Uneducated steel player.

Ken Thompson · From: Great Falls, Montana, USA

I recently had an experience that left me feeling really stupid and wondered if any of you ever felt the same.

I was at a fair buying association some time ago and was preparing to jam in our agent's suite. Our agent also represented a Beatles cover band. One of them was looking at my steel and was obviously impressed with it. He asked me to tell him each string and what note it was and the same with all the pedals. Have you ever had to take an oral test and couldn't remember anything. I felt like a complete idiot as he proceeded to name each note as I struck the string. I tried to apologize and told him that I really do know what they are when I need to change a string and tune up. I also explained that I was self taught and have never had a lick of music theory. I was just able to mimik a lick and play within a melody.

Later we were playing Beatle hits and I played a lead in every song they did. He just looked at me and shook his head.

I still felt like an idiot but he was gracious in his compliments and appreciation of the steel guitar.

I never claimed to be book smart or even a musician, just play the darned thing!

Joey Ace · From: Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

I seem to recall Ralph Mooney giving a similar answer when asked to describe his tuning.

You're in good company, Ken.

Damir Besic · From: Nashville,TN.

what,what string?knee lever, uff?don`t know sorry I just play that thing that`s all.
I rember my friends litle sister who played clasical piano,she would watch the band and could not understand how is possible to make music without any written music.I don`t know much either I just play it.
Db

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"Promat"
~when tone matters~

Fred Shannon · From: Rocking "S" Ranch, Comancheria, Texas, R.I.P.

"Can you do Augmented Chords on that thing?"

"Heck I don't know, hum a couple of bars!"

fred

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"From Truth Justice is Born"--Quanah Parker-1904

Ian Finlay · From: Kenton, UK

There was a story about Django Reinhardt (originally a violin and banjo player!) and Andres Segovia.....

"... And then there was the time he met Andrés Segovia. He played for the Spanish classical maestro a short jazz crepuscule on his Selmer guitar. When Django finished, Segovia was dazzled by the piece and asked for a transcription. Django laughed and shrugged, saying that it was merely an improvisation."

from http://www.hotclub.co.uk/html/djangorev.html

So I don't worry anymore!

Ian

Ray Minich · From: Bradford, Pa. Frozen Tundra

Sounds like the dude was really impressed with himself. Condescending intimidation?
My compliments to the first person that ever said "Don't let ignorance stand in the way of playing good music". Besides, knowing what note is where doesn't mean one knows what notes make a chord or what chords make a song, or how many different ways one can make the same or approximately the same chord on the fretboard.

P.S. I gotta look stuff like this up too...

[This message was edited by Ray Minich on 01 December 2004 at 04:24 AM.]

Bob Hoffnar · From: Austin, Tx

When some condensending musio guy trys that crap on me I ask them to sit down and have them play a C major triad. Or I start to show them myself. Then I carefully explain how really simple it is ( especially for a guy with a such a knowlege of music !) to play the exact same notes starting on a differnt string each time while noticing how the pedals and levers have a completely different function in every position.
After about 30 seconds of this they usually glaze over and wander away.

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Bob
intonation help

[This message was edited by Bob Hoffnar on 01 December 2004 at 12:29 PM.]

Charles Curtis · Posted 1 Dec 2004 7:52 am

I heard one famous psg player would just refer to it as, "oh that's the purty pedal".

Ken Thompson · From: Great Falls, Montana, USA

Thanks, I feel better now.

Bob, I especially loved your response. Can't wait to try it.

Jack Abraham · From: Oklahoma

A number of years ago, I was in a music store in Tulsa, Oklahoma buying some strings. The salesman was "displaying" his musical knowledge - and doing a pretty good job of making me feel ackward because of my inability to answer some of his questions. There was an older gentlemen in the store that sensed my discomfort - he basically came to my "rescue". He had some nice things to say about the group I played with - although I suspected he probably had never heard us play. The salesman seemed to be disappointed that the gentlemen had struck-up a conversation with me. As I was leaving, he introduced himself - turns out that his name was Speedy West.

Terry Sneed · From: Arkansas,

quote:
I never claimed to be book smart or even a musician, just play the darned thing!

I'm the same way Ken. and I imagine there are a lot more steel players on here that are not book smart, or musically smart but can play the steel as good as some of the most musically educated steel players anywhere.

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Zum D10 /8x5 / session 500rd
steelin for my Lord

Jim Simon · From: Moses Lake, WA

An old story...."Heh Partner, can you read music?. (Reply) "ya but not enough to hurt my playin'"

Ken Thompson · From: Great Falls, Montana, USA

Jack, Terry, all of you. Thanks for your comments. I first played accoustic guitar (self taught) then bass (self taught) and now steel (pretty much self taught) which always makes you feel inadequate with the amount of true knowledgeable players there are.

I used to referee basketball and rose to the top of the organization. I hated it when coaches or other ref's gave you that oral test on some obscure rule that never get's used. I felt the same inadequacy then but I noticed that all the coaches wanted me doing their games because I had a feel for the game and knew how to keep kids out of trouble by using common sense. I suppose that theory works well with steelers as well. Having all the theory and book smarts in the world doesn't give you the soul that makes the steel cry or come to life when you want it to.

You guys confirmed my thoughts and helped heal my wounded ego.

Thanks.

Andy Greatrix · From: Edmonton Alberta

A written chart is just a road-map of the song. If you know where you're going, you don't need a road-map. when I was overseas in china, a young student was getting ready to do a piano recital outdoors at a park. It was windy that day, so his charts wouldn't stay on the stand. He played it from memory. It turned out that the charts were just for show. The teachers are very dogmatic over there.

[This message was edited by Andy Greatrix on 02 December 2004 at 12:42 PM.]

Bill Moran · From: Virginia, USA

Ken
I played in a band with a music teacher . He played guitar and sax and would spend more time explaining what he was playing than playing himself. All I could do was let my steel explain what I was playing ! I could never be a session player.
Bill Moran
Marion, Va.

Gary C. Dygert · From: Frankfort, NY, USA

I'm glad to see I'm not the only self-taught picker around here who doesn't read music.

Gene Jones · From: Oklahoma City, OK USA, (deceased)

A musician who I respected very much once said that:

"It isn't necessary to have a formal music education to be successful as an instrumentalist....but, it is necessary if you want to be able to explain what you do to someone else!"

www.genejones.com

Farris Currie · From: Ona, Florida, USA, R.I.P.

Thanks Guys,ya'll making me feel right at home!!thought i was the only one don't know a thing,just play,but i do no what sound that pedal is suppose to give me.i am trying to learn the strings.makes me feel so little,i do know 4th.string on E 9th is E, hell, thats all we need to tune!!funny now i'm starting to play C6th,2string is E i think!!i tell you what,give me the cord,or strum a couple of licks and lets go.Funny,don't gotta have no sheet music,wouldn't know what to do with it anyway. farris

Donny Hinson · From: Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.

I once had a lead player look at my steel and ask me..."What notes do you have on there?" I just smiled and said..."All of 'em!"

Those kind of "leading questions" we sometimes get are rather pointless anyway, Ken. It's easy to tell when someone's trying to get get you to recite information they'll never remember, or have no real interest in.

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

Sometimes people will ask me "Is that a good key for steel?" They don't seem to get that to play in a different key, we just move the bar up or down the neck. All of the keys are pretty much equivalent on steel.

I just say, "Yes, it is."

Bill C. Buntin · Posted 9 Dec 2004 8:07 pm

I like it when they ask how many strings it has and you say "20". Then they always say, do you ever play them all at once? I say, " No I haven't learned to play but one at a time." Usually that dries em up.

Or whats even more fun is when some jazz junky comes along and tries to get cute and asks how I would play a Fmaj9 or Gmin7-5 or something cute like that and then I show them multiple ways to do it on both necks, that usually really freaks em out. Such fun.

Bob Mainwaring · From: Qualicum Beach Vancouver Island B.C. Canada

Ken, Me too!!

With any of the instruments I "mess" with I don't know their tuning. I can dam-well tell if it's out of tune no matter how slight it might be.
Old George Formby used to tune his Uke. Banjos' differently for what ever song he was singing as he'd only worked out one basic fingering system........apparently many times he'd take upwards of four Ukes'for any given show.

Zee Bee Baawwb.

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