Red Simpson Steeler

P Gleespen · Post by **P Gleespen** » 22 Mar 2005 7:04 am

I was just listening to the Sundazed reissue of Red Simpson's "Roll Truck Roll". What a great cd. Truckin' songs...I don't know why but I love 'em.

A quick search of the forum leads me to believe that it's Leo LeBlanc playing steel.

Assuming that's correct, does anyone have any ideas about what kind of rig he was playing for those sessions?

Tremendous sound, tremendous playing. At times it's very "Brumley-esque".

Jerry Hayes R.I.P. · Post by **Jerry Hayes R.I.P.** » 22 Mar 2005 7:08 am

I don't believe it'd be Leo on those recordings but probably is Tom Brumley. By the way, Red also plays steel. One time years ago when I lived in SoCal I got a call to do a gig on the side at some place in El Monte and when I got there I was surprised to find Red Simpson on steel. A few years later I was playing Steel for the Eddie Drake band and we had Red for a guest artist one weekend and I was surprised to see what a good lead guitarist he was! Very jazzy and tasty. I have a cassette tape of that show which I still enjoy listening to...JH in Va.

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Livin' in the Past and Future with a 12 string Mooney Universal tuning.

Herb Steiner · Post by **Herb Steiner** » 22 Mar 2005 7:45 am

Red is a picker! I backed him one night at the Holiday II in El Monte, and he played good lead guitar.

I recently asked Larry Petree if Red ever had a day job and he said, no, he'd been a player and songwriter all his life. Ever since high school. Larry said they used to call him "Suitcase Simpson" because he always had a suitcase full of songs ready to demo.

My friends, THAT is a picker, fer sure.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

Pete Finney · Post by **Pete Finney** » 22 Mar 2005 9:56 am

I've always loved the solo on "Roll Truck Roll"; very cool open string stuff. Someone told me years ago that it was Red Rhodes but I don't know. That one doesn't sound like Brumley to me...

Jerry Hayes R.I.P. · Post by **Jerry Hayes R.I.P.** » 22 Mar 2005 10:06 am

I asked Red one time about a song he'd co-written with Buck Owens which Buck had a great record of. It is one of my favorites called "Don't Ever Tell Me Goodbye". Red told me that of all those tunes he'd written with Buck they were mostly all his and Buck had to have a piece of the songs to cut them and in those old Capitol record days, half of a Buck Owens cut was better than 100% of just about anyone else's and I'll have to agree with that. Buck was the man in those days. I like to hear Red do a truckin' tune called "The Highwayman".

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Livin' in the Past and Future with a 12 string Mooney Universal tuning.

emil noothout · Post by **emil noothout** » 22 Mar 2005 10:31 am

From what i've seen on this forum in the past i think it's Leo Leblanc. His son had some posts some years ago and when i remember correctly he also mentioned Red Simpson. He played on a Endicott (or something like that)steel. I always remembered because it is such a unique style and sound. By the way: Sundazed has reissued a third cd by Red Simpson, and one by Kay Adams with the same kind of music.

GaryHoetker · Post by **GaryHoetker** » 22 Mar 2005 2:53 pm

That was almost 40 years ago.What a memory Emil.You are absolutely right.
It was Leo on those sessions and he played an Endicott.I used to listen to Leo play alot in the honky tonks in Bakersfield about that time. He was a very unique stylist and a really nice man, I hear. Leo passed on several years ago.

Stu Schulman · Post by **Stu Schulman** » 22 Mar 2005 5:05 pm

Leo was my room mate on the road when I played lead guitar for Jerry Jeff Walker,and he told me that he played on "Roll Truck Roll"

Larry Strawn · Post by **Larry Strawn** » 22 Mar 2005 5:42 pm

While reading this thread the name Kay Adams jumped out at me,,Her and my wife are 2nd cousins, we have an old cassett around here some where of her singing a song about a Little Pink Mac, or something..Any one know any thing about this song, like who the players were??
Larry

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Emmons S/D-10, 3/4, Sessions 400 Ltd. Home Grown E/F Rack
"ROCKIN COUNTRY"

Stephen LeBlanc · Post by **Stephen LeBlanc** » 22 Mar 2005 8:04 pm

yeah it was my dad (Leo LeBlanc) on those records

here's a link to a tribute website:

http://www.leoleblanc.us

I love that music, Gene Moles on guitar, great sound and style from everyone on the sessions.

Smiley Roberts · Post by **Smiley Roberts** » 22 Mar 2005 11:16 pm

Hey Stephen,
On your website,on the early pics,referring to "Fla.'62" & "Fla.'63" He's pictured w/ a band,& there's a guy wearing a "musical note" suit. Would that guy happen to be my ol' buddy,Doug LaValley?

Just an added note,FYI,the band that I'm in now is featuring Dennis Payne.

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<pre> ~ ~
©¿© It don't mean a thang,
mm if it ain't got that twang.
www.ntsga.com</pre>

Daryl Stogner · Post by **Daryl Stogner** » 23 Mar 2005 4:16 am

Back in the 60's Kay Adams and Red were part of my Dad's band in Bakersfield. Luckily for me I was the 15 yr old bass player!

Red is such a hoot to work with. He played piano and lead guitar with us back then. And, Kay, well that gal can sure sing, and she's so pretty, at 15 I would have run off with her, if I could have.

I understand she now lives in the Nashville area. Love to see her again and meet her husband my next trip back there.

Red is still playing believe it or not. I think he's at Trout's Club in Bakersfield on Wednesday's.

Daryl

Howard Tate · Post by **Howard Tate** » 23 Mar 2005 4:43 am

I played six string with Red a few times in the '70s. He had some hilarious comedy routines, and some good licks too. We had a lot of fun in Bakersfield, and up Kern Canyon at Democrat Hot Springs. When I worked in Japan for a while he had a lot of fans there.

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Howard, 'Les Paul Recording, Zum S12U, Vegas 400, Boss ME-5, Boss DM-3
http://www.Charmedmusic.com

Stephen LeBlanc · Post by **Stephen LeBlanc** » 23 Mar 2005 8:26 am

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>Hey Stephen,
On your website,on the early pics,referring to "Fla.'62" & "Fla.'63" He's pictured w/ a band,& there's a guy wearing a "musical note" suit. Would that guy happen to be my ol' buddy,Doug LaValley?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I don't know, I'll ask my mom and get back to you. FWIW, the guy on the far right holding the acoustic guitar is rockabilly legend/pioneer Lee Denson, my uncle...his wife (my mom's sister) is the drummer and my mom is the bassist. I'll find out who the other two are and let you know.

Just an added note,FYI,the band that I'm in now is featuring Dennis Payne.

I should try and meet Dennis for a drink or something in the near future, I've heard lots of stories about him (at least one I wouldn't post on a public board

)...he and my Dad spent a lot of time together in Bakersfield.

Larry Strawn · Post by **Larry Strawn** » 23 Mar 2005 9:37 am

Daryl,,
Did you get around the "Lucky Spot" in Bakersfield any??
My wifes' Dad and Mom [both deceased now] owned and operated it for about 3 yrs, in the mid-70's.
My wife, Kay Adams' cousin used to sing in there quite frequently during that period. She was a teen-ager her self at that time.
Larry

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Emmons S/D-10, 3/4, Sessions 400 Ltd. Home Grown E/F Rack
"ROCKIN COUNTRY"

[This message was edited by Larry Strawn on 23 March 2005 at 09:39 AM.]

emil noothout · Post by **emil noothout** » 23 Mar 2005 10:29 am

Gary, my answer may have sounded more dramatic then i meant to, i remembered it from the former forum discussions. I wished i could say i'd been there. Can you tell some more about the Endicott steel, and do you know which amp Leo Leblanc used? Did he had the same fantastic sound when playing live?

Stephen LeBlanc · Post by **Stephen LeBlanc** » 23 Mar 2005 10:50 am

Emil,

The Endicott pedal steel Leo played was custom made for him, if memory serves it was one of the first (or the first) made by Endicott. Lots of odd parts were used.

He played through a Leslie speaker a lot in the mid-60s, I can't remember what kind of amp he used, maybe some kind of bass amp? I just can't remember. You can see the amp head on the floor behind the steel in this picture:

He switched to a Fender Twin in the early 70s and played through that mostly from then on.

Leo switched to an Emmons steel in the late 70s because the Endicott wasn't holding up (becoming almost impossible to play, not that it was ever easy). In the mid-80s he changed his approach to playing a lot, new tuning, new codependent, new Steel (Excel designed for him in Japan when he was on a USO tour there).

if you email me (my email is in my profile or you can send email via the leoleblanc.us site), I'll try and give you more info if you want...I can't answer everything right away but will do my best to get the info from someone[This message was edited by Stephen LeBlanc on 23 March 2005 at 11:01 AM.]

Daryl Stogner · Post by **Daryl Stogner** » 23 Mar 2005 8:16 pm

That amp head on the floor looks like an old Kustom head. You can see the tuck and roll padding on it. Those were always so cool.

And then there was the Lucky Spot. I never got to play there, too busy chasing girls as a teen. I think Kay was a bit older than me when I was 15, well heck I guess she still would be huh? I played the Bakersfield area from about 15-18, then played a bunch in Ridgecrest until the Army and I met up.

As far as Kay's age, the age difference wouldn't have mattered, I'd still like to have chased her back then! I always loved listening to her sing, besides her being good looking.

Here's a photo from the TV show in Bakersfield... not a bad bunch for a band.

[This message was edited by Daryl Stogner on 23 March 2005 at 08:17 PM.]

Larry Strawn · Post by **Larry Strawn** » 24 Mar 2005 9:33 am

Hey Daryl,,
Thanks for posting that pic. My wife will really like that..I'll show her when she gets home. Yeah, I might have thought about running off with her also!!! But at least I kept it in the family. lol.. And if I want my wife to know I said that "I'll" tell her!!
Larry

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Emmons S/D-10, 3/4, Sessions 400 Ltd. Home Grown E/F Rack
"ROCKIN COUNTRY"

[This message was edited by Larry Strawn on 24 March 2005 at 09:36 AM.]

Gary Jones · Post by **Gary Jones** » 24 Mar 2005 10:29 am

I got to play with Red a couple of times, at a place called "Wild Bill's". I played with the house band at Harry's, in Pismo Beach (I wonder if that fine establishment is still open?), and made it to Bakersfield on a few occasions. I have never been around anyone who was so much fun to work with.
The lead guitar player with Red at that time was Gene Moles. I sold him my red Pro-I, after I got a Pro-III. I wish I still had that steel, as it had the best E-9th tone of any instrument I have ever owned.
The last time I spoke with Larry Petree he said that he was doing a duo with Red at a supper club in Bakersfield. I am glad to see these two, who rank so high in my personal estimation still out kicking the dog around.

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Gary Jones, KLVX-TV
Fessenden S/D-12U
Bunch of cheap guitars
Big ol' pile of half-rebuilt amplifiers