Julian Tharpes' speedpicking.....

Charles Curtis · Posted 7 Aug 2004 7:12 am

I am a fan of Julian Tharpe and I am wondering if any of you that knew Julian could describe just how he did such amazing speedpicking; did he use his thumb and two or three fingers or what? Thank you.

Rick Schmidt · From: Prescott AZ, USA

I'm no JT expert, but boy what a player!
Sometimes the stacato aspect of his soloing made me a little jittery, but the content was always full of inovative ideas! I'm sure he was listening to the modern jazz of his day. He definitely had a unique style that I've never heard since!

Charles Curtis · Posted 7 Aug 2004 10:40 am

I wonder if Bobby Caldwell might have noticed? Now there's a great picker.

Michael Johnstone · From: Sylmar,Ca. USA

I'd always thought he was pretty unique and a very agressive player which I liked,so when I saw him in 1984 in St Louis,I hung around him as much as I could.I saw him pick close up in one of the small rooms - it may have been the Sierra room - and he used thumb abd two fingers. His speed picking was executed w/his thumb and index finger instead of the more common thumb and middle finger. I also remember that his thumb style Travis picking was the deepest and most complex I'd ever heard on steel. His was the only 14 string tuning that justified having 14 strings IMHO. -MJ-

Terry Wood · From: Lebanon, MO

Julian was my friend and mentor. He could play it all and was very original in his delivery.

A person once asked him, after he had burned the steel up on some uncany speed licks "Wow, how did you do that!" Julian looked at them, winked and said like this, rubbing his finger and thumb together. He had a great sense of humor and if you really knew him, you would appreciate it.

I spent time with his last surviving brother in Skipperville, Alabama two summers ago. It is actually where Julian was from, it's near Ozark, AL. We were guests in his home. The Tharpe's are wonderful people. They entertained us, took us out to visit Julian's boyhood homeplace, and his final resting place. Then Mrs. Tharpe cooked us a mouth watering Southen dinner. Dick Tharpe was always joking just like Julian. We had a bunch of laughs. I will always remember their southern hospitality.

Julian Tharpe truly belongs in the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame as does our mutual friend Maurice Reece Anderson. By the way Julian and Reece were friends abd Julian actually demonstrated MSA steels for awhile. Two of America's greatest steel players!

Fred Jack · From: Bastrop, Texas 78602

Just a memory ... around 1974 I was in Nashville with Jimmy Bryant and we were doing a session for an aqaintance of mine.His one request was "lots of steel".Jimmy played rhythm,Shorty Lavender,Bob White and Lisa on fiddles,and Julian! I could tell the singer wasn't rel happy so I took him off to the side and ask him whazzup? He said there ain't no steel.Weeelll I could hear it and so I told the engineer to play some back.Julian was screaming form start to finish and my friend just grinned and we went on with the session.Julian could pick his ass off and set and grin at you all the while.I went to see him a few times in Panama City while Jimmy and I were living in Thomasville and he was a Super Picker! Thanks for the thread to remind me.I miss Jimmy and Julian so much!
Regards, Fred

Charles Curtis · Posted 7 Aug 2004 3:42 pm

It's just that when I listen to him and he hits one of those "killer licks", I find it difficult to even imagine how it was done. It must have taken years to train those muscles in his fingers to reach that level.

Paul Graupp · From: Macon Ga USA

Fred: Speaking of Thomasville, GA; did you ever have to visit Archbold Memorial ?? I used to work there for a number of years and played the Florida Panhandle most of the time.

Regards, Paul

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

Well... Mike is right.
When I once asked him how he does it, he held up the THUMB and his INDEX FINGER.

That's what he used for his fast single lines. And it ain't that hard (not that I can do it!), but I was up to some good speed on the regular guitar, doing flat-picking stuff with just the thumb (down) and index (up).
Somehow, though, it is all tied up in my internal wiring with moving my fingers on my left hand. When I hold a bar, it all goes to hell in a handbasket!

JW

[This message was edited by Winnie Winston on 08 August 2004 at 12:03 AM.]

David Mason · From: Cambridge, MD, USA

Human beings are more similar to each other than different, at least compared to a cat or a houseplant or something. However, one of the most marked innate physiological differences between people is in nerve conduction speed. Even with an early start, all the training and practice in the world, an eager mind and a soulful soul, some of us just aren't ever going to hit fastballs in the major leagues, fly supersonic acrobatics or nail those really big pedal steel licks. Oh well.

Stephen Gambrell · From: Over there

Winnie, wasn't that how Don Reno played his single-string runs on banjo---predating the great Bela Fkeck by a couple of decades?

Terry Wood · From: Lebanon, MO

Something else I would like to mention on this thread.

I wonder why someone hasn't ever picked up the steel recordings of Julian Tharpe, Zane Beck or Curly Chalker and reproduced them on CDs. There is a whole generation already who is not familiar with their playing. I already have all their L.P.s and tapes, even some live sessions, but it would be nice if these were reproduced for the current and the following generations of steel players. A great loss if it is not done. Just my two cents worth.

What do the rest of you all think?

El Woodrow

Dennis Detweiler · From: Solon, Iowa, US

Many years ago I asked Wally Murphy about his single string technique. He said thumb and index. He said it kept his middle finger in position to grab another note when necessary. But, I think the theory behind using the thumb and middle finger is the tone between thumb and middle finger is closer.
DD

Charles Curtis · Posted 8 Aug 2004 7:56 am

I agree with you Terry; have you approached Scotty with this? I can only play CDs in my car; I find them more convenient.

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

Stephen:
That is exactly how Don did it. And Bela can do most of Don's tunes pretty well.
What I have NOT seem anyone do is play in any key (as Don did) without a capo. A, B, Bb-- just didn't matter. He played 'em and never re-tuned the 5th string.
And I saw Don twice where he had a steel player with the band.
And saw Jim and Jessie when they had Doug Jernigan with them.

JW

JW

Stephen Gambrell · From: Over there

Winnie, this'll get us thrown off-topic, I guess, but I believe that Don Reno knew a banjo neck better than anybody, including...
Earl will always be Earl, though, and I love him, as I do J.D., Sonny, Alan, Porter Church, and so many other greats.
And its a good thing when we can take a technique from one instrument, and transfer it to another. I'm currently trying to play pedal steel with clawhammers---framing hammers, at that!
Are you old enough to have seen Bill with an accordian?

[This message was edited by Stephen Gambrell on 09 August 2004 at 04:50 AM.]

Terry Wood · From: Lebanon, MO

Some of my favorite speed pickin' things of Julian are "Lost Indian," from his "Deep Feelings" L.P. and "Old Joe Clark" from his "Southern Fried" L.P.

Man the guy could really pick! Miss him!

Terry Wood

Terry Wood · From: Lebanon, MO

Yes, I heard that somebody was going to try and do a compliation of Julian's artistry on CD and it needs to be done, for future generations.

Scotty, has the Masters to much of his L.P. recordings, and someone out there has videos of Julian playing.

I know he was recorded at the Steel Convention, and also via 1984 while at the time he, Julian, was recording his last "Deep Feelings" L.P. It was at either St. Louis or St. Charles area. Because I have a copy that someone sent me years ago, from another country.

Terry Wood

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