The Steel Guitar Forum Store 

Post new topic A Short History of the Pedal Steel Guitar
Reply to topic
Author Topic:  A Short History of the Pedal Steel Guitar
Jim Cohen


From:
Philadelphia, PA
Post  Posted 17 Feb 2015 6:26 pm    
Reply with quote

New article by Michael Ross at PremierGuitar.com just published today.

http://www.premierguitar.com/articles/22152-pedal-to-the-metal-a-short-history-of-the-pedal-steel-guitar?page=1

Most of it is well-known to this community, but there's a cool pic of Russ Pahl's axe with built-in effects:

_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website

Mark van Allen


From:
Watkinsville, Ga. USA
Post  Posted 17 Feb 2015 7:52 pm    
Reply with quote

That's fairly Sneaky, eh Jim?
_________________
Stop by the Steel Store at: www.markvanallen.com
www.musicfarmstudio.com
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website

Jerome Hawkes


From:
Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA
Post  Posted 18 Feb 2015 4:07 am    
Reply with quote

i still hold to the belief that Emmons splitting the A&B was possibly the single biggest advancement to the pedal steels development.

this is the first i have heard of Russ Pahl, though i don't listen to commercial country radio, what he is talking about sounds interesting and seems to be working for him.
_________________
'65 Sho-Bud D-10 Permanent • '54 Fender Dual-8 • Clinesmith T-8 • '38 Ric Bakelite • '92 Emmons D-10 Legrande II
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Charlie McDonald


From:
out of the blue
Post  Posted 18 Feb 2015 4:57 am    
Reply with quote

It is fairly Sneaky. This guitar keeps me up at night designing two-pedal copedents.
This guitar is so cool you can imagine cutting the body away and putting a strap on it

except for those two obsolete knobs on the front (what steel players call the back).
Who needs pedals? A guitar like that screams of chicks.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Frank Freniere


From:
The First Coast
Post  Posted 18 Feb 2015 5:03 am    
Reply with quote

Great article - thanks, Jim.
View user's profile Send private message

Jay Jessup


From:
Charlottesville, VA, USA
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 6:41 am    
Reply with quote

I am sure we could all nit pik this article here and there but overall it's pretty darn good i'd say.
Here's a question for some of you other old timers that's not really too important but I am curious what you remember. It seems to me that the term 'lap' steel and 'console' steel are relatively new terms. When I started you either had a steel guitar or a pedal steel guitar. I believe Gibson called some of their steel guitars 'console' in some of their adds but I never recall hearing anybody refer to them as that until very recently, I do seem to recall folks referring to David Lindley as playing the lap steel in the 70s.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Erv Niehaus


From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 9:46 am    
Reply with quote

Jay,
I go back further than that, when I started, you either played the "Hawaiian" guitar or the "Spanish" guitar. Whoa!
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Dustin Rhodes


From:
Owasso OK
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 9:49 am    
Reply with quote

I'd urge everyone to check this out, repost it, share it on social media, comment on it, etc. Let Premier know that there is an audience for this stuff.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 10:50 am    
Reply with quote

I thought it was a very intelligently written article and for anyone curious enough to learn about the instrument it is worth sharing, as Dustin wrote above.

The author even correctly spelled "Joaquin Murphey," with an "e" in his last name, the "e" is often left out even here on the SGF. Winking

I want to learn more about Russ Pahl's guitar. I have a fair number number of CDs with Russ on steel and I always enjoy his playing. Great comment by him that he realized 10 or 15 years ago he wasn't going to top Paul Franklin so he'd better figure out a different approach.
_________________
Mark
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Jerome Hawkes


From:
Fayetteville, North Carolina, USA
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 10:58 am    
Reply with quote

just curiously, i clicked on the pedal / lap steel hyperlinks in the header for the blog - wasnt much there. some things on asher guitars & robert randolph naturally. i was thinking there would be a little more interest in lap steel than just 2-3 articles.
_________________
'65 Sho-Bud D-10 Permanent • '54 Fender Dual-8 • Clinesmith T-8 • '38 Ric Bakelite • '92 Emmons D-10 Legrande II
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 19 Feb 2015 10:59 am    
Reply with quote

...and speaking of Russ Pahl, I have no clue who these guys are, perhaps someone here can enlighten us, it's a short in-studio video of Little Wing (my all-time favorite Hendrix song) with some tasty playing from Russ:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk1mIqciOdU
_________________
Mark
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Danny James

 

From:
Summerfield Florida USA
Post  Posted 25 Feb 2015 8:28 am    
Reply with quote

Erv Niehaus wrote:
Jay,
I go back further than that, when I started, you either played the "Hawaiian" guitar or the "Spanish" guitar. Whoa!


Erv, I too go back to the days of "Hawaiian" guitar or "Spanish" guitar.

I notice in the link in the 1st post by Jim Cohen credit is given to Alvino Rey and Gibson concerning history of pedal steel guitar.

Yet there was no mention of Jay Harlin and the Harlin Bros. Multi-Kord.

Jay Harlin was the inventor and held the 1st patent on a pedal steel guitar, originally called the Kalina Multi-Kord. Harlin's advertised it as a "Hawaiian" pedal steel guitar, and provided lessons in their studio in Indianapolis Ind.
There was a controversy with Harlin's over patent rights infringement, which caused Gibson to cease production of their Electra Harp.
I started taking lessons at Harlin Bros. in 1948. I taught with them on the Multi-Kord in 52 to 54, using the Oahu method. I knew the 5 Harlin Brothers well, Jay, Jimmy, Herb, Wynn, & George.

All but George played in their own Hawaiian band. They were very good. Jay Harlin's personal Multi-Kord had 15 pedals. I have seen and heard them play many times.
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 25 Feb 2015 2:25 pm    
Reply with quote

I agree Danny, the oversight of Jay Harlin and his contribution is glaring to say the least. There's also no mention of the Hawaiian Harmolin, the first Hawaiian guitar to feature a knee-activated lever.

Both of these deserve mention in any article or book about the history of pedal steel.

Embarassed
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Danny James

 

From:
Summerfield Florida USA
Post  Posted 27 Feb 2015 1:16 pm    
Reply with quote

Donny Hinson wrote:
I agree Danny, the oversight of Jay Harlin and his contribution is glaring to say the least. There's also no mention of the Hawaiian Harmolin, the first Hawaiian guitar to feature a knee-activated lever.

Both of these deserve mention in any article or book about the history of pedal steel.

Embarassed

Thanks Donny,
Both I and Sharon Denney who heads up the Indianapolis Steel Guitar Club, have tried without success so far to have Jay Harlin and the Harlin Bros. Multi-Kord entered into the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame. In my opinion that is another glaring oversight. :roll

So many of those who play "Country" pedal steel guitars being made today, do not realize that they are actually playing a Hawaiian guitar. Smile

They look down on the Multi-Kord as being something inferior. When actually in 1948 when I had my first 4 pedal 6 string Multi-Kord, it was way ahead of it's time with it's tuning changer.

It is true that it was a cheaply made guitar. There was a reason for that too. It was to keep the cost in range of parents ability to afford a Hawaiian pedal steel guitar for their children. Who has that mind set today ? Our children are the future of music in America, or--- are they?

Harlin's Multi-Kord changer could raise or lower any or all strings in any combination with each pedal. Not only that the tunings could be changed in a matter of minutes without turning the instrument upside down and taking hours to do. That is something no pedal steel guitar being made today can boast. Idea
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 27 Feb 2015 2:26 pm    
Reply with quote

I guess I'm anal that way, Danny. Little things propogated in error just kinda irk me. Only yesterday, I found these words on a "reputable" web site:

Quote:
Strictly speaking, a steel guitar is any guitar made out of metal...


Say whaaa??? Evidently, the "stupid" fairy is still flitting around. Laughing
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 28 Feb 2015 5:58 am    
Reply with quote

It was supposed to be a short history of the pedal steel guitar and I think the author did a fine job, and was reasonably thorough, no mention of Harlin, etc. aside. And it was sort of a pedal steel overview combined with the segments about Russ Pahl. If the writer started getting too esoteric for a mag like Premier Guitar he could lose readers in the process.

I used to write newspaper articles and some magazine pieces on gardening as a sideline in my horticultural career where you are often assigned a word count for the length of an article, and sometimes things do get left out.

Though I'm pretty anal about some things myself - since it is an often used word in horticulture, it is spelled propagated. Wink
_________________
Mark
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Danny James

 

From:
Summerfield Florida USA
Post  Posted 28 Feb 2015 6:46 am    
Reply with quote

Mark Eaton wrote:
It was supposed to be a short history of the pedal steel guitar and I think the author did a fine job, and was reasonably thorough, no mention of Harlin, etc. aside. And it was sort of a pedal steel overview combined with the segments about Russ Pahl. If the writer started getting too esoteric for a mag like Premier Guitar he could lose readers in the process.

I used to write newspaper articles and some magazine pieces on gardening as a sideline in my horticultural career where you are often assigned a word count for the length of an article, and sometimes things do get left out.

Though I'm pretty anal about some things myself - since it is an often used word in horticulture, it is spelled propagated. Wink


Though I agree with the article being well written for the "most part". He mentioned Gibson & Alvino Rey, where he should have mentioned Jay Harlin & the Harlin Bros. in the first place.

That would have been the accurate way to give the credit where it belonged.

If your going to write an article, why not at least tell it like it is?

I once heard it said "never let the truth get in the way of a good story". Well he didn't ! : Rolling Eyes
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Mark Eaton


From:
Sonoma County in The Great State Of Northern California
Post  Posted 28 Feb 2015 10:15 am    
Reply with quote

You're right, it couldn't have hurt, wouldn't have taken much to mention Harlin - and it's been a couple weeks since I read the thing so I don't recall all the details - but there are many innovations on the instrument contributed by a lot of different people over the decades and everyone will have their own personal frame of reference on items which should be included in an article of this nature.

If one is to get them all in there then it's gone from a magazine article to a short book.

I wrote an article on growing cymbidium orchids for a Calif. newspaper years ago, and an owner of a specialty orchid nursery wrote a letter to the editor lambasting me for leaving out some details, but the details were sort of "insider stuff" that wasn't necessarily pertinent to the average home orchid grower. They were things one might find in an orchid growing manual. I couldn't put everything into a half page newspaper article. They were some "truths" - but leaving them out wasn't a matter of not disclosing something of great significance.

Once again, kudos to Premier guitar for publishing a good article on the pedal steel guitar, and Russ Pahl. I prefer "the glass is half full" approach.
_________________
Mark
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail

Jim Cohen


From:
Philadelphia, PA
Post  Posted 28 Feb 2015 10:27 am    
Reply with quote

Mark Eaton wrote:
You're right, it couldn't have hurt, wouldn't have taken much to mention Harlin

That's assuming that the author had done sufficient research to discover and understand the role of the Harlins. Sometimes leaving something out is only because of having to stop researching at a certain point in order to meet a submission deadline. In other cases, as someone stated above, the editor cut things from the manuscript to meet a length requirement (and sometimes editors don't realize the full significance of what they're cutting). I give the author the benefit of the doubt and agree that the glass is way more than half full. And, here's the bonus: it gives one of YOU an opportunity to write a letter to the editor to rectify the omission, thereby generating a SECOND PROMOTIONAL HIT on steel guitar. Now, IMO, it's ALL GOOD! Smile
_________________
www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website


All times are GMT - 8 Hours
Jump to:  

Our Online Catalog
Strings, CDs, instruction,
steel guitars & accessories

www.SteelGuitarShopper.com

Please review our Forum Rules and Policies

Steel Guitar Forum LLC
PO Box 237
Mount Horeb, WI 53572 USA


Click Here to Send a Donation

Email admin@steelguitarforum.com for technical support.


BIAB Styles
Ray Price Shuffles for
Band-in-a-Box

by Jim Baron
HTTP