The Steel Guitar Forum

I have acquired a number of tracks by the Bailes Brothers. There is a lot of non-pedal steel in the Roy Wiggins style, sounds like A Major tuning. Does anybody know who the steel player might be?

Geo

Might be Shot Jackson or Nick Reed.

Almost certainly Shot. Magic old stuff!

Thanks Don & Clyde. I appreciate it.


George

Shot played on two of the Bales Brothers sessions. The first was what was done for King, in the early fall of 1946, where he played a B-7 Rickenbacher. Done at WSM in Nashville in two days.

Incidentially, that was his first formal recording session, ever.

The next session was for Columbia in Chicago, on April 22, 1947. He had a double neck Rickenbacher by then. That would be the band's last session.

Shot tuned to E and continued to do so when playing with Johnnie and Jack (dobro).

His first session with Kitty Wells (and her's as well) was in January 31, 1949, still using his Rickenbacher.

After the Bailes Brothers split up in 1949, Shot was on sessions with Jimmy Osborne, Webb Pierce, and Red Sovine, with that same E-tuned 7-string Rick.

Later he played a Fender double neck steel for Kitty which he tuned to E9th and C6th. He replaced that with a ShoBud, of course.

Ric Nelson

Hi Ric. WOW, you're a host of info. Thanks for all that interesting data.

Geo

Apropos the above, I wish to thank Ray Montee for initiating the following data from Ray's good friend Wayne Tanner. Here is the text in Wayne's email to me in the last few minutes. Thank you Wayne.



"My fellow Steel guitar friends,

Regarding the post regarding the Bailes brothers and who their steel guitar player was, I can testify to the fact that it was Shot Jackson.

In the mid 1940s I lived in Central Arkansas and played steel guitar with some of the bands around there. KWKH radio station in Shreveport came in loud and clear into my home and the station was big on country music because of the Louisiana Hayride. Every morning the station would broadcast many live country shows, one of which was the Bailes Brothers show and they sang gospel music almost exclusively. I loved the steel guitar sound of Shot Jackson who was their steel guitar player. He was a cross between Pete Kirby (Cousin Oswald) and Roy Wiggins.

Shot played a prewar 7 string Rickenbacker with only a volume control when he backed the Bailes brothers on KWKH. My business travels took me through Nashville from the 1970s through the 1990s. I became close friends with Shot Jackson and Roy Wiggins throughout those years. They both shared with me the fact that they patterned their steel guitar style after Pete Kirby who was Roy Acuff's dobro player. That 7 string Rickenbacker hung on the wall of Shot's music store on broadway and I sat and played it many times as I visited with Shot. We discussed his years with the Bailes brother a number of times. I requested the right to purchase that 7 string Rickenbacker if Shot ever decided to sell it. However, he sold much of his private collection suddenly and he forgot and sold it elsewhere. Shot referred to me as "the Rickenbacker man" because many of the Rickenbackers that came through his store were sold to me, which I sold to various steel men including Tom Brumley who played one of them on his show in Branson.

With musical regards,

Wayne Tanner"


Thanks again Wayne.

Geo (in snow covered Peach Pickin' country, Niagara ON)

George, thanks for that nice bit of history there. Eddie Stubbs frequently features the Bailes Brothers on his "Way Back Wednesday" show on WSM and comments on Shot's playing.

Thanks Clyde, but I was just the messenger. The thanks really goes to Wayne Tanner and Ray Montee for tipping me off.

I found Wayne's story of great interest as I became a fan of Roy Wiggins around 1948 when I was taking Hawaiian guitar lessons in Halifax on a school-supplied Stella acoustic guitar using what we call TAB today. The lessons were the pop songs of the day, i.e. I'll Hold You In My Heart, To My Sorrow, Be Sure There's No Mistake, Rockin' Alone In An Old Rocking Chair (all Eddy Arnold songs of course, along with My Happiness, I'll Take You Home Again Kathleen, and many Hawaiian tunes of course. I just loved Roy's ting-a-ling sound.

Geo