The Steel Guitar Forum

Hi All,

I just received my Lap Steel when I got home from work today. I tried to figure out things for about a couple of hour and here is a my first laughable attempt at it.
"Tear Drop" is the B-side of "Sleepwalk" (Santo & Johnny). It's a beautiful tune that has been overshadowed by the huge success of Sleepwalk.
I tried to tune it on C tuning (the only one that I wrote down at the L.A. Steel Guitar Jam).
I just start to realize how hard it is and how many decades it would take me to be fluent like you.
Just impossible. I wish I had started 20 years ago.But I want to have fun and do some little things from time to time.
You noticed that I don't even know how to sit at a steel and I used only my thumb (laughable).
I definitely need lessons for a long time to come.
The sound is a disaster as it is taken by the camera
Here is the link on my website:

http://akhineche.com/TEAR_DROP_STEEL.WMV

But I rather have you listen to my guitar version of it here:
http://akhineche.com/TEAR_DROP1.WMV

Blessings, (mercy),
Abel

I would like to ask the following questions if you have time:

- what's the best way to sit or position yourself
and the guitar so as to see the fret on which you
are playing.
- My hand obstruct the view and I don't know if I am
exactly on top of the fret.
- Also, do you push down on the bar so that there is
no buzzing?.

I have so many things to learn, but any kind of tips
helps. I used to be a fast learner in my younger years.

- Is the C tuning the best to play Blues and
Country?.
- Is a thinner bar better?. I have a Dunlop heavy
bar with sharo edges as handle. Also, it seem to
short to cover all the 6 strings and to do slants.
- To play on the higher register, I had to lean
completely to the right. Is there a better way?.
- Should the guitar be lowered?.
- Anything I can do to improve the sound?. It's a
cheap unit of course ($79), but it has a tone
button too.
Sorry for all these questions, I have so much to learn and don't know where to start.
Thank you very much.

Best Regards,
Abel

Hi Abel,

Nobody's laughing up here in Maine! It sounds great! I'm new to this and would be quite happy to sound like you! Are you new to pedal steel? I take it you've been playing guitar for a while. Have fun!

Greg

I have just one recommendation: Get in the habit of damping the strings with the side of your right hand when you need to move the bar between phrases. It will make your playing sound much cleaner.

Very nice rendering for a beginner!

See, you can do it! Now hurry up and buy my Zum StageOne so you can get started learning how to play Pedal Steel!!!:)
JE:-)>

2 hours? 2 &*(^(&*ing hours?

I hate you.

Seriously Abel, you ought to talk to Jim about his stage one pedal steel. After you get it, I'll be happy to give you an introductory lesson.

Thank you all,

Greg I really believe this is the maximum I can
achieve with a Steel guitar, but I would love
to trade my guitar skills with any of you for
half of what you know (you won't even be
interested).

Bob and Bernie What a great tip you gave me here.
I tried it and it makes a world of
difference in the sound and the
control. Thank you very much.
As a guitar player, I never dealt
with the area left of my left hand.
But this is a different story.

Mike and Jim Pedal steel is a complex machinery.
I have a hard time driving an
automatic car using my right foot
only (and my 2 hands) let alone 2
feet and knees. Maybe one day.
thank you much for your kind offer.
I would love to get some direction.

Only one question that really bugles me:

- How can you see the fret while your left hand is
covering it ?.

Thank you,
Abel

The frets are just there to give your eyes a target to move the bar towards, ITS YOUR EARS that will tell you when your playing in tune!
Both hands, both feet, both knees, both eyes are only going to get you 90% of the way, it's your ears that have to be in control and tell you when your playing in tune!
I have watched Joe Wright sit and play some of the most incredible stuff, with his eye's closed!
Learn to trust your ears and hear when your in the right place.
JE:-)>

Abel, I'm very impressed. I wish I played that good when I first started out. One thing you can try is to keep your other fingers on the strings behind the bar to dampen out any unwanted string sounds. A bullet nosed bar with an indention on the flat side for your thumb makes slanting somewhat easier. The Broz O Phonic bar is a good one and about the least expensive. Also you can tip the rear of the bar up slightly so your usin the nose of the bar for single notes. I like to position myself at around the 15-17 fret or so, this way you don't have to lean so much to reach the upper frets. I also like to have the height of the guitar where my forearms and wrists are somewhat level, in other words there's not much bend in my wrist. Man, your off to an excellent start and what a tune to start off with. Nice!!

Abel,
Very nice! Your ear for pitch is very good. I think your starting on non pedal, and staying here for awhile is very smart. Keep it up and keep us posted. Fred

Thank you all, It's good to have feedback from
musicians like you.

Jim,
You are entirely right. Ear makes perfect sense to me. For that matter, I don't read music and do everything by ear, but I still feel the need to see where I am on a steel because I don't want to always slide to a higher or lower note (which makes it easier to hit the right note especially when dumping the strings), but I would like to be able like you do so well to jump directly to a note.
I kind of did it a few times in the higher register, but it was meer luck that I hit the right note (if it was right at all ). Thank you much.

Andy,
Thank you for your email.
Tonight I' ll email you the backing track for "Tear Drop".
I couldn't find a midi file on the web, so, about 5 years ago, I made the BT with my CASIO keyboard and added a little streaming guitar chord.
Thank you for the tips. I will certainly heed it.
Unless I push hard on the bar, I hear plenty of buzzing from all the strings. It seems that the strings are not levelled.

Best Regards,
Abel

Two hours? Surely you jest! What will happen in two weeks, two months?
Jay Y.

Hi Jay,

It's sounds funny, but the very first time I ever wanted to touch a steel guitar was at the L.A. Steel guitar jam a couple of weeks ago.
Jim Eaton brought a Stage One for Sale. He tried it for me, than when I asked if I could try to just play a sound, he rightly said that I should ask the owner. So I didn't get to even touch it until I got my Lap Steel from MusiciansFriends a couple of days ago.
Nothing to be really excited about for me , 90% of my notes are out of tune. It's really difficult to
play this thing. but it is so rewarding for me just to hear that sound coming out of my Fender Hot Rod Deville that you can see on the video. Even my wife likes it.
It's funny she said she didn't hear any difference except for the beautiful sound. The reason being that
I always try to emulate the Steel guitar style when playing the Strat in tunes like "Tear Drop",
"Sleepwalk", "Tear "Midnight", "The Deer Hunter" or "Maria Elena".

Best Regards,
Abel http://akhineche.com