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Topic: who has played on more #1 hits |
George Plemons
From:
Corsicana, Texas, USA
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Posted 20 Jan 2005 1:07 am |
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Just curious. Is PF the king of the steel when it comes to playing on number one chart hits? I thought so but then I got to thinking, Huey played on a lot with conway twitty, I think some with vince gill. Or maybe it was Lloyd Green on the many he has played, or how about Big E, or maybe even Weldon Myrick? Hmmm.
Paul did you do the work on Revenge of A Middle Age Woman by Tracy Byrd? If you did I would be interested to know about the rides taken anwsering the fiddle rides near the end(and in particular the last ride with that bodacious repeating lick). You had asked Emmons to comment on some of his jams, it would be kinda cool to read some studio stories you might have of the various artist you have worked with over the years. |
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Jim Phelps
From:
Mexico City, Mexico
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Posted 20 Jan 2005 1:34 am
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| That would be Lloyd Green. |
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Mark Metdker
From:
North Central Texas, USA
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George Plemons
From:
Corsicana, Texas, USA
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 12:44 am
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| Thanks for that link, I would have been wrong in my guess but kudos to all those players that I have enjoyed listening to over the years on those hits. |
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Jim Phelps
From:
Mexico City, Mexico
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 2:28 am
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| Note that Paul says "Pete played on more hits", and I'm sure that must be true if Paul says.... but the question was "who played on more #1 hits...maybe that's still Pete Drake. Anyone actually counted them? [This message was edited by Jim Phelps on 21 January 2005 at 03:08 AM.] |
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Mark Metdker
From:
North Central Texas, USA
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 5:07 am
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| I bet Paul is quickly approaching the top slot! He has many years of playing left in him. He'll eventually be number one. |
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Dennis Detweiler
From:
Solon, Iowa, US
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 6:03 am
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Another factor to consider, the large number of studio steel players during the 50s, 60s and 70s left a big impact in the field of competition. Licks were plenty. And steel was a very dominate and important part of every song on the chart. Too much of today's music is only colored with steel. And some have none. 
DD |
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Franklin
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 6:46 am
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Nashville's Billboard magazine counts number one records as hits, not top tens. Pete was honored by the Nashville recording community for playing on the most number ones and having the most recognized voice on the PSG during that period. The board that decides who gets this award, counted hits and called producers to varify proper credits over that period. After their extensive research was complete, Pete was chosen.
As for my career, When I first started playing on hits I counted them. Thank God I have a wife that reminds me I'm the guy who forgot to take out the garbage and could care less how many notches are on my guitar. 
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Mark Metdker
From:
North Central Texas, USA
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Posted 21 Jan 2005 11:28 am
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Sounds like you have a good support system at home Paul. Very healthy attitude about it all.  |
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Franklin
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Posted 22 Jan 2005 7:35 am
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George,
On Tracy's song there's not much of a story to tell. Aubrey Haney and I were asked to play the solo in a question/answer form. Billy Joe Walker pretty much let's players play what they want. With no restrictions this entire track took about three takes as I remember it.
When the above question is asked, certain things must also be considered.
1. The Pedal Steel has been recorded for around 50 years or more.
2. The numbers of sessions a player plays on does not equate to the number of hits. For instance Jim Baker played on "Heart Over Mind" (Tillis) and probably did thousands of custom and demo sessions with fewer hits to his credit. Over the decades John Hughey has played on a hundred or so hits and took fewer sessions because of his constant touring career. He got the right calls for radio hits. I'll bet that John has surpassed Pete's record as several others have because he has played on hits consistantly since the sixties.
3. 300 or more sessions per year for several decades is a low ball estimate averaging about 6 sessions per week of which many steel guitarists maintained for years over decades. 300 x 10 years is 3000 sessions.
4. In the 50's, 60's alot of hit artists didn't use steel and a number #1 record could stay on the charts like "El Paso" did for a half a year. Since the 70's because of the different charting system its rare when a record is #1 for more than 6 weeks. Most are there for a week or so. This allows the later years to have more hits than the earier years of country radio.
Emmons has recorded consistantly on hits for the most decades, next is Hughey, Garrish, Weldon, and then myself. I was only on one hit in the seventies. The above were on too many to count. That would bring my numbers down. Drake passed away and Lloyd missed a decade or so which brings their numbers down. My guess would be either Emmons or Garrish.
Paul[This message was edited by Franklin on 22 January 2005 at 07:38 AM.] [This message was edited by Franklin on 22 January 2005 at 07:39 AM.] [This message was edited by Franklin on 22 January 2005 at 12:11 PM.] |
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George Plemons
From:
Corsicana, Texas, USA
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Posted 22 Jan 2005 12:17 pm
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Paul, I sincerely appreciate your response. I had thought about Sonny playing on a lot because I am a big Gene Watson fan.
Sometimes in this forum when a question is asked you get a little redicule (as you can see from the thread "who hasn't played") but even though I am over 50 now I still play five or six nights a week and fortunately have not ran into the "burnout" syndrome that I see in so many bandstand players. It is a thrill for me every time I sit down to do a gig so when I ask a question I only do so to improve my playing in some way. Like I said I appreciate a player of your caliber who is always willing to share what you have with others.
GP |
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