Lonesome On'ry and Mean licks by Ralph Mooney

Jeff Rady · Post by **Jeff Rady** » 31 Oct 2015 7:37 am

Hey all! Here are some great Mooney licks I gleaned from the studio recording of Waylon's "Lonesome, On'ry and Mean" I transcribed the very fist lick at :09 and then the entire verse starting at 1:59.

Here's a video of the first lick and it's breakdown, plus the performance of the entire 2nd verse and Chorus!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pxORjtCmKOU

The whole 37 min.video lesson is on my web site: www.RadyGuide.com if you want to get the entire tab and breakdown.

Feel free to check out all my tabs and video lessons
@ http://radyguide.com/pedal-steel/

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Matt Elsen · Post by **Matt Elsen** » 1 Nov 2015 10:04 am

Nice, Jeff!

Ralph's playing on those old Waylon albums was what hooked me on steel guitar and I still love them and listen to them to this day. This tune just about takes the cake - Mooney just kills it!

Great job on the lesson - very well presented.

Jeff Rady · Post by **Jeff Rady** » 1 Nov 2015 6:05 pm

Thanks Matt! I agree a Mooney classic for sure!

Daniel Policarpo · Post by **Daniel Policarpo** » 6 Nov 2015 5:34 am

Thanks for this one, Jeff. That's a tricky little piece of work. I like the sound your pulling from that Williams.

Andy Keen · Post by **Andy Keen** » 6 Dec 2015 3:12 pm

Nailed it! Very well done! Thanks so much for sharing

Justin Emmert · Post by **Justin Emmert** » 6 Dec 2015 6:59 pm

Nice Jeff! Working out the solo to that one (from Waylon Live version) made me work on forward rolls like crazy! Good stuff!

Tony Trout · Post by **Tony Trout** » 7 Dec 2015 10:10 am

I love Ol' Moon's work on Waylon's albums. Always will. He's right up there with the late Buddy Emmons who, for a time, played some steel guitar with the late Danny Gatton at the Birchmere in Alexandria, VA as one of the Redneck Jazz band members. I've got a CD of the June 10, 1988 set that someone sent me and I absolutely love hearing the interplay between Gatton and Emmons.

I often wonder how (or if) Moon would have fit in with Gatton's playing or whether Gatton even knew who Ralph was?

I believe that the last CD appearance of Mooney was on Marty Stuart's "Ghost Train: The Studio B Sessions" CD way back in 2010....golly, it don't seem like it's been that long.

Joachim Kettner · Post by **Joachim Kettner** » 7 Dec 2015 12:59 pm

I believe Ralph Mooney couldn't have kept up with Gatton, sorry.

Jeff Rady · Post by **Jeff Rady** » 19 Dec 2015 4:09 pm

Thanks everybody for the kind words. I like Mooney cause he's got really cool rhythmic ideas, and his approach and style is real unique, and he seems to always stick in a fair amount of the blues, he's just Mooney! I think comparisons to Emmons always happen. But, I just don't know enough about Emmons work to have a strong opinion. I've only dabbled in Buddy's stuff, and for whatever reason I've always felt Mooney has been more accessible to me, could be due to my level of expertise at this time. They just seem totally different, really incredible, and have a very unique style, and that's my two cent's on that subject!

Glenn Suchan · Post by **Glenn Suchan** » 11 Jan 2016 9:22 am

Jeff,

Thanks for posting your TAB and link to your tutorial. I enjoyed both.

Back in the early 90's I was a member of a honky-tonk band, named the Wildsiders. The Wildsiders covered Steve Young's song, "Lonesome On'ry and Mean". We covered it mainly because the bass player, and singer of the song was a huge Waylon fan.

I shared the solo with the lead guitarist. However, I wasn't thinking of Mooney's approach to this song. I was thinking of Emmons, as the first version of this song that grabbed my ear was Steve Young's version from his 1975 album, Renegade Picker which featured the Big E playing "The Blade".

Anyhoo, just for grins, here are Waylon's version of the song and then Steve Young's version from Renegade Picker.

Waylon:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1mw4ImMUmQ

and Steve Young
https://soundcloud.com/archimedes-gumbi ... -onry-mean

NOTE: The Steve Young link is to my SoundCloud page. After this track it will automatically start playing other selections on my page. I don't know how to prevent this (hi-tech challenged

). So, if you like, you can just close the window after the track plays.

Keep on pickin'!
Glenn

Glenn Suchan · Post by **Glenn Suchan** » 11 Jan 2016 9:38 am

Joachim Kettner wrote:I believe Ralph Mooney couldn't have kept up with Gatton, sorry.

Well, maybe. But here's a cut where Danny Gatton has his hands full (figuratively and literally) in a duo with Joey DeFrancesco. A clear-cut case of an ace guitarist with an encyclopedic knowledge of rock and rock-a-billy licks locking horns with a organist with an encyclopedic knowledge of jazz and music theory:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6EjNcXXTo4

Keep on pickin'!
Glenn

Jeff Rady · Post by **Jeff Rady** » 21 Jan 2016 8:33 am

Hi Glenn,

Thanks for sharing, That's a bad ass version! What's "The Blade?"

Mike Poholsky · Post by **Mike Poholsky** » 27 Jan 2016 6:34 pm

Fantastic studio work by Buddy Emmons on Renegade Picker. Its always been one of my favorite Buddy records.

The Blade was Buddys D10 Emmons Guitar. Wood Grain Mica, I believe.

Thanks for your post Jeff

David LeBlanc · Post by **David LeBlanc** » 29 Jan 2016 9:26 am

Not to disrespect Danny Gatton, but his not the one that made Buck Owens , Merle Haggard & Waylon Jennings signature sounds. His not in Mooney`s league. SORRY.