The Steel Guitar Forum

I just saw Gary perform "In the Garden" on the Marty Stuart Show....Wow! It was very beautifully played!..what a great show!

Brandon

Gary is a great player. I never miss him. He would be a great addition to the Dallas show

What a great variety show. Hats off to the producer. I think it's great the way all the band members are introduced. And, of course, featuring Gary Carter on the steel is outstanding, and he always rises to the ocassion.

Great player that Gary. It's a wonderful show overall, but the banjo clown seems strangely out of place to me.
Maybe it's Marty's way of saying that all are welcome in his circle of (musical) friends.

The pleasantly vacant Leroy Troy is supposed to harken back to Speck Rhodes, String Bean, and other "entertainers" of the Opry. I think his inclusion is part of the recreation of a old time radio/tv show. This was done intentionally and he only gets like one and a half minutes so I understand the intent although I don't know how much he adds....Peter

I wish they would have more then 30 min, mid west should be 30 min and martys should be the hour spot.

You always want to leave 'em wanting more, and at 30 minutes, Marty's show does exactly that. Midwest Country could actually be trimmed to 30 minutes because, despite the band, it doesn't feature enough good talent to fill an hour, and often lapses into boredom, IMO...

you are right about that

I'll bet the show goes to an hour before the end of the year. Write letters.

I love the format. It harkens back to old C&W TV shows from the 60's. The perfomer's hanging on the hay bales backstage. The steel is getting huge exposure and Gary's playing and tone are top notch. To play that style of music, on a regular basis would be a steeler's dream. It's one thing to be Connie's steeler, but to also play with MS and his style would be the cat's meow for any of us. I would love to see more than 30 min, but, it works, and this is the first year, with hopefully more to come. The harmonies on the gospel portion send chills up my spine.

I DVR it, and if there's an act or song I don't care for, I'll FF. But that is rare. I'm grateful with all the BS shows out there, that there is a show like this.

I'm typing this on a Sunday night as I'm watching it, recorded. Gary just got done playing the inspirational portion and I'm at a loss to find another program on broadcast/cable/sat TV with a steel instrumental JMO

Yes, Gary is a great player. Hope to get to meet him today. I'm going for a taping of the show. His sister works for the hearing aid doc that I go to.

Marty Stuart's show is the best music on the tube. It's the little things like the vintage Fender blackface backline, the classic announcer AND that banjer player... -L-

It should be an hour. Midwest Country desperately needs a lighting engineer. Not to mention some genuine talent. But the steel player smokes...

I record the show as well. Gary's playing on "In The Garden" this week was awesome. I agree with Bernie, Gary is an excellent steel player. I have always been a big Connie Smith fan and I like Marty to. I think we should write in and show our support. This is the most enjoyable programming to come along in a long time.

Jerry

If I knew how to write to the show, I would. It would be nice to see some younger faces in the audience mix too. Hey, I love the Cumberland Gap show afterwards from Rosine KY, and if I'm in the right mood Big Joe's Polka Hour is a happenin' trip as well... -L-

Tom Quinn wrote:If I knew how to write to the show, I would. It would be nice to see some younger faces in the audience mix too. Hey, I love the Cumberland Gap show afterwards from Rosine KY, and if I'm in the right mood Big Joe's Polka Hour is a happenin' trip as well... -L-

try this...will allow you to go to the site and find programming personnel..just a thought..
http://www.rfdtv.com/contact.asp

Bernie Gonyea wrote:

You guys said it; Gary is one excellent steeler; In the Garden was done so smooth and great sounding on his Zum steel. To me, he's the best part of the entire band. To me, they could do better without the Banjo Clown. If it wasn't for Connie and Gary; I wouldn't watch the show regularly..Bernie

Connie's my woman, Marty stole her from me. Seriously, Gary is smooth on that steel . And if it weren't for those two,I wouldn't watch it either,Bernie.
Tommy

Bernie Gonyea wrote:To me, they could do better without the Banjo Clown. If it wasn't for Connie and Gary; I wouldn't watch the show regularly..Bernie

Funny thing is I record the show every week and burn the Leroy Troy banjo songs onto my computer hard drive and delete the rest of the show. He does the best "Uncle Dave" routine I've ever seen. Guess I just like the old "Real Country" music more than others around here.

Now Allen,
Being from the great state of Kentucky,I like the bluegrass pickin' too. To me that's hillbilly.
Tommy

I like the whole show. It seems like it no more than starts, and it's over. I think most viewers enjoy it all also, and most non musician types don't really care who plays what, as long as they are entertained, which is the point of the show. I would say they have certainly met this goal.
I have watched the Midwest show since it's start. They have come a long way from when they first aired. I agree that the lighting and also the sound is often not too good, and now they are into showing re-run clips to fill the hour. They show an awful lot of re-run home grown commercials too, but I guess that's what pays the bills for the air time. Maybe that's all part of the charm of it BEING a home grown show from Sandstone, MN, and not the slick commercial stuff we are used to seeing. TV the way it "was"? Still and all, a pretty entertaining show. I also watch Polka Joe now and then cuz once in awhile they get a really good bunch on there. (not often, besides, it drives my wife crazy) I also like Jimmy Sturr and I used to watch Maurice Anderson and the gang too, but I think they took them off. At least RFD has a pretty good smattering of music shows, which all the other networks have dropped altogether. I hope they keep it up. I remember when TNN started out really great...music, Crook and Chase, old music show re-runs, etc, and slowly slid into the crap hole. Willie's short stint on satelite didn't last long either, and it went down the hole quick, leaving a lot of folks ripped off for subscription fees. I hope RFD can keep it up and not follow those who have "gone before".....