Spencer Cullum Jr. won't get kicked off the forum!

b0b · Post by **b0b** » 27 Jun 2017 10:01 pm

I had to laugh.

www.rollingstone.com/country/features/s ... lp-w489848

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 28 Jun 2017 4:09 am

I didn't know they were inspired by Area Code 615. I definitely am, too.

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 28 Jun 2017 4:17 am

This is good to hear.

"Steel players are very. . . I've gotta be careful of what I say."

b0b · Post by **b0b** » 28 Jun 2017 7:32 am

I was happy to see a steel guitar act covered in Rolling Stone.

Spencer Cullum · Post by **Spencer Cullum** » 28 Jun 2017 7:53 am

I love the forum b0b, meant it purely in jest

Jerry Overstreet · Post by **Jerry Overstreet** » 28 Jun 2017 8:20 am

Music City Roots aired Steelism w/Spencer fairly recently. Interesting arrangements, good steel exposure and positive commentary from the hosts who appeared to be very excited with the idea.

Earnest Bovine · Post by **Earnest Bovine** » 28 Jun 2017 9:08 am

Spencer, you sound great on YouTube, and plenty country for me.

Craig Stock · Post by **Craig Stock** » 28 Jun 2017 9:10 am

Great article, the song in the article is really good and features Jesse Balin, who is from New Jersey originally and is married to one of the 'Kings of Leon'. One f my friends is buddies with her dad who by the way has a great restaurant in Stirling, NJ.

Mark Eaton · Post by **Mark Eaton** » 28 Jun 2017 11:14 am

First of all - thanks for bringing attention to the project by linking the article.

Spencer, this is right up my alley - I'm gong to place my order for the album!

Paul Stauskas · Post by **Paul Stauskas** » 28 Jun 2017 8:35 pm

Congrats on the feature, great read!

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 29 Jun 2017 7:35 am

David Mason · Post by **David Mason** » 29 Jun 2017 9:02 pm

Well dag nab. Is the wall breaking? I caught a heavy, kinda deep knocking from Sonny Landreth's "Elemental Journey" in 2012 - although the "songs" were named, it was in every way a related suite tied together by Landreth's strong melody writing (As Duane A. was why I play steel I don't make that split - and "Elemental Journey" was a high-charting blues album without a single blues song on it!) Scandinavian-PSG monster Bjorn Charles Dreyer in Einvind Aarset's "Sonic Codex Orchestra", both Debashish Bhattacharya and Anoushka Shanker made their own "flamenco-shaded" albums, again working in longer forms, more than a whiff of that tooter Miles Davis... Greg Lietz, head to head with Bill Frisell... Then Mike Neer... dang, maybe I better not die for a while, it's a-starting to look like a breaking dawn!

(Yes I know, steel guitar is dying. Go listen to all those albums, peeps play pretty well for a bunch of corpses!)

Edit: The more I listen to Steelism, the more it sounds like those songs coulda come out of the Vanduras.... well, dag nabbit som mo', I just ordered 'em both, if it takes two Englishmen to make the next Vanduras records, that's what it takes! All the best new American country comes from Canada and Australia anyways....

Jonathan Shacklock · Post by **Jonathan Shacklock** » 30 Jun 2017 7:04 am

I know Spencer only made the forum comment in jest, but from what I can see, this idea that steel players are ultra conservative and hate seeing the instrument in genres other than country... is just not true.

There might be the occasional opposite example (I can't find one) but witness the overwhelming forum support for Susan Alcorn's recent prize win, not a single suggestion of dissent. Maybe 10 years ago you would have seen some grumbling but I can't think of any "if it ain't country..." comments in recent times. I don't think it's my imagination, things have moved on from that attitude - if it ever really existed to the extent we think it might have.

Any time a more experimental or 'out there' steel player is mentioned here (Susan, BJ Cole, Sneaky Pete, Rusty Young, Greg Leisz, Russ Pahl, Robert Randolph) there is WAY more support than criticism. Jazz or classical players are revered. (I mean maybe we should be worried, it's so hard to shock these days!)

Anything left field is never going to be as popular as the mainstream, so naturally most steel players listen to and emulate country, often to the exclusion of anything else.

But the idea that you are heavily criticised or ostracised for pushing the boat out and doing something different with the instrument doesn't hold water. As far as this forum is concerned anyway. Perhaps in person steel players are rude into the faces of experimentalists but I doubt it. I think it's time we buried this old canard. It's as redundant as the attitude that traditionalists are necessarily boring or somehow holding the instrument back.

Sorry Spencer, not getting at you

I just think for a small church, and particularly given it's roots, the steel guitar community is remarkably broad and open minded.

Richard Sinkler · Post by **Richard Sinkler** » 30 Jun 2017 8:04 am

Very, Very nice Spencer. Great job. Where can we get the CD?

David Mason · Post by **David Mason** » 1 Jul 2017 4:02 am

I guess we have a few young'uns who may be unaware of the ever-expanding "Different Styles" thread?

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... sc&start=0

15 pages so far, music for the loony bin! Rip through THAT whole thing, wow. THESE guys ALWAYS get me:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMctH0gAA4g

Jonathan Lam · Post by **Jonathan Lam** » 1 Jul 2017 6:23 am

Yeah, but is the steel guitar dying?
Are there any young steel guitar players?
Is country music dying?
IS STEEL GUITAR DYING??????

Jonathan Lam · Post by **Jonathan Lam** » 1 Jul 2017 6:24 am

Also, Best thread title ever.

Craig Stock · Post by **Craig Stock** » 1 Jul 2017 4:42 pm

Yeah, Thank God people like you are keeping
it alive, love your playing in Zephaniahs new cd, keep it up!

Paul Stauskas · Post by **Paul Stauskas** » 1 Jul 2017 8:56 pm

Craig Stock wrote:Yeah, Thank God people like you are keeping
it alive, love your playing in Zephaniahs new cd, keep it up!

Loving that record!

Brian Gattis · Post by **Brian Gattis** » 2 Jul 2017 8:31 am

Jon Graboff is the steel player on Zepheniah's record!

Craig Stock · Post by **Craig Stock** » 2 Jul 2017 9:22 am

Thanks Brian, Jon is a great guy, I know that Jonny plays live with him (Zephaniah) and Jim Campilongo.

Hope Jonny jumps in and gives us some info.

There is a great article about Zepheniah in SavingCountrymusic.com

http://www.savingcountrymusic.com/zepha ... y-mastery/

Jerry Erickson · Post by **Jerry Erickson** » 4 Jul 2017 6:37 pm

Thanks for starting this thread, b0b! My wife and I have been enjoying some new tunes!

Charlie McDonald · Post by **Charlie McDonald** » 5 Jul 2017 5:05 am

Steelism! Yeah! Midnight Fetz / James Bond Theme

I especially like "Cuban Missile" and "The Landlocked Surfer", live in the 'studio.'
Music for the cold war. It's no laughing matter.
Should this man be kicked off the forum? He's got a talk box!

Jonathan Lam · Post by **Jonathan Lam** » 5 Jul 2017 5:27 pm

Are you trying to get me to gossip about Zeph?
I won't do that. But I will gossip about Spencer.
He told me once he wishes he could sneak into some of your houses and put a skunk in your steel case. "That'll teach those close minded wiggly doodlers!!"
Maybe Spencer is the conservative one, being as his country just voted out of the EU based mostly on irrational fear and xenophobia!!! P
I'm just saying! Probably should erase that.
He didn't really call you wiggly doodlers.

Mike Neer · Post by **Mike Neer** » 5 Jul 2017 6:43 pm

So, you're not denying the 'skunk in your steel case' bit? Mine already smells like skunk, but that's for another reason.