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Topic: Tom Brumley steel solo on Together Again... question.. |
Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 8:15 am |
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I read today in a long British written article on the history of pedal steel guitars that Tom cut this iconic solo using a Fender 1000 steel guitar.. I know he used a Fender very early on in his career with Buck Owens, but always thought he had started using his ZB by the time Together Again was released,, Does anyone know if this fantastic solo was indeed played by Tom on his old Fender steel?... bob
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I'm over the hill and hittin'rocks on the way down!
no gear list for me.. you don't have the time...... |
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B. Greg Jones
From:
Middleport, Ohio USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 8:47 am
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Tom did indeed use a Fender 1000 when he cut "Together Again". When he got hired by Buck, he was told there was already a steel in California for him to use so, he left his Fender in Texas. To make a long story short, when he finally got to see the guitar it was torn apart and nothing worked. He and Don Rich worked on it and got 2 pedals working before the session. That is why most of the song was played on 2 strings because they were the only ones that worked. Rolene Brumley still has the amp and bar that Tom used on the session. The Fender 1000 went back to Fender and they replaced it with a new one.
Greg |
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Jack Aldrich
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 11:17 am
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Tom's solo involves full pedals, half pedals and slants. I learned it from Jeff Newman back in the late 70's. That's why the top note seems to stay the same, while the lower note drops.
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Jack Aldrich
Carter & ShoBud D10's
D8 & T8 Stringmaster
Rickenbacher B6
3 Resonator guitars
Asher Alan Akaka Special SN 6
Canopus D8 |
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Craig A Davidson
From:
Wisconsin Rapids, Wisconsin USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 11:29 am
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| And just think he did the original with two pedals. I read the same story in Bucks biography. The guitar was previously played by Jay MacDonald. Buck and the boys had a Fender endorsement. |
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Craig Baker
From:
Eatonton, Georgia, USA - R.I.P.
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 12:43 pm "Wish I still had my Fender 1000". . . Norm Hamlet
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Recently, I spoke with Norm Hamlet. He told me an interesting bit of trivia that is worth sharing. Like most of the greats, years ago Norm had a Fender 1000 also. As the story goes, Buck Owens loved the sound of a steel guitar and actually played one in his earlier years. Apparently, Buck loved it, but never really became very proficient with a steel. Norm sold his Fender 1000 to Buck Owens, and just as you would expect, Norm wishes he had it today.
Norm Hamlet, very nice gentleman, very good steel guitarist.
Craig
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"Make America Great Again". . . The Only Country With Dream After Its Name. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 3:33 pm
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| Jack Aldrich wrote: |
| Tom's solo involves full pedals, half pedals and slants. I learned it from Jeff Newman back in the late 70's. That's why the top note seems to stay the same, while the lower note drops. |
Full pedals - yes. Half pedals - yes. But no slants are required to play the solo that Tom did!  |
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Ken Campbell
From:
Ferndale, Montana
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 5:08 pm
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| Has anyone tabbed the original Brumley solo? The tqb I have most certainly does not contain any half pedals..... |
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Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 5:49 pm
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The tone of that steel was immaculate.. I mean as lovely as anything ever cut on any pedal steel.. I have seen a video of Tom using a later Fender [short scale].. Could that sound REALLY have come from the later model Fender 1000?..
The early Fenders with long scale, stamped pedals [not cast], and Jazzmaster/P90 style pickup WERE highly regarded as being good sounding steels, but the later ones[short scale,cast pedals, black painted frame, Jaguar style pickup] were not highly regarded for tone.. I will submit that if that steel was indeed a later model 1000, a lot of Fender guys will be surprised.. Having owned several later cable Fenders I can say that NONE of them sounded like Brumleys.... bob
_________________
I'm over the hill and hittin'rocks on the way down!
no gear list for me.. you don't have the time...... |
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Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 5:51 pm
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| Donny Hinson wrote: |
| Jack Aldrich wrote: |
| Tom's solo involves full pedals, half pedals and slants. I learned it from Jeff Newman back in the late 70's. That's why the top note seems to stay the same, while the lower note drops. |
Full pedals - yes. Half pedals - yes. But no slants are required to play the solo that Tom did! |
Agreed.. I get it pretty close[still a very poor imitation of Tom's touch of course] and don't use any slants.. Several half pedals however... bob
_________________
I'm over the hill and hittin'rocks on the way down!
no gear list for me.. you don't have the time...... |
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B. Greg Jones
From:
Middleport, Ohio USA
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Posted 19 Nov 2014 6:43 pm
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Bob, you are right. The "Together Again" guitar was in fact one with the stamped pedals, jazzmaster style pickups and ivory in color. Tom told me when he got the newer version from Fender, he didn't like it near as well as the old one. Tom later switched to Sho~Bud for a very short while and then got his 1st ZB in 1965 and the rest is history!!!
Greg |
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robert kramer
From:
Nashville TN
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 4:57 am
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"The guitar was previously played by Jay MacDonald. Buck and the boys had a Fender endorsement." (Craig Davidson)
Is this the "Together Again" guitar?
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 6:33 am
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I have never noticed any half pedals or slants in the original together again solo. The only tricky part is the lowering of 5 th string which is done by raising the 3rd string with the B pedal while sliding down a half step . Then moving back up a half step while letting off the B pedal. That leaves the note on the 3rd string the same while moving the 5st down a half step.
It is a beautiful and perfect solo but there is nothing complex about it outside of that one crafty move.
Many steel set ups have a 5st half step lower available on a lever these days making the tricky B pedal move unnessisary.
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Bob |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Larry Petree
From:
Bakersfield. Ca. USA
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 9:49 am Tom
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| Bob, that is exactly the way Tom show the move to me in the 60's. Takes a while to perfect it, but a great move. |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Richard Sinkler
From:
aka: Rusty Strings -- Missoula, Montana
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 5:22 pm
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I half pedal in that solo. When raising the fifth string a whole tone, and then letting of the A pedal, moving the fifth string to the no pedal position, before sliding back one fret and hitting the B pedal, I half pedal the fifth string move. It may not be what Brumley did, but it is way cool.
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Carter D10 8p/8k, Dekley S10 3p/4k C6 setup,Regal RD40 Dobro, Recording King Professional Dobro, NV400, NV112,Ibanez Gio guitar, Epiphone SG Special (open D slide guitar) . Playing for 54 years and still counting. |
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richard burton
From:
Britain
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 9:51 pm
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I also half-pedal the 5th string, here's a similar lick that I learned off a John Hughey solo, played on my Marlen
http://picosong.com/f7nK/ |
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W. Van Horn
From:
Houston, texas
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Posted 20 Nov 2014 10:53 pm
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| I also have never heard slants or half pedaling in that solo. Could be wrong of course. When working with beginner steel players I use this solo as an example of how much music can be made with strings 3 and 5. Such an amazing piece of music. |
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Donny Hinson
From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
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Posted 22 Nov 2014 7:20 pm
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| Bob Carlucci wrote: |
The tone of that steel was immaculate.. I mean as lovely as anything ever cut on any pedal steel.. I have seen a video of Tom using a later Fender [short scale].. Could that sound REALLY have come from the later model Fender 1000?..
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It was a long-scale Fender 1000...had to be, as the short-scale models had not yet been introduced when "Together Again" was cut. |
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Kenny Davis
From:
Great State of Oklahoma
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Posted 22 Nov 2014 9:51 pm
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This picture was captured from a DVD. He was playing Together Again. Not sure of the date, but it was recorded in Oklahoma City, not long after the song was released.
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Bob Carlucci
From:
Candor, New York, USA
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Posted 23 Nov 2014 5:53 am
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| Kenny Davis wrote: |
This picture was captured from a DVD. He was playing Together Again. Not sure of the date, but it was recorded in Oklahoma City, not long after the song was released.
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THIS picture is what prompted my question.. I have seen it before, and Tom in this photo appears to be playing a "later" model Fender.. All I have to go by is the sunburst color and black frame which were not seen in the long scale versions of the Fender cable guitars to my knowledge. I wish I could get a good look at the bridge design. Could it have been a "transitional" instrument? .. sure I suppose so, but in any of the old videos i have seen of Tom in his pre ZB days, he was playing a sunburst/black frame Fender.. Its no big deal of course, but does make for interesting debate... bob
_________________
I'm over the hill and hittin'rocks on the way down!
no gear list for me.. you don't have the time...... |
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steinar
From:
Finneidfjord, Norway
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Posted 23 Nov 2014 7:05 am Tom Brumley
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This seems to be the Fender 1000 that Greg mentions came after the one Tom used for "Together again."
Buck got it for him from Fender, and as Rolene - Tom`s wife - pointed out, it would have been unlike Tom to put his own name on the guitar, so Buck must have had it put there. Unassuming as he was, touting his own horn was simply not his style.
You mention that this picture is from a tv show, - is it the show where he plays a little from Bud`s Bounce? |
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Kenny Davis
From:
Great State of Oklahoma
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Posted 23 Nov 2014 11:31 am
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Steinar - On that clip, they only played Tiger By The Tail and Together Again. The picture is one of three that I sent to Rolene after Tom's passing. The other two show him with the Sho~Bud and the early ZB. I have only sent those to one other person other than her. I had planned on posting them on the Forum, but I don't remember if did. Out of the video, I captured over 50 stills.
Did anyone notice the forward slant he is using in the picture? In the video, he used both forward and reverse slants on Together Again. |
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John McClung
From:
Olympia WA, USA
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Posted 25 Nov 2014 1:34 am
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Brumley's subtle and great volume pedal work on Together Again is harder to mimic than the actual pedal and bar work. Listen closely, see if you can sound like Tom!
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▪️ If you want to have an ongoing discussion, please email me, don't use the Forum messaging which I detest! steelguitarlessons@earthlink.net |
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Jack Aldrich
From:
Washington, USA
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Posted 25 Nov 2014 9:22 am
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| Kenny Davis wrote: |
Did anyone notice the forward slant he is using in the picture? In the video, he used both forward and reverse slants on Together Again. |
_________________
Jack Aldrich
Carter & ShoBud D10's
D8 & T8 Stringmaster
Rickenbacher B6
3 Resonator guitars
Asher Alan Akaka Special SN 6
Canopus D8 |
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