Remembering Bill West.

Joe Krumel · Post by **Joe Krumel** » 10 Feb 2019 1:57 pm

Back in late 80's I remember watching Bill at the old E Tubb record shop. He was playing an old Bud and sounding great. I never saw this before,but some of his knee levers were channel lock pliers hanging down!! Worked like a charm!

Neil Degraw · Post by **Neil Degraw** » 10 Feb 2019 5:44 pm

When I saw Bill, he was playing with Dottie and had a completely/everything, gold plated steel. Can't remember what brand it was. We had a steel player, Spike, Gary Spicer, here in Canada, who played a Marlin with barn door hinges hanging down for knee levers.

Joe Krumel · Post by **Joe Krumel** » 10 Feb 2019 6:05 pm

Things have changed so much. The gear we have now is built on the experimenting of the greats that were Willing to try anything. I tip my hat to them, they paved the way for us. Joe

jay thompson · Post by **jay thompson** » 10 Feb 2019 6:40 pm

Neil,
I also worked a show in the early 1960's,that had Dottie and her band with Bill playing his gold plated Sho~Bud.
The next time I had occasion to speak with Bill, 1973, he told me he lost the gold plated Sho~Bud in the house fire they experienced while living in Nashville.
Regards, Jay Thompson

Ronnie Boettcher · Post by **Ronnie Boettcher** » 11 Feb 2019 6:19 am

I can still see Bill, on stage, every Saturday evening, at the Denison Theater. Sitting at his black Sho~Bud, playing with us. And Dottie coming up to do her part. We had 2 live sets, with a movie in between, that took up the whole Saturday night. This was right before She moved to Nashville. In Cleveland Ohio. Dottie also had a friend that would sing with her, named Cathy Dearth. When Dottie moved to Nashville, Cathy had her own band called Cathy's clowns.

David Nutt · Post by **David Nutt** » 11 Feb 2019 1:37 pm

I remember sitting and watching Bill playing with a band in Opryland in 79/80, when the show ended I introduced myself as a steel player from the UK, he was such a nice bloke, we went to eat and chatted steel guitar all night, fabulous guy and great player, he never once mentioned Dottie, I only found out later that they had been married.