When your friend is DYING

Ray Montee · From: Portland, Oregon (deceased)

Last night, I dropped in on one of the area's HOTTEST steel players while he was playing on stage. He provided me with one of his latest HOT RUN's with lots of pedal
activity and SCREWED UP....terribly.
What is the proper decorum....do you point and laugh out loud; just laught and stomp your feet; act like you didn't notice; laugh with your friend but more subtle; throw things and leave; or, JUST WHAT?
I really need to know.
I know I promised not bring this up again Duggie, but it was just too good to pass up and I want to know how to act next time you do it.

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Ray Montee-email: pi007flyer@msn.com

George Keoki Lake · From: Edmonton, AB., Canada

Ray, I'd just let it pass. He knows he blew it and probably hopes you didn't notice. If it were me, I'd just compliment him on some other thing he did well.

Roger Shackelton · From: MINNESOTA (deceased)

Ray, Just remember the "Golden Rule" and act accordingly.

Roger

Eric West · From: Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.

Ray, I didn't want to be the one to tell you, but it's actually the latest secret lick straight out of Nashville. I burned a secret copy from a confidential course.

Doug and I woodshedded for about a week to get it "just right".

I'm not surprised that your ears aren't quite tuned in to the new 37 note scale we've all been using, and the flat nine sus4 maj/min aug17 progression.

You'll get used to it in a couple years.

BTW, what is that attachment on that fine looking Bigsby that looks like a couch just above the fretboards. Is that an armrest?

Hmm....

Erico Malo

Doug Jones · From: Oregon & Florida

Thanks Ray! We were playing "You've got leavin' on your mind" in G. When it came time to my solo, I started a long ascending gliss from 1 to 1-Aug (split) to 2m to 5 to 5-Aug (split) when I realized I was thinkin' of a different song. I tried to recover and instead, re-created the Wreck of the ole '97. When I saw you laughing I just let it roll out in all it's comic mediocrity. Bottom line: A wreck is a wreck, why not make the most of it. Only a fellow musician would notice anyway. -DJ-

Nick Reed · From: Russellville, KY USA

Thats OK Duggieboy! Last night we dressed Country & Western. I wore some damn pointed toe Cowboy Boots to my gig and 3 times my foot slipped off that B pedal of my '66 Emmons push-pull. Then to beat that, my Bass Player had a little too much to drink. I kicked off "Under your Spell Again" and that SOB started singing "MY Heart Skips a Beat". BTW, I chewed his Ass out for that. NR

Paul Graupp · From: Macon Ga USA

Sounds a lot like the time I crossed paths with Jimmy Day; as we frequently did back then; and I asked: "What you been doing lately ? " He replied: Awww, just waiting 'til I get lost and see how I get out of it !!" I've often wondered if Jim Reeves knew about that.....

Regards, Paul

Gary Walker · From: Morro Bay, CA

I've heard that Paul says there's no wrong notes. Of course he hasn't heard me play. We can recover from a bad note by slight of hand, but playing a different song within a song that has a different pattern calls for creative thinking and a "I meant to do that" bluff and see if it flies.

Ray Montee · From: Portland, Oregon (deceased)

Thanks to all...........
Eric, I feel so much better now that I fully understand your detailed explanation....but what exactly was it that you tried to say?
Duggie.....I do apologize for laughing at your moment of "dying".........but I hope you realize that I wasn't really laughing uncontrollably AT YOU, but with you. The obvious was quite obvious, as you say, to a musician kinda person, but having been in the same spot myself at one time or another, I was more or less reliving the agony of having been there on an earlier date. And of course, NO ONE was there to take me by the hand and lead me from my musical predicament either. I recall back to a time when were playing on LIVE Television and it was announced that I was going to kick off the gal singers next tune. And I did, starting on the same fret and everything but it all went instantly wrong and the mental confusion that followed is impossible to put into words. The only problem, I was on the wrong neck for that particular intro and the WHOLE WORLD heard it. Being in "COLOR", the whole world witnessed my face changing color from one of confidence to bright RED..humiliation.
That's why you're such a special person...'cause you don't take yourself too seriously. You played a fine gig....and we always enjoy coming out to see/hear you play.
Your humbleness and very high technological skill level shows in everything you play and is appreciated by all. That's WHY, you're a winner!

Eric West · From: Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.

Ray. I was mostly wondering about the device that appears to be an extension of that fine old Bigsby. I've had my photo division up all night on it, and they couldn't come up with anything.

I'm looking into getting one for my pore old Sho~Bud.. Larry B has a similar one, but it's hard to see behind his set-up.

EJL

[This message was edited by Eric West on 30 November 2003 at 12:42 PM.]

Ray Montee · From: Portland, Oregon (deceased)

Now Eric, when that photo was taken, I was suffering from a severe hang-over. Is that what you're referring too, or what? No arm rest.....but it does sorta look like the Goodyear Tire guy or the Pilsbury Dough-Boy don't it............

[This message was edited by Ray Montee on 30 November 2003 at 03:53 PM.]

Len Ryder · From: Penticton B.C.

Ray:
A few years back I read an article in a Jazz Magazine.
If a musician never makes a mistake, he or she is only playing to "their" level. One must keep reaching to get that extra note or run that seems to be unobtainable. Once they've reached that plateau, then there's always the next one to try, thereby increasing ones' level.
Len Ryder
Princeton
B.C.

Bill Ford · From: Graniteville SC Aiken

There is a big difference in laughing at,or laughing with someone. If you know him/her well enough,you let them see you. Most of the time when someone messes up,I'm usually laughing at myself,cause I'm thinking, that's what I'da done only worse.

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Bill Ford

Mike Winter · From: Portland, OR

Doug -- I wish I had been there. Ray and Eric -- you guys crack me up...

It's an awful feeling when you're in the middle of something and you KNOW it's going horribly wrong. Best to laugh it off, at least after the fact...it's all about having fun anyway, right?

Fred Shannon · From: Rocking "S" Ranch, Comancheria, Texas, R.I.P.

Hey, I have that same "hangover" and I don't even drink... Is it just catching or do all steel players have one? Let me know if I need to go to the Doctor. OH, OH, time for my pill now. Bye Byeeeeeee!!

Fred

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The spirit be with you!
If it aint got a steel, it aint real

Bob I. Williams · From: Sun City West, Arizona, USA

In about the later 60's there was a steeler at a night club at or near the Portland air port. Was it Doug,Eric,Ray or who? I was pickin at a country gig on Division st. there are/was some good pickers around there. THANKS BOB

Joerg Hennig · From: Bavaria, Germany

Al Marcus · From: Cedar Springs,MI USA (deceased)

Len-Back in the old days,I used to play at above my level lots, and lots of times I ended up where I didn't want to be.

So I have made my share of mistakes. Then I found out that no one noticed except , if there was a musician in the crowd. Then I stopped worrying about it.....al

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My Website..... www.cmedic.net/~almarcus/

Gene H. Brown · From: Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, Canada

Dougie,
Having known you and worked with you for a considerable amount of time, I would have given a plate of Stuffed Peppers just to see you do that one and enjoying the look on your face. Although I can say that in the time I worked with you, you played some very nice licks and most of them were called for and not bonus licks. Miss ya man!
Gene

[This message was edited by Gene H. Brown on 01 December 2003 at 05:33 PM.]

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

As Len noted, if you haven't played a HUGE clam on stage you ain't really playing. You're just repeating parts.

The golden rule is certainly good in these situations.
If it's a friend, he will understand your laughing with him, if a stranger then be a bit more circumspect.

PSG is an instrument that really IMHO is just made for trainwrecks from time to time. So many things you can do wrong at ANY given instant. Several musician friends think I am just nuts to take it up.
But they also like the sounds I am making with it too.

At ISGC I saw the awesome Tom Morrell's band start Misery 3 times... Once wrong song for a few players, again and the singer started singing another song to Morrell's amazement; he just lay his head on the steel and shook it no, no, no.
And finaly it got going, and it was great.

Later he dropped his bar... on the strings during a song.
In front of a room of 100+ steelers. Yikes!

Each time he laughed and blew off a screaming solo when his turn came around.
It was a great show, it was also funny for unintended reasons and the audience was laughing...
with him, and he knew that.

Every person coming up to the stage afterwards said they loved the show. No one reminded him of the faux pas, because they all knew they had done some thing just as off the wall themselves many times before.

If your a steeler and you see this, there can't help but be at least a smile ;
Been There, Done That, darn it!

[This message was edited by David L. Donald on 03 December 2003 at 04:22 AM.]

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