The E9th Myth

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

In another topic, a member expressed the opinion that playing any kind of music on the E9th will make it sound "country". I have to disagree.

The E9th is designed to make it easy to play the country sound. It's easy to "countrify" any style of music by adding the E9th country licks. This much is true. And if a player doesn't learn other styles of music on the E9th, he can accidentally add the country flavor where it is not expected or desired.

But...

The E9th contains an incredibly diverse wealth of note combinations, transitions and chord positions. It's actually hard to come up with parts within its range that are not playable on the E9th.

I believe that any genre of music can be played correctly on an E9th pedal steel.

Music is defined by choices of notes, chords, scales, and the transitions between them. A full tone transition between the 2nd and 3rd tone of a major scale, for example, is a "country sound" choice. The musician - not the copedent - decides whether this transition is appropriate for the current musical context.

Jazz might be easier on the C6th. Hawaiian music and blues might sound more authentic without pedals. I have no argument against anyone's favorite tuning or approach to music.

But to say that the E9th is "for country only" discredits a large body of excellent E9th performances in other genres. It's a myth, and it's simply not true.

------------------

Bobby Lee (a.k.a. b0b) - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs, Open Hearts
Williams D-12 E9, C6add9, Sierra Olympic S-12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop S-8 (E6add9), Fender Stringmaster D-8 (E13, C6 or A6) My Blog

John Sluszny · From: Brussels, Belgium

I agree 100%!

Danny Hullihen · From: Harrison, Michigan

I totally agree Bob. I've played everything from Country to Jazz, swing, and ear-pearcing Heavy Metal music on the E-9th tuning, and I've found it addaptable to all forms of music. Randy Beavers is another perfect example of this. I've heard him do some absolutely amazing things on the E-9th.

Tom Campbell · From: Houston, Texas, USA

Finally!!!...its been said! I have played a regular (Spanish) guitar for 40 yrs and never had anyone insinuate that only one type of music could successfully be played on its tuning. That 'ol six string tuning lends itself to any musical concept one's mind can create.
I now play a modified U12 and don't even think of it as a E9/B6 tuning...it's just one big guitar with lots of strings!

Ron ! · Posted 14 Jul 2006 10:05 am

Gee b0b.thats a lot of wisdom you are throwin' in here.But I have to agree with you all the way.Jazz,Country,Rock,Big Band...all kinds can be done with the E9th.
Like you said.The E9th tuning makes it easier to play country but is not the Standard for it.

Ron

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

I guess them that think it's ONLY a Country Music thang never sat in front of Randy Beavers during one of his sets!

Oh, and for those who are still thinking it's only a Country Music neck, try taking your root chords off of strings 9,6 and 5 with the A Pedal. This will start the blood moving towards a different mode.

It's just a Guitar, the music is created by the player, not the Instrument.

Thanks b0b, right on the money, as usual..

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

Only two types of music can be played on E9.

1. Good music.

2. Bad music.

Terry

John McGann · From: Boston, Massachusetts, USA * R.I.P.

The problem may come from players who don't get beyond mashin' the A and B pedals regardless of the context. You CAN make anything "sound country", but it isn't the tuning's fault.

Jim Eaton · From: Santa Susana, Ca

Last time I checked, they only use one tuning on a piano and it seems to cover all the bases pretty well.
JE:-)>

Doug Seymour · From: Jamestown NY USA (deceased)

Bobby, have anyone who thinks E9th is "country"
listen to Randy Beavers! Playing E9th!

Michael McGee · From: Everton, Missouri, USA

Amen, Doug Seymour, amen!

mike nolan · From: Forest Hills, NY USA

I play in a country band, but I also play in 3 other bands that are not country. In those bands playing anything that even hints at "country" will get me an icy stare from the leader. When I first started with the non country bands, I was kind of limited in my playing. I had not done the work to get past the country stuff that is so easy on E9. Now, after a couple of years of gigs, I am still amazed at the sounds lurking in the E9 neck.

Jim Sliff · From: Lawndale California, USA

I think part of that view is the fact that most of the readily available pedal steel instructional material and almost every teacher teach country, and use the E9 tuning. You can find some C6 stuff and some sacred steel things, but they are much harder for the average newbie to locate.

I know when I first started trying steel that's what I found, and if you come to the instrument from a non-country background E9 can appear to be very pigeoholed as a country tuning.

Ray Minich · From: Bradford, Pa. Frozen Tundra

I always figured A-C#-E is the A chord, whether it's on the E9th, C6th, A, B6th or whatever.
Now the route you take to "git" from I to IV to V and back, that may be dependent on what's on the neck, but the chords don't change (much).

[This message was edited by Ray Minich on 14 July 2006 at 01:52 PM.]

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

Regretfully, there's no getting around the fact that the present E9th tuning does have a certain "whiney" character, and that character been associated with stuff played on lots of country records.

Tony Prior · From: Charlotte NC

but please keep in mind the WHINEY E9th is what drew most of us to this Instrument, we learned how to play the whiney sound and now we are WHINING because it sounds Whiney !

t

Larry Bell · From: Englewood, Florida

I totally disagree that the 'whiny' or 'country' character of E9 is anything that's inherent in the tuning. With the A+B pedals pressed there is a pure A6 tuning. Same goes for the B6 using the E to D# lever. If you don't pump the A pedal both of these tunings sound just like non-pedal C6 and can be used to play anything one can play on a 6 or 8 string C6 lap steel -- be it Hawaiian, Western Swing, or whatever. It's not the tuning itself it's how it's USED.

------------------
Larry Bell - email: larry@larrybell.org - gigs - Home Page
My CD's: 'I've Got Friends in COLD Places' - 'Pedal Steel Guitar'
2003 Fessenden S/D-12 8x8, 1969 Emmons S/D-12 6x6, 1984 Sho-Bud S/D-12 7x6, 1971 Dobro, Standel and Peavey Amps

Dave Van Allen · From: Doylestown, PA , US , Earth

Amen b0b!

for instance (4mb mp3)

E9th and far from "country"

[This message was edited by Dave Van Allen on 14 July 2006 at 04:52 PM.]

[This message was edited by Dave Van Allen on 14 July 2006 at 04:53 PM.]

Bobby Lee · From: Cloverdale, California, USA

Who is this "whiney character" anyway?

Donny, I couldn't disagree more. The "whiney" E9th sound is the player's choice. It has little if anything to do with the use of the E9th copedent. I'm sure that a Bb6th U-12 player can whine just as much as any E9th player, if the song calls for a whiney style of playing.

------------------

Bobby Lee (a.k.a. b0b) - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs, Open Hearts
Williams D-12 E9, C6add9, Sierra Olympic S-12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop S-8 (E6add9), Fender Stringmaster D-8 (E13, C6 or A6) My Blog

Barry Blackwood · Posted 14 Jul 2006 4:35 pm

Hopefully, the whiny sound is the producers choice, not the players. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. I've bailed on more than one session for refusing to play 'whiny.'

Jim Cohen · From: Philadelphia, PA

"Yesterday's Whine", anybody?

James Cann · From: Phoenix, AZ

Matthew Prouty · From: Warsaw, Poland

I will take a bottle of that whine... is it from California?

M.

Klaus Caprani · From: Copenhagen, Denmark

I am not sure if I could be the member who's utterings forms the basis of b0b's original posting in this tread.
(I expressed the opinion that I would have a harder time playing Rock'n'Roll on E9 without the C-pedal, in the Daniel Lanois tread).

I have experienced the phaenomenon though, that if I'm not thinking too much about what I'm doing, I'll definetely induce some kind of (wanted or unwanted) country character to anything I'm doing. To avoid that I'll have to think quite hard about what I'm playing.

I still wonder what came first. Did the tuning and copedent create the style, or was the style the basis for the developement of the tuning and copedent?

------------------
Klaus Caprani

MCI RangeXpander S-10 3x4
www.klauscaprani.com

Roger Rettig · From: Naples, FL

I've long believed that E9 is inherently more versatile than C6th.

Well said, b0b!

RR

Forum Index > Pedal Steel	Goto page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 Next	Next oldest topic :: Next newest topic