The Steel Guitar Forum

For me, it was that sound I heard on the Sweethearts of the Rodeo album in 68', I think. It took me about 5 yrs to get a pedal steel and a lifetime learning to play it. But, that's when the bug bit me. Man, was I stumbling around trying to teach myself to play it back then.

right around 69 or so more and more records had steel on them and i was hanging out at this house by san jose state after dropping out of college, listening to dillard and clark and stuff. among those who lived there were peter grant, who had garcia's zb and a little no name single neck that he sold me for $75... and pat simmons in the next room playing his acoustic guitar.
then i was a steel player.

I was playing bass at a place called "Bub City" in Chicago. We had a steel player sit in with us that night. I always loved the sound, and I hovered over him watching all night. I thought "I need a living room instrument, and that doesn't look that hard". Boy, was I an idiot. Best decision I ever made though.

The steelman got to sit down.

Late 70's, half drunk, George Jones singing a ballad,
steel player tearin' it up between vocal lines,
HAD to be able to do that

Went and saw the Grateful Dead in Chicago at the old stockyard arena. It was around 1979 or so and I was, maybe, 18 at the time. New Riders of the Purple Sage opened for them.

Buddy Cage (I didn't know his name at the time) took a solo and I just about jumped out of my seat. I immediately turned to my my friend and asked, "WHAT was that?" He told me it was a steel guitar.

I had no idea what that was but I was floored by the sound of it.

This...

I used to ride on my Dad's right knee as an infant.. his left was busy mashing pedals. I would watch him slip on those silver finger picks and pick up that smooth, cool, heavy silver bar and he would play "around me" until he wanted to get serious and then put me down with a spare bar to play with after a song or two.

Then the sixties hit.. he loved country, worshiped Lloyd Green, and I was into the Beatles, long hair, etc. and picked up a six string guitar.

Now, years later, I am still into Rock and roll, blues, southern rock, etc and appreciate that I can in fact, use my Dad's life long instrument inside of that genre. Still dont really like country (fire away!) but have the little Fender 400.. looking for a S10 E9 and will spend what is left of my life trying to learn to play this sadistic piece of machinery!

When I was in my teens & 20’s, my idols were bands like the Beatles, Beach Boys, The Who, etc. I did not like the little bit of country music that I heard, and thought Merle Haggard was really ‘hokey’.

Then I heard:
Teach Your Children - CSN (with Gerry Garcia)
Six Days on the Road – Burrito’s (with Al Perkins)
Brooklyn – Steely Dan (with Jeff Baxter)
Sweetheart of the Rodeo – with Lloyd & Jaydee.

These ‘Country Rock’ type tunes provided a transition for me from the music of my youth, to the sound of Country Music, and to the wonderful sound of the Pedal Steel Guitar in particular.

When I met Ted Nesbitt in Johannesburg in 1975, he helped me get my first Steel, an Emmons S10 E9th. My favourite singers now include Merle Haggard, and Vince Gill.

One other major influence for me was when I heard Hal Rugg’s ‘Altered Ego’ album.
From that day, I have loved the sound of Chord Melody on the C6th. I wish he were still around for me to say ‘thank you’ for changing my life.

Always wanted to, but after watching the PSG player in our band, figured it was way too complicated. Several years ago my buddy broke his neck (extremely fortunate to not have any nerve damage!) He had been telling me for years he had a PSG, so while he was healing, we took the incredibly heavy case to the local pedal steel guitar store. My buddy bought the guitar from a friend for something like $75. Bad news was it was totally disassembled. It had belonged to the sellers grandfather, and gramps took it apart to restore it but passed away before he put it back together.
At the PSG store we met the proprietor, Jim Palenscar. Jim took my friends MSA Classic SS D10 and converted it to a SD10. Before we left, Jim sat me down at a steel and within a few minutes I knew how to play 4 chords without moving the tone bar! "How simple can this be?" I thought. Simple but not easy…. Wish someone had showed me that 30 years ago!

chris ivey wrote:right around 69 listening to dillard and clark ... and pat simmons in the next room playing his acoustic guitar.

Yes Chris, I will never forget listening to the "Fantastic Expedition Of Dillard And Clark" in that year, it was magical. The first Doobies is my favorite album by them, great picking by Mr. Simmons.

Definitely Fichie Furay, but then it was the sixties.
Many hippies would say Jerry Garcia was if any of us conceived of pedal steel, but it is the most famous note of the era.

Too cool, Hal.

John David Call and Pure Prarie Leauge

Buddy Emmons with Judy Collins; Al Perkins with Mannassas; Bobby Black with Commander Cody.

I had been a finger-picker for a long time. Started with 5-string in 59, and continued with Watson and Travis stuff on guitar. But I had been aware of steel much earlier. I always used to get up early on Saturdays and Sundays and watch the Country and Polka shows. I became a Conservative Hippy in the late Sixties, and used to drive my girlfriends crazy getting up early to watch those shows. At that time, I was in a Zappa style band. FZ was an acquaintance of mine. I had always been a b'crds fanatic too, and was floored by "Sweetheart!" Went to the record store and found a Lloyd Green album. As soon as I heard "Bar Hoppin'" I was a goner, even though I had been unseriously dabbling in steel before. Our band had played "Don't Bogart" at a Milwaukee "Be In," and I played lappets' on it. We were the talk of the show! Then I got a Miller, but had it only two weeks when the Mafia bar owners decided to burn up their club to finance a remodel. Then I got a Crossover, that was promptly stolen. But I really couldn't play squat! In '72 I bought a new Shobud Professional, and got serious. Three lessons and my instructor gor me a steady gig. Being a very competant finger-picker was a huge leg up on learning!

I hadn't thought much about steel until I started playing bass in LA back in the 60's. In the early 70's, I was playing bass in a country band, and I had (still do) a good friend, Mayne Smith, who played. I was hooked! I also was playing bass for Jim Ringer and Mary McCaslin, and they had Larry Blom (sp??) playing dobro for them. Through their influence, I started listening to Buck Owens (Raplh Mooney and Tom Brumley)and Willie Nelson (Jimmy Day). I got my first pedal steel in 1974, and in 1975, I bought my beloved wood neck ShoBud ProI (3/4) from Red Rhodes, and I was off and running.

I grew up in Ontario, and when I was really young, 4 or 5 years old, my Dad would tune the radio to WSM Nashville. It played all day, I remember thinking I love the sound of the steel guitar even though I didn't know what it was. When I was 12 years old someone knocked at the door offering Hawaiian guitar lessons, at a company called the Ontario Conservatory of Music. My Mom and Dad signed me up. It went from there to steel guitar.

I was always fascinated with guitar. I always wanted to play, and when I was 10, my parents got my brother and myself a guitar and mandolin. I learned to play those and was listening to country music and heard guys like Lloyd, Mooney, Tom Brumley and Buddy on records. Then Carl Smith came out with his version of "I Love You Because" with Curly and I flipped! Man, that was so cool. About that time Chuck Rich moved down to Cincinnati from Detroit to play on a local television show, the "Midwestern Hayride", and I watched the show every week. Chuck was defiantly influenced by Curly and I knew I had to at least try pedal steel. It only took me about 25 years to get one, but once I did, I WAS HOOKED!!!

Country Rock got me interested in pedal steel and below were the early magnets that pulled me in:

Garcia on Teach your Children

Rusty Young & Poco. Lloyd Green and JD Manness on Sweetheart of the Rodeo.

Much later, JD in The Desert Rose Band was also a huge draw.

John David Call with Pure Prarie League.

Some of Linda Ronstadt's stuff with Dan Dugmore'sBlue Bayou

& Sneaky Pete on Sliver Threads and Golden Needles . and his work with The Flying Burrito Brothers and many other individuals and groups.

Red Rhodes with Michael Nesmith's band.

The one C&W band I appreciated early on was Buck Owens group with Tom Brumley and J D. I know I've forgotten some. steve t

My Dad... He used to practice his MSA just to wind down at night, after teaching music lessons all day. I was pretty enamored by the whole thing, and I guess I still am.

David Spires

I was playing guitar in Reno in early 1960's and Ralph Mooney came buy and sat in on Gene O Neal's steel. That is what got me hooked

Buddy Emmons' Steel Guitar Jazz did it for me.

See Steve Takacs post above....pretty much the same for me...Garcia on Teach Your Children, Rusty Young with Poco, John David Call, Dan Dugmore, Sneaky Pete, Buddy Cage...

My mother loved to listen to Hawaiian music on the radio and in 1955, when I was 7, she decided that I should learn how to play the steel guitar.

It was necessity that caused me to take up the steel. My brother had a little band, two guitars and a bass and I wanted in. He told me too many guitars, but if you learn this.... It was a Fender D8 Stringmaster.

I learned enough to get me in the band. A year later I bought my first PSG, a Fender 400. The rest is history!

Musically, before I had any clue I'd be heading down this road, I did listen to and enjoy a lot of PSG. John Hughey's work of Dickey Betts album 'Highway Call' was big for me as also was Jerry Garcia's involvement in the early 70s. Poco, Pure Prairie League, Burritos, etc.... followed.

Hi I'm J.C. Norris been trying to play steel for about 26 years. Played lead guitar & Bluegrass banjo before. Love it all, but probably the steel on Buck Owens material & the work Pete Drake & others did on Jerry Lee's finest work is what really set me on fire. Live in a remote area, no steel players close by so I'm self taught also. Not as good as I would like to be but, I've worked in bands as much as I wanted. Still doing some studio stuff & a gig once in a while. I would also agree with Zane. The Seldom Scene & Country Gentlemen are my very favorite groups hands down! These guys are awesome!! And to have the great Tom Gray for a father, Zane has got to be quality stuff. Best of luck my friend, welcome to the fraternity.