The Steel Guitar Forum

I play in socks during the colder months and even go barefoot during the summer. I feel no shame.

I've done quite a bit of barefoot steeling over the years myself. Now, more so than ever. Some years ago I had an accident and fell from the roof of my house. The type of hip and back injury I endured was not typical and my doctors, who said they'd normally prescribe special shoes for certain back, pelvis or leg injuries, went the opposite way with me and urged that I go barefoot as absolutely much as possible and, if I need footwear, to try and restrict it to only flops or sandals with a completely flat footbed and no heel elevation.

Simple as it may be, going barefoot regularly and so much has really helped my hip/pelvis and back injury tremendously (and I like to jokingly say it's the best and cheapest prescription I've ever had).

Now, I'm still a "conformist" and wear shoes (at least flops or sandals) at gigs, but around the house I play barefoot nearly 100% of the time and I have to agree with having a better feel for the pedals without shoes (especially when half pedaling). The one thing I'm not crazy about is playing in socks ... they tend to get loose on my feet and hang up on pedals.

I don't see how anyone can play bare footed. Even with the easiest steel to play, still hurts and very uncomfortable. I do play with shoes because with most boots, just can't get a feel for pedals. I don't know of any pros that play bare footed or without fingers picks for that matter.

I have to admit there are a couple of pedal styles (like those in the photo) that aren't exactly friendly to bare feet (at least mine) and can be uncomfortable to me if the grooves in the pedals develop really rough or sharp edges, but for the most part, I usually have no issue with most pedals.



During a time when I played in boots for awhile, there was one kind called Dingo boots (I never see them anymore). They had a square toe and super soft sides that didn't inhibit ankle and foot movement. Those seemed great to play in. Any other kind of boot just made my playing go out the window.

Mens dance shoes. These always have looked promising -- very form fitting, simple suede sole, heel lift like cowboy boots. Should have good feel of pedal under foot while keeping sharp edges from digging, without being wide enough to accidentally hit adjacent pedals.

I'm in the barefoot category. I've tried to practice with sneakers, slippers, sandals, and cowboy boots. No matter what I choose, I end up kicking off whatever is on my left foot, and playing with my barefoot. I'm playing a Carter S10, so the pedals are smooth, and they don't seem to require too much force. I run, and ride my bicycle, so my legs are strong enough that I don't notice.

And I spend a lot of time barefoot... so it doesn't hurt at all.

I am going to have to invest in an area rug for playing out though...

I'm right there in agreement with you, Jarek. For me, it used to be that playing in shoes or barefoot was an equal thing of ease, but since I became a somewhat full-time barefooter after my pelvis/back injury, I may sit down at my guitar in some kind of footwear (if I'm wearing any at the time), but always end up kicking off whatever I'm wearing in favor of playing barefoot.

I can't remember exactly what the Carter pedals look like. I have the old style Mullen pedals on my guitar (seen below) and they're very smooth and I love the shape and comfortable feel of them:

When I started playing back in the early 70's, I played in cowboy boots, cause after all it was country music we were playing...I never could get the hang of playing barefooted...that's right I'm a "tenderfoot", but not a city slicker...As smooth and gentle as my Pre RP Mullen is to play, it's still uncomfortable for me to play barefoot...I'd say that boat shoes are about my favorite, and switching over to church shoes is a little bit of an adjustment for me...My wife got me some Sheepskin wool slippers for Christmas, that are soft like moccasins and are as close to barefoot as I think I'll be able to get...and hey, do you know where those feet have been anyhow???...

If you had to play on some of the stages I have been on(absolutely filthy,sometimes swimming in beer and who knows what) playing in sox or bare feet is an absolute NO NO