than half of the standard set. To make a long story short I unloaded my Show Bud and bought one of Lee’s single neck 10’s. That guitar is everything I hoped it could be and more. Pack it up, throw it in the trailer, beat it down the road for 2000 miles, set her up and guess what? She’s in tune. And what’s more is that It kept on doing that over and over for the next 25 years.
A couple three years ago I Was Windowshopping on eBay and found a real sweet offering. A Lee Wheeler, PedAll steel guitar. I believe it may be the same one shown in this store window in Nashville.
It’s a sweet thing and I thought I’d retire my original Wheeler. Can’t bring myself to do that though so it’s off to market with my new acquisition and I’m putting it on Craigslist today.
Wherever he is, I hope Lee Wheeler finds this little tribute and my blessing.
