The Steel Guitar Forum

Some guys make faces and look really obvious when they chance to make a small, barely noticeable mistake by erroneously placing their bar in the wrong fret position at an in appropriate time during the playing of a song. This also applies to plucking the wrong string or smashing the wrong pedal.

I've found that if it is a little more glaring, you can oft' times get away with it, if you repeat that same mistake during the same phrase elsewhere in the tune. You might get a few alarmed stares with a questioned frown on their face but........if you tend to counter THAT with a STRONG DEFENSE....that you were merely walking on the ragged edge, they oft' time will back off and some times even apologize to YOU for having tho't that you'd make a mistake.

A steel player MUST LEARN to use all of the tools in his bag o'tricks.

I've found that makin' a mistake can sometimes lead you in a whole new direction. I can clearly remember hittin' a clam once, and I couldn't get my mind off the way the mistake sounded. It led me to a whole new series of licks and chords. When I made the mistake though, I did what I always do, point at the bass player, and laugh!

MOST everything I play is a mistake. DYKBC.

John, that's a goodin'!
When some unknown band member would secretly break wind, once it became obvious, we'd all point to the bassman! It usually worked well and certainly shifted the blame for this dastardly act.

PeeuWheeew! That one touched leather on that pac-a-seat.

IF one never makes a mistake they are not doing anything.

Years ago I saw Herby hit the wrong pedal. He was on the C6th and playing really fast. I could read his lips and he was none too happy but he was so fast I didn't hear the mistake. Sometimes I can't listen as fast as the guys are playing.

(In Maxwell Smart, Agent 86's voice) Ah yes, the old Play it Twice and Call it Jazz trick!

Sometimes I'll be playin' a song and all of a sudden, I might play the wrong string, but if I happen to play the certain song at another show, I always try to remember where I made that certain mistake.

Brett

Ray Montee wrote:I've found that if it is a little more glaring, you can oft' times get away with it, if you repeat that same mistake during the same phrase elsewhere in the tune.

That is exactly what I did as I was beginning playing in bands. Learned to improvise, and learned to relax on stage. Adopted the mantra "No note is wrong, unless you can't find a good one to follow it."

What

you nbow why i love mistakes???

Because you learn from them!!!

I guess the odds are 7 to 5 of playing a good note or at least on that works in some sort of way.

Rich Peterson wrote:"No note is wrong, unless you can't find a good one to follow it."

As my dear friend the late John Propst put it, "There are no bad notes, just bad resolutions."

I had a few ( mistakes ) play me in the past lol

If mistakes were electricity...I would be a POWER HOUSE.

Mistakes teach me humility. 'tis a fine line between humulity and humiliation...

Bobby Snell wrote:(In Maxwell Smart, Agent 86's voice) Ah yes, the old Play it Twice and Call it Jazz trick!

+1 on that one

I also ascribe to something Ray Charles supposedly said, that being that the difference between an amateur and a professional is how they cover up their mistakes.

"There are no bad notes, just bad resolutions."

Very true! Ya gotta be a quick thinker too.

Ray Minich wrote:Mistakes teach me humility. 'tis a fine line between humulity and humiliation...

It is preferable to humble yourself than be humiliated by others.

In an old "Peanuts" strip, Linus is consoling Charlie Brown, "We learn from our mistakes." Charlie responds, "In that case, I'm the smartest person in the world."

I was in a band with a couple gals who had no professional experience, and would be tense and anxious at the start of the night. So I'd make a mistake in the first or second song, laugh it off, and everybody relaxed.

Perfection is OK for recording, but unpredictability is what makes live music "Live."

Many of the best licks, have come out from making what was (originally) a mistake. The problem most times is, we can't ever find that same mistake to do again..

In the immortal words of Pee Wee Herman (after falling off his bike and then doing a forward roll to make the statement look plausible),"I meant to do that!" So, yes, a good resolution does solve the problem. But with most listeners, bluffing is just as good provided you don't mess up entirely too often.

Yes mistakes are part of making music. One time I was playing french horn, in a symphony orchestra, and for about 3 days in rehearsal, I am playing the music as written. The conductor would stop at a certain place every time, and ask who was not playing the correct note. It did sound terrible. So after doing it many times he had all the instruments play that part solo. My turn came and wow, it was me. But I did play all the written notes correctly. My music was printed wrong. The conductors score had the correct notes, but not what was given to me. I did get an apology from the conductor, after we compared music. Even the publishers make mistakes.

There are no mistakes until u stop...be careful where you stop.