The Steel Guitar Forum

If you ever wondered what this is about here is a great clip

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUvc8c0u ... ed&search=

Wow, that is smooth and pretty! Thanks for sharing it.

All with no slants! A pedal steel sound in a fashion but more mellow for sure. I just tried it and it's not easy! In fact I couldn't pull it off straight away. Steinar told me about this but I have seen it in action.

Martin plays like flowing water.

I really like this! Any idea on the tuning? Standard Dobro? DADF#AD? I want to try it. Would you use lighter gauge strings to make the pulls easier? Any thoughts appreciated.

Steve, he's tuned G-B-D-G-A-D, standard bluegrass dobro tuning with the second string B tuned down to A. He pulls the A to B. Probably an .018 second string. Not everyone can do this, I think it depends on how you're wired; I've tried and tried but my ring finger just refuses to cooperate. Really a lovely effect if you can pull it off. Good luck!

Michael-
Thanks a million, I am gong to give it a try tomorrow.
Steve

I've been experimenting with pulls for the past year or so. I have gotten to the point where I don't mute the string every time I do it, but I am still not comfortable enough to do it with any regularity. The trick is to get your finger on the string low enough that you don't push down. When I do it I still have a problem with my fat fingers muting the surrounding strings.

Great playing! Great audio!

Surely enjoyed each of the cuts.

Clean, uncluttered and fine tone.

How about some more of this?

I know a great player from Livingston, MT called Dobro Dick (His real last name escapes me right now) who can do double pulls. I watched him do this on some swift bluegrass tune at Weiser a couple of years ago and could barely believe my ears and eyes. He had this lick where he would grab both the 2nd and 4th strings, brace his thumb against the side of the neck, and pull both strings up a half step perfectly in tune (did I mention that this was a fast tune?).

Well, there's proof we're not alone in the universe. Anyone who can do double pulls behind the bar has to be an alien:)

That turned my head.
Martin is a fine player indeed!

I have a friend who turned 80
this month and he does double pulls
on Resonator using E Major tuning.
Second string to C#, third to A,
at the same time. I watch in amazement.

RT

Garland Nash used to amaze me with pulls, incredibly unlikely slants and chord combinations. Mark Van Allen or Jim Ferguson could testify to that as well. Garland was pretty amazing.

Wow.

That opened my mind up. I have tried pulls like this but my finger can't do it.

Now that I see how it is done, I 'll try a lighter gauge string til I get close.

Thanks for sharing. Best lesson I have had in a while

Ron

That guy is really something!! It made the arthritis in my fingers hurt just watching him!!
Great tone too

I love the sound, but how do you do it without muting the string? I've tried it before and it never works, all I get it a "dead" sound. Is there a special trick to it?

Martin you are at the top on my players list. I have tried the behind the bar string pulls and I just can't get it to work for me, but I am not giving up, I still try.

never thought about tuning the b to a, no wonder my pulls seemed irrelevant

Man, that was nice! I like this technique and am gradually finding more ways to use it. Pulling the note up by 2 half-steps is tough and most would want a lighter gauge for this. De-tuning the string by a full step in advance, as in the video, is another way to "skin the cat".

If you're having trouble with string pulls, it may be because the bar is losing contact with the string! Find the right balance of a) pulling UP a tad on the string-- as well as towards you-- and (b) using extra downward pressure with the bar. It may not take much of either...just enough to maintain full string/bar contact.

Well worth working on-- to make new chords, replace a slant, get that moving-tone sound w/o pedals...also you can use the pulling finger itself to create a kind of vibrato. It's a neat effect & a sound you can't get any other way on a non-pedal steel IMO.

L.A.,It takes just a little more pressure on the bar,Like anything else new you try,just some practice and it will fall into place,I find it easier to do on a lap steel with lighter strings than the dobro,don't you know.

I'm not much of a steel player, but for some reason I can manage string pulls - I'm self-taught enough that I just thought everybody did it. Now slanting in tune...

Even single half-step pulls give you a lot of chords in a 6th tuning. I use G6, but say you're at the 12th fret in C6 tuning - pulling the c up gives you A7, pulling the a gives you C7 (or C13), and pulling the e gives you an F or Fadd9. Pulling a and c together gives a nice 4-note diminished 7th.

When I do pulls behind the bar, I put my left thumb against the back of the fretboard, for leverage. If you push down on the bar, you go sharp. Put your thumb on the neck, and pull the string upwards and backwards at the same time. You'll have to build up a callous on your pulling finger, and mute with the pinky.

It's a cool technique worth exploring.

Stephen do you always pull the thin B? do you drop it to an A like the dude in the video or stay in GBDGBD?

nice video! thanks

Steve Norman wrote:Stephen do you always pull the thin B? do you drop it to an A like the dude in the video or stay in GBDGBD?

Both. Pulling the second string "B" up to a "C" gives a nice sus4 chord, in "G" tuning. I Don't retune to "A" very much. In GBDGBD, I'll pull the 1st string up to an "E", for a 6th chord. Listen to Stacy Phillips. He uses slants over three or FOUR strings, then pulls the other string up to pitch. I think Mike Auldridge calls 'em hockey stick slants. But Stacy takes it to a whole new level.