The X-Slant

[Andy Volk]

The late Jerry Byrd was the absolute master of this slick slant move. It takes a lot of practice to play smoothly and in tune but once you have it down, it's a very cool arrow in your quiver that works in a bunch of genres. Here's some X-slant info I contributed about a year and a half ago to the "Lap Steel Lunatics" group on Facebook ...







Doug Beaumier plays a nice X-slant in this video of “Send Me the Pillow” in the intro, 8 seconds into the video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO2Tf8KLJ14

[Jack Hanson]

One of the first things I learned when I got my tricone and set it up in high-bass A (where strings 1 & 3 are tuned the same as C6 with an E on top) years ago. A patented early Sol Hoopii move.

Will try the Ninja version on C6; thanks Andy!

[Joe Burke]

Thanks Andy! I use that slant in Lei No Kaʻiulani. Alan Akaka helped me figure that one out. Some days I play it fairly well! I feel like slanting is the reason to play lap steel.

[Ian Rae]

(I feel like not slanting is the reason to play pedal)

[Joe Cook]

I feel like slanting is the reason to play lap steel.

Exactly! I get kind of bored with pedal steel. I've sold my PSG and love playing lap steel more than I ever did pedal steel. To me, it's more of a challenge. The slants are fun and when you get them down they can add more expression than the mashing of pedals. Thanks Andy for the exercises!

[G Strout]

I thought at one point that Doug Beaumier made a short instructional video on the "X slant." I know that the song you posted the link for (Send me the Pillow) is in his Lap Steel instructional book.

[Doug Beaumier]

The version of "Send Me the Pillow" that's in my "25 MORE Songs" book does not have the intro or the solo that are in the video. It's just the melody of the song.

Regarding the X-slant on the video: The song is in the key of A, and the intro is I, V, I (A, E, A). The slant happens over the E chord in the intro, and it resolves over the A chord. So it starts with a reverse slant and goes to a forward slant (X-slant). Below are the two positions.

The first position (G# and D) is the 3rd and b7 of the E chord. The second position (A and C#) is the root and the 3rd of the A chord. So it makes a sweet counterpoint. By the way, this is not something that I arrived at by analyzing the theory first. I stumbled upon it by ear and later analyzed why it works musically.

[tab]
(E7) (A) (E7) (A)

x-slant notes
E ----4------5----|-----G#-----A-----
C ----------------|------------------
A ----5------4----|-----D------C#----
G ----------------|------------------
E ----------------|------------------
C ----------------|------------------
[/tab]

Video ---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO2Tf8KLJ14

[David Matzenik]

I play Blue Hawaii in Bb using A6th tuning. In the last bar, I do a reverse slant on strings 1 and 3 at the 5th and 6th frets respectively. I then pivot the bar to a forward slant which is a Bb over a D.

Which brings me to the subject of Reverse Slants. The thumb nail is almost always curved, and so should be the indent in the bar for which it is designed. The flat indent in some bars is not ergonomically ideal.

[Bob Watson]

Thanks for posting this Andy. I don't use slants very often but I've been wanting to get into them more lately and this post is inspirational. I used one today on a Dobro gig and I've been wanting to learn more slants on the Dobro tuning too, along with the C6 tuning.

[Marc Muller]

Recently discovered a 4 note Dom7th chord with an extreme slant on GBDGBD tuning. Actually in tune!

[Lloyd Graves]

Thanks for this. I play high bass A, but as said earlier, the 1st and 3rd strings are the same, so it's a great thing to learn for me, as well.

A quick question though: The image says that's a C7 -> C7, which is technically true, but isn't that really a C -> C7? Because the first position is a C and an E, and the second position is a B and an E.

Thanks. I'm still new to the music theory world, so this is confusing me a bit.

[Doug Beaumier]

The image says that's a C7 -> C7... the first position is a C and an E, and the second position is a B and an E... this is confusing me a bit.

I believe the slant goes to a Bb note (on string 1), not B. So the forward slant is E and C and the reverse slant is E and Bb, which produces the dominant 7th sound when played over a C chord.

In other words, it's the 3rd and the root (of C), slanted to the 3rd and the b7 (of C).

[Marc Muller]

Recently discovered a 4 note Dom9th chord with an extreme slant on GBDGBD tuning. Actually in tune!

[Mike DiAlesandro]

The version of "Send Me the Pillow" that's in my "25 MORE Songs" book does not have the intro or the solo that are in the video. It's just the melody of the song.

Regarding the X-slant on the video: The song is in the key of A, and the intro is I, V, I (A, E, A). The slant happens over the E chord in the intro, and it resolves over the A chord. So it starts with a reverse slant and goes to a forward slant (X-slant). Below are the two positions.

The first position (G# and D) is the 3rd and b7 of the E chord. The second position (A and C#) is the root and the 3rd of the A chord. So it makes a sweet counterpoint. By the way, this is not something that I arrived at by analyzing the theory first. I stumbled upon it by ear and later analyzed why it works musically.

[tab]
(E7) (A) (E7) (A)

x-slant notes
E ----4------5----|-----G#-----A-----
C ----------------|------------------
A ----5------4----|-----D------C#----
G ----------------|------------------
E ----------------|------------------
C ----------------|------------------
[/tab]

Video ---> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GO2Tf8KLJ14

That's a change I like and promote on E9th as well. Strings 6 and 9 open. Then raise strings 6 (G#) to an A with the B Pedal, and lower string 9 (D), to a C# with usually RKR...

I must say as primariy a pedal player, that this change has a unique quality to it when achieved with the slants being discussed...

[Andy Volk]

The real trick, in a nutshell, is keeping the lower note rock solid while the upper note smoothly moves between notes.

[Mike Neer]

Not many know this, but there is also an X slant on strings 2, 4 and 6 which yields a mirror image.

rootless Cmin6 (and various other chords, like F9, Am7b5)
[tab]
E ----------------|-----------------
C -------6--------|-------8---------
A ----------------|-----------------
G -------7--------|-------7---------
E ----------------|------------------
C -------8--------|-------6---------
[/tab]

[Mike Neer]

If you want to talk about a tough X slant, here is one I use (rarely) on C6 with a lowered 1st string to D.
Because it is on 3 adjacent strings, it is especially tough. But the results are kind of amazing, yielding a iim-I move.
Best used mid-neck to avoid sitaring.

D ------7---------|-------9--------
C ------8---------|-------8--------
A ------9---------|-------7--------
G ----------------|----------------
E ----------------|----------------
C ----------------|----------------