The Steel Guitar Forum

Hi Steel Guitar Community:

I'm really very pleased to announce that we'll be having a little ol' SF Bay Area Non-Pedal Steel Guitar Summit which is officially set for Sunday, May 1st, at Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto, CA, from 2-6m. It's a chance to meet some of the other players here in the Bay Area, a legend or three, and, most importantly, to have the opportunity to try out a few new and vintage lap/console steel guitars. I'm bringing a few guitars from my personal collection including a Clinesmith or two. You're welcome to bring a guitar or two of yours, too, to show and share.

Please mark your calendars, and also please let me know if you'd like to attend. This is a free event for players and fans, and it would be great to meet as many of you in person as possible. Space is limited, however, so an RSVP here (reply, PM me, email) would be most appreciated. If you're on Facebook, please be in touch with me and I will make sure you are directed to the specific event information soon. I'd like to have an event page up on Facebook very soon with more details for all.

Mark those calendars! (:

Thanks to the folks at Gryphon for hosting, too.

Best wishes,
Larry Chung
San Francisco

Larry, good to know that it is now officially official.

Count me in!

Cool! Will try to make it.

I rarely take vacation, but this is when I'll be in Tucson.

I hope it's a great time for all involved (how could it not, given the talent involved?). Have a great time!

I'm exploring buying a lap steel, so this will be very interesting for me...count me in!

This sounds great. I have a schedule conflict on the 1st, but I hope I can at least catch the last part of it.

If I can borrow my wife's car I'll see if I can come.
Is it going to be entirely for non-pedal electric steel, or are resonators welcome, too?

The focus of the event is really intended to be about lap and console steels.

We're getting closer and I'm getting more excited about this gathering. Please RSVP if you are interested so we can save a place for you!

Details coming shortly, looks like we've got at least one major vintage-style manufacturer (guess who?) and at least a few of the Bay Area's best-known and beloved players, too.

LC

That's great you are making the effort to put this all together, Larry. A lot of hours and a lot of thought.

Larry.
Thanks for organizing this event.
Please count me in.

Make sure you produce nametags for everyone. Events that don't have nametags to wear can end up embarassing when you see people familiar but don't remember their names.

Good point by Alan - and Larry - I was going to message you about this but I hadn't gotten around to it yet.

If you don't already have the goods, I can be in charge of bringing some of those Hello, my name is... stickers and a couple of Sharpies. Let me know.

George, i think the badges only make for nice souvenirs if there is some sort of cool logo involved and I think we're going more low key here - no official logo on the horizon unless Larry has something up his sleeve.

I don't like the badge holder involving a pin, because now you have two small holes in your shirt that weren't there before.

There is the type with a little alligator clip-like clamp, but now it's starting to add up in price.

I have done plenty of industry trade shows and I prefer the lanyard that goes around the neck with the clear plastic name tag/badge holder. But those also add up in price, and probably overkill for a four hour event.

Unless Larry and others feel strongly otherwise, I think the old Hello stickers should suffice. If someone wants to take off their jacket and needs a new name tag after the event has started, I will be happy to provide them with a fresh Hello sticker!

After all, this is a group of steel guitar players meeting for one afternoon, it's not the annual corporate gathering of GQ Magazine. Probably not going to be any guys in attendance wearing $100 designer shirts where they wouldn't want to affix a sticker.

I've never had problems with stickers on my clothes. They don't usually leave residue. You don't even need "Hello" on them. In fact blank ones look better than the ones with "Hello" on. The "Hello" is meaningless.

We've used regular blank ones at the Northern California Association of Luthiers for years. We usually print the names of those who are likely to turn up, and everyone else writes his own with a felt pen.

I don't like pins because they poke holes in garments that get bigger over the years. I'm not going to punch holes in the Sho-Bud T-shirt that Bobbe Seymour sold me years ago. I expect to be wearing it for the next 20 yrs., if I live that long.

Clips assume that everyone will have a top pocket to attach the clip to. I don't expect people to turn up to the event in business suits. They'll probably have T-shirts with no top pockets.

Here's a Facebook page that I just created this morning.
https://www.facebook.com/events/560473047464264/

Details -
1st Annual Northern California Non-Pedal Steel Guitar Summit
at Gryphon Stringed Instruments
211 Lambert Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94306
650.493.2131
2-6pm
free!

Special Guests include Bobby Black and Todd Clinesmith of Clinesmith Guitars! Just added - Scott Walker of Scott Walker Guitars in Santa Cruz.

Space is limited, so please RSVP here or email me.

Please feel free to bring (to show and/or share) one or two steels if you wish. I will be bringing my Clinesmiths, a pre-war Ricky B-7 and perhaps a Gibson EH-150-7. We could probably also use a few small amps to share, too.

Please message me with what you have if you'd like, I can compile a list and share so folks know what to expect and we don't end up with 25 Pandas. (:


Mark, that's very thoughtful of you to offer, yes please bring the stickers/tags/badges and a couple of sharpies. If you like, I can send you a list of the attendees later this week.

Larry, that would be great, please send me a list of possible attendees since i will be the "name badge monitor."

It's great that Todd is coming, I e-mailed him yesterday and he wasn't so sure a couple weeks ago since it's a long haul from where he lives outside of Roseburg, Oregon. But it's looking good for him now to make the journey.

I don't really have a high quality tube amp for lap steel right now but I have a small inexpensive Vox amp with tube features that I use around the house and sounds pretty decent, I can bring that.

I could bring the Nashville 112 amplifier that you sold me about 15 years ago.

Wish I could make it....got a session...

Have fun!

Scott Walker from Scott Walker Guitars in Santa Cruz will be there, too, with his prototype stereo hollow body lap steel! (:

Space is filling up, please RSVP here or contact me via email.

Guest list so far, if you want to attend, please let me know ASAP so I can get you on the list:

Steel Guitar Summit
Sunday, May 1 from 2-6pm
Gryphon Stringed Instruments
211 Lambert Ave.
Palo Alto, CA 94301
(650) 493-2131


Guest List:

Sean Allen
Gary Anwyl
Jacob Aranda
Bobby Black
Alan Brookes
Dane Carlson
Larry Chung, host
Todd Clinesmith, Clinesmith Guitars
Laurent & David Cohen-Tanugi
Mark Eaton
Rich Ellis
Jay Fagerlie
Mark Harpainter
Randy Hellstern
Paul Jacobs
Eric Jaeger
William Keats
John Kenney
Casey Koulman
Bill Leff
Jeff MacDonald
Dave Magram
Mikiya Matsuda, host
Bill McKenna
Kristian Meisling
John MItguard
Michael Scdoris
Michael Simmons
Dean Titus +1
Scott Walker, Scott Walker Guitars
Glenn & Nancy Watanabe

Mark Eaton wrote: If someone wants to take off their jacket and needs a new name tag after the event has started, I will be happy to provide them with a fresh Hello sticker!

After all, this is a group of steel guitar players meeting for one afternoon, it's not the annual corporate gathering of GQ Magazine.

exactly!
you could even introduce yourself as you extend your hand.

Sounds logical, Chris, but you can't hold out your hand to a bunch of juys sitting playing instruments. If you were there to see the set-up you would realise that the name tags worked out well.

The event went down very well. It was good to meet people I had only known via the Forum, and a lot of new friendships were created.
Thanks must go to Larry Chung for organizing the event, and to Frank Ford for hosting it at Gryphon String Instuments.

We must do it again.