The Steel Guitar Forum

Jerrys PSG playing in "Teach Your Children" is the perfect example of the penultimate of PSG songs in that it was the next to last thing a good PSG player would have ever played.

I agree.

I'm surprised that "Someday Soon" hasn't received even one mention. Maybe it was too difficult?

Not sure how to take Barry on that. This will upset a good many of you. But I never saw the big deal with Someday Soon. Yes it was good playing for the era. But it was Buddy Emmons after all. And it takes about 1/4 the skill to play as the tune Half a Mind Buddy cut in what 1959? Assuming both tunes to be played just as Buddy recorded them. No short cuts. No homemade licks.

I have no interest in starting a war over this. If you don't hear it. You don't hear it. And nothing I say or anyone else short of Buddy Emmons will ever change your mind. I guess I just had to say it out loud. Forgive me please.

Half a Mind was 62. I knew all those years of listening to Eddie Stubbs would pay off.

Someday Soon? What is wrong with it? Simple, tasteful, to the point. Buddy played exactly what the song needed.

Someday Soon? What is wrong with it? Simple, tasteful, to the point. Buddy played exactly what the song needed.

Exactly. You made my point. Just another day at the office for Buddy Emmons. He could have played it while he ate his lunch. He was the best in the world at that time. Again, My opinion.

bb

Buddy's two biggest strengths have been his imagination and his judgment.
many players from Crawford to Jernigan and on occasion Lloyd, would pick circles around Buddy. Buddy would just rather say something with his playing than simply "Look at me!"

EDIT: I have nothing against players with more active fingers. I was recently looking at some Faron Young clips on youtube, and some of the comments complained of Jimmy Crawford overplaying. WTF? I'm pretty sure Faron knew Jimmy's style before he got the gig. Faron liked energy.
personally, when I hear Jimmy playing, I think "Man, I'd love to be able to play like that, and then not."


My apologies for the topic drift.
Good Call, Buck

Bud's Bounce ?

Bud's Bounce is another. I liked playing back when I had my Kline in the 80's. That was because I had changes on my C6th neck that allowed me to get all those E9th licks, so I played it on C6th. I used to use it to open and close a TV show my band worked as the house band for. Don't have one of the changes any more.

I can't stand Sleepwalk.

I tried to make it interesting, so I do it on C6th with the "Night Life" intro.

C# - that's a great idea! That's what I'm going to do from now on (and I still quite like the tune...)

Up to now I've been replicating Chet Atkins' passing phrase between verse 1 and 2 (see his album 'Teensville') but inserting the 'Nightlife' intro as a turnaround would be even better. The flavour of those changes is right for the song.

This will upset a good many of you. But I never saw the big deal with Someday Soon.

There is no big deal about it, but just like TYC, it was the 'perfect' backdrop for the song. It was the level of playing that attracted me. Tone, touch, taste, and any other criteria you want to factor in. It took a long time and a lot of dues to get to the level of competence required to be able to copy it well, especially in those days. Let me put it another way. I was a fairly decent steel player at the time I heard TYC, and I dismissed the (steel) playing on it as amateurish. At the time I recall not even being able to copy it and make it sound that bad. Just my opinion, of course.

Sorry, I misread the topic. I posted late last night and my head was still full of loud guitar noise, I mean music.

Since it's not about the best steel solo or even a great one. The topic must be about steel tunes- solos that were popular with the general pubic?? Things that put steel guitar on the map so to speak. I'm I on track now? If so. Steel Guitar Rag and Sleep Walk are neck and neck. On second thought. I think I'll go with Steel Guitar Rag. After all, Ernest Tubb stated it was the greatest song ever written for steel guitar. So it must be true.

personally, when I hear Jimmy playing, I think "Man, I'd love to be able to play like that, and then not."
The best thing ever said by anybody about my playing was Mike Auldridge to my dad after hearing my CD: "you know, Tom, Lane turned out to be a pretty good player. He puts just the right notes in just the right places."

Or is the Thread about tooting ones on horn?

Pardon me. I was Foruming when I shoulda been sleeping. I fixed

Since it's not about the best steel solo or even a great one. The topic must be about steel tunes- solos that were popular with the general pubic?? Things that put steel guitar on the map so to speak. I'm I on track now?

Bobby, I admit I'm kind of confused myself because so many mentioned the steel on TYC as an example - which is only backup, not a steel guitar instrumental. My offering of Buddy's playing on SS was trying to stay within that realm.

"Stairway" wasn't really an instrumental, but it did set the archetype for 70s rock guitar, even if a lot of it was on the flattop.
Since few emulate Jerry's steel style, I don't call TYC quintessential or archetypal.


Lloyd on Gene's "Farewell Party" as archetype?

Cal said:

I tried to make it interesting, so I do it on C6th with the "Night Life" intro.

Interesting, But I could do that and have a half dozen NAKED dancing girls parading around me and still not enjoy the song.

Barry said:

I was a fairly decent steel player at the time I heard TYC, and I dismissed the (steel) playing on it as amateurish. At the time I recall not even being able to copy it and make it sound that bad.

Yes, you were. You should have said something. I could have shown you how to play it REAL BAD.

I took "the Stairway To Heaven of..." to mean "the played-to-death archetypal tune of" PSG. Steel Guitar Rag fits well. So does Way To Survive.

I believe that [Nearer My God to Thee] was a Titanic reference.
Although that may have been their ultimate song, since no one in the band survived to tell the tale.
But I doubt they had time to play their break song when the set was over...

Now I have visions of the quartet going into "Hold It" just before the ship goes under.

I was sort of half way joking and just trying to get a rise when I posted TYC, but now that I think about it it's actually a good equivalent for the era.

If the ? had been Wildwood Flower or Detour or even House of the Rising Sun say, my reply would have been different probably.

I try to avoid SGR simply because, unless worked out beforehand, the manifold endings tend to come out, one from each person onstage. Kinda like "Crazy."

Without a prearranged exit strategy, you get 3:30 of music followed by :05-:10 of trainwreck. Even if I LIKED playing it, I'd avoid it.

Good one, Brint. I was imagining them breaking into "Tighten Up"...

I think it's "A Way To Survive".

I was at the International Steel Guitar Convention one year. Stayed up till the wee hours Saturday night, way past my bedtime before I actually got to sleep. Kept hearing that intro, over and over. Finally it was enough to wake me up. It was morning, and the guy in the next room was practicing.

"Oh yeah, I'm definitely at a steel show."

Ok I give up. I have no idea what we're really trying to talk about. Seems to have a different meaning to everyone. Not really important anyway. It's just opinions.

I don't want to cause topic drift.And no disrespect to Lane. But was it really 62 when Buddy first cut Half A Mind.?? I would have bet the house it 59 or 60. Just e-mail me the answer.

Thanks and sorry for imposing.
bb

Oops. "Often in Error; Seldom in Doubt."

1957 was ½ a Mind.

"TYC" drives me crazy! It's "pitchy." If you can't hear that, you're lucky. "Pitchy" stuff just makes things un-listenable for me. My "STH" song is one that probably many have not heard. Lloyd's "Bar Hoppin'". I heard that, and knew I had to play steel. It's the only steel solo song I've ever learned. But I had a strange situation of being thrown into gigging after 2 lessons. I just don't play the same thing twice. "You wanna a steel instrumental? Key of G guys. 1,2,3,4." Who knows what will happen. If I couldn't play this way, I would have quit years ago.

I'm with you on "Way to survive" Bob, I was at Scotty's in 1996 and if I heard that song once I must have heard it 100 times. I've hated it ever since.

This will go a lot easier once somebody tells me which country band was as popular as Led Zeppelin.