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So, who ARE Don Sharp and Roger Filberto??
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The Steel Guitar Forum
Bar Chatter Archive
So, who ARE Don Sharp and Roger Filberto??
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This topic was originally posted in this forum: Wanted To Buy |
| Author | Topic: So, who ARE Don Sharp and Roger Filberto?? |
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Jim Cohen Member Posts: 8715 |
posted 25 January 2000 07:32 PM
We've all seen the Mel Bay steel guitar instruction books written by these guys, but who are they anyway? Does anybody know? |
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Keith Hilton Member Posts: 1649 |
posted 25 January 2000 09:01 PM
I know one of them very,very good. I've played in bands with Don Sharp many times. He is a 6 string guitar player. Don Sharp was a Junior High School teacher in Springfield, Missouri. He was a six string standard guitar player, and earned extra money teaching standard 6 string guitar at Hoover Music in Springfield, Missouri. In the early 1970s a steel player named Jerry Garret died. He was a good player and owned a black Emmons. Don Sharp bought that guitar. He had never--EVER--played steel. He didn't know a thing about the Nashville E9th or C6th tuning. Jerry Garret had the guitar set up stock E9th and C6th. Don changed everything around to "Strange" tunings, and wierd pedal and knee lever changes. What it boiled down to is the fact that Don didn't know a thing about pedal steel guitar---bless his heart. Don was a six string standard guitar player, and he was trying to set the steel up like it was a regular 6 string guitar. While--ATTEMPTING TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY STEEL---he wrote a steel guitar book for Mel Bay Publishing. At the time Mel Bay Publishing didn't know any more about steel guitar than Don Sharp did. Don Sharp played 6 string guitar in a band that had one heck of a steel player. His name was Arnie Arnold. Arnie finally got Don Sharp straightened out, and they put the standard E9th and C6th tuning back on the Black Emmons. They also arranged the pedals and knees back right. Arnie then tried to help Don learn steel. This all happened after the book was published and was in music stores everywhere. It wasn't long until Don got tired of the steel, and gave it up. All this took place in about a year. Guess what----I bought that black Emmons, and it was a great sounding guitar. I traded it to Scotty for the pearl inlay guitar Shot Jackson made specially for Scotty. By the way, Arnie Arnold is dead. He was one of the best steel guitar players in the Springfield and Branson area. ------------------ |
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Fred Layman Member Posts: 583 |
posted 25 January 2000 09:01 PM
I bought the Sharp book several years ago. It purported to be a simple instruction book for a student steel guitar, but it had a pedal change on it that no one could get with the student models then extant (a sixth-string lower as I remember). He was evidently familiar with a Fender 400 and wrote the book from that setup. I wrote to him care of Mel Bay, reporting that the change was not possible on student model guitars. I got a blistering letter back from him, attacking me for raising such a stupid matter. Somebody later told me that he didn't even play a pedal steel. |
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Keith Hilton Member Posts: 1649 |
posted 25 January 2000 09:19 PM
Fred you got that RIGHT! Fred, I think I finally got some guys who can cast Almag 535 aluminum. ------------------ |
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Jim Cohen Member Posts: 8715 |
posted 26 January 2000 05:40 AM
Incredible story, Keith! Thanks for sharing that. Quite a recommendation for buying the book, eh?  So, Arnie has passed away, but is Don still with us? |
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Keith Hilton Member Posts: 1649 |
posted 26 January 2000 07:17 AM
I don't know if Don is dead or alive. I have not seen him in about 4 or 5 years. I'll try to find out. ------------------ |
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Steve England Member Posts: 542 |
posted 26 January 2000 09:33 AM
Keith, that has got to be one of the best stories I've read here in a long long time, and Fred's postscript about the letter is just hilarious. Thanks guys, that's made my morning. |
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Al Marcus Member Posts: 7471 |
posted 26 January 2000 10:22 AM
I wrote a so called book on pedal steel in 1956? for my students using a Multi-Kord. I printed out all the notes on all the frets and named all the chords, and pedal chord combinations, and used a "ditto" machine to make a few copies, it was for 4 or 6 pedals and 8 strings. I still have the charts around here somewhere. I was going to do a regular book on tunings ,etc. there was nothing out there at the time, but figured there was no money in it, so dropped it.Too bad, it was way ahead of it's time..that's why there was no money in it then....al |
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Bob Kagy Member Posts: 872 |
posted 26 January 2000 01:35 PM
Roger Filiberto. He sold me (actually my mom) my first steel & amp, both grey mother of toilet seat, 6 strings. Played a demo for us with the guitar right on the store counter he did. His store was in New Orleans, I took lessons for several months. He had great salespeople, musicians, who would let me & buddies try out whatever new guitars, amps, steels they had; even let us try them out on gigs. What a store. I bought 3 additional, different steels from him plus several amps before I left N.O., one of which I still have - triple 8 stringmaster. (I can't believe I picked a double 8 National over a double 8 Gibson console at one time; kids, maybe still the adult, don't have brain one sometimes) I'm still amazed to see his book offered by Mel Bay. What great memories of that place and those people. At the time Mr Filiberto was probably in his 50's, very nice, personable man with happy musician's eyes, always quick and unhurried with his greetings and inquiries. |
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Jim Cohen Member Posts: 8715 |
posted 26 January 2000 01:40 PM
Thanks for that info, Bob. So, what year would that have been? |
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Bob Kagy Member Posts: 872 |
posted 27 January 2000 11:47 AM
Jim, I'd have to guess a little, but I'd say from early thru mid 50's. Mind you it was his store, lots of folks working for him, book had already been written, so he'd already established himself. Consequently I never knew his history as a musician. |
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louie hallford Member Posts: 812 |
posted 27 January 2000 12:55 PM
Keith seems I stayed at a motel in Branson about 20 years ago where Arnie Arnold and his wife worked.Seems Arnie played one of the original Branson shows.Played a pedal steel then did a stand up comedy act while having a single neck lap steel strapped around his neck. He was a great comedian as well as a great steel player. Am I remembering this correctly or was it someone else. |
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Keith Hilton Member Posts: 1649 |
posted 27 January 2000 05:35 PM
Louie, you have it correct. I lived in Branson before there was any music shows. My relatives came to the Branson area in 1840. Arnie Arnold was a great steel guitar player. His hero was Lloyd Green. He could play almost all of Lloyd Green's material. Actually, Scotty should of had him on the International Steel Show years ago, because he was that good. Arnie came to Branson from Springfield, in the mid 1970's as a steel player. He went to work at the Bob-O-Link Theater. Bob Mabe was a brother of the Mabe brothers, who have the Baldknobber's Hillbilly Jamboree. One night Arnie just walked out in the middle of the show and started doing comedy! Yes, without asking anyone. He brought the house down. The rest was history. He was probably the best comedian in Branson for 15 years! So ,Arnie was in demand and always had a job. He was a great player, and one of the funniest comedians I have ever watched. ------------------ |
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