The Steel Guitar Forum

I just wanted to start this thread to sing the praises of Merle Travis. I just picked up a cd called "Strictly Guitar" and it's all Merle. What a great player... And songwriter. Did anyone ever write anything like a biography about him?

Yes, he was great. I like Joe Maphis a lot, too.<font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Mike Neer on 21 April 2006 at 10:39 AM.]</p></FONT>

Go to YouTube.com and do a search for Merle Travis. There is a great old clip of him playing Too Much Sugar for a Dime on there right now. He playing a nice Bigsby guitar.

Travis was the man. I only got to see Travis perform live once, it was at the Grand Ole Opry, Christmas weekend of 1996 and I was fourteen. My folks took us to Florida that year for Christmas and on our way home to Missouri we stopped in Nashville to see the Grand Ole Opry. It was an event I have never forgotten. Merle came out on stage unannounced in a canary yellow suite and it wasn't until he had played about 30 seconds that I realized who it was. I jumped up and went down and took a picture of him, unfortunately when my Mom passed away I did not get all of the pictures I took that evening and Merle's was one I did not get. I did manage to get a picture of the Osborne Brothers which had my friend Dale Sledd in it, and four other pictures.

His son Thom Bresh[not sure if I spelled his name right]is also a great player in the style of his dad.

Merle and Chet have been two of my guitar heroes. Back in the 60's I tried my hand as a lead picker, with my 61 model PX6120 Gretsch "Chet Atkins" model. I got several band jobs because I could do a little "Chet", not because of how "well" I picked lead.

In another current thread there is a discussion about using a thumb pick on lead. I've mostly used a thumb pick for lead.

Kenny, i don't think you meant 1996. Merle Travis died in 1983.

I wish that they would release the album that Chet and Merle did together: "Atkins, Travis Traveling Show" on CD. Man I wish I still had that album!! Two of my all-time heros!

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73 PROII,8&4, Steelking, Hilton pedal, USA Tele, Fender Twin,Peterson tuner,Tut Taylor Reso's and Twang to the Bone!!

<font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Larry Robbins on 22 April 2006 at 10:37 AM.]</p></FONT>

I've seen that Atkins Travis Traveling Show CD listed on the Internet (don't remember where but a google search will get it). According to what I saw it noted it was a Japanese import.

When I was about ten and got my first little Stella guitar ,I KNEW without a doubt if I could ever get me one of those Chet Atkins model guitars,I could play just like him.As Waylon would say,WRONG,WRONG,WRONG!!!!!!It's a shame youth is wasted on young folks.

<font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Larry Robbins on 26 April 2006 at 02:08 PM.]</p></FONT>

AH YES....YOU GUYS TELL MY STORY....
JENNINGS

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EMMONS D10 10-10 profex 2 deltafex ne1000 pv1000, pv 31 bd eq, +

Gotta go with you on Merle, Henry . He just seems to be on a whole nuther plain. He was supposed to pick up at the San Rafael fairgrounds once but didn't show. Luckily Doc Watson, Maybelle Carter, Jimmie Martin, Vassar Clements. Taj Mahal, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, David Grisman, Jim and Jesse, Emmy Lou Harris,and many many more did show.

The book by Rich Kienzle which comes with the Bear Family box set is worth the price of the whole set itself, tons of great pictures too. And I think Merle's daughter Patty has written a book about his dad too.

In Search of my Father:
Written by Pat Travis Eatherly
Broadman Press 1987
Very good book,well worth the read for
Mearle Travis fans.


Peggy

A little trivia: Merle Travis lived on the same street as Red Rhodes.

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My web site

Merle Travis played a few tunes on the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band's immortal "Will the Circle Be Unbroken I" album produced in 1971. There's a great clip on there of him meeting Doc Watson for the first time, and plenty of good pickin' with Earl Scruggs, Vassar Clements, Maybelle Carter et. al. This album is a masterpiece--I wore it out on vinyl and now have it on CD>

Thanks Peggy, that's the one I was referring to.

Randy, you are right, I meant 1966. Lord, it has been more than 10 years since I was fourteen years old.

A SCRAPBOOK OF MY DADDY, MERLE TRAVIS
by Pat Travis Eatherly
peatherly@aol.com

It's a great book, full of photos, cartoons, poetry, songlist, and anecdotes spanning Merle's entire life.

Here's a great Merle Trvis DVD
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000096IAQ/qid=1146366994/sr=1-2/ref=pd_bbs_2/102-5929001-7911308?%5Fencoding=UTF8&s=dvd&v=glance&n=130

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"Drinking up the future, and living down the past"--unknown singer in Phoenix

Travis also used my steel hero, Curly Chalker starting in 1961 with the "Travis" album and used him on many sessions as their styles blended so well together.

I wish ol' Tuck Raisor was still with us. In addition to being Buddy Emmons' biggest fan and hosting the Louisville steel shows in the '80's, Tuck also hosted the Kentucky Thumbpickers shows which still continue today. I'm sure he could shed light on the western Kentucky roots of thumbstyle guitar.

My friend and accomplished musician Boogie Sherrard, also a fan of thumbstyle, told me about a man named Mose Rager and playing a show with the man who is credited with unifying styles of thumbstyle and is credited with being Merle Travis' mentor. Boogie's recount stirred me to do some research on Mose and I found this info online.

Merle and Chet had more exposure, but Merle learned it from Mose who learned the basic style from earlier black innovators.

For those interested in this type thing, here is a link to one article on the subject. A google search on Eddie Pennington, et. al. will net more current information on the style which has expanded to include monster players like Tommy Emmanuel who has taken the concept to a whole 'nuther level. http://personal.riverusers.com/~debed/teocfp.htm <font size="1" color="#8e236b"><p align="center">[This message was edited by Jerry Overstreet on 30 April 2006 at 11:42 AM.]</p></FONT>

Rick,
I can't get the email link to work.
Anyone else get it to work?

Thanks,Peggy

May be wrong,but seems I read some where that Ike Everly[The Everly Brothers father]was an influnce on Chet.