A very special Emmons push-pull, picking for optimum tone

Hi guys and gals,

This is the first time I have ever offered a special guitar of this quality, rarity, caliber and heritage first to my mailing list members. If no one on the mailing list buys this guitar in 3 weeks, the price will be raised and I will put it on my website for the general population.

Here is the item: 1969 Emmons Double-neck black 8 and 4, Serial Number 1269D… of which only 53 were built. Fourteen years ago this guitar was on my floor with 6 or 7 other Emmons push-pulls when J.D.Maness of Dukes of Hazzard fame and Danny Mohammed who had just joined the Ray Price band, came in my store looking for the best Emmons PP they could find.

After comparing and analyzing my stock for several hours, they settled on this particular guitar. Danny proceded to buy the guitar and worked as Ray Price’s main steel guitarist for 14 years. He just reluctently traded this in to me for a new Emmons LeGrande. This guitar has been totally accurized in fretboard placement, roller and mechanism return and maintained by myself and Mike Cass over the past 14 years. This is truly the Emmons guitar of Emmons guitars. My original plan was to totally disassemble the guitar, have all the aluminum professionally buffed and cleaned and possibly re-mica the guitar and just generally do a total refurbishment. But after looking at the guitar and having seen Danny play this many times with Ray on the many package shows we worked together over the past 14 years, it seems to me that the heritage and value of this guitar would be worth more in the original state that it is in which is still very nice. It has typical little nicks and dings and fingerprints from over the years but absolutely no damage other than slight cosmetic. As a working steel guitar, it has no equal. This guitar is very well known by thousands of players and has been seen by the hundreds of thousands of fans who have come to see the great Ray Price in concert. I will offer to my mailing list customers for the retail price of the guitar that was traded to Danny for it which is $3375. If this guitar is not picked up by one of you, it will go on the website at a much higher price which will be much closer to it’s true value as a great, playable, collector item.

A great trick that I may have mentioned a couple of years ago about obtaining good tone from your steel guitar is to pick the string always exactly half way between the bar and the bridge. This technique works very well for beautiful slow and medium tempo songs and is the way to get the optimum tone that your guitar can possibly deliver. Now when it comes to playing fast, this technique is not good because you cannot keep your right hand in the middle between the bar and the bridge because of having to move the bar a lot faster. Also, the closer you pick to the bridge when you’re picking fast, the less elastic the strings feel to your picks and the more accurate your picking will be. You also have the added advantage of the strings being slightly further apart in the bridge or changer area. You can see where you pick is important as it relates to the tempo of the song. This is a tip also works very well on any stringed instrument … guitar, mandolin etc. Play fast, pick near the bridge … play full and sweet, pick closer to the center of the neck. Try it, you’ll like it.

Since I haven’t had a sale in a pretty good while, I am going to have a very private sale to my mailing list folks only on an item that we usually can’t even get enough of. This is going to be a way of saying thank you for being on my mailing list.

Many of you have asked me recently about buying an inexpensive lapsteel to use for practice and to take on trips where you don’t have room for a pedal guitar and possibly on your professional job to play as a rock n roll screamer or whatever … so I just bought several Morrell six string lapsteels brand new from the manufacturor. These retail for $299. and I usually sell them for $199. Now, because you need them and I owe you thanks for being here, I’ll sell them to you for $129.99 plus shipping and insurance. This I will only be able to do one time as there is no profit in this deal for me at all … so here’s your chance. My non-pedal videos are the perfect companion for this deal. (Shhhh! See how sneaky I am by trying to make my profit by selling videos!)

Your buddy

Bobbe

www.steelguitar.net

sales@steelguitar.net

www.bobbeseymour.com

P.S. I also have a couple of these in 8 string for $229 … regularly $399. Chrome telescopic legs can be added to any of these guitars for a nominal fee.

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Changing opinions, keeping an open mind

Hi guys and gals,

How many people do you know that once they form an opinion of someone or something, good or bad, they keep that opinion even if all the facts prove that opinion wrong? You’ve even heard people say, once my minds made up, that’s it, nothing can change it. To me that’s like saying my mind is closed, I’m not ever gonna think again.

I have been in business well over 20 years and have seen steel guitar companies and great players come and go. I’ve seen youthful players come in here and play who I never thought had a chance, only to see them prosper greatly over a period of time. I have also seen new companies come out with products that I personally didn’t like at all and let the world know it in the interest of being a good consumer advocate for my fellow players. Many of these companies have gotten their acts together and improved the product to the point where I have changed my mind about it’s worth to the steel guitar community. Just like the players that couldn’t play in the beginning that turned out to be great players, some companies who built questionable products in the beginning are doing a wonderful job today … so I reserve the right to change my opinion as new facts come to light.

Unfortunately, the opposite is also true. Some companies that were doing a good job 15 years ago, are resting on their laurels today. This could be because of newer employees that just don’t care or company presidents that now have other priorities. These companies go from my good list to my bad list. There are some brands of guitars that I was very hot on 10 to 15 years ago that today are mere shadows of their former selves … and I also know of 2 companies that were pretty poor in the beginning that have worked hard to raise the quality and sound of their products. Again, it would be very unfair of me not to change my mind and opinions of these companies as they change their quality and performance.

I see, play, buy and sell more steel guitars per month than anyone else on the planet. Being a professional, under pressure steel guitarist in Nashville for many years, I am extremely attuned to quality. I do not buy, sell or handle in any way, any product that I personally don’t believe in and wouldn’t use myself. There are many steel guitars being made today that I could make a lot of money on, but my reputation and integrity is not for sale. I will not endorse anything that I won’t use myself and once again, I reserve the right to change my mind and opinions as the facts change.

Always keep an open mind, you may be surprised at what you can learn.

Your buddy,

Bobbe

www.steelguitar.net

sales@steelguitar.net

www.bobbeseymour.com

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Counting our blessings on this day of remembrance

Hi guys and gals,

Here we stand on the second anniversary of the twin tower tradgedy. As we remember those who perished in New York, Washington DC and Pennsylvania, I think how lucky I am that my life revolves around the love I have for steel guitar instead of the destructive world of terrorism. I can’t help but think how much better off the world would be and how much happier we all would be if these venemous monsters of hate would have concentrated on creating the beautiful sounds of music on a steel guitar.

I heard a pilot say at the airport the other day … mankind has wanted to be able to fly from one place to the other ever since the beginning of mankind. Only in the past hundred years have we been able to do so. So why don’t we all do it? Only in the past fifty years has man been able to make incredible steel guitar music. Kind of makes me wonder why more of us don’t do it. To me, the pedal steel guitar and being able to play it, is a true blessing and I am very thankful for the intelligence to be able to understand and appreciate it’s beauty. Obviously, so are you. On this anniversary of despair and devastation, I have to look around and realize how lucky I am to be a steel guitarist and enjoy the fruits it has to offer. I know all of you must feel the same way about your craft and hobby.

Don’t hold yourself back. Enjoy steel guitar to it’s fullest and don’t forget those who perished two years ago today.

Your buddy,

Bobbe

www.steelguitar.net

sales@steelguitar.net

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