How many Steel Players out there were Guitar Players First?

[Sid Hudson]

As a Guitar player 1st and a Steel Guitar player second I find myself looking at the steel guitar through the eyes/prism of my six string guitar.

I have long been curious how many more there are out there in my shoes?

Do you approach the Steel through the eyes of your guitar knowledge?

[Paul Sutherland]

Count me in. I hardly ever touch a guitar anymore. Guitar players are a dime a dozen. Steel players are still something unique.

[Sid Hudson]

Do you approach the Steel through the eyes of your guitar knowledge?

[Dave Bertoncini]

No matter what I play and no matter what the chord positions and etc. it is difficult to not think of the basic "bar" chord positions from playing guitar. Even the basic pedal down positions relate in the same manner also. Single note stuff seems to be a different story. I need to clarify that I do not play either at level you do Sid...maybe that is why I build guitars

[Gordon Hartin]

Guitar player first, but these days I play guitar, I still practice on Steel.

I think one of the hardest roles for guitarists to understand is how a volume pedal should be used with a steel guitar. On guitar, many people have tried to emulate the pedal steel by doing volume swells with the guitar volume knob, so when they first get a pedal steel they are constantly doing drastic volume swells on the steel. In my opinion, the role of the volume pedal on the pedal steel is to keep the volume consistent, so as the the notes start to decay you can increase the volume pedal to keep the volume at the same level. Constant volume swells sound like a new player to me these days.

I know early on, I had horrible volume pedal habits. Being a guitarist, I was so used to a guitar sounding best when the volume was all the way turned up, I thought that you were supposed to have the steel volume pedal at full volume also. Because of that, notes would decay and not sing like the pros. Later on, I realized that on steel, you almost never have the volume pedal on full, and how to properly use it.

Gordon Hartin

[Iestyn Lewis]

I don't really. I've resisted learning pentatonic scales on pedal steel, because I play them so much on 6-string guitar. I did get into chord-melody playing on the 6-string, so I try to do that on pedal steel - play the chord, try to find where the melody notes are in or around that chord. Pedal steel to me is almost more like playing the piano, though, than a 6-string guitar.

[Jack Stoner]

I played guitar and bass at one time. In the 60's I had a PX6120 Chet Atkins Gretsch that I played.

When I first started on pedal steel, I would go back to the guitar and figure things out and then take that to the steel.

[Bill Howard]

Count me in also .
I think a lot of us old guys couldnt afford a steel in our younger days... I got my first in 1979

[Roger Crawford]

And then there are those of us that started on drums. Try to relate that!

[Gary Lee Gimble]

Sid, does banjo count? ...no answer is necessary! Having said that, lets consider this. When Jose speaks Finnish, does he think Espanyol? Most likely not. When you pick A Way to Survive, do you want to sound like steel while playing steel, or, sound like something else, like your six string? While Building A Mountain, there are many other possibilities to garnish that tune aside from your upbringing, don't cha think? Approach that tune while thinking vibraphone? What, you don't play vibes, listening appreciation dont hurt? Another thing to consider is to answer a simple question. How good is good? I'm referring to playing expertise. Who is your target audience De Jour may enhance or take away from your train of approaching thought? Play and approach your tune that will sell it.....A couple other items I feel are necessary to think about. Scales are a common denominator to all musical instruments, maybe excluding an Asian instrument I heard about that plays 1/4 steps. The other item is the musical language that flows with steel. How your train of thought allows you to approach steel should not be limited to what you grew up on. Think the big picture, be a multi-linguist, access it all....and speaking of multi-linguists, how 'bout those chosen few that are proficient with dozen of languages, I'd be happy with just a couple....and then hack through a Mt......
These are random thoughts which wil require you to read between the lines...not all supportive details are here...after all, its Happy Hour

So Sid, does this make any sense that you accept, or, deny? Just a bunch of hot air? Being a mediocre player, that would be me, does that diminish my approachable thoughts? Just aXing.....

[Sid Hudson]

And then there are those of us that started on drums. Try to relate that!

Roger, I don't believe I would have told that.


Gary, I don't have a d--- clue what you just said!

[Geoff Barnes]

count me in.
I practice on steel But most of my working life has revolved around guitar.
I like to tell folks that my beat up old '68 Strat paid for my entire collection of guitars.

Volume pedal... Gordon's comment made me smile. I find that I play with it at full volume and only wind it back when other instruments/voices are dominant in the arrangement.
I definitely still have the guitarists habit of sneaking my volume up til it's at 11

[Rockne Riddlebarger]

I was primarily a guitar player/singer for 40 years until switching to nothing but dobro and steel guitar 15 years ago. I also played some banjo, mandolin, bass and could skweek out something on almost anything with a string on it. The dobro and steel have allowed me to find a voice in music that I never was able to reach as a guitarist. I jokingly call it "going over to the dark side"....

[Roger Crawford]

I totally understand Gary's post. Should I be worried???

[Jim Cohen]

FWIW, I played guitar up through high school but I was never particularly "accomplished" as a guitarist before I made a left turn and threw in with the steel guitar world. I was more of a folk-rock rhythm strummer of "cowboy chords". Nevertheless, probably because it was in my formative years, I do still tend to think a lot in guitar terms when playing steel. And now that I've gone back to guitar and am studying jazz guitar, I deliberately bring some of that back to the steel. So at this point, I'm really mixed up and confused, but it's all good...

p.s. Roger, the short answer is "Yes, you should."

[Sid Hudson]

Cowboy chords !!!LOL

Now that is funny!

p.s. Yes Roger you most certainly should.

[Jim Cohen]

Sid, that's what Jimmy Bruno calls those first-position chords with open strings. LOL.

[Gary Lee Gimble]

If I can reach just one....seems I've reached 2 ...and 1/2

[Jim Cohen]

Who you callin' a half, Buster?

[Gary Lee Gimble]

[Jim Priebe]

A post close to my heart Sid.
I started on 'standard' guitar (at 16) and got into jazz and then rock and country. I tried lap steel but got nowhere with the 6 string tunings. When I got a little Sho Bud Maverick E9th things started to open up a bit - I could get chords I was looking for then went on to a 12 U. Problem was I was still principally a guitarist and "thinking" in that language. That was fine just backing vocalists and playing licks but I honestly feel it is only in the last 10 years that I have started thinking in "Pedal Steel" and moving to playing tunes helped with that. I now appreciate what touch and tone means. The reward has been - now, (out here) just about no one wants a pedal steeler in the band but audiences still are fascinated with them although I feel that while they (audiences in Oz), can handle licks they really have a problem with ad lib solos (what jazz is really about), particularly on steel.

[Gary Lee Gimble]

I now appreciate what touch and tone means..

hmmm, not a prerequisite for cowboy chords and The Great Stream?

[Jim Hartley]

Hey Roger,

Think positive. Mike Johnson started out as a drummer. He teases me all time, says he started out as a drummer, then decided to become a musician.

For what it's worth, I started out as a bass player, but Dad turned me into a drummer. Said he could find bass players but he couldn't find any country drummers. So..... here I am.

[Junior Knight]

yep...everything I play on steel I stole from my guitar playin...

[Les Anderson]

Comb and paper -> Marine band harmonica -> Diatonic harmonica -> Chromatic 280 harmonica -> Bass harmonica -> Stand up Bass -> Fender Percision Bass -> Acoustic guitar -> 6 string lap -> D 8 steel -> Remington D10 -> Pan flute. All in the above order.

Playing a harp for the angels is next!