Steel Song Repertoire

Tom Campbell · Post by **Tom Campbell** » 4 Sep 2001 4:27 pm

Does anyone out there (ya' all) have a list of songs (written or otherwise) of songs all steel players should know as basic "Standards"? That is, songs you would be expected to know if you were changing from one band to another or just going to a jam session. I know jazz and rock musicians have their "must knows"...being new to steel I am assuming there are also these types of standards.

Regards
TC D-10 Remington Steel

Pat Burns · Post by **Pat Burns** » 4 Sep 2001 7:13 pm

...that's an excellent question...I'd like to know, too...

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 4 Sep 2001 10:58 pm

In the June issue of Gig Magazine there's an article "Songs You Should Know: Country Style". It's actually a very comprensive list of the most popular songs the live country bands play, written by bass player Brice wightman who has obviously been there, done that, and got the t-shirt.
<ul>[*]A Little Less Talk...[*]Achy Breaky Heart[*]Act Naturally[*]All My Ex's Live in Texas[*]All My Rowdy Friends[*]Always On My Mind[*]Amarillo By Morning[*]Big City[*]Blue[*]Boot Scootin' Boogie[*]Chattahoochee[*]Chicken Dance[*]Copperhead Road[*]Cotton Eyed Joe[*]Could I Have This Dance[*]Crazy[*]The Dance[*]Detroit City[*]Dixie Chicken[*]Don't Rock the Jukebox[*]Dumas Walker[*]Elvira[*]fast As You[*]Fireman[*]Foggy Mountain Breakdown[*]Folsum Prison Blues[*]Friends in Low Places[*]Georgia On My Mind[*]Good Hearted Woman[*]Guitars & Cadillacs[*]Hey Good Lookin[*]Honky Tonk Attitude[*]Honky Tonk Man[*]I Fall To Pieces[*]I Feel Lucky[*]I Walk The Line[*]Jambalaya[*]Keep Your Hands To Yourself[*]King Of The Road[*]Killin' Time[*]Mama Don't Let Your Babies...[*]Me and Bobby McGee[*]Mercury Blues[*]Mustang Sally[*]Liza Jane[*]Little Sister[*]Lukenbach Texas[*]Neon Moon[*]Oh Lonesome Me[*]Okie From Muskogee[*]On The road Again[*]Orange Blossom Special[*]Pretty Woman[*]Proud Mary[*]Rocky Top[*]She's Got You[*]The Shake[*]Six Days On The Road[*]Stand By Your Man[*]Streets Of Bakersfield[*]Sweet Home Alabama[*]Swingin'[*]Swinging Doors[*]Take This Job and Shove It[*]Tennessee Waltz[*]Tiget By The Tail[*]Tulsa Time[*]Two More Bottles Of Wine[*]Wabash Cannonball[*]White Lightning[*]Walkin' After Midnight[*]Watermelon Crawl[*]Whiskey Ain't Workin' Anymore[*]Your Cheatin' Heart[/list]
I'm sure he missed a few, but there's only two or three songs in there that I haven't played in multiple bands over the years. It's a pretty good song list!

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<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/b0b.gif" width="64" height="64">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (E7, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6)

Rick Schmidt · Post by **Rick Schmidt** » 5 Sep 2001 12:37 am

Just partially reading that list made me break out in a cold sweat...."shudder shudder shudder"! If I don't sleep well tonight, I'll know who to blame.....

nick allen · Post by **nick allen** » 5 Sep 2001 12:43 am

As an ex-rhythm guitar player, I thought I had a pretty good knowledge of country songs - the following on this list I don't recognise at all - are they new ones (meaning the last 5 years or so)?
(I'm assuming Killin' Time is not the old Kristofferson song...)

A Little Less Talk...
Chicken Dance
The Dance
fast As You
Fireman
Honky Tonk Attitude
Keep Your Hands To Yourself
Killin' Time
Neon Moon
The Shake
Swingin'
Watermelon Crawl

Nick

Larry Miller · Post by **Larry Miller** » 5 Sep 2001 3:21 am

Tom, these are some standards you should know, if for nothing else, to learn the styles.

"A Way To Survive"
"Take Me As I Am(Or Let Me Go)
"Swingin' Doors"
"Together Again"

Just my old out of touch with the times opinion. Your old coffee drinkin' buddy Larry

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GO TITANS GO!!!
[This message was edited by Larry Miller on 05 September 2001 at 04:22 AM.]

Gene Jones · Post by **Gene Jones** » 5 Sep 2001 3:27 am

* [This message was edited by Gene Jones on 02 May 2002 at 03:47 PM.]

Craig Allen · Post by **Craig Allen** » 5 Sep 2001 3:55 am

A Little Less Talk...
Chicken Dance
The Dance
fast As You
Fireman
Honky Tonk Attitude
Keep Your Hands To Yourself
Killin' Time
Neon Moon
The Shake
Swingin'
Watermelon Crawl

Well, I might believe that in France it's a little hard to get what's hip in the states, BUT!!!!!!!!

All the tunes above are pretty much Bar/night club have too's.
I will say this, though. Most of the bands I work with, are all Top 40 Country. That means we are always covering the charts.

But as for me, if I was calling the shots.........
Here's my must have list, and BTW, I sing/front from the steel.

What a Way to Live
Green Snakes on the Cieling
Farewell Party
I'm Gonna Kill You.(an old Gene Watson tune.)
The Other Woman
I Just Destroyed the World I'm Living In.
Whiskey River
You're in Love With the Wrong Man
There's Still A Lot of Love In San Antone.
Almost everything from the Hag!!
Almost anything Johnnie Bush; Darrel McCall;
Ray Price.

I only do a couple of "instrumentals", and I avoid them when I can.
Faded Love
Buds Bounce
Remington Ride
The Last Date

Bon Chance

Jim Smith · Post by **Jim Smith** » 5 Sep 2001 6:10 am

b0b, that bass player is obviously not from Texas!

I agree more with C Allen's second list, obviously another Texan!

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Jim Smith jimsmith94@home.com
-=Dekley D-12 10&12=-
-=Fessenden Ext. E9/U-13 8&8=-

David Weaver · Post by **David Weaver** » 5 Sep 2001 6:27 am

Here's some from another, similar discussion...

http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum1/HTML/007327.html

Tom Campbell · Post by **Tom Campbell** » 5 Sep 2001 6:30 am

Thanks Bobby and all who responded...that's quite a list!!! Enough material to keep one busy for a life-time! I would imagine different regions of the country have their own favorites...that's why some of the songs may not be recognized or as popular with some of the members (such as in Texas..etc.).REALLY appreciate the input!!

Best Regards
TC

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 5 Sep 2001 7:51 am

Holy cow!!!

I can't believe it...I SIMPLY CAN'T BELIEVE IT!

Do you guys know what you've done? DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOU'VE DONE?

Well, I'll tell you!!! You have surely incurred the wrath of the "Great Steel-God", that's what you've done!

I can't believe nobody's mentioned the song that is the "Holy Grail" of pedal steel songs...the song that is the "23rd Psalm" in the bible of the pedal steel guitar.

"Great Steel-God", please forgive them, for they know not what they do. I know Ernie Renn has already copied these posts, so it is too late to go back and edit them. Too late.

Probably all this talk of Sacred-Steel tunings and "Rock" steel has affected their brain.

Hopefully, my clostest personal friend, mentor, and teacher (none other than the "Big-E,") will find mercy in his heart...and forgive you all.

Oh? The song?

Sure, it's...

Nightlife.

Mike Sweeney · Post by **Mike Sweeney** » 5 Sep 2001 8:13 am

C. Alen, I like your song choices. I never heard Gene Watson sing " I'm going to Kill You" I only heard it by Wynn Stewart. It is a fun little song. Mike Sweeney

Craig Allen · Post by **Craig Allen** » 5 Sep 2001 8:33 am

Mike Sweeney, you're on the ball!!!!!!!Yes, Wynn Stewart.
Here's one fer ya. Most people associate Farewell Party with Watson............How about Johnny Bond!!!!!!!!!

Donnie Hinson, The Great Steel god?????????
You must be reading the new testament.

Nightlife's great, but have we forgotten SLOWLY?!?!?!?!?

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 5 Sep 2001 10:10 pm

I've never had a bandleader call "Slowly" or "A Way To Survive", and the only bandleader who ever asked me to play "Night Life" was a steel player himself. The tunes that steel players think of as classics aren't really the tunes that most bands play.

I would add "San Antonio Rose", "Faded Love" and "Mama Tried" to the list. Also, bandleaders will call "Steel Guitar Rag" and "Sleepwalk" when they have a steel. Those are the only steel instrumentals that most bands around here can fake their way through.

There were two tunes on the list that I didn't recognize: "Copperhead Road" and "Dumas Walker". The "Chicken Dance" is barely a song - it's a folksy instumental that goes over big at weddings. If you're lucky you'll never have to play it.

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<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/b0b.gif" width="64" height="64">Bobby Lee - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs
Sierra Session 12 (E9), Williams 400X (E7, D6), Sierra Olympic 12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop 8 (D13), Fender Stringmaster (E13, A6)

Marc Friedland · Post by **Marc Friedland** » 5 Sep 2001 11:33 pm

Tom, If you know or learn a good portion of the songs already mentioned in this thread, you'll have more than a decent repertoire to bring to the table for most bands or jam sessions. Here's some other points to ponder. Some bands will lean more towards certain groups or styles and leave out others. For instance some groups may include quite a few Vince Gill tunes, but others will leave them out because they might not have the singers in the band who can do them justice. Some bands may do a lot of uptempo stuff and very little Merle, or just the opposite. Some female singers do alot of Patty Loveless and Wynona and others only do Shania & Faith Hill stuff. Here's what has worked pretty well for me, maybe it will for you to. If I'm going to be playing with a band more than once, I will try my best to learn the chord patterns, and "feel" and signature licks of as many of their songs as possible. If I play on a more regular basis with them, I might at that time learn the finer details of each tune. And I will add those songs to my database of songs and remember them for future reference by playing them every once in a while when I practice. (also I've been blessed with a good memory for that kind of stuff) A good example is a couple of months ago I played at a wedding & a girl sat in with the band and wanted to sing "The Sweetest Thing" by Juice Newton. I hadn't played that song in almost twenty years and wasn't even playing psg when I did play it back them. I remembered all the changes and even the signature riff of the song which I think was originally done by flute or strings or something similar. All things considered, I think we pulled it off quite well. Anyway, I've taken up enough space here. If you run out of songs to learn, send me an email, as I have a pretty extensive list of songs that I've played regularly in different situations. -- Marc