In a licks/vocabulary rut

Donald Boyajian · Posted 8 Dec 2013 11:35 am

Now that I've been playing a couple years, I feel I'm kind of stuck in a rut, in terms of my vocabulary...just feel like I'm playing a lot of very standard, uninteresting moves...I guess the best way to say it is: my playing is very "standard" - my playing is nice and tight, but I'm stuck coping the same licks that drew me to steel when I was first trying to copy the sounds on old Buck Owens records. Just a lot of slamming on A and B pedals...spending 70% of the time on strings 3-6. Anyone else struggle with getting out of this habit?
_________________
GFI S-10 Expo. Peavey NV 112

Abe Levy · From: California, USA

I think we all find ourselves in a rut once in a while. One thing I try to do when I feel this way is to try and play in positions with different root notes. For instance: two frets back from open position using the seventh string as the root. There's a nice pentatonic thing there, etc. Stomping the a and b pedals here will not do the same thing, obviously, and so forces me to play differently...

Hope that helps...
Abe
_________________
Mostly Pre-1970 guitars.

Carl Kilmer · From: East Central, Illinois

For something different, but really pretty, try using
strings 3 & 4 together open and then use the B/C pedals
from the fret you on and 1-2 frets above there. This is
really pretty in Hughey land (above the 12th fret) Wink

Also try using 3-5-6 together and 5-6-8 nice combos.
_________________
aka "Lucky Kay"--Custom built Rittenberry SD10 3X5, Walker S/S, NV-112, and Hilton Pedal

Tim Marcus · From: San Francisco, CA

learn how to play all the same licks somewhere else on the guitar

that should knock your brain around a little Smile

_________________
Milkmansound.com

Donald Boyajian · Posted 8 Dec 2013 12:39 pm

thanks guys- all great ideas. I'm really lazy with the BC pedals- use them for my minor sounds, ascending diatonic runs and turn arounds (the 1-2 frets up with BC and back down), but I feel like there is so much in BC that I'm missing.
_________________
GFI S-10 Expo. Peavey NV 112

Lane Gray · From: Topeka, KS

I like digging into non-pedal steel stuff. Try learning some Jerry Byrd stuff on pedal steel (It's hard to think like that), Jimmy or Jack McGriff organ parts, Sonny Stitt sax lines. All very steel-friendly, but you gotta put your thinking cap on to find 'em.
_________________
2 pedal steels, a lapStrat, and an 8-string Dobro (and 3 ukes)
More amps than guitars, and not many effects

Sid Hudson · From: Virginia, USA

Chris Gabriel · From: Oregon, USA

Johann. Sebastian. Bach.
_________________
MSA Classic 1973
BMI D-10
chrisgabriel.com
chrisgabrielpdx

Asa Brosius · Posted 8 Dec 2013 6:33 pm

I'm with Lane- non-pedal is a great work out when I start to feel like a pedal masher. Two other thoughts:
1- pick a melody/solo you love from another instrument, and see how it lays on the psg.
2-there must be some seemingly insurmountable 'how'd he do that?" intro or break you've heard, and has stuck with you- dive in. there's free software out there to slow down youtube videos that i find really helpful.
-and I'll double down on Sid's point-know that this feeling is not only common, but inevitable for everyone.

Eric Philippsen · From: Central Florida USA

I'm fortunate to have almost all of Jeff Newman's "Woodshed Workshop" tunes. When I get in a rut I pull out one of 'em and learn a lick or two from it. The series has a million great licks.

Daniel Morris · From: Westlake, Ohio, USA

Roger Crawford · From: Griffin, GA USA

For me, when I get tired of hearing myself play the same old tired lines and ideas
(Which is nearly all the time) my subconscious starts screaming at me.

It is screaming: â€œItâ€™s time to learn something new Stupidâ€

Sid, in my case, it's my wife screaming this to me!

Willie Sims · From: PADUCAH, KY, USA

I agree with Tim Marcus , PLAying in different positions will make you concentrate more. And it's amazing how many different ways you can take a song off such as the song crazy arms, just to name a few.

If you play C6 you can transpose your songs to C6. It's strange how similar the C6 and e9 tunings are. When you think about how the pedal on the C6 neck, that raises the second string and lowers the six. Actually works like the a and B pedals on the e9 neck. With a little practice you can play a lot of the e9 licks on the C6 neck. Try it, you might be surprised.

Willie Sims · From: PADUCAH, KY, USA

I agree with Tim Marcus , PLAying in different positions will make you concentrate more. And it's amazing how many different ways you can take a song off such as the song crazy arms, just to name a few.

If you play C6 you can transpose your songs to C6. It's strange how similar the C6 and e9 tunings are. When you think about how the pedal on the C6 neck, that raises the second string and lowers the six. Actually works like the a and B pedals on the e9 neck. With a little practice you can play a lot of the e9 licks on the C6 neck. Try it, you might be surprised.

Bob Hoffnar · From: Austin, Tx

A simple thing to also try is play exactly what you play on strings 3 and 5 on strings 5 and 6. Then try playing the same thing on strings 10 and 6. This gives you inversions on the chords using what you already know.

After that I would work on playing those same type scales/licks on strings 8 and 5 using the E lower lever and A pedal.
_________________
Bob

Daniel McCombe · From: Pennsylvania, USA

I just purchased Kev Ryans "Hot and Sassy Steel Licks" both volumes and Its giving me a good workout. 1-3 bar phrases many of them single note fast runs that are very interesting. Check it out its well worth the $$.
http://kevyx.com/instruction.html

Jon Guirl · From: Millington TN, USA

I happened to run across this on Bobbe Seymours site and it fits here nicely.

http://www.bobbeseymour.net/2005-1215.html

Jim Bob Sedgwick · From: Clinton, Missouri USA

Try playing melodies on strings 5 & 6.
Use only A and B pedals. Do not play any licks, Just melody. You will have to move up and down the neck quite a lot to find the melody. This will open up the neck for you. Practically any melody can be played this way, and will open your mind to a thousand ideas.
Think back to the days when the pedals were first split. They had no knee levers and had to find where the sounds were on the neck. hope this helps

Mike Cass · Posted 13 Dec 2013 1:11 am

find yourself some Gospel recordings featuring Sonny Garrish, you should be able to get his discography online somewhere. Get the Tascam unit Sid mentioned and go for it.
Ol' Sonny will take you some places you've never been before, trust me.
This line of thinking was given to me by the late Curly Chalker. I met him when I was in my teens, and after expressing to him much the same sentiments as you did in your post he advised me to pick a Nashville pro player, learn everything about his style that I could, then move on to the next guy. He said that after paying close attention to at least 2 pro players I would learn the neck and develop the habit of practicing in my head.
Then he said that the only thing needed to keep my hands sharp was sitting at the guitar 1 hour a day working out what my head came up with during the other 23........

Jim Hoke · From: Tennessee, USA

Take one of your standard grips and move one of the notes down an octave. Like, 3-4-5 becomes 3-4-10. Also, instead of a grip that has all 3 triad notes, lose one of them and have 2 different octaves of one one the remainders, like 4-5-8 or 5-6-8. It's a more open sound, and when you move these around with pedals, cool stuff happens. It's an interesting texture for playing the melody. Also, listen to old Lloyd Green stuff w/ Paycheck - he's pretty interesting. If you dig into what he's doing, you'll end up w/ all kinds of new stuff and it's still fresh.

Jim Hoke · From: Tennessee, USA

I mean 5-6-10.

Scott Hay · From: Portland, OR / Yucca Valley, CA USA

Buddy Emmons E9 Chord Vocabulary!

http://www.buddyemmons.com/CE9CV.htm

One of the best $20-$30 you'll spend on steel guitar. It will give you ideas for new chord positions for you to explore and develop licks from, but most importantly it will give you a system for mapping all the different positions on the neck in a logical relational manner that is easy to remember.

I bet b0b sells that course on the forum store.

Lots of good advice in your thread for you to consider.

Good luck!

Forum Index > Pedal Steel		Next oldest topic :: Next newest topic