Is Lap Steel Playing Fairly Uncommon?

John Limbach · Post by **John Limbach** » 31 Mar 2016 1:09 pm

Vintage Guitar Magazine thinks so. They ran a nice article about an old Lelani Lap Steel and Amp. Except for one line, which really hacked me off: "lap-style playing is fairly uncommon these days, and most lap steels are sought more as works of art or interesting objects to hang on a wall."

My "works of art", 1934 Rickenbacher Frypan with matchinig amp and 1951 BD6 are played nearly every day.

Obviously the folks at Vintage Guitar must not be aware of this forum! You can read the article at this link.

http://www.vintageguitar.com/15686/leil ... amplifier/

Ben Elder · Post by **Ben Elder** » 31 Mar 2016 1:37 pm

In the big wide world of more than seven billion people, the scant few thousand of us worldwide who do play lap steel pretty well collectively confirm VG's assertion. Even one percent of the population would be 70 million people and I'd be surprised if even one per cent of the one percent play steel guitar of any sort.

Our world is not the world.

Frank James Pracher · Post by **Frank James Pracher** » 31 Mar 2016 2:38 pm

A local radio station had a guitar contest and I made it into the semi-finals playing lap steel. When I was interviewed on the radio the DJ had no idea what a lap steel was...(it was a "rock" station.. but still)

John Mulligan · Post by **John Mulligan** » 31 Mar 2016 3:00 pm

Nice article. I'm definitely into it for the "sparkly tuner knobs" myself.

John Limbach · Post by **John Limbach** » 31 Mar 2016 4:32 pm

Ben Elder wrote:In the big wide world of more than seven billion people, the scant few thousand of us worldwide who do play lap steel pretty well collectively confirm VG's assertion. Even one percent of the population would be 70 million people and I'd be surprised if even one per cent of the one percent play steel guitar of any sort.

Our world is not the world.

Yes, but, I wouldn't expect the great unwashed 7 billion to know or care. Vintage Guitar on the other hand is a lot closer to our world and we should reasonably expect them to be more informed.

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 31 Mar 2016 4:38 pm

..."most lap steels are sought more as works of art or interesting objects to hang on a wall."

That reminds me of the guitar site that said lap steels are "obsolete" today because of pedal steels. I posted a thread about it on the old Steel Guitar Forum in 2002 and it caused quite a stir!

Michael Butler · Post by **Michael Butler** » 31 Mar 2016 9:08 pm

John Limbach wrote:
Ben Elder wrote:In the big wide world of more than seven billion people, the scant few thousand of us worldwide who do play lap steel pretty well collectively confirm VG's assertion. Even one percent of the population would be 70 million people and I'd be surprised if even one per cent of the one percent play steel guitar of any sort.

Our world is not the world.
Yes, but, I wouldn't expect the great unwashed 7 billion to know or care. Vintage Guitar on the other hand is a lot closer to our world and we should reasonably expect them to be more informed.

i would tend to agree with mr. elder and his statement.

i get vintage guitar mag and now and then they may have an article about ben harper or david lindley or robert randolph. but, mostly they have a lot of the articles about bands i've never heard of who started out playing heavy metal covers and still play mostly that way. so, vintage guitar mag doesn't even cover vintage guitar players that much anymore. cool, man, i'm playing a vintage 93 strat!

Clayton Pashka · Post by **Clayton Pashka** » 1 Apr 2016 7:17 am

"That reminds me of the guitar site that said lap steels are "obsolete" today because of pedal steels."

This reminded me of an interview with either Kayton Roberts or herb Remmington, I can't remember which. Where the reason for not switching to pedals was because the soul in your playing comes from your hands, or something along those lines.

Mark Eaton · Post by **Mark Eaton** » 1 Apr 2016 9:45 am

i get vintage guitar mag and now and then they may have an article about ben harper or david lindley or robert randolph. but, mostly they have a lot of the articles about bands i've never heard of who started out playing heavy metal covers and still play mostly that way. so, vintage guitar mag doesn't even cover vintage guitar players that much anymore. cool, man, i'm playing a vintage 93 strat!

The part about bands who started out playing heavy metal covers and the mag doesn't even cover vintage guitar players much anymore - really?

I read it on a fairly regular basis and I don't find this to be the case at all. I find the magazine to be a good blend of vintage and modern. Unlike a publication like Guitar World, where metal and prog rocker guitarists are often featured on the cover, this is extremely rare with Vintage Guitar.

There have been well written articles in the past several years on the likes of Lloyd Green, Bobby Black, Kayton Roberts and Jerry Douglas.

I understand the original poster's beef with the comment in the lap steel article and that was one writer's take on it. But I don't get it about being critical of the mag as having descended into some level of lameness, or at least something that has no appeal for many of us here.

Here is link to a recent piece on vintage Dickerson lap steels with a couple photos featuring a classic MOTS guitar, I thought they did a nice job with this:

http://www.vintageguitar.com/16357/dick ... lap-steel/

Lee Gillespie · Post by **Lee Gillespie** » 1 Apr 2016 10:08 am

I've been playing steel since I was 15 years old. I'm now gonna be 85 in July. Of course when I started there was no such thing as a pedal steel guitar. Eventually I got my first pedal (multiharp) when I was discharged from the service and graduated to a regular pedal steel (ZB) and had many different ones since. My last one was a MSA 5X10 12 string which I played many dance jobs with. About 12 years ago I could hardly carry the weight of my MSA and case. I called Maurice Anderson then and said I"m going back to the lap steel. He said ya he is too. I built 2 8 string laps for my self and have been playing them both since.
I must say I enjoy playing the lap with all the cross bars etc. since.
I still play in a group and of course I play my lap steels instead of that heavy 12 string. It's a challange to get the modern licks but I get a few. Right now I'm building my self a 10 string (just to keep my self out of bars and off the streets) HA ha.
Just a short story of my experience with lap and pedal. Thank you Lee Gillespie

Dom Franco · Post by **Dom Franco** » 1 Apr 2016 10:17 am

I am sure that most of you who play steel guitar, often get the question "what is that thing called?"

My observation during many years of public performance is that about 90% of all people have never seen a steel guitar up close. (They may have heard the sound often, but never considered the source)

Even among professional musicians I jam with, gig with and especially those I meet at music stores, the percentage isn't much better.

I love to go to Guitar Center (or any other music store) to try out an amp or new pedal with my lap steel. Amid all the distortion and loud noisy guitar playing, I play some jazzy chords, blues licks or slide out a familiar melody and every head turns my way!

I am a big ham and after a few minutes I will have several young musicians gathered around me to ask all the usual questions.

What is that?
How is it tuned?
Is that a slide you are holding?
Do you know Sleepwalk?

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 1 Apr 2016 10:51 am

Yes, it is very uncommon. We are a small minority of players. There are probably almost as many collectors as players.

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 1 Apr 2016 11:35 am

..."what is that thing called?"

Yep, I've heard people call it a "string guitar, iron guitar, slide, synthesizer, that thing, steel pedal, keyboard" etc, etc...

But I've discovered that listeners/viewers can relate slightly more to a lap steel than a pedal steel. The simplicity of a lap steel on the player's lap, and the bar sliding on the strings, can be understood by most people. But the pedal steel is mind boggling to the average person. It looks like a keyboard but has a lot of strings, sounds "Hawaiian" to most people, has foot pedals. The first time I heard the term "steel guitar" I was a teenager and I had no idea what it was. I thought it was probably a guitar made of steel!

Frank Welsh · Post by **Frank Welsh** » 1 Apr 2016 3:14 pm

Clayton Pashka wrote:"That reminds me of the guitar site that said lap steels are "obsolete" today because of pedal steels."

This reminded me of an interview with either Kayton Roberts or herb Remmington, I can't remember which. Where the reason for not switching to pedals was because the soul in your playing comes from your hands, or something along those lines.

When I ordered my Remington D-8 a few years ago, in my conversation with Herb Remington I mentioned the seemingly increased/revived interest in non-pedal steel. Herb was aware of this trend and replied that it's because "the hand is connected to the heart."

Having started on non-pedal and then going to pedal steel, I now play non-pedal almost exclusively and feel that I am much more expressive with the non-pedal. I feel a more direct connection with the strings and the notes with the bar and the slants and so forth although I maintain my appreciation for pedal steel.

When I first heard the term "steel guitar" in 1959 when "Sleepwalk" came out, I automatically assumed that the instrument somehow incorporated steel in it's construction although I couldn't imagine how. I never suspected that the term "steel" was based on the bar and not the guitar's construction. Only when I bought my first lap steel did I learn the correct meaning of the term. The term "steel guitar" does seem to add to the confusion of the non-playing public as it did to me at first and I was already a six-string guitar player at the time. On their own the public would probably never instantly associate the term "steel" with the bar or "slide" as so many non-players call it.

Orville Johnson · Post by **Orville Johnson** » 2 Apr 2016 9:38 am

That makes us special.

Steven Pearce · Post by **Steven Pearce** » 2 Apr 2016 10:27 am

I play bass, guitar, and more,
but the lap steel is the true musical 'Love of my Life'.
No pedals, just hands & heart. I played a few times with a guitar
player named Jerry Miller...when he saw me playing he said,
"I'm sure glad you don't play one of those 'Sewing Machines'
uhh, I mean Pedal Steels!"
Steve.

Michael James · Post by **Michael James** » 2 Apr 2016 3:15 pm

I listen to a lot of country, both modern and traditional. I hear lots of lap steel playing on the radio these days. Or at least pedal players that are not using their pedals to sound like a lap steel players.
Even though there isn't many players, the sound is all over the place.

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 2 Apr 2016 9:19 pm

When I realized I had around ten steel guitars, I knew it was time the reduce the number.
Kinda reminds me of an outboard motor collection I had. Got rid of all but one !
I play all my lap steels, but have a Dual Pro that I don't like. It will go the way of the outboard collection...out !

Chris Templeton · Post by **Chris Templeton** » 3 Apr 2016 9:12 am

Michael James- Are you sure the lapsteel you hear isn't really a slide guitar?

Michael James · Post by **Michael James** » 3 Apr 2016 6:21 pm

For players that use a lot of distortion It can be hard to tell sometimes. The clean stuff though is either pedal or lap steel.

Paul Seager · Post by **Paul Seager** » 4 Apr 2016 5:53 am

Dom Franco wrote: "what is that thing called?"

Yep, happened twice in my last two appearences, both in a blues session. First time, a guitarist came up to me and my Ricky and said "that is one good looking instrument, what the hell is it?"

Second time, I screwed on the Ricky's legs, flipped it upright and heard a woman say to her partner "Oh that guy has a guitar on legs".

These are humorous but a seasoned musician came very close to getting one on the nose with the commment "I love to hear a slide player"!

Yes we are a minority but in the right band you can become the most memorable player!

\ paul

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 4 Apr 2016 6:02 am

I've heard people call it a "string guitar, iron guitar, slide, synthesizer, that thing, steel pedal, keyboard" etc, etc...

I heard a new one this past weekend... "flat guitar"

Frank James Pracher · Post by **Frank James Pracher** » 4 Apr 2016 6:29 am

I'm actually surprised when someone get's it right! I was on a set break a couple of weeks ago and an older gentleman shook my hand and said "You don't see too many young fellers playing the straight steel anymore"

Stefan Robertson · Post by **Stefan Robertson** » 4 Apr 2016 7:18 am

I think due to many rubbish players out there who crank up the distortion slide past notes and sound terrible. In fact if that were regular guitar people would scream "you need to practice more mate" or " turn that rubbish down".

Anyway most of those guys, I won't name names but all they can play is a blues 1-4-5, they are the ones who when asked by people have perpetuated the "slide guitar" term instead of Lap Steel Guitar.

Check YouTube for some common examples or your local guitar store. I hate it when people find out that it's Lap Steel Guitar and the first thing they respond is man you have got to hear X he/she are amazing. And it's always the same screeching blues in a bad way with nor regard to notes or tone or key or scale. It definitely happens here in London.

Stefan Robertson · Post by **Stefan Robertson** » 4 Apr 2016 7:26 am

I remember working on a project and the vocalist/songwriter played some Lap Steel Guitar on the recording. He needed someone to play it live and I asked him are you sure. It was awful. I felt so ashamed that I ended up breaking into a solo that was actually in key. He then said to me after that next gig I should try and play his terrible playing on the recording.

I collected the cash from that gig and parted ways. The drummer thought his music was crap too so he left the same week as well.

Anyway sorry to get distracted from the topic.

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Is Lap Steel Playing Fairly Uncommon?

Is Lap Steel Playing Fairly Uncommon?

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