40 Years Of Playing Steel Guitar

[Nick Reed]

2025 will mark my 40th year sitting behind one of these cheese slicers. I still enjoy it as much now as I did back in the day.

[Dave Hopping]

"It's the most fun you can have sitting upright!"

[Dave O'Brien]

Me too!

[Brett Day]

I've been playing steel for 25 years now, and I'm really glad that in 1999, I switched from keyboards to the steel guitar after being behind the keyboards for five years. I started loving the steel guitar at the age of eight, and by 1994, I was wondering what it would be like to play the steel guitar-I'd been listening to John Hughey's steel work with Vince Gill on Vince's "I Still Believe In You" record. I also remember seeing a video by Chet Atkins and Mark Knopfler called "Poor Boy Blues" and wondered if I could handle playing steel-the steel player in the video was Paul Franklin, but at the time I didn't know who the steel players were, I just knew the instrument, but after reading the credits of the "I Still Believe In You" record and seeing John Hughey's name on the record, I went to a Vince Gill concert with my mom and I looked at her and said, "That's John Hughey playing the steel guitar" and she asked me how I knew it, and I told her he played on a few records with Vince, and I didn't know at the time that I would meet John a year later, or start playing steel at the end of 1999, and in 1999, I also saw the band that inspired me to play steel, Ricochet, and they had a steel guitarist named Teddy Carr-Teddy had worked with Clay Walker and Little Jimmy Dickens, and at the show, he was playing a Franklin D-10, so I was able to see and meet one of my steel heroes before I started playing. When I started playing, I had no idea I'd become friends with so many steel players!

[Kenny Davis]

Congratulations Nick. You've aged well! Have you got a good pic from 1975?

[Paul King]

Congratulations Nick, I have over 40 myself. One day I plan on learning how to play it.

[Erv Niehaus]

I've got you all beat, I've been making noise on a steel guitar for 70 years.
Erv

[Paul King]

Erv, You must have started right after being born. That is unheard of to have that many years in. I hope you stay with it.

[Erv Niehaus]

Every once in a while I had to stop playing and change my diaper!

[Bill Alexander]

Good for you, I love the instrument and have been cursing at it for about the same amount of time. But when I nail a lick I'm Paul Franklin sitting next to Vince Gill. Steel on brother

[Rick Campbell]

Nick,

Hello to you my friend.

Rick