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Post new topic Sonny Burnette and his Bigsby
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Author Topic:  Sonny Burnette and his Bigsby
Bob Jennings

 

From:
Indiana, USA
Post  Posted 25 Dec 2019 7:53 am    
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I saw Webb Pierce in the mid 1950's in the Minneapolis, MN area--As I remember, Sonny Burnette was the only musician with Webb--local musicians did back up for Webb. The thing I remember is that Sonny retuned his Bigsby while Webb told that Sonny was experimenting with some new sounds; then he sang Slowly and More and More and Sonny did the rest. I've read on the Forum that this Bigsby was made for Johnny Sibert and Webb bought it for Sonny to get the Bud Issacs sound; one place I read said it had no pedals and another place said that it had pedals--does anyone know the true story about this Bigsby and what was Sonny tuning to.

I'm just wondering since the early History of the pedal steel is fascinating.

Bob Jennings
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richard burton


From:
Britain
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 10:40 am    
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deleted (meaningless due to change of context) Shocked

Last edited by richard burton on 31 Dec 2019 8:37 am; edited 1 time in total
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Erv Niehaus


From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 11:11 am    
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I'm sure it must have had pedals.
That was the sound that made Webb popular, it sure wasn't his voice. Very Happy
Erv
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John Herb

 

From:
West Virginia, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 11:37 am    
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The Bigsby did indeed have pedals. The Bigsby was later modified by Shot Jackson and sold to Lloyd Green.
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Ian Rae


From:
Redditch, England
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 11:52 am    
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Erv Niehaus wrote:
it sure wasn't his voice
Often thought it, feel better now Erv's said it Smile
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Erv Niehaus


From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 2:03 pm    
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Ian,
Thanks for reinforcing my opinion.Very Happy
Erv
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Bob Jennings

 

From:
Indiana, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 3:20 pm     Sonny Burnsette and his Bigspy
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Gentlemen:

Thank you for the info.

Bob J.
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Richard Ingley

 

From:
Bowie, Texas, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 8:47 pm    
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I remember listening to the Louisiana Hayride as a kid and Webb would be on there every now and then and he almost always had a problem staying on tune.
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Bill Fisher

 

From:
Oklahoma, USA
Post  Posted 26 Dec 2019 10:08 pm    
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I disagree, Erv. That's Hillbilly Music at it's BEST.

Bill
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John Herb

 

From:
West Virginia, USA
Post  Posted 27 Dec 2019 5:10 am    
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Webb obviously wasn't the best singer of his time, but I dont think he was a terrible singer either. I mean he would've had to have been the biggest country singer of the 50s for a reason other than steel guitar.
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Ian Rae


From:
Redditch, England
Post  Posted 27 Dec 2019 7:15 am    
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Of course there's more to being a singer than just the singing.
He may well have had appeal over and above what we hear now just from the records.
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Erv Niehaus


From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
Post  Posted 27 Dec 2019 8:52 am    
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Just because you're popular doesn't make you a good singer. Rolling Eyes
Erv
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Bill Lowe


From:
Connecticut
Post  Posted 15 Oct 2020 9:34 pm    
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https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=OvgYzjAtn6I
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Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 16 Oct 2020 7:17 am     Not everyone is a steel player!
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Erv Niehaus wrote:
I'm sure it must have had pedals.
That was the sound that made Webb popular, it sure wasn't his voice. Very Happy
Erv


Erv, how 'bout a little respect. Webb had thirteen #1 records, another fifty in the Top 20, and a career that spanned over 30 years. Cool
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Erv Niehaus


From:
Litchfield, MN, USA
Post  Posted 16 Oct 2020 7:28 am    
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I don't care for Bob Dylan, either.
See how you want to handle that. Whoa!
Erv
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Ben Elder

 

From:
La Crescenta, California, USA
Post  Posted 17 Oct 2020 9:14 pm    
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What Bill F. said. Italics, boldfaced, underlined, 48-pt. and excessive exclamation marks.
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Bill Fisher

 

From:
Oklahoma, USA
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2020 1:59 am    
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Thanks, Ben. The great Hillbilly voices that brought the steel guitar to its peak, yet many don't appreciate them. Hard to understand. Same with the 5 string banjo. The great Bill Monroe, and Flatt & Scruggs. The best Bluegrass, ever. Yet, the 5-string gets bad-mouthed here, too. And the Dobro. There is just one (1) great Dobro player, and that is Uncle Josh Graves. Many rave about a current player, but he isn't even close to Josh in Bluegrass quality. Wouldn't consider the current a Bluegrass player.

Don't you love opinions?

Bill
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Donny Hinson

 

From:
Glen Burnie, Md. U.S.A.
Post  Posted 18 Oct 2020 11:57 am    
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Yes, Sonny Burnette!

The player that (according to Buddy Emmons) first split the A&B pedals.

Mr. Green

Erv Niehaus wrote:

I don't care for Bob Dylan, either.
See how you want to handle that. Whoa!
Erv


I handle it just fine, Erv. Kinda "apples and oranges", though. You see...Bob Dylan never had a #1 record. Laughing
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