Sneaky Pete at Blissfest

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 9 Jul 2005 3:10 pm

I drove up to the northern end of the lower peninsula in Michigan to see Sneaky Pete and "Burrito Deluxe" yesterday. This was my first chance seeing him live and I'm glad I didn't miss it. What a great player and nice man. It was great to talk with him for a few minutes and shake his hand. Get the "Burrito Deluxe" CD, you will not be disappointed.

Russ

[This message was edited by Russ Tkac on 09 July 2005 at 04:13 PM.]

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 10 Jul 2005 9:52 am

I've never seen him. I wish he'd start playing steel shows. He was a major influence on a lot of us. Maybe he'd play Arizona next January, if asked. It's not that far from home for him...

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<img align=right src="http://b0b.com/Hotb0b.gif" width="96 height="96">Bobby Lee (a.k.a. b0b) - email: quasar@b0b.com - gigs - CDs, Open Hearts
Williams D-12 E9, C6add9, Sierra Olympic S-12 (F Diatonic)
Sierra Laptop S-8 (E6add9), Fender Stringmaster D-8 (E13, C6 or A6)

Rich Weiss · Post by **Rich Weiss** » 10 Jul 2005 12:09 pm

Wow. He's still got that big bar. I remember watching him in '69, and being transfixed by the size of the bar and that sound, those notes...

Brendan Mitchell · Post by **Brendan Mitchell** » 10 Jul 2005 1:14 pm

Is that an amp or road case he's sitting on ?
Brendan

Dave Zirbel · Post by **Dave Zirbel** » 10 Jul 2005 1:23 pm

That's his road case. I saw him this year too. I think he's been using his case as a seat for years, according to some oldpictures I saw somewhere.

DZ

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 10 Jul 2005 5:00 pm

He played through a Fender Twin with two twelve’s. I guess he figures why bring a seat when the case does the job! The thing about him is he just likes playing in a band. Playin' country rock at 70! That has got to make you smile!

Dave Zirbel · Post by **Dave Zirbel** » 10 Jul 2005 5:58 pm

When I saw him he was playing through a PV Bandit! Still sounded liked Sneaky!

Herman Visser · Post by **Herman Visser** » 10 Jul 2005 6:05 pm

Saw him at the same show that Dave saw him. If you ever get a chance to see Pete play GO for it.It was truly great.Dave was on cloud nine that night.

Bobby Lee · Post by **Bobby Lee** » 10 Jul 2005 6:11 pm

Playin' country rock at 70! That has got to make you smile!

Why not? He was one of the inventors of country rock. Rock on, Sneaky Pete!

Dave Zirbel · Post by **Dave Zirbel** » 10 Jul 2005 7:26 pm

He lives in the Bay Area. We should try to get him to show at Bill L's next jam in San Jose. Wouldn't that be something!

DZ

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 11 Jul 2005 12:41 pm

Did they do "Dark End Of The Street"? "Devil In Disguise"? "Wheels"? "My Uncle"? "Do You Know How It Feels"?

Just curious. Is the show sort of 1/2 "oldies" and 1/2 "newies"?

David Mason · Post by **David Mason** » 11 Jul 2005 3:05 pm

What exactly is that bar? Does anybody know, or can they ask him?

Michael Johnstone · Post by **Michael Johnstone** » 11 Jul 2005 6:16 pm

If they're the same ones he's had for years,he once told me he had them custom made by some aerospace machinist here in L.A. They're made of Monel and are very hard and tough. As I recall they're at least 1" in diameter and maybe more - and about the length of a 10 string bar. Pete's one of a kind. I'm glad he's playing steady again. -MJ-

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 11 Jul 2005 6:38 pm

Yes, about half old and half new songs. Garth Hudson was not with them but they had a keyboard player that was fantastic. Carlton Moody is a great singer and pulls it all together. I was really impressed with Rick Lonow. He is a great drummer and singer. "Stick" Davis had a solid bass backing it all. I still want to grow up to be Sneaky Pete!

Kurt Graber · Post by **Kurt Graber** » 11 Jul 2005 8:35 pm

This forum is great!! I always wondered what happened to Sneaky Pete and if he is still playing. Thanks for posting the pictures as well.

Dave Zirbel · Post by **Dave Zirbel** » 11 Jul 2005 9:19 pm

Have any of you SP fans heard his cd called "The Legend & the Legacy" (or something like that)? I love it. If it was on vinyl I would have worn out my copy long ago! The disc has some stuff that was recorded in the 90's I believe, and features Forum memeber Ernest Bovine on keyboards. The second half of the disc features some stuff from the mid to late 70's. I love his unique approach and the Fender sound. (Just got my second Fender PSG today!)

DZ

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 12 Jul 2005 4:01 am

I feel just a bit "Sneaky" sitting behind mine!

Dave, "The Ledgend and the Legacy" is in my car and I burn it out daily.

Russ

[This message was edited by Russ Tkac on 12 July 2005 at 05:05 AM.]

Mark Lind-Hanson · Post by **Mark Lind-Hanson** » 12 Jul 2005 12:56 pm

I saw Burrito Deluxe (with Garth)here in SF about four months ago. Yes they did "Wheels" yes they did "the Weight" Yes they did "Devil in Disguise" NO they didn;t play either Dark End of the Street or My Uncle.
I want to know what the heck that bar is TOO. I have the feeling it is something machine-jobbed special for Pete someplace along the way. That he uses it to cover the Entire neck and manages not to toss in any clam-notes is probably as much a testament to all his skill as anything else. The combination of Garth & Sneaky was intersting, but they didn't do an awful lot of trading- in fact much of the night, he had a problem with his A pedal falling off and spent a good deal of his first set & break just geting it set up right. But hey- it isn't every day you get to hear someone you respect (or get to watch him play pool before the gig...) Yes he does live here in SF but no I could not tell you where (even if I knew, I wouldn't)
Carlton Moody is pretty decent- I have heard dozens of people ike him over the years though and it was hard for me to think of him as "special"- but he did play well and knew when to step back and let the others go.
I'm glad I had the chance to hear him (finally) too- trust a board like this one to keep an eye & ear open for him!

Chip Fossa · Post by **Chip Fossa** » 12 Jul 2005 3:49 pm

Great! I hope they make it out to the east coast sometime. I'll certainly be there. I never get tired of those Burrito songs.

Skip Edwards · Post by **Skip Edwards** » 12 Jul 2005 9:52 pm

It really warms my heart to know that Pete is still out there tearing it up.

He's one of my all-time heroes. As they say, "No hay dos".

Nice Fender, Russ....but you need to sit on your road case to really get that Sneaky vibe....

Matt Martin · Post by **Matt Martin** » 13 Jul 2005 3:13 am

This is the man responsable for getting me HOOKED on psg! What a player!! Still get shivers when I hear the old Linda Ronstat
albums with him picking his heart out on them!

Russ Tkac · Post by **Russ Tkac** » 13 Jul 2005 3:16 am

Skip,

If I had a road case for the Fender...I'd sit on it! I don't believe it would help me though. Years ago I use to carry my pedals and cords in a small suitcase and would sit on it to play steel. It worked pretty well.

Russ

David Mason · Post by **David Mason** » 13 Jul 2005 3:25 am

That bar has got to be hollow, right? I looked up "monel" and it doesn't appear to be lighter than other metals. Also, bar diameter really isn't the issue in playing in tune, using your ears to play in tune is the issue. If you know you're in tune because you're looking at where the bar is, you're probably not in tune. Go tell a classical violinist, or violist, or cellist, or bassist that they're not in tune because they don't have frets. Make sure you pick a really bad one, because a good one will laugh you out of the room.

Chris LeDrew · Post by **Chris LeDrew** » 13 Jul 2005 10:58 pm

I did a gig last week where I didn't bring my stool and had to sit on the amp case.....my back and backside were numb by the set was through. Maybe my back is just weak, but I found it truly unbearable.

David Phillips · Post by **David Phillips** » 17 Jul 2005 11:45 pm

In the early 1990s I got to play two gigs with Sneaky Pete, swapping licks and solos all night long. I was extremely nervous yet determined and Sneaky was generous, fun and he pushed me to play above my head.
He had his leather coated Fender 400 with lots of effect boxes playing through two Session 400's and he did sit on his case.
He said he drove up from southern California in about 4 hours to do the gigs which is pretty much flying.
He was my first steel guitar influence and Bobby Black was the next. I feel fortunate & lucky to have gotten to play with both of these musical giants as well as fine gentlemen.
David Phillips[This message was edited by David Phillips on 18 July 2005 at 12:49 AM.]