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Topic: My first post after lurking for a long time... |
Michael Papenburg
From:
Oakland, CA
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Posted 22 Jan 2007 9:40 am |
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I just joined the Steel Guitar Forum after reading posts here for quite some time. I really love this site and have found it to be an excellent resource.
I have been been playing lap steel for around 25 years but have really only begun to take it seriously during the last 6. I started out on an old 6 string Magnatone student model which I still play occasionally. I recently purchased a 6 string Supro that sounds really great and I have an order in for an 8 string Lap King Rodeo that should arrive around the beginning of March.
For tunings, I've been really liking G6 (same as A6 but down a whole step). I started out on guitar and dobro so I find it easier to know where I am on the neck with that tuning and I personally find C6 or even A6 to sound too high for my taste. I also use an A major 9 tuning on my Magnatone that is as follows:
B
Ab
E
Db
A
E
It's also a very low tuning that almost sounds like a baritone but it works well for certain situations.
The best thing that I ever did to improve my playing was to joing a country band where I mainly played lap steel. Having to take solos on a regular basis was very helpful and there is nothing like total immersion to get your chops together.
I'm not in that band anymore but I do play a lot of lap steel with a folk rock singer/songwriter named Brittany Shane. Bobby Black played pedal steel on her recent demo so it's been a fun challenge to emulate his pedal steel parts on lap steel. This is another situation where everything was a little beyond my abilities when I joined the band. Putting myself in situations like this has really helped to improve my playing.
Anyway, I just wanted to tell everyone a little bit about myself. I hope to be able to bring something helpful to the discussions on this fine site. |
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Edward Meisse
From:
Santa Rosa, California, USA
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Posted 22 Jan 2007 11:40 am Welcome Aboard
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| I, too played for 20 years before getting serious about 3 years ago. But I also layed off entirely for a numer of years. It looks like immersion to whatever degree a person can manage is a popular way to learn. I've seen it on here alot. And it's my method, too. |
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John D. Carter
From:
Canton, Ohio, USA
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Posted 22 Jan 2007 6:15 pm
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| Welcome Michael. I am sure that based on what you have written that you will be a great contributor to this forum. You have some experience that anyone should envy! Give us a sample of your playing when you get a chance. Thanks. |
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Papa Joe Pollick
From:
Swanton, Ohio
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Posted 22 Jan 2007 7:08 pm
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 Welcome Aboard Michael. You got the right idea on learning more.Play with people that push you to keep up.
Gotta ask this,{off topic}, I was stationed on Guam back in '46-'47 with a guy named Mike Papenburg.Any chance of a relationship?I think his home was in N.J. or maybe PA.He would be about 76 yrs old now.Any way,have fun. PJ  |
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Randy Reeves
From:
LaCrosse, Wisconsin, USA
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Posted 23 Jan 2007 4:09 am
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| welcome michael. the best five dollars you will ever spend. |
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Kevin Brown
From:
England
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Posted 23 Jan 2007 8:17 am
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| Hi Michael,we normally wear plaid when were on line, its helps our feeling of 'togetherness' Just thought Id let you know, welcome aboard buddy |
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Michael Papenburg
From:
Oakland, CA
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Posted 23 Jan 2007 9:12 am
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| Papa Joe Pollick wrote: |
Welcome Aboard Michael. You got the right idea on learning more.Play with people that push you to keep up.
Gotta ask this,{off topic}, I was stationed on Guam back in '46-'47 with a guy named Mike Papenburg.Any chance of a relationship?I think his home was in N.J. or maybe PA.He would be about 76 yrs old now.Any way,have fun. PJ |
That's interesting that you knew someone named Mike Papenburg. My Grandfather was Herman Papenburg but he was from Alabama. There is a chance that I could be related to the person you mentioned but it's not someone I'm aware of.
Thanks for the welcoming posts. I can't tell you how many times I've intended to join this forum. I always managed to put it off for one reason or another, though. I was telling my wife about it the other day and she basically told me that I was silly for putting it off and that I should join now. I'm glad that I did.
I'm in a transitional phase of my playing. For a few years I described myself as a "rhythm" lap steel player because I was mostly comfortable with playing relatively simple chord parts behind singer/songwriters. As I mentioned in my first post, I've been spending a lot more time on melodic work and have made a lot of progress during the last several years.
Here is a link to the MySpace page of a band that I play with called Sebastian. The song "Crow" was recorded 2 or 3 years ago. It's a great example of how I used to approach the lap steel and was recorded with my Magnatone. Hopefully, I'll have something more current to post soon. BTW, the other songs do not have any lap steel as I mainly play guitar in that band.
http://www.myspace.com/sebastianband
PS - I just changed into my plaid leisure suit  . |
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Charles Davidson
From:
Phenix City Alabama, USA
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Posted 23 Jan 2007 7:37 pm
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| Welcome Michael,from Alabama.Bama Charlie. |
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Don Kona Woods
From:
Hawaiian Kama'aina
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Posted 23 Jan 2007 10:50 pm
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Welcome and Aloha Michael.
Can be a really exciting ride on the Forum.
Aloha,
Don |
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Michael Winslow
From:
San Francisco, California, USA
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Posted 24 Jan 2007 12:23 am
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| Welcome to the Forum from across the Bay. It's a great place to hang out! And you can learn a lot of stuff too. |
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