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Topic: Whats the weirdest combo you ever played steel with? |
Dom Franco
From:
Beaverton, OR, 97007
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 6:19 am |
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In the mid 1960's I played in a trio on my Fender stringmaster with a Drummer and Trumpet. We played Tijuana Brass and Beatles tunes. Actually sounded pretty good, as I harmonized with the trumpet.
We sure could have used a bass tho!
In High School I also accompanied the choir with that same old Stringmaster.
Dom
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https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCYG9cvwCPKuXpGofziPNieA/feed?activity_view=3 |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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David Knutson
From:
Cowichan Valley, Canada
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 9:29 am
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| Great band name, John! My most unusual so far is acoustic guitar in DADGAD, my National Style One squareneck, and, get this, Irish bagpipes. It folked! |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 10:25 am
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Hot Potato used to call out to the crowd, "Wanna hear some Sam and Dave?"
The crowd would loudly answer, "Abdo-lutely!" We had them well-trained! |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 10:37 am
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About 15 years ago, I played in a surf and swing band that got a weekly, at a bar in Santa Monica. Unfortunately, the bar owner had grown up in Oklahoma and the steel guitar reminded her of home, which she hated. She told the leader, it goes or you go. I want to believe that that was a tough call for the leader.
While we're at it, want to see a really weird one? I sat in with a noise band, one of those gigs where I had no idea of what they were going to do. I can't watch very much of it, either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVHjTvgtaRE&feature=channel |
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John Rosett
From:
Missoula, MT
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 11:09 am
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| I'm thinking about a winter project of accordian, tenor banjo, and lap steel. |
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Bob Blair
From:
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 12:42 pm
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| Recently did a gig playing pedal steel with the very talented Dana Wylie signing and playing acoustic guitar and Bob Tildesley, a well-known jazz trumpet player. Next time I hope to add my new Benoit "Cajunborn" into the mix as well. Also, in a recent Fringe Theatre production called "Forget Me Not" I got to work with a Tuba, which was fantastic. |
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Twayn Williams
From:
Portland, OR
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 1:02 pm
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I was waiting for the "noise" to happen and all I heard was some very nice free improv. I tend to find this kind of music very stimulating when working. I really like the singer 
_________________
Primitive Utility Steel |
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Laurence Pangaro
From:
Brooklyn, NY
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 1:34 pm
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I once played lap steel in a combo with trumpet and accordion... there were also burlesque dancers. I'm not sure that they count as part of the combo. These sort of things happen on roofs in Brooklyn.
ciao,
LP |
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Billy Tonnesen
From:
R.I.P., Buena Park, California
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 2:26 pm A little differen't combo
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| Quite a few years I played with s five piece group where the other lead instrument was Harmonica. A fellow under the name of Steve James played several differen't Chromatic Harmonicas through a throat mike hooked into a large Amp. He could get all kinds of big sounds and it blended in very well with my Steel Guitar. He could play Country, Jazz, Swing, and on occasion some Classical. The Band leader was Frank James (not related to Steve} on Rythm Guitar, Larry Settles on Bass and MIke Fury on Drums. We played mostly Elks and Moose lodges. One day we found out the Leader left town and that was the end of the group. However, I played a lot of other gigs later with Larry and Mike along with Marlowe Roberts on Lead Guitar. This was in So. California. |
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Alexa Gomez
From:
San Francisco
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Posted 27 Sep 2010 11:22 pm
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I do a Saturday afternoon gig with another lap steel player. Don't see that too often.
_________________
Sister Alexa>SX Lap Pro>Rocktron Surf Tremolo>Pignose 7-100.
www.youtube.com/sisteralexa |
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Rickey Mitchell
From:
Fresno the center of California
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 5:59 am
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Very Nice.
_________________
If you worry more about the tools your building with than what your building, you'll never get anything Built
Rickey (Noel) Mitchell
paddleandflies.com |
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Gene Jones
From:
Oklahoma City, OK USA, (deceased)
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 8:52 am
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Back in the late 1950's when R&R dominated and I couldn't get a job playing steel, I began playing bass. I eventually ended up playing bass with an R&B combo, along with my long time white friend playing drums.
The end result was; a black sax player, a black piano player, a black female vocalist, with me on bass and my white friend on drums.
We had a ball playing the motel circuits, and even though I was not the best bass player around, I was white and it helped give the Demon Wright Combo a place in the circuit because we were racialily diversified.
When the market returned to country I gave up bass and began playing steel again....but I will always remember with fondness my stint playing bass.
_________________
"FROM THEN TIL' NOW" |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 9:04 am
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| Quote: |
| I was waiting for the "noise" to happen and all I heard was some very nice free improv. I tend to find this kind of music very stimulating when working. I really like the singer |
Twayn, thank you, the Forum isn't usually very receptive to free improv. Besides being in a "metal" band, I also play in a free improv "noise" band, the Feedback Waveriders, here in LA. And if you like noise, this is a solo I did for Ear Meal, on the Towers:
http://www.laartstream.com/ear-meal/chas-smith/ |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 9:32 am
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In the early 1980s I was in a synthesizer band in Long Beach. We had no guitar, just synthesizers, bass, lap steel and drums.
We started out as Heroic Struggles, but became Outer Circle. We played all the clubs of the era with bands such as the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Killing Joke, Men Without Hats and many others.
Here's some video from Peter Ivers' New Wave Theatre, back when I had hair.
It was a fun time.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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David Knutson
From:
Cowichan Valley, Canada
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 9:36 am
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Alexa, The definition of a minor first....... two steel players playing in unison 
David K |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 10:40 am
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Severed Head in a Bag with Ernest Bovine (Doug Livingston) on steel guitar.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ipABJyCKQdA
Yo Brad, the early 80s in LA was a pretty interesting time. I was playing B3 in Barbed Wire, a 13 piece reggae band. |
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Julian Goldwhite
From:
Alhambra, CA, USA
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Twayn Williams
From:
Portland, OR
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 1:34 pm
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Sorry, seriously off topic here!
| chas smith wrote: |
| Quote: |
| I was waiting for the "noise" to happen and all I heard was some very nice free improv. I tend to find this kind of music very stimulating when working. I really like the singer |
Twayn, thank you, the Forum isn't usually very receptive to free improv. Besides being in a "metal" band, I also play in a free improv "noise" band, the Feedback Waveriders, here in LA. And if you like noise, this is a solo I did for Ear Meal, on the Towers:
http://www.laartstream.com/ear-meal/chas-smith/ |
That's very nice! That thing must be amazing to play, standing in the middle of it like that. I'd hate to try and haul it to a gig though 
It reminds me of a piece I recorded about 10 years ago that done on a chinese wind gong played with a "mallet" that was constructed of a super ball stuck onto the end of a bamboo skewer. It allows you to "bow" the gong and you can get all sorts of amazing moans and wails out it. Fun stuff.
_________________
Primitive Utility Steel |
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Daniel Morris
From:
Westlake, Ohio, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 1:50 pm Fascinating!
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| Chas, your Towers piece was great! I can only imagine the sound and harmonics from your perspective. Very hypnotic and lovely! |
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Alexa Gomez
From:
San Francisco
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 3:40 pm
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| Quote: |
Alexa, The definition of a minor first....... two steel players playing in unison Laughing
David K
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We're still working on playing in tune, David, much less in unison 
_________________
Sister Alexa>SX Lap Pro>Rocktron Surf Tremolo>Pignose 7-100.
www.youtube.com/sisteralexa |
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Fred Shannon
From:
Rocking "S" Ranch, Comancheria, Texas, R.I.P.
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 7:05 pm
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Three bagpipes, a large drum, and a flute in Prestwick Scotland in 1954. Don't ask!!!!
phred
_________________
There are only two defining forces that have offered to die for you; Jesus Christ and the American GI!!
Think about it!! |
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Brad Bechtel
From:
San Francisco, CA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 7:34 pm
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| Julian Goldwhite wrote: |
| Hey Brad! I remember Outer Circle. I was playing guitar at that time in L.A. in The Shadow Minstrels and we shared several bills with your band! Small world indeed! |
Yeah? I loved the Shadow Minstrels - you guys always put on a fun show. There was a whole subgenre of "post punk" music that was all over the map. I don't think we ever played with Barbed Wire, Chas, but I'm certain our paths crossed at some show or another. There were a lot of great bands at the time, most of them sadly (or gladly) forgotten.
_________________
Brad’s Page of Steel
A web site devoted to acoustic & electric lap steel guitars |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 28 Sep 2010 8:12 pm
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| Brad, we must have crossed paths at some point. We played with the Chili Peppers a couple times at the Music Machine, in West LA. Did a couple outdoors, on a flatbed, in downtown, including one with Fishbone, when they were getting started and a bunch at Al's Bar and the On Club. |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 29 Sep 2010 9:27 am
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Back in 2000, I played steel guitar in the Burning Man Opera "orchestra". The Opera ensemble included a couple hundred dancers, some of whom wore clothing/costumes. Immediately following the opera, there was a R&B/reggae/world music ensemble. Since I couldn't load off the stage and I can "bubble" and do horn stabs and lines, I sat in. We played for 3 hours and the stage filled up with naked people dancing. I'd still be there today, if they hadn't stopped playing.
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