Calling the Steel Guitar Slide Guitar

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 17 Feb 2009 1:04 pm

I'm with Larry on this one. (well, on most stuff!) I really don't see what irritates folks so much about the ignorance of others.
They seem to recognize the special difference, and distinctness of the steel, whether they get the nomenclature "correct". That's good enough for me.

Many people seem to realize they don't really know what "it" is, and come up and ask. Opportunity to educate, a little bit, and strike up friendships.

Bob Blair · Post by **Bob Blair** » 17 Feb 2009 2:20 pm

Last week I was doing live spots on breakfast TV to promote our Saturday Night show. The host offered each of us the mic to introduce ourselves, and I took the opportunity to point to my Fulawka and say "this is a pedal steel guitar". Subsequently, over the course of the morning, the host referred to it on live TV as a "slide guitar" at least twice (at one point saying "and over there, looking uber cool, is Bob on the slide guitar"). I can't say that I care - the World is never going to get pedal steel guitar right, and that's just the way it is. More importantly, in terms of what the TV host did, was that she did a great job of talking up our show (a very special Valentine's Day event starring the wonderful Andrea House), and helped Andrea fill a bunch of seats in one of the better recital halls in town - that kind of support makes up for not getting the name of my instrument quite right, as far as I'm concerned.

John Drury · Post by **John Drury** » 17 Feb 2009 2:26 pm

Gee guys, lighten up! My pain meds were wearing off and I had nothing better to do but razz the hell out of someone! It was all in fun!

Seriously I really and truly don't care what you call them!

I hope I'm not up all night again! Those damn motorcycles are going!

Wow! 50 years, one wreck, and from behind no less! Ah, what the hell, it was fun while it lasted!

Seriously, lets tone it down a bit.

John Drury · Post by **John Drury** » 17 Feb 2009 2:36 pm

Chris,

I don't think Pete made it to see this album, I think his wife Rose named the album and it was a tribute album. Either P.F. or Lloyd would know the straights on this. No disrespect meant!

Oops, damn I am doing it again! Sorry Tommy!

Allen Kentfield · Post by **Allen Kentfield** » 17 Feb 2009 2:58 pm

I play a pedal steel. Don Helms and Leon McCauliffe played steel guitar. I would call Jerry Byrd's 7-string Rickenbacker a lap steel, but I've heard that he called it a steel guitar. A six-string, to me, is just an electric Hawaiian guitar. My first experience playing with a bar and picks was on an accoustic guitar with the strings raised up at the nut. Then I got a 1936 Dobro. I actually have an acquaintance who recently bought an old National hawaiian guitar and came to me wanting to learn Ray Price standards. (!!!!????)

I've had lots of people ask, "What is that thing you play?", and heard people refer to "that keyboard player". Also I know a rock dude who calls my Sho-Bud a "slide guitar" or "lap steel". I think he's been afraid to go into a honky-tonk and see one in its natural invironment. Garage band rock stars are petrified of "Country-Western". What would the girls at school think?

Donny Hinson · Post by **Donny Hinson** » 17 Feb 2009 3:47 pm

John Drury wrote: O.K. Tommy,
This will hurt me way more than it hurts you, but by God take it like a man son. Are you sitting down? Take a deep breath, this is for your own good my brother...

Sorry John, that "SLIDE" album dosn't count.

It doesn't have Buddy Emmons, Jerry Garcia, or Robert Randolph. (I read on here that those were the three top players in the world.

)

Jim Bob Sedgwick · Post by **Jim Bob Sedgwick** » 17 Feb 2009 5:05 pm

Donny,.... Shame on You!

You neglected to add Jenks "Tex" Carmen to the greatest list. Just ask Jerry Hayes

Tony Glassman · Post by **Tony Glassman** » 17 Feb 2009 5:41 pm

I've heard my PSG referred to as:

- a slide pedal
- a steel slide guitar
- a burial for two salmon

...I prefer Oakie Organ

Chris Schlotzhauer · Post by **Chris Schlotzhauer** » 17 Feb 2009 6:18 pm

99% of the time, for me, the term "slide" is thrown at me by sound men. You know, drummers that can't find a gig?

Barry Blackwood · Post by **Barry Blackwood** » 18 Feb 2009 8:34 am

I really don't see what irritates folks so much about the ignorance of others.

Well, to some of us, ignorance is irritating. It's really not that big a deal to me, but when I hear somebody use that term when referring to the psg, I just really don't have anything more to discuss with them at that point. If I wasn't sure what something was, I wouldn't try to hang my own term on it, I'd ask first. Slide guitar, to me, has always been somebody playing a six string guitar with a hollow tube of some sort that fits over the finger. Now if that's wrong, then you may find my ignorance irritating.

Dan Tyack · Post by **Dan Tyack** » 18 Feb 2009 8:37 am

I'm fine with it, as long as they spell my name right.

I'm especially fine with it when they say "we want you to put down some of that slide on our album".

I say "no problem".

Bill McRoberts · Post by **Bill McRoberts** » 18 Feb 2009 10:56 am

Different descriptions besides "slide guitar" used by unsuspecting folks that I've heard is:
Sit down pedal thing
Harpsicord
buiscut cutter
Zither
Ding-ding
and of course the ever popular "Keyboard"!!!!

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 18 Feb 2009 11:59 am

I used to have a girlfriend whose young daughter loved hearing the steel. She was constantly asking me to "please play your Ziddle!"
That's still my favorite.

Mike Perlowin RIP · Post by **Mike Perlowin RIP** » 18 Feb 2009 1:42 pm

I keep telling you guys, we need to change the name to TIFKATPSG (The Instrument Formerly Known As The Pedal Steel Guitar)

Nobody believes me. (sniff sniff) WAAAA

I'm gonna eat some worms.

James Collett · Post by **James Collett** » 18 Feb 2009 3:39 pm

My favorite is the "steelie-peddler"- makes me sound like a dirty, lying telemarketer!

Mike Perlowin RIP · Post by **Mike Perlowin RIP** » 19 Feb 2009 8:45 am

Mine is "table top string thingy."

I think the real problems are that

1- people understandably confuse the steel guitar with the National and similar steel bodied res-o-phonic guitars.

2- People are thrown by the fact that the name of our instrument contains 3 words. Notwithstanding my silly TIFKATPSG schpeal, it would have been better if we had a single word name for it like "flute" or "cello." Two words at the most.

It's too late now to change the name though.

Dan Tyack · Post by **Dan Tyack** » 19 Feb 2009 10:09 am

I still favor electric cheese slicer.

Marc Friedland · Post by **Marc Friedland** » 19 Feb 2009 4:15 pm

Mike,

Very close!
Actually this was what happened about 5 years ago:
The F & B Manager of the casino went up to our band leader on the break and said
“everything sounds good, but could you turn down the volume of that table top stringy thing?”

Marc

Glen Derksen · Post by **Glen Derksen** » 19 Feb 2009 7:55 pm

So, why not just solve the problem by putting up a sign in front of the guitar that says: THIS IS A PEDAL STEEL GUITAR, STUPID!

Tommy Shown · Post by **Tommy Shown** » 19 Feb 2009 10:16 pm

Hey guys,
I am so sorry that I started a contreversy here. It was not my humble intention to have people flaming. I was trying to get some input from ya'll on if you ever had anyone call your instrument anything other than what it is. Once again,I apologize.
Tommy

Mike Perlowin RIP · Post by **Mike Perlowin RIP** » 19 Feb 2009 11:24 pm

Glen Derksen wrote:So, why not just solve the problem by putting up a sign in front of the guitar that says: THIS IS A PEDAL STEEL GUITAR, STUPID!

I once did that (minus the word "stupid",) and people STILL asked me what was I playing.

Ulric Utsi-Åhlin · Post by **Ulric Utsi-Åhlin** » 20 Feb 2009 2:50 am

...not forgetting the most glorious misnomer of them
all,"...some kind of keyboard..."McUtsi

Glen Derksen · Post by **Glen Derksen** » 20 Feb 2009 8:27 pm

Tommy Shown wrote:Hey guys,
I am so sorry that I started a contreversy here. It was not my humble intention to have people flaming. I was trying to get some input from ya'll on if you ever had anyone call your instrument anything other than what it is. Once again,I apologize.
Tommy

Tommy, where do you see people flaming each other? And what do you see controversial about this topic? All it is, is people who are mildly annoyed about others getting the description of a pedal steel wrong and making tongue in cheek comments about it, that's all. I don't think anyone is being hateful here. And I hope you and everyone else realizes that my last comment was meant strictly in humor.

Tommy Shown · Post by **Tommy Shown** » 20 Feb 2009 8:37 pm

Glen,
I thought I did, with all of the responses,that I was getting. And I thought when I first posed the question, I offended some. That is why I wrote what I did. But if you said I didn't, then I guess it's
Ok

Mark Eaton · Post by **Mark Eaton** » 21 Feb 2009 1:49 am

Hey - if it pays the bills - whatever. I was listening in the car yesterday to one of the last solo dobro albums by Uncle Josh Graves, recorded I believe around the year 2000, Sultan of Slide.

And sliding his bar around on most of the tracks with Josh on his table-top string thingy was Buddy Emmons.

Did I say album?

I have heard for years that the term record album came from the 78 rpm era, and there would often be multiple discs in packaged sets, or something like a photo album.

Yet we have used that term for decades referring to single vinyl discs, and have carried it into the CD era.

A little bit like we may call squareneck resonator guitars dobros, regardless of who built the thing.

And I'm sure I could go on...

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