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Topic: Daniel Lanois Great Rig Rundown |
David Maniscalco
From:
Arlington, VA
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 5 Dec 2014 9:07 am |
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| I'm not going to lie, after watching the first part of that video, I went to my steel, cranked up the volume, turned on delay and distortion, and played it without picks like Daniel Lanois. |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 5 Dec 2014 9:08 am
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no wonder he sounds the way he does.
(interviewer dude) ..'oh, cool!' |
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David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 5:00 am
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Do you know, just from the way you wrote 'oh cool' I knew it was going to be John Bolinger with Premier Guitar!  He's very easy to please, it seems. Then I saw "30 minutes" and bailed, for now. (Though Bolinger does play pedal steel well enough to tour behind it, so he's a good choice for this.) |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 5:28 am
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| Sounds like incessant noodling. I've never been impressed with his sound, but then again, perhaps if I used peyote, I'd develop an appreciation of his pedal steel style. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 9:02 am
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He was playing guitar when I saw him play with Emmylou Harris, no steel onstage. They played "Wheels" where a steel would have fit. I guess he's not able to play stuff like that.
_________________
Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 10:55 am
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| Tony Glassman wrote: |
| Sounds like incessant noodling. I've never been impressed with his sound, but then again, perhaps if I used peyote, I'd develop an appreciation of his pedal steel style. |
Classy comments, Tony.
Lanois is one of the most important musicians of the last 25 years. Name another? He's never been about trying to recreate someone else's music. So, he's done it on his own terms, too.
It's just that I give guys like him the respect of the benefit of the doubt. He's not trying to shoehorn his playing into where it wouldn't be welcome. He has that kind of respect for others.
_________________
Links to streaming music, websites, YouTube: Links |
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 1:30 pm
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I agree that it sounds like noodling. It's really pretty sounding noodling that he strings together to make songs. That's what it is and a lot of people like it. He's all about the sounds.
He's not detracting from other people's music nor is he competing with other steel players. He doesn't pass himself off as an expert steel player. If anything, he's creating more of a role for steel players.
I can understand why people wouldn't like it, but it's not right for people to feel offended by it. If it's just anger that many people like his steel playing more than they do more traditional stuff... then you may as well get angry at the sun for being hot.
One thing you never hear on this forum: "I'm happy that there's so much variety of music for us to choose from."
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Jack Hanson
From:
San Luis Valley, USA
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 1:43 pm
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| Curt Trisko wrote: |
| One thing you never hear on this forum: "I'm happy that there's so much variety of music for us to choose from." |
We've heard it now, Curt and I'm glad you said it. I wholeheartedly agree with you. |
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Joachim Kettner
From:
Germany
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 2:12 pm
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I always believed that the best players, writers, singers should be succesful. That's were the slight hate comes from.
_________________
Fender Kingman, Sierra Crown D-10, Evans Amplifier, Soup Cube. |
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Tony Glassman
From:
The Great Northwest
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 2:14 pm
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Mike Neer wrote:
| Quote: |
Classy comments, Tony.
Lanois is one of the most important musicians of the last 25 years. Name another? He's never been about trying to recreate someone else's music. So, he's done it on his own terms, too. |
Sorry to ruffle your feathers, but I "call it how I hear it".
I don't know exactly what you mean by an "important" musician, but Daniel Lanois does not come to my mind. I would reserve that title for those players who not only changed the face of music in their time, but also influenced tons of other musicians (e.g. Bird, Coltrane, Miles Davis, Hendrix, Van Halen, Emmons etc).
BTW, I don't hate Lanois' playing, it's just not my "Cup O' Noodles" |
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 3:55 pm
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| Tony Glassman wrote: |
| I don't know exactly what you mean by an "important" musician, but Daniel Lanois does not come to my mind. I would reserve that title for those players who not only changed the face of music in their time, but also influenced tons of other musicians (e.g. Bird, Coltrane, Miles Davis, Hendrix, Van Halen, Emmons etc). |
Daniel Lanois's influence pre-dates my life. He produced U2's "Joshua Tree" album. That's his claim to fame... not so much being a musician on his own. You still often hear songs from that album on any of your general rock and contemporary radio stations. U2 aren't generally known for being great musicians and "Joshua Tree" is probably Lanois's album more than anyone else's. He produced a few other well-known albums in the 80s.
He's all about the sounds. He's closely associated with Brian Eno. I'm no expert on ambient music, but I'd bet that Lanois has had a massive influence on artists that incorporate its elements into their music.
Personally, from what I've heard of all that music, I don't hold it very high, but it is it's own thing and Lanois does it well. I respect it. |
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Antolina
From:
Dunkirk NY
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 3:55 pm
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| Tony Glassman wrote: |
Mike Neer wrote:
| Quote: |
Classy comments, Tony.
BTW, I don't hate Lanois' playing, it's just not my "Cup O' Noodles" |
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Mine neither. 
_________________
The only thing better than doing what you love is having someone that loves you enough to let you do it.
Sho~Bud 6139 3+3
Marrs 3+4
RC Antolina |
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Jamie Mitchell
From:
Nashville, TN
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Posted 6 Dec 2014 5:10 pm
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| Tony Glassman wrote: |
| Sounds like incessant noodling. I've never been impressed with his sound, but then again, perhaps if I used peyote, I'd develop an appreciation of his pedal steel style. |
peyote would probably be good for the PSG scene, generally... |
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Jay Fagerlie
From:
Lotus, California, USA
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Posted 7 Dec 2014 6:58 am
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Saying 'not my cup of noodles' is a long long way away from 'incessant noodling'.
One is insulting, one is not.
I'm with Curt- vanilla ice cream gets old.....
I've only listened to a little bit of Daniels' stuff, a lot of it sounds just like the stuff he did on this video.
To me- it reeks of 'style'
When I hear it, I know EXACTLY who is playing it.
Isn't that one of the cornerstones of a developed style?
....oh yeah, that's right...this is the home of the RR fan club where 'outside the box' means 'we must insult'
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David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
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Posted 7 Dec 2014 12:54 pm
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| I'm just happy that there's so much variety of music for us to choose from. |
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chris ivey
From:
california (deceased)
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Posted 7 Dec 2014 1:15 pm
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| his music sounds like fairy dust. |
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Bill L. Wilson
From:
Oklahoma, USA
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Posted 7 Dec 2014 5:51 pm Way To Out 'O Tune.
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| Sounds like he Snorted Fairy Dust.....I would've really enjoyed his music, in the 60's, when I was an Acid Head.....Wonder what Emmons would think about that?....Would he cringe, or say that's the purdyist steel playin' I've heard in a long time? |
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Stephen Rethmeier
From:
Nashville TN
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Posted 7 Dec 2014 5:56 pm
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| Curt Trisko wrote: |
| I'm not going to lie, after watching the first part of that video, I went to my steel, cranked up the volume, turned on delay and distortion, and played it without picks like Daniel Lanois. |
Funny, I did the same exact thing, including getting out my Tweed Deluxe, pointing it out into the living room and CRANKING it. I was pretty sure I was irritating my wife because she went outside in the backyard to read. But later she asked what I was playing and said she thought it sounded pretty good.
I appreciate Lanois because he defines a non-traditional approach to the instrument that makes it more relatable for me. I haven't been playing that long and while I want to learn traditional musical elements of the instrument, I find myself playing out in settings where a more Lanois-type approach works better at least some of the time.
_________________
Williams S12 Ext. E9 keyless, Williams S12 Ext. E9 keyed, Telonics TCA 500C, Quilter Steelaire, Magic Fender clone, 1937 Model 59 Rick 6, 1940 Epiphone 7-string Zephyr, Oahu 6, 8+/- regular guitars, Kawai baby grand, two cats... |
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David Mason
From:
Cambridge, MD, USA
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Posted 8 Dec 2014 3:03 pm
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I would be willing to bet 7c that Buddy Emmons would say "He doesn't sound like ME, thank goodness." I listen to Lanois' solo album about as much as Bruce Kaphan's, and they fit into the same bin in my mind. It's not just good elevator music, it's great elevator music!
"Noodling" to me implies either an amateur with no goal, or a more skilled player just putting in the ol' finger therapy time, and Lanois is neither. I'm not awestruck enough by his musical choices to want to listen too often, but in the context of an interview, he's trying to show what a steel guitar is and what is does, and more power to that! 13,786 views - would we be better off without that? |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 8 Dec 2014 6:30 pm
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It was probably in the late 1950s or early 60s, Lanois lived way up in the sticks in Quebec. His mother signed him up for one of the Oahu steel guitar courses after he begged her, so it was his first instrument. The way he learned to play music was in a very folk-oriented way--learning the songs of the Acadians. He was French-speaking. Later on he fell under the spell of Jimi.
I just find it very fascinating how his long journey through the north woods began with the Hawaiian guitar and then led to his playing pedal steel guitar, although apparently not up to par for what some need to hear. However, he did play with Ian & Sylvia, and later on his work with Brian Eno on the Apollo recording was a landmark in ambient music.
I find it very hard to not like anything about him. He seems like a really interesting person who really knows a lot about music, but mostly coming from an emotional and visceral perspective. C'est la vie....
One of my favorite songs of Daniel's, and it has a little slide playing in it: Jolie Louise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S3SUAk0pEFg
His work with Emmylou Harris on Wrecking Ball was staggering.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZLOtcUXq_k
_________________
Links to streaming music, websites, YouTube: Links |
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Asa Brosius
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Posted 8 Dec 2014 7:04 pm
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| I played a festival he headlined last summer, and I was very impressed with his sound live. In my opinion ( and Neil Young, Bob Dylan, Emmylou, U2, Willie Nelson's , to name a few of the artists he's worked with), his production aesthetic has been remarkably influential- I hear bits of it in most of the music I listen to. His traditional Quebecois tunes don't a lot for me, but I'm happy to hear them on the big stage. Regarding his steel playing, the 'noodling' accusations are patently wrong - perhaps you mean something else? Having listened to his music on record and live, I can tell you it's well rehearsed, without a lot of space for improvisation. |
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Curt Trisko
From:
St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
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Posted 8 Dec 2014 8:38 pm
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| When I say his steel playing sounds like noodling, what I mean is that it's inordinately focused on movements that make neat, pretty sounds. Awfully indulgent. That's nice when you have the appetite for it, but when you don't it's like candy... too sweet and not filling. |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 9 Dec 2014 5:37 am
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He does sound like he's noodling on the video; a group appears to be setting up for a show, the right time to noodle, checking out the sound and the room.
Having worked with many musicians as a player and producer--it's an impressive list--he's influenced them and been influenced, and the vocabulary of music grows in that way.
Ambient music is about sound and space. It's crafted differently from picking out an object in the field and making it stand out.
Maybe I like noodles.
_________________
Those that say don't know; those that know don't say.--Buddy Emmons |
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Jeremy Steele
From:
Princeton, NJ USA
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Posted 9 Dec 2014 6:17 am
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| He produced "So" for Peter Gabriel...that alone makes him notable (in my estimation, anyway). |
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