When was your first real breakthrough?

Gerald Menke · From: Stormville NY, USA

Hey all,
Last night when I was practicing, I felt like something different was going on, like my playing had really developed some; like I'd had a breakthrough... felt much more concerned with making music than worrying where the notes were if I was in tune, etc.

When I started playing a little more than three years ago, my teacher stated that the 10-year mark was what really made a difference for him. I'm curious when the rest of you felt you'd made a breakthrough on this toughest of instruments, what the big sign was; any responses on professional breakthroughs would be interesting too.

Gerald

[This message was edited by Gerald Menke on 30 April 2003 at 10:16 AM.]

Joerg Hennig · From: Bavaria, Germany

Larry Bell · From: Englewood, Florida

I'm expecting it any day now . . .

didn't happen at 10 . . .
didn't happen at 20 . . .
I'm hopin' for 30 but still have a few months to go . . .
yeah, any day now
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Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
2003 Fessenden S/D-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S-12 6x6, 1971 Dobro, Standel and Peavey Amps

[This message was edited by Larry Bell on 30 April 2003 at 01:00 PM.]

Terry Edwards · From: Florida... livin' on spongecake...

The day my wife agreed that I could spend a grossly disproportionate amount of our budget on a D-10 Fessy and a Nash 1000 was a breakthrough of biblical proportions!

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Terry Edwards
Fessy D-10; Nash 1000
Martin D-21; Flatiron F-5

Fred Justice · From: Mesa, Arizona

Hi Gerald,well this is my story son,I bought and traded for my first steel at the age of 23,had been playing bass for about 6 years,got my ole Peppie Jo steel from David West down by Knoxville and moved to Indiana the next day.Now this is where it gets almost unbelievable,but keep in mind my style was already formatted in my head before i bought my first Steel,anyway i woodshed for ( 8 ) days and nights on kick off and turn arounds,on the ninth day i went and tried out for a five night a week job and GOT IT...... I was in steel guitar heavan.the rest is history,im 55 now.my big mistake was never taking the guitar home to practice and never bought a 2nd one to play at home.well thats my story,lets hear some other ones Fred Justice,Southwestern Steel Guitar Assn.

Eric West · From: Portland, Oregon, USA, R.I.P.

I'm with Larry.

Gotta run out and check the mail.

I'll get back with you.

Possibly it was the year I got my first earnings statement from hauling heavy equipment that was OVER 50,000$.

EJL

Gerald Menke · From: Stormville NY, USA

Dang Fred. Eight days? I am truly humbled. I played my first show after I'd been playing about four months. I was petrified. Just about everybody I knew in the music world in NYC was in the room. All right keep those responses coming... LOL LB and EW. Thanks for reading.

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

I was playing a "Jamboree" over 10 years ago, (you know...one of them "7-band" things), and I noticed all the lead and steel players from the other bands sitting on my side of the stage...watching...and listening. (I was really cookin' that day!) After I took a nice long ride in Rocky Top, I heard one of the fine lead players from another band lean over and say to a couple of the other musicians..."Man, just listen to that guy!"

That was the best compliment I ever got.

John Bechtel · From: Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.

Back in '71, Bobbe Seymour was getting ready to leave the Billy Walker Organization and called me to sub and try to get the job steady. Billy wasn't convinced that Bobbe was leaving, but; after about 5wks of showing up and subing, Billy said "Well it doesn't look like Bobbe's coming back, so; I guess if you want the job, it's yours" Needless to say, I accepted and worked the Opry and the road with Billy for the next two years. I moved to Nashville in April '67, and was working the Opry by early '71. To me, I had truely arrived! The job with Billy Walker has been the highlight of all my endeavors, and I still have all the memories of that period of time, although I'm still a >wknsg< ! Call me, Billy, I'm still around! And, I promise not to drive over the speed limit, again! "Big John"

http://community.webtv.net/KeoniNui/BigJohnBechtels

[This message was edited by John Bechtel on 01 May 2003 at 08:25 AM.]

Rick Schmidt · From: Prescott AZ, USA

28 years ago, after playing steel for approx. two weeks, I found myself actually playing my first 5 set steel gig. I'd already been playing other musical instruments for some years before, but as we all know steel is another ballgame all together. Bottom line, I stunk. At any rate, I knew one lick/chord grip, maybe 2...tops. Out of necessity, I HAD to play the heck out of those all night ad nauseum. After a few hours of listening to my serious sandbagging, a real "salt of the earth", honky tonk couple came up and told me that that was the most "beeeuuteefull thang" they ever heard! At that point, I had a real breakthrough. I'm still waiting for the next one.

If you can't dazzle em with brilliance... etc. etc.

[This message was edited by Rick Schmidt on 01 May 2003 at 01:27 AM.]

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

I wasn't home when the breakthrough happened . I think I missed it..

In all seriousness it clicked for me when the simplicity and brilliance of the I-IV chord combo's and fret positions with Pedals Up and Down appeared without thinking about them. From there the natural relative positions became obvious rather than "where are they".

I would say it was probably in my second 6 months thru the second year. But the time factor is really relative as I was spending countless hours at this thing the first year.

And I did have a good friend from NYC come by now and then to beat this stuff into me.

Remember, I didn't say I could actually play
clean real music but the basic understanding of the Steel ,the tuning and positions became more of a snapshot rather than a search.

tp

[This message was edited by Tony Prior on 01 May 2003 at 03:03 AM.]

Chris Forbes · From: Beltsville, MD, USA

still waitin'.........

John Bechtel · From: Nashville, Tennessee, R.I.P.

I wish B0b would delete one (1) of my Dbl posts, above! Now I'm convinced: "Not-So-Great's" also repeat themselves, repeat themselves, repeat themselves!! "Big John" http://community.webtv.net/KeoniNui/BigJohnBechtels

Dirk B · From: Harrisburg, MO, USA

Gerald,
I've also been playing about 3 years (on pedals, anyway). It finally came for me this year, and it has everything to do with finding an EASY way to play. Minimal bar movement, pick blocking where possible, playing runs that all lay out nicely on one fret.

In retrospect I can't believe how much trouble I went to trying to play some very difficult single-note runs with a lot of bar movement, and how easy it is now (we're talking 6th tuning rather than E9 here).

I think that acquring some technique over the years helped a lot also, and there's no way around that except time. Still have a ways to go, though!

[This message was edited by Dirk B on 01 May 2003 at 09:07 AM.]

Jesse Pearson · From: San Diego , CA

My big breakthrough on non pedal steel was first finding the steel guitar forum and going thru the archieves plus asking allot of questions from people like Carl Dixon and Rick Aiello on things like JI/ET to dipping the bar to sharp the middle note on a Dom7th chord C6th tuning. Buying the right instructional books and getting hip to the classic old non pedal steel songs and learning them. Slowly but surely I'm building up my 24 Hawaiian songs to hopefully give me a leg up on getting a cruise ship gig by offering the cruise line a Hawaiian afternoon resort extra in addition to my regular cover band gig on guitar and sax. First thing I do in the morning is play Hawaiian non pedal steel and try and get that South Pacific vibrato thing going on like Roy Thomson does so well. Some mornings when I'm playing I get that magic vibe going on that I'm out in a Pacific paradise somewhere, that's when I'm having my break thru's on steel.

[This message was edited by Jesse Pearson on 01 May 2003 at 12:42 PM.]

Jim Eaton · From: Santa Susana, Ca

Jesse, here's something to work on for playing a "cruse ship gig".
Set you guitar up in the middle of a big trampoline and have all the small children you can round up in the neighborhood jump up and down around you as you play!!!! It may help to get you ready for what's going to happen on stage as that ship pitches and rolls through the waves!!!
I did 3 weeks on an "Inside passage" Alaska cruse one time and that darn guitar kept moving along with the ship. Makes for some funny licks!! LOL
JE:-)>

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Emmons D10 8/4 P/P -75'
Fessenden SD-10 3/5
Session 400
Nashville 400
Bandit 112

Lawrence Lupkin · From: Brooklyn, New York, USA

David L. Donald · From: Koh Samui Island, Thailand

It would have to be late March!

[This message was edited by David L. Donald on 02 May 2003 at 08:10 AM.]

Ray Jenkins · From: Gold Canyon Az. U.S.A.

Last year when Troy Porter,Fred Justice and Billy Easton took me under thier wings.We get together very often and do our own little "round robbins".When I hear a lick I can't find myself,I'm immediatly surrounded with help.My speed,tone and confidence are at an all time high to me.BIAB and rythum tracks made a big difference when I'm woodshedding.Anyway thanks guys.

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Steeling is still legal in Arizona

[This message was edited by Ray Jenkins on 02 May 2003 at 09:05 AM.]

[This message was edited by Ray Jenkins on 02 May 2003 at 09:06 AM.]

Bengt Erlandsen · From: Brekstad, NORWAY

when I got my first 4track portastudio and recorded my own things I started to get something that was evidence of progress. Learning a little music theory and understanding how to form chords and how all the notes in a scale is harmonized as chords was another breakthru. Technical things as speed and picking and muting comes with time (practise,practise,practise)

Probably has biggest progress/breakthru a lot to do with finding the SteelGuitarForum on the net. My playing would be nowhere near if it was not for all the help and tips I have found here. Thanks b0b.

Bengt Erlandsen

Winnie Winston · From: Tawa, Wellington, NZ * R.I.P.

I had two:
first was when I was playing for about a month, I got to see John Hughey with Twitty. I talked to him and asked him whatb his kee levers did. He got a piece of paper and diagramed it for me.
I wish I kept track of exactly what I changed, but I came home and pulled out some rods on my rack and collar Sho-Bud and made some changes. I felt I really started playing right after that.

The second one was many years later. I was playing a steel at Harry Guffe's Steel shop (anyone on the list remember Harry and his store?) and someone said, "how did you do that?" So I said, "Well, I started at the third fret..." And he said, "No. No. How did you make it SOUND like that?"
Whew! I finally got THE sound!

Been downhill since.

JW

Jim Palenscar · From: Oceanside, Calif, USA

This might sound pretty lame in that I've been playing for almost 30 years (an embarrassing amount of time for what little I've accomplished)but it was a little over a year ago when I added a third "3 banger" pocket to my humble repetoire. I was working with Jay Dee on the video and realized that he kept dropping back 2 frets from the open position (ie. in C move from fret 8 to fret 6) with the E's flattened to Eb's to pick up the 4 chord then back up to fret 8 with the same knee lever in to pick up the 5 chord making the pocket 8(open)-6(Eb lever)-8(Eb lever). I am more than a little aware that this pocket had always been sitting there and I've used the positions for years for the chords themselves but never really thought of them as another variation of a combination to use (as in 8-8AB-10AB or 3AB-1-3, etc.). Obviously at that point the pocket of 3AB-4AF-6AF jumps out as well. Seems absurd to me that it took me all that time to see what was right there the whole time but I just never used it as such~~OK-OK~~ 3 "Our Father's" and 3 "Hail Mary's" ~~~

[This message was edited by Jim Palenscar on 03 May 2003 at 07:36 AM.]

[This message was edited by Jim Palenscar on 03 May 2003 at 12:10 PM.]

Bob Hayes · From: Church Hill,Tenn,USA

Didn't we have this subject sometime...last year..or maybee the year before...or both????!!!
At any rate...mmmmmmm I think that I'm "Steel" looking or waiting for the BIG Breakthrough!!!.I've had a few Little breakthroughs..but not enough to help...I guess..
Still working on that blocking and speed..that I worked on 20 years ago!!!IU learn something new everytime I sit down..but still can't keep up with the Big Boys!!!
Grouchyvet

Ricky Littleton · From: Steely-Eyed Missile Man from Cocoa Beach, Florida USA

Some years back, I found a little hole-in-the-war bar north of Titusville Florida that had a "picking and grinning night" on saturdays. I packed my stuff up to go sit in with the usual guys just to have my first out-of -the house experience, but they didn't show due to rain. Well, I was all set-up and the bar tender asked why didn't I go ahead and play, so I took a big draw off that cold Bud and just did it. Had a blast playing solo for a while, then they fired up their jukebox, and insisted I play along so I did.

Drank free all night and everyone had a great time. Everyone gathered around and it really made me feel like I was somebody.

I was asked back several times after that.

Goes to show you that sometimes you just have to bite-the-bullet and give it a try. Afterall, we are our our own worst critics.

Haven't looked back since.

Ricky

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Emmons LeGrande - 8x4
Session 400 Ltd
Dan-Echo, E-Bow, Ibanez Distortion, Boss Comp./Sustain, Ibanez Auto-Wah

[This message was edited by Ricky Littleton on 08 May 2003 at 02:35 AM.]

Lawrence Lupkin · From: Brooklyn, New York, USA

Just had one last night. The dog didn't leave the room when I picked up my bar.

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