The Steel Guitar Forum

I just saw an Old Porter Wagoner show with Conway Twitty as the guest performer. There was a young fellow in back on the pedal steel with the pedals on the right hand side. I was wondering if that was a young John Hughey, or another player I don't recognize, and should.

John DeBoalt

John...
It was probably Hughey....Him and Conway grew up together... Conway's name then was Harold Jenkins [ I think !!] I don't know them, just read that somewhere....
Moon

Conway Twittys real name was Harold Jenkins. As far as the steel played with the pedals on the right side, it was probably Don Warden who played steel for Porter Wagoner. Don played standing up and his pedals were located on the right end of the guitar. If I remember right it was one of the first ShoBud guitars built.

The Steel had no LOGO on the front apron, but; he sat down to play and I didn't recognize who he was, but; I'll see and ask him Tue. evening 06/05 at our monthly n.t.s.g.a. meeting!

There is a lot of good info here......
http://www.johnhughey.com/bio.html
Moon

It wasn't Don Warden, he was tere as well. I looked at the old pictures on the John Hughey site, and I
don't think it was him now that I've seen them. I'll be curious what John B. brings from the meeting. It lookes like there was no volume pedal, and the guy was playing with both feet on the pedals. Conway was going by Conway. It looked like the show was from the late 60's to early 70's. Dolly was still with Porter at the time.

John

Maybe Lew Houston??? I think he was with COnway before John.

Ricky...

Ricky, may have hit it, if it was someone with Conway. Lew did work with Conway before Hughey. Lew played a Fender 400 and didn't use a volume pedal.

Lew is the steel picker on Conway's "The Image Of Me".

Lew told me the reason he left Conway was that he didn't want to fly.

Lew also played on a Conway song called "Working Girl". It was on Youtube on the Porter Wagoner show for awhile and I didn't have a chance to copy it off. Lew did some good chicken picken on it. I wish whoever put it on there would put in on there again as I would like to get a copy of it.
P.S. Jack, Wayne Kemnp wrote "The image of me".

Ray: RFD, had the Porter W. Show the other night with Conway & the band as the guests. They did "Working Girl" and the steel pickin' was great. Hard for me to recognize who the steeler was but I didn't meet the wonderful John Hughey till 2003. Conway and the band did another song early in the show but I didn't recognize it, (busy on honey-do list) but only caught a small part of that song. Perhaps catch it on U-Tube site. Got a dozen Conway albums and none have Working Girl. GBA. Bernie

Our Forum Friend Gene Jones was with Conway Twitty when they were in the Army together in Japan......traveled with him some when they got out of the Army........I thought John Hughey took over from Gene.......but now I am not sure...maybe one of them would care to elaborate ?
Tony

Guys, this has been covered before here on the forum and I promise it was Lew Houston. I asked John about it several years ago and he said it was Lew! I'd still like to get a video copy of "Working Girl". Ray

John Hughey commented one time that he went with Conway after Lew.

I knew Lew for many years, living in Kansas City, Mo. I first met Lew in late 73 when he was picking at the Starlite Club in Kansas City North.

I've got a CD copy of Lew playing and singing 8 songs that was given to me by a friend. The friend passed away 2 months ago and he had recorded a CD in Peculiar, Missouri several years ago with Lew playing steel on it. Lew was a great player! The CD was recorded at Shoestring Recording Studios CO-RHYME RECORDS. Recorded in the year of 2000. Ray

Lew Houston was working with Twitty when "Working Girl" came out. My friend Bobby Reed and I booked them for a show in Angleton about that time. Twitty on guitar, Joe Lewis on bass, "Pork Chop" Markham on drums, and Lew Houston on steel. Lew did not use a volume pedal. He used his little finger on the volume knob on his home made pedal guitar. Jody.

Right you are Jody, I saw Conway and Lew at Cain's one night and Lew did use his little finger on the volume knob in place of a pedal. He had 4 pedals on the guitar at the time (it was Red) and only 3 worked. He used both feet and half the time you didn't know, but what there wasn't a lead player on stage also. Lew was that good at what he done as far as covering for both instruments. He could make his steel sound like an electric guitar.
Quite a gentlemen he was.

John Buffington

I remember when I was first exposed to Lew Houston, in the 70's. He played backup for a talent show here in the K.C. area, along with some of the area's finest players. He had a Fender 400 steel and an old beat up Twin Reverb. I thought, this is going to be a real "hute". When he played "Coal Miners" daughter, well, I haven't bought a steel since. I was changing steels back then, looking for the magic sound. He played more on that little 8 string, 4 pedals, no volumne control, then most of us will play in a lifetime. Not only did he play Country well, but his Pop and Jazz were equally as good. Before he passed away, he was working a little bar here in Riverside, about a mile from my house. I would go down every chance I got to visit, and hear him play. He was using two Evans amps, and promoting a single neck steel , but I forget the manufacturer.

Again, there is no substitute for ability.

Ray, that was the Lamar steel. They built one for him with the volume control like he had on the Fender.

Thanks guys. It's nice to be able to put a name on a face. If I ever see another old clip like that I'll remember who he is

John

It was neat to hear a full track of John Hughey's gospel steel on XM-13 last night (6/06/07).

Anyone know Lew Houston copedent ?