Lost in C6 twilight zone

Ben Godard · From: Jamesville NC

Ok I just started playing C6 pedal steel. All I've done so far is E9th pedal steel and non pedal C6 and E13. I have no clue how to use the pedals yet. I bought Buddy Emmons basic C6 but the problem is my set-up is way different. My guitar is a Franklin and is set up the same as Paul Franklin's as of 1993.

If I want to go from

I to IV to V ex(D-G-A(7)) I to VI(m) to IV to V to I ex(D-Bm-G-A(7))

or countless other progressions

Doe's anyone understand his C6 copedant.

I feel like I am taking a stab C6 nuclear physics when I should be in C6 for dummies. I am starting to get frustartated. I'm gonna have to go get back on the stringmaster just to bring my confidence back up Sad

Anybody got any ideas?

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

Ben, my thoughts are pretty simple.

Paul Franklin didn't start playing C6th with the copendent he has now.

My opinion is to put that lower neck back to the basic common config that has been around for decades. Players like Paul etc made changes because they KNEW in advance what they wanted to add above and beyond what they were already doing.

On my website is a C6th primer, Lower Ten Blues ( not free)

take a listen, maybe this will be of some a value to you...it uses the common setup and 4 C6th pedals.

www.tprior.com

good luck on your journey...

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

I just re looked at Pauls copedent.
Yes some things are different for sure.
But many things are there same as Buddy's

or in a different place.
Not to belittle Tony's advice, but in the short run.
Just compare and make some notes.

You'll find most of what your looking for from Buddy's course,
right there. Just a little different placement.
I like the look of Paul's setup.

And A LOT cheaper than redoing the copedent...
_________________
DLD, Chili farmer. Plus bananas and papaya too.

Real happiness has no strings attached.
But pedal steels have many!

Stu Schulman · From: Ulster Park New Yawk (deceased)

Herb Steiner has a course that a dummy like me can understand.
_________________
Steeltronics Z-pickup,Desert Rose S-10 4+5,Desert Rose Keyless S-10 3+5... Mullen G2 S-10 3+5,Telonics 206 pickups,Telonics volume pedal.,Blanton SD -10,Emmons GS_10...Zirctone bar,Bill Groner Bar...any amp that isn't broken.Steel Seat.Com seats...Licking paint chips off of Chinese Toys since 1952.

David Doggett · Posted 25 Oct 2007 11:01 am

No-pedals gives I6. The pedal that lowers the 6th (E) string to Eb (pedal 6 on standard D10 C6, maybe pedal 7 on Franklin’s) gives a IV9. Move up two frets for the V9. There you have your I6, IV9 and V9. Starting at the 2nd fret that would be D6, G9, A9. You can use that pedal similar to the way the AB pedals are used on E9. Yeah, it’s a different sound, but you can skip the 6th, 7th and 9th notes if you want the straight chords. Want the relative minor? At the I6 position shift your grip to use the 8th string as the root. There’s your Bm7 in the key of D.

My advice is to first learn to play the C6 neck as if it were a lap steel with no pedals. Get your chords by moving up and down the neck and changing the root string for your grip. That is the heart and soul of the C6 neck. One insight I learned is that instead of using adjacent string grips like on E9, skip a string so your grip is 3,4, 6, or 4, 5, 7, etc. Or sometimes it sounds better with 3, 5,6, or 4, 6, 7, etc. So you are changing the sound just by changing the middle finger of the grip. Also, the chords of the 6th neck tend to be movable chords that you can freely play anywhere, much moreso than E9 chords. Once you have that lap steel approach down pretty well, add that one pedal described above. It takes the place of a common slant move on non-pedal C6, and lets you use three or four string harmony. That’s your meat and potatoes on C6. The rest of the pedals are icing on the cake, and you can play tons of country and western swing without ever touching them.

So I don’t mean to belittle the other pedals and levers, but you may be making things more difficult than they should be. Unlike E9, you don’t need all the pedals and levers all the time. You can play tons of stuff without them. On C6 you don’t have to worry as much about hitting the wrong string and learning what all the pedals and levers do as you move to different frets. It is inherently easier to play the simple basic swing stuff on C6 than it is to play Nashville country on E9. Now, all that bebop and modern jazz, that’s different. Buy some courses for that.

I'm no ace on the 6th neck. But these are the insights that opened it up and made it simple for me and got me playing more on the 6th neck than I would have ever believed I could.

Jim Robbins · From: Ontario, Canada

What is PF's C6 copedent -- got a link?
Otherwise, I agree with Mr. Doggett & would add - it's worth learning some patterns around pedal 6 down, for two reasons: 1) because there are some cool sounds and 2) if you can play I-IV you can play any other 5th relationship (V-I, II-V etc etc).

CrowBear Schmitt · From: Ariege, - PairO'knees, - France

from what i see here : http://b0b.com/tunings/pf_c6.htm
it looks like Paul's
P8 is P7 Emmons -
P7 is P6 Emmons -
P6 is P5 Emmons -
LKR is RKL Emmons
RKR is LKR Emmons
P8 Emmons or Boo!wah is on Paul's LKL !
these are standard C6 changes Ben
Paul's P4,5,9 are, i would say, his own ditties

Emmons copedent :http://b0b.com/tunings/stars.html#C6be

i discovered C6 a few years back & never gave it up
(Buddy's Basic C6 did fine fer me)
the no pedal approach is quite significant
otherwise
P6 is similar to pedal B on E9
P7 is similar to pedal A on E9

on fret 0 you have a C6 or A- (minor)chord right ?
on fret 7 (taking root on string 9) gives you a C major7 chord ; now engage P6 & you got the Tonic in a dominant7 & 9th chord

fret 0 , string 9(root) gives you a F major7 chord

C6 is a lot of fun Ben
stick w: it

Jim Robbins · From: Ontario, Canada

Thanks for the link, CrowBear.

His pedal 4 looks like it would be useful for playing stepwise melodic stuff -- e.g. from strings 6-2 at fret 0 you can do some A7 blues licks without moving the bar just by rocking pedal 4, & even more with LKL.

I don't really get the logic of the lower part of pedal 4 from a horizontal (or is it vertical) point of view -- but it gives you a lot of unison string combos which could be fun to slide around with if you have enough feet.

Ben Godard · From: Jamesville NC

Thanks yall. That's just the kind of explanation I was looking for. I will try to put this to practice this weekend.

thanks

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