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Topic: Other Hawaiian Steel Guitars I have known |
John Drury
From:
Gallatin, Tn USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 6:18 am |
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I hate the term "lap steel". To me it is either a Hawaiian steel guitar or pedal steel.
Anyway here are three guitars of mine that sounded very "Hawaiian". My two favorites are the 53 Diana, and the 63 Fender Champ.
The Rickenbacher is a 1936, pre truss rod. Keeping this axe in tune was a job! Bought it from a dealer at the music Valley Show, early eighties, $235-.
Sold it not long ago for close to three large. Talk about the "Rickenbacher Moan" I definitely heard it when the dude was counting the cash out! LMAO!
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John Drury
NTSGA #3
"Practice cures most tone issues" ~ John Suhr |
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Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 6:52 am Re: Other Hawaiian Steel Guitars I have known
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| John Drury wrote: |
I hate the term "lap steel". To me it is either a Hawaiian steel guitar or pedal steel.
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Gibson used to use the term "Electric Spanish" guitar for their instruments ie. ES335, ES 355 etc. That term sounds very outdated and not relevant today.
"Hawaiian steel" sounds the same to me to apply to ALL lap steels. If it is only capable of playing the Hawaiian style then that would be fine, but the lap steel guitar encompasses too much to just be called a "Hawaiian steel".
Maybe you also like the term "horseless carriage" for a Nascar vehicle?  |
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Edward Meisse
From:
Santa Rosa, California, USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 7:00 am
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I also hate the term lap steel. But Mr. Hatcher's comments are well taken. I think we're just going to have to live with this odious term.
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Amor vincit omnia |
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John Drury
From:
Gallatin, Tn USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 7:56 am
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Bill,
I see what you mean but I'm coming at it from a different angle. It is generally accepted that the Hawaiians invented the thing so wether you are playing a Frypan, a Weissenborn,a Tri-Cone, a Dobro, or even a pedal steel, you are still playing a Hawaiian Steel Guitar.
The one that really hacks me off is when someone calls it a lap top steel! How retarded can you get? That is a type of computer.
The NASCAR thing is kinda out there!
I once had a Lap Dance from a Hawaiian lady, Wowza!
Thats a whole other story.
Peace
_________________
John Drury
NTSGA #3
"Practice cures most tone issues" ~ John Suhr |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 11:42 am
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I hate a Ricky Bakelite being called a 'panda', ugh!!!, makes my skin crawl.
I've always tended to call steel guitars 'lap steel', to help the unknowing to picture it easier in their minds, but have been conciously changing to Hawaiian steel, simply to give credit where credit is due.
John, that moan quote was indeed a funny. And too few even know what the moan is about! |
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John Drury
From:
Gallatin, Tn USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 12:50 pm
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Ron,
I agree, the post war Bakelites with the white plates are stuck with that nick name "Panda" I guess.
Another one is the double necks with the cabinet trimmed in some cheesy wood like paneling. They call it the Rickenbacker Mobile Home model.....Gaaaaaackk.
Now the "Fry Pan", that one I understand!
_________________
John Drury
NTSGA #3
"Practice cures most tone issues" ~ John Suhr |
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 1:24 pm Stuck?
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| No way! A little stink eye every time someone coughs that word up and it'll fade. |
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Billy Tonnesen
From:
R.I.P., Buena Park, California
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 8:08 pm
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| Last year I made a post about an old Alvino Rey instruction book I used for my 6-string Hawaiian Guitar. Alvino referred to the Guitar as "The Electric Singing Guitar". One of the posts I got about this thought that would be a better name than "Lap Steel". I agree ! |
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John Bechtel
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.
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Posted 10 Oct 2008 8:48 pm
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Because I can't think of another name, other than Hawaiian Steel Guitar I can't really say that I dislike the term ‘Lap~Steel’, if it actually is held on the lap, but; if it has 3 or 4 legs under it, Whoa! I usually either call it by it's assigned name (ie Gibson BR-9) or a non-pedal console steel guitar. The one thing that I dislike is to hear a Rickenbacker called a ‘Ricky’! ‘Panda’ designates a particular model or design and that's quite acceptable by me! There are double-neck steels w/o legs, which I imagine are a trick to hold on your lap and a discriptive name for them might be a little difficult! Do you call that a Legless~Console?
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<marquee> Go~Daddy~Go, (No), Go, It's your Break Time</marquee> L8R, jb
My T-10 Remington Steelmaster |
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Charley Wilder
From:
Dover, New Hampshire, USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 6:23 am
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| I don't mind "lap steel" because it is specific. But non-pedal steel is okay also. But lap steel is better; it's designates a "steel" guitar that's meant to lay on your "lap". If you were looking at an advertisment for one with no photo wouldn't you want to know if it's meant to be played on your lap or not? |
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Erv Niehaus
From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 7:03 am
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When I started playing guitar, you either played a "Spanish" guitar or a "Hawaiian" guitar.
The first one was fretted and the later was played with a bar.
I still like to refer to them in this manner.  |
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John Drury
From:
Gallatin, Tn USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 7:45 am
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Erv,
Amen
_________________
John Drury
NTSGA #3
"Practice cures most tone issues" ~ John Suhr |
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Ray Montee
From:
Portland, Oregon (deceased)
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 8:32 am but then......................
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WHAT ABOUT those 'TABLE TOP' multiple deck, console g'tars?
I like what some Hawaiians use:
Geetar and steel geetar.........
Now that tells it like it is! |
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Blake Wilson
From:
Boulder CO, USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 8:39 am
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Page 122, "It was a Trip on Wings of Music", by Jerry Byrd (Centerstream Pub., 2003):
"...I'd like to dispose of the term 'non-pedal' steel guitar. I don't consider myself 'non'-anything. I play steel guitar, and they play pedal steel guitar. They're two different instruments. I'd like to see the elimination of such negative hyphenated words altogether.
Descriptive words can be confusing enough as it is. First, "lap steel", I assume is another term for non-pedal. But what if the person is standing while playing? Does this refer to Dobro/acoustic players? These terms only serve to confuse an already confused public, about 85% of whole don't know what a steel guitar is anyway."
Words of wisdom.
Regards,
Blake |
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Edward Meisse
From:
Santa Rosa, California, USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 11:01 am
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Good job, Mr. Wilson. And that's how I feel about it as well. But I don't think we're going to be able to hold back the tide. Look at the index headings right here on the Steel Guitar Forum, by god.  
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Amor vincit omnia |
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Mark Eaton
From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 11:29 am
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One can obviously refer to it whatever way they want, but the terminology is there to be able to communicate with others, and not really so much with "steel guitar legion" here on the Forum.
I think a fair number of the general public actually can relate to the term Hawaiian Steel Guitar, but if you are playing in a rock and roll context with some overdrive or distortion, it no more sounds like a "Hawaiian" guitar than does Jimi Hendrix playing Purple Haze fit the term "Spanish" guitar.
History teaches us that the first reported episodes of people playing a lap style guitar on a regular basis with a steel bar of some kind occurred in Hawaii. But who produced the first electric Hawaiian Steel Guitar - was it Rickenbacher? Los Angeles is a long ways from Honolulu...
And, if you were discussing the possibility of getting a recording session gig with a record producer, would you tell him "I can play Hawaiian steel guitar." Probably not (unless the session had something to do with Hawaiian music).
Along with his pedal steel and dobro playing, I really enjoy the recordings in my collection with Dan Dugmore on the aforementioned overdriven lap steel/Hawaiian guitar.
But somehow, I just don't picture Dan in a phone conversation with a producer with which he hasn't worked in the past saying "would you like me to bring my Hawaiian steel guitar for this session?"
Because I'd bet a dollar to a doughnut that the producer would respond with "is that the same as a lap steel?"
Regardless, John, those are some great looking guitars in the photos! 
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Mark |
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John Bechtel
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 2:50 pm
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I guess you could just say: “I play a steel~guitar, but; it doesn't have any pedals” and then let them call it anything that they want to call it! (Q): “What happened to the pedals”? (A): “Nothing. This model is played without any pedals”! I think nowadays PSG is so common and No-Pedals has become so uncommon that Pedals are just automatically expected! It's time to re-educate! They are two different ‘animals’! It's up to us to convince the newer/younger generation of music-‘producers’ that there is a choice!
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<marquee> Go~Daddy~Go, (No), Go, It's your Break Time</marquee> L8R, jb
My T-10 Remington Steelmaster |
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John Drury
From:
Gallatin, Tn USA
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 5:11 pm
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One of the Opry members, seems like it was Ernest, or possibly Hank Snow, I don't remember, used to introduce his steeler: "And on the Hawaiian Steel Guitar!"..........
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John Drury
NTSGA #3
"Practice cures most tone issues" ~ John Suhr |
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Tom Pettingill
From:
California, USA (deceased)
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John Bechtel
From:
Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.
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Posted 11 Oct 2008 8:02 pm
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I play one of ‘them things’ at home, sometimes!
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<marquee> Go~Daddy~Go, (No), Go, It's your Break Time</marquee> L8R, jb
My T-10 Remington Steelmaster |
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Danny Bates
From:
Fresno, CA. USA
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Posted 12 Oct 2008 4:10 am
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Hey Blake... Great post!
I agree with Jerry Byrd...
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| I play steel guitar, and they play pedal steel guitar. |
But... I have to admit it... I do like Alvino's "The Electric Singing Guitar" too! |
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