The Steel Guitar Forum

My chops are long gone. Now I'm left with ground chuck.

I am now eighty and when I play I try to leave out the part that folks don't listen to anyway.
I blew a trumpet in my early years and there is nothing that can express feeling like a steel guitar.
Yes I am biased when it comes to music.

I never could play fast..
But I do understand what your saying..

I always like the speedy stuff, just wasn't cut out for it I guess...

I found the answer, move to Phoenix. Since coming back in Nov I have really noticed joint stiffness.
Gosh I guess what they say is true.

Do not let Patti see this and do not call her, she would have us packed up and out of here in a week.

Larry Behm

Now you are talkin'....been trying to tell you that since you left

Bo Legg "the older I get the better I was"

I play as fast as I ever did, of course I miss half the notes

What is lost in "speed" is recovered in "taste."

Larry,
If I may be so bold and respectfully suggest, for the remainder of your life, purchase another 15K worth of effects. You'll be so busy tweaking and reporting said toys, diminishing chops will no longer, will not ever, be a topic De Jour

I find all this to be true also. As age advances, so does stiffness, arthritis, miscellaneous joint pain, memory loss, and lack of focus sometimes ALL seem to advance also. I have had a great ride with music and still mostly enjoy playing. I don't like hauling equipment tho'....lol

Larry, Losing speed myself. Jeff Newman told me one time in Dallas when I asked him about his speed course that he has never been hired for his speed but for the way he played pretty. the great John Hughey was never a real speed demon but was never without work.

I would venture that if you were playing shows several nights a week like you use to do your chops would soar...

I have been working 2 night a week for the last 3 years.

Larry

Dave Grafe wrote:I would venture that if you were playing shows several nights a week like you use to do your chops would soar...

Yes, but, I've found that, that only works with a steel friendly band. I worked many shows where I'm restricted to regimented confines of playing. Very restricted with no chance for improvisation. You get to play, but, it's lke a dog with a muzzle. If you can work with a band that really appreciates the steel, that gives you a free hand, then, you can experiment and play more freely. One band that I used to work with was like that. The guitar player and I worked out our parts on stage and traded licks and took turns backing up the singer. It was very successful and I was able to really hone my craft to a fine knife edge. Of course, that was yesterday and gigs were plentiful, back then. Nowadays, I play part time in a band, where, I have freedom to play, but, the gigs are not regular. So, the ring rust is showing and my skills aren't what they were, which, is also affected by my age. The desire is there, but, the ability is waning. I'm at a different plateau now. It's hard to accept, but, it is what it is, I guess.

John De Maille wrote:

Dave Grafe wrote:I would venture that if you were playing shows several nights a week like you use to do your chops would soar...

Yes, but, I've found that, that only works with a steel friendly band. I worked many shows where I'm restricted to regimented confines of playing. Very restricted with no chance for improvisation. You get to play, but, it's lke a dog with a muzzle. If you can work with a band that really appreciates the steel, that gives you a free hand, then, you can experiment and play more freely. One band that I used to work with was like that. The guitar player and I worked out our parts on stage and traded licks and took turns backing up the singer. It was very successful and I was able to really hone my craft to a fine knife edge. Of course, that was yesterday and gigs were plentiful, back then. Nowadays, I play part time in a band, where, I have freedom to play, but, the gigs are not regular. So, the ring rust is showing and my skills aren't what they were, which, is also affected by my age. The desire is there, but, the ability is waning. I'm at a different plateau now. It's hard to accept, but, it is what it is, I guess.

You stated it well John.. Pretty common scenario that many of us can relate to.. However, I have heard you play, and you have plenty of ability.

Lets imagine a good local band gave you a call.. They play well, often, and loved the steel, and allowed you to shine...
Your playing would quickly become very satisfactory to your ear.. You just aren't playing as much,, and probably not playing with the same level musicians as you did years ago... I can relate...bob

I've never been satisfied w/ my chops.

Playing 2 days a week or month is usually just about enough to get get over the initial frustration and settle in.

Only when when I played 6-7 nights/week, was I relaxed enough to play fluidly and get my thoughts across.........but,never satisfied. I always thought my chops could improve.

Great thread, and thanks everyone for the contributions.
I never got caught up in too much desire for speed, beyond what I wanted to express my feelings at the moment, and concentrated instead on tone and more fluid expression. But after a cervical injury a few years back, I found myself mostly recovered except for some numbness in my right hand, and a slowly worsening disconnect between what my brain "sends" and the fingers "receive". I'm not sure it matters much to anyone but me, but it's hard to no longer be able to play everything I want, and have to make adjustments. I see a definite loss of speed and articulation, and a few "licks" or movements I simply can't do at all any more. Aging sucks... but I'm doing my best to reframe my own expectations.

I have an instructional video from Sam Bush.
In the video, he says that the older he gets, the longer it takes him to warm up.

Getting older sucks, but it beats the only other option.

Rick

Hey Larry - Now you'll sound better because you'll be playing what's good for the song rather that what shows you off as a player. Make better choices for what you can still do. For me, steel guitar is about the sound, emotion and expression, which have nothing to do with speed. Leave the hot licks to the young hotshots.

Larry, slow down your background tape to half a speed, then record your playing, after that speed it up to a regular speed, and you will be playing faster than you ever did...

Db

btw. I can't ever lose my fast chops, can't lose something I never had to begin with...

I thought I was doing okay, until I read a Bill Hankey post in which he confronted one of his critics and challenged his antagonist's ability on steel guitar by saying "let's see how fast you play Orange Blossom Special,"

When I read that, I knew I was in the deep end of the pool without my water wings, and realized that, if that's the criteria for steel proficiency, I'm sunk and might as well sell all my gear.

The hunt, as you might well imagine, is over.

In the world of the blind, a one-eyed man is king.

That one stuck with me.