How Many of You Play Sleepwalk on Stage?

Cartwright Thompson · Post by **Cartwright Thompson** » 22 Oct 2013 2:58 pm

Thanks Donny, that is cool.
A few years ago a friend of mine wrote some great lyrics for Sleepwalk. He tried to get permission to record it but ran into a brick wall with whomever controls the rights to it. Eventually he gave up.
I play a medley with Teardrop, and lots of modulations, it's always a crowd pleaser.

Bob Simons · Post by **Bob Simons** » 22 Oct 2013 3:20 pm

Check out Skunk Baxter on pedal steel and the Ventures playing Sleepwalk.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Jkhs_1FBcE

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 23 Oct 2013 8:27 am

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... 35&start=0
Check out the above thread.

Cartwright Thompson wrote: ...A few years ago a friend of mine wrote some great lyrics for Sleepwalk...

There was a vocal version of Sleepwalk that came out in 1959. Maybe that's why your friend had difficulty having a second set of lyrics accepted.

Gary C. Dygert wrote:(on 30Jan2008) There is supposed to be a vocal version at npr.org, but I couldn't find it. This is a link to a fast instrumental version by Debashish Bhattcharya, with bad chords: http://www.npr.org/templates/dmg/dmg.ph ... diaPref=RM

The vocal was recorded in 1959 by Betty Anne Steele. These are the words, as best I can tell:

SLEEPWALK

Sleepwalk, 'stead of dreaming I sleepwalk,
'Cause I lost you and now what am I to do?
Can't believe that we're throgh.
Sleepwalk, 'cause I miss you, sleepwalk
While the memory of you lingers like a song.
Darling I was so wrong.

The night fills my lonely place;
I see your face spin thru my brain.
I know I want you so;
I still love you so, and it drives me insane.

Sleepwalk, every night I just sleepwalk.
Please come back and when you
Walk inside the door
I will sleepwalk no more.

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 23 Oct 2013 12:37 pm

I play it quite frequently, though I had a "lead guitarist moment" several gigs ago, due to the version of Sleepwalk that Larry Carlton had out a few years back.

An excellent guitarist, whom I've known for years, was asked to sit in for a guest number with our regular guitarist (also a monster player). So the sit-in guitarist looks right at our lead player and asks "Sleepwalk?" without so much as a sideward glance to me, your humble correspondent the steel player.

They go into it Carlton-style and so I simply get up and get a drink at the bar, where our front-man was. Tony said "you're not playing on this?" I replied "steel guitar plays lead on this tune, or it doesn't play it at all." He smiled knowingly and bought me a glass of wine.

Chuck S. Lettes · Post by **Chuck S. Lettes** » 23 Oct 2013 1:53 pm

Well said, Herb. Yet you could play a verse or chorus and have taken that fool to school.
Love the tune and love to play it, too.
Chuck

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 23 Oct 2013 1:57 pm

Only when forced to. Hate the song.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 23 Oct 2013 2:48 pm

Gary C. Dygert wrote:(on 30Jan2008) There is supposed to be a vocal version at npr.org, but I couldn't find it...The vocal was recorded in 1959 by Betty Anne Steele...

Here you go...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pCUR0gMXDc
Evidently she recorded under the name Betsy Brye.
I think it's pretty good.

Chris Schlotzhauer · Post by **Chris Schlotzhauer** » 24 Oct 2013 7:30 am

I never get to play it live, but I still enjoy playing it and I try to never forget it.
I noodle with it at sound check....even the real young kids recognize it, or they've heard it somewhere before and ask "what is that called"?
I play a version (on C6) I made up from the very basic melody, mixed with a Herb Remington version.
I need to listen to Herb's version again. It's been a couple of decades.

Alan Brookes · Post by **Alan Brookes** » 25 Oct 2013 3:19 pm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ef6j6u_KG1E
The Supremes also did a vocal version of Sleep Walk, but, whereas the Betsy Brye version follows Santo's original arrangement very well, the Supremes' version is harsh, completely destroys the feeling of the original, (they have difficulty cramming the words into the music), and there are some awful dischordant moments in the orchestration.

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 5 Nov 2013 12:08 pm

I haven't played it on a gig in years but can if it's requested. But then again I am not on Steel much these days, in our band it's about 25% of the time and in another group with a local original artist, it's all original tunes at showcase clubs. They don't ask for Sleepwalk there !

But it certainly is an iconic tune that we should have in our tool kit and always play it if requested.

Here is a track I was fortunate to play on for my good friend and local artist Chuck Johnson...Charlotte NC, a long ways from Sleepwalk...

http://www.reverbnation.com/cwjohnsonth ... orse/songs

Bob Watson · Post by **Bob Watson** » 5 Nov 2013 8:30 pm

I've been playin' Sleepwalk on almost every Steel gig I do for years. I even play it on 6 string in some Blues bands that I play in, ( a more twangy version than the Larry Carlton version ) when there isn't a Steel around, of course. It always fills the dance floor!

Hap Young · Post by **Hap Young** » 11 Nov 2013 8:52 am

I play it occasionally . I like it and the people like too.

Ronald Sikes · Post by **Ronald Sikes** » 11 Nov 2013 10:08 am

Haven't played it in a long time but I actually had a request to play it this past Sat. night

Roger Crawford · Post by **Roger Crawford** » 11 Nov 2013 10:17 am

Our bass player (a lurker on the Forum) asked me why I hadn't chimed in on this. We do the song fairly often. I seem to have to re-learn it when it pops up on a set list for an upcoming show. I guess I might as well keep it on my regular practice list. Then we'll probably never do it again!

Harold Dye · Post by **Harold Dye** » 11 Nov 2013 3:03 pm

I really never thought much about the song until a few years ago. One day I was listening to a Lloyd Green album, Shades of steel, and there it was. Lloyd does a great job on it and I thought about trying to do the song. I have been trying to play it regularly for about the last 3 yrs.

Brett Day · Post by **Brett Day** » 11 Nov 2013 6:03 pm

Heard Carco Clave play it recently and he did a great job with it!

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 11 Nov 2013 7:11 pm

Brett Day wrote:Heard Carco Clave play it recently and he did a great job with it!

Carco has a GREAT arrangement of Sleepwalk!

Roger Crawford · Post by **Roger Crawford** » 11 Nov 2013 7:27 pm

Yep, Carco plays it just like the record! He had everyone spellbound at the GaSGA show yesterday.

Paul Sutherland · Post by **Paul Sutherland** » 12 Nov 2013 12:58 am

I played it for the first time with the new band last Saturday night. The singer loves the song and took a ride on his sax. The guitar players were less enthused, but they suffered through it. The dancers in Manteca filled the floor. It's certainly a change from Jason Aldean and Brentley Gilbert, et al.

Bud Angelotti · Post by **Bud Angelotti** » 12 Nov 2013 6:52 am

Used to play it in my sleep.
Got tired of fighting it. They want it, I'll play it.

Joachim Kettner · Post by **Joachim Kettner** » 26 Mar 2014 4:36 am

I've just found a fairly recent live version by Johnny Farina:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfIV4pTZHpU

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 26 Mar 2014 5:00 am

Roger Crawford wrote:Yep, Carco plays it just like the record! He had everyone spellbound at the GaSGA show yesterday.

Carco does a most decidedly NON-traditional version of the tune on his latest CD which absolutely knocks me out... a combination of Latin beat on the A section and swing shuffle on the B section. He performed it live at last year's Super Jam in Nashville.

Carco is a wonderful musician on many instruments, BTW.

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How Many of You Play Sleepwalk on Stage?

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