Pedal Steel Music

This is Bob Hempker.

Back in the mid eighties, I was at Woodland Studios in Nashville with Loretta. It was one of the big name studios at the time. We were doing a commercial for United Way. They had picked this song out for her to do. I can’t remember what it was other than it was an old pop song and they had sent a producer down from New York to produce it.

We started just playing around with the song a little bit to get the feel of it. I didn’t hear anyone else filling, so I started filling. I didn’t think what I was playing sounded anything country-ish. Anyway, the producer came out of the control room, walked over to me and told me not to play because I was making the song sound too country.

I agreed. I knew I was going to get paid anyway. Loretta was unaware of this and they started playing the song again. They got through about 16 bars when Loretta stopped. She asked, “What happened to the steel guitar that I heard in there before?”

This producer said, “I told him not to play. I didn’t want it sounding too country.”

Loretta replied, “Too country? Who in the world do you think you have in here, Vic Damone?”

She looked at and me and said, “Play what you were playing before. I really liked that.”

I said, “Ok. I’ll play what I played before.” I looked over at this producer and just grinned. We ended up getting the song cut and it got some radio play and some television play.

This producer had an opinion of what he thought a steel guitar was going to sound like and I guess he refused to use his ears and stuck to his opinion. He treated all of us including Loretta condescendingly. To his chagrin the steel guitar got put on the recording. I’ve not heard of the man since and I bet he’s not set foot in Nashville since.

This is just an example of what to expect being a steel player and getting the least bit out of our realm of country music. I’m sure each and every one of you have stories similar to this. Steel guitar players have been subjected to shoddy treatment from so many people that have no idea of what the instrument is capable of doing when in the right hands. I guess it’s too much to expect everyone to have an open mind.

In spite of this, we should all keep on playing and expanding what we do to all genres of music. Thicken up your skin, show them what you’ve got and maybe you’ll change some minds. And if you can’t change their minds, at least you can enjoy irritating them.

This weekend we turned our clocks back. The days will be shorter and the nights will be longer and colder. It’s a good time of year to woodshed and pump up your steel guitar playing skills for the coming springtime. It’s the time of year when we have time to practice and study our scales, work on our ear training, practice with our tracks and not be in any hurry. It’s a great time to learn how to play new and different things.

It’s surprising sometimes when we look back and think we’ve not accomplished much when in fact we have accomplished a great deal.

It’s also a good time to really go over all our equipment, fix our cords, change scratchy pots in our amplifier, go over our guitars and adjust everything out underneath them. We have maintenance DVDs to show you how.

Make the most out of your practice time. Don’t view practicing as drilling exercises. Be in a positive mood when you sit down. Sometimes I like to just sit down and start playing and see where it takes me. I don’t have to have a regimen in mind. I will start playing my way through songs that I’ve heard but I’ve never played before just to give myself practice at playing “off the cuff”.

When you’re away from your guitar, practice humming your scales and see if you can make little melodies out of them, then when you get to your guitar, see if you can play what you can hum. Above all, keep things positive and don’t get to where you dread practicing on your guitar. That’s not why we play to begin with. We play because it’s enjoyable and fun.

It’s great to critique ourselves, but we still have to be patient with ourselves and consider our playing as an unfinished product. We never stop learning and that’s actually part of the fun of it. Wherever we are at the time is just a stage in our development. We never need to get bored because there is always something new you can learn.

So check out all the courses and tracks and things that we have to help you learn to be a better player. I firmly believe that we as players, are the best accessory that we can invest in.

Check out our monthly specials at www.steelguitar.net/monthlyspecials.html
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www.youtube.com/bobbeseymour

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Steel Guitar Nashville
123 Mid Town Court
Hendersonville, TN. 37075
(615) 822-5555
Open 9AM – 4PM Monday – Friday
Closed Saturday and Sunday

November 1, 2012

This is Bob Hempker with today’s newsletter.

Working here in the store, I get to play more steel guitars in a month than many of you get to play in a lifetime. Six, eight, ten string, all pull, push pull, non-pedal, Sho-Bud, Emmons, GFI, Carter, Mullen, Zumsteel and on and on. When you get to play as many diverse steel guitars as I do, you get a much better idea of how really different and unique the different steel guitars are.

For instance, there are many different models of Sho-Bud. Every time you turned around they came out with a new model. If can make a comparison, Corvettes are Chevys and Silverados are Chevys, but they’re not the same ride. They’re completely different vehicles. The same goes for Sho-Buds. Sitting down behind a Super Pro, a Baldwin Cross-over or an old permanent setup, they are totally different guitars in spite of all being Sho-Buds.

This diversity can make finding the best guitar for yourself a bit of a challenge. Sometimes it can be a trade-off. You may sacrifice some tone to play a guitar that is easy to work on and plays easy. On the other hand, you may find the better tone worth the drawbacks of playing a guitar you may have difficulty finding parts for or that’s difficult to work on or may not have real smooth pedal action.

We have to be real honest with ourselves first of all. What is of the most paramount importance to us personally. We have to really come to terms with ourselves sometimes and blot out what anyone else says about a certain instrument. Deep inside we all know what we really want, we just have to search for it. Figuring out what you’re willing to compromise on and what you’re not is a good starting place in your search for a steel guitar.

I remember when I was a kid, I didn’t have a lot of money and I bought a guitar that I wasn’t really happy with but that I could afford. It was workable is about all I can say. I learned an important lesson from that. Buy the guitar you want to live with, not for the price on the price tag. Be choosy because you’ve got to live with the guitar long after you’ve paid for it. The same thing applies to amplifiers and any other piece of equipment.

Buy it for what it does, not what it costs. Every dollar you save on the purchase will probably buy you ten dollars worth of frustration on the backside. I’m not saying this to get you to buy high dollar equipment, I’m saying this to get you to buy the right equipment and the right equipment is the equipment that gets the job done the way it needs to be done. You don’t want the frustration of trying to hammer a nail in with a screwdriver just because the screwdriver was cheaper than the hammer.

Getting back to the original subject of the difference between guitars, not only are the different models within the same brand name different, but the instruments vary from guitar to guitar even in the same model. Not all push pulls are created equal and not all LeGrandes are created equal. There are so many variables from one guitar to the next, one may sustain a little better than the next. Another guitar may have a brighter, or a darker tone. Another guitar may just have that great feel that makes you feel you’re really in control of the instrument.

Other variable such as different pickups, different types of strings, cables, even picks. Also, the sounds that comes out of your amplifier is part of your instrument. Certain guitars match up better with certain amplifiers. Nowadays, we have different sorts of effects and volume pedals that also play a role in the mix.

I wanted you to be aware of all these variables when you go shopping for any steel guitar or accessory so that you can make the best choices for yourself. Figure out what your bottom line is, what you’re really after and then go for it.

We have lots of friends in the area who come by just to visit and play guitars that are on the floor. They’re usually not looking to buy a new guitar because they’ve already got a spare bedroom full of them. Every so often they all seem to gravitate to one particular guitar. This guitar is so good that I’m surprised that it’s still here.

I won’t hold you in suspense any longer or make you try to guess which one it is. I’m going to tell you. It’s the brown Sho-Bud Pro III, 8/4, triple raise, double lower all pull guitar. This is just a sweetheart of a guitar. Anybody in the market would do well to scarf this one up. It plays smooth and easy, the tone is creamy and it’s been really well cared for. It’s like finding a ’55 Chevy convertible in pristine condition sitting on your local Chevy dealer’s car lot. If you love classics, this is one of them.

Finding ideas for these newsletters is not always an easy job. Quite often they are inspired by someone coming into the store and asking a question, or calling on the phone or emailing their problems. So if you’ve got anything on your mind that you’d like to know more about, please hollar at us. We love to hear from you and it makes our job easier at the same time.

Check out our monthly specials at www.steelguitar.net/monthlyspecials.html

www.steelguitar.net
sales@steelguitar.net
www.youtube.com/bobbeseymour

Listen To Steel Guitar Music Streaming 24 Hours A Day!

Steel Guitar Nashville
123 Mid Town Court
Hendersonville, TN. 37075
(615) 822-5555
Open 9AM – 4PM Monday – Friday
Closed Saturday and Sunday

October 29, 2012

Bob Hempker here. Here’s part of an email Bobbe got from Tommy White last week that he wanted to share on the newsletter.

Hi Bobbe,

Hope you’re doing well my dear ol’ friend. I’ve had a very busy year playing the Grand ole Opry, touring with Vince Gill, TV and a few records. Just finished Willie Nelson’s new record and was fortunate to play on Jamey Johnsons latest record which was released today, and it’s country, featuring me on every cut. Jamey’s record is a tribute to the great Hank Cochran. Really all great songs with tons of pedal steel guitar!

I’m writing to say thank you for your youtube video on how and why to use the Boss RV-5 reverb pedal. The video was so helpful to me. I’ve had the Boss RV-5 purchased from you years ago and now I’m finally getting to use it! That’s all I got for now.

Again, thank you!

Always my best,
Tommy White

Bobbe wanted to publicly thank Tommy for the plug and Bobbe honestly has the utmost respect for Tommy and treasures their friendship. Of course, Bobbe is not alone in his respect for Tommy. Tommy is one of the most respected, admired and loved steel players in all of the world of steel guitar.

I can’t remember the first time I ever met Tommy. I know he was a kid, maybe fifteen or sixteen years old and his playing and talent got the attention of all the musicians who heard him.

When I worked the road for Roy Clark and Loretta Lynn and we would play the Grand Ole Opry, Tommy was so nice and hospitable to the players of the guest artists doing the Opry. I never got a chance to thank you Tommy but sincerely want to thank you for being so gracious and helpful.

I have just about worn my copy of Tommy’s CD “By Request” out. He should stand as an inspiration to every steel player. If you’re not paying attention to Tommy White, you need to.

I’ve been asked what the most exciting event in my career was and I can say that being part of the movie “Coal Miner’s Daughter” if it’s not the biggest highlight, it’s real close. Sissy Spacek went out on the road with us several times and performed on stage with Loretta. She went on the Opry with us too. She was just a sweetheart to be around.

The entire cast was just super top notch people and were great to all of us and I’m not using great as a cliché but using it in the truest sense of its meaning. We had a wonderful rapport with Tommy Lee Jones and Levon Helm who played Loretta’s dad. Unfortunately we lost Levon a short few months ago. He was a heck of a talent.

It was interesting to watch Tommy Lee Jones getting a handle on playing the part of Loretta’s husband Mooney. He didn’t look a lot like Mooney, but he stood back and watched Mooney and learned to copy the way he walked, talked and most of his mannerisms. Tommy Lee did such a good job that you can get a sense of what Mooney was like by watching the movie.

Beverly D’Angelo did an extraordinary job playing Patsy Cline and she proved to be a classy lady through and through.

The closest place they could find that looked like Butcher Holler was Wise, Virginia. They had to use an alternate location because they couldn’t get the filming equipment up the mountain.

In case any of you were wondering, Loretta’s road band performed the sound track for the movie. None of us knew how big the movie would be. It won Best Picture and Sissy won Best Actress at the Oscars that year. Not to sound like a cliché but it was more than a thrill to be a part of this.

We went to four or five different sites to record different parts of the movie.

Another highlight of my career was the honor of getting to play in Washington, D.C. for Presidents Nixon, Carter and George H. W. Bush. We did just about every big network television show that was going back at that time. Doing the Tonight Show with Johnny Carson several times really sticks out in my mind. Johnny Carson still is the real host of the Tonight Show as far as I’m concerned.

Being a steel guitar player on the road with a name artist is not boring. Looking back I feel I spent the best years of my life back then. In the future I will try and share some of my memories and experiences with you.

I can look at the young steel guitar players who are on the road today with name artists and have an idea of what they’re experiencing. Being a professional steel guitar player has been a wonderful and rewarding life. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Check out our monthly specials at www.steelguitar.net/monthlyspecials.html
www.steelguitar.net
sales@steelguitar.net
www.youtube.com/bobbeseymour

Listen To Steel Guitar Music Streaming 24 Hours A Day!

Steel Guitar Nashville
123 Mid Town Court
Hendersonville, TN. 37075
(615) 822-5555
Open 9AM – 4PM Monday – Friday
Closed Saturday and Sunday