British Pathé releases 85,000 films to YouTube

Post by **Brad Bechtel** » 17 Apr 2014 7:45 am

British PathÃ© has released 85,000 films to YouTube, including a number of Hawaiian-themed performances by various artists such as Felix Mendelssohn and the Hallam Players.
https://www.youtube.com/user/britishpat ... y=hawaiian
https://www.youtube.com/user/britishpat ... eel+guitar

Pete Finney · Post by **Pete Finney** » 17 Apr 2014 8:34 am

Wow, thanks; that's a lot of cool stuff, and probably a good way to not get anything done for the rest of the day!

No steel content but I love this funny, but true, short film about noise pollution:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXGLmBtyxXE

Earnest Bovine · Post by **Earnest Bovine** » 17 Apr 2014 8:40 am

Who needs pedals if you can do this?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rHEcwOgf4o

Andy Volk · Post by **Andy Volk** » 17 Apr 2014 9:28 am

Just because they could doesn't mean they should have ....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPVcjD39d20

Ouch.

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 17 Apr 2014 1:35 pm

Earnest Bovine wrote:Who needs pedals if you can do this? www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rHEcwOgf4o

Oh gawd, I feel another Peachy indulgence coming on! I love how he blows the chimes at 1:20 then gets his revenge at 1:50 and assures you know it with that cool smile to the camera. Classic.
Roland lived to an old age right across from Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood, hope life was good to him and that he knew he wasn't forgotten.
These Pathe films have been available on their site for a long time but it's great to have them on YT and easier access to so much. Thanx for the tip, Brad!

Ron Bednar · Post by **Ron Bednar** » 17 Apr 2014 3:14 pm

Just because they could doesn't mean they should have ....

Wow...that is nearly spooky!!

C. E. Jackson · Post by **C. E. Jackson** » 17 Apr 2014 3:18 pm

Thanks for posting the links, Brad. Great to watch how they played some of the old songs. Seems that they used flat bars almost exclusively and also made many slants.

C. E.

David Matzenik · Post by **David Matzenik** » 17 Apr 2014 4:22 pm

Pathe used to have all kinds of restrictions on these clips. Good to see them loosen up.

Kealoha Life (he liked to pronounce it leefay) became very accomplished on steel guitar, but they should not have allowed him to sing. Ian Ufton Sr. knew him and was a bit scathing. "We used to call him Low Life."

Correction: Ken Ufton (dec.)

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 17 Apr 2014 4:46 pm

Roland Peachey ... King of the "Flattie" ... He was great !!!

I remember Duke Ching coming up to me at one of the Joliet conventions and saying ... "You know they make round bars now".

Jerome Hawkes · Post by **Jerome Hawkes** » 17 Apr 2014 5:14 pm

can't believe how good the quality is on these - i'm so use to watching crappy old B&W conversions on YT.

oh man, i about s#*t when i saw that 'In the Mood' video - that guitar player is a dead on doppelgänger for my freshman college roommate..CRAZY!

i guess that is what Jerry Byrd referred to as the 'nanny goat vibrato'

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 17 Apr 2014 5:26 pm

David Matzenik wrote:Kealoha Life, they should not have allowed him to sing.

I like his singing in an odd way, he was different. I got all his old ukulele teaching tapes long ago, interesting to hear the dialog and fun to play along with his backing.

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 17 Apr 2014 5:57 pm

Wow, this is some amazing vintage stuff! Clara & Elena had so much vibrato in their voices and in their bar hand(s) it sounded 'other worldly'. Kinda creepy!

I dig that triple neck steel with horseshoe pickups.

Brian Henry · Post by **Brian Henry** » 17 Apr 2014 6:41 pm

I like this one

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=93J3Ls4q6dw

And this one

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=lqONwGXmX90

Matthew Dawson · Post by **Matthew Dawson** » 17 Apr 2014 8:50 pm

What is the guitar Felix Mendelssohn is playing here?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1rHEcwOgf4o

It definitely has horseshoe pickups (Meissner?) but it looks kind of like a Gibson Grande Console. Epiphone? English custom?

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 18 Apr 2014 3:59 am

Andy Volk wrote:Just because they could doesn't mean they should have ....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPVcjD39d20

Ouch.

I enjoyed the ladies ...

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 18 Apr 2014 9:27 am

Matthew Dawson wrote:What is the guitar Felix Mendelssohn is playing here?

That's the phenomenal (as Kealoha Life described him) Roland Peachey, probably the best steeler out of the UK ever.
Baz entered this comment years ago;
Peachey used a combination of palm levers and pedals, the guitar was built in 1939 by Abbott Guitars, utilizing Rickenbacher horseshoe pick-ups (Brought in by Henri Selmer). John Marsden has one of the necks from that particular guitar, VERY long scale 30".

Matthew Dawson · Post by **Matthew Dawson** » 18 Apr 2014 9:35 am

Thanks Ron!

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 18 Apr 2014 9:39 am

No sweat, Matthew, my pleasure to dig up that info. Roland and his Abbott have long been a fascination for me. Thank gawd there's film and plenty of his recordings to enjoy, dude was unique. Heck, so was the whole Mendelssohn thing, amazing that they got it so right thanx to all the island pros he took on.

Steven Cummings · Post by **Steven Cummings** » 18 Apr 2014 6:07 pm

I'm kinda new here on the forum. This guy Roland Peachy..... First time I've heard of him.
Now that fella can flat out play!

Incredible.

Here's one with a better shot of his steel and Wow!!! what bar technique.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJR_mGi0IfA