quote:

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"I find it sad that artists that record with a Steel tour without it. It hurts us all.
Not just the players, but the listening public who need more exposure to our instrument."

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I certainly agree that it Hurts us all; but it is not the Artist fault. It "IS" the listening public that depicts this situation in many ways.
I've played countless shows with Dale and only 10 folks showed up....Yep that is pathetic. Why is this?? Well mostly because they didn't know he was there and/or never heard of him; or didn't choose to go for one reason or another. I've never met a person that has heard Dale or Heather Myles or Jake Hooker or I can insert 50 more names of singers of Country music today; that didn't immediately fall in love with the Music>; but you have never heard of them...and why is that??? You don't get to> That's why!!
The reason you (in general) don't get to hear them; is they are not accessible through publicity....(no air play; no posters; no interviews)and record companies and distributors and publicist can't sink money into this because the revenue is NOT there....and folks are buying the product because they don't know about it because they haven't heard about it or heard them..so they can't sink money.....bla bla bla....you see how this goes around in a circle via "catch-22"????.
Well there you have it.....That is the situation and that is why the shows are less than what should be....wheather it being the crowd(supporters)or instrumentation......
Dale; Heather..etc.....can't afford a 4th or 5th piece.....because 10 folks are showing up at the gigs....and not buying the product...and not supporting Country music.
Do you think I want to be up every morning at 6am(after playing music all night locally) to teach some lady Golf because she is embarrassing her husband; cause she doesn't really want to play in the first place???"Hell no I don't".....but economy dipicts the income I have to have to survive...and I can't survive(progress my life)...playing Music full time(it's ok money) but the big money in music touring is with the folks that are KILLING country music.....becuase that's what you get to hear and see and know about....and that is NOT country music.....so real country music suffers tremendously......so does the instrumentation.
Dale can't just hire a steel player to come out on a one week notice.....I don't know any steel player that can learn 200 Original Songs in one weeks time.....and I don't wish that frustration to have to play that on the steel in front of 10's of people > on anybody.
It takes a long time to know this gig with Dale(ask any steel player that has sat in with Dale)...and to just come out and have a steel at his gig and not knowing all that has manufactured into his original music at his shows....is NOT a fun time for anyone...and the Music Will suffer.....as Dale knows this and at the end of the night.....that steel player will know it also.
There is NO bigger fan of the Steel guitar than Dale Watson.....and if you don't believe me......Listen to his CD's and listen to his shows when I'm playing....and that will tell you.
....and Because Dale is such a Fan.....is the reason he would rather not have a Steel in there....if it cannot be prepared the right way......and to me......"That saves the true art of Country Music".......otherwise you can just have a bunch of Sh!!-head garage band idiots up there just hackin' away at mindless stupid music stuff; just to further the instrument>"I think NOT.....well heck; just turn on your radio.....and hear Just That.
So support Real Country Music......and just maybe you might get to hear it the way you would like for it to be.....
Otherwise; it will go NOwhere....and You killed it.....not the artist.
Ricky

[This message was edited by Ricky Davis on 18 October 2002 at 10:02 AM.]

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

My comment didn't mention names, but I will now. Denna Carter.

Remember her hit "Strawberry Wine" a few years ago? Great Steel all over it. But she toured without a Steel!!

She had the big-time airplay, exposure, venues, etc.
Still no Steel!!!

If the music from O Brother, didn't do the trick, then what will. I know from my own experience, that the demographics for current country music radio is under age 35. If you want to hear good classic country radio, you need to listen to some independent stations, such as WVAL (800 AM) from Sauk Rapids, MN. Or, on Saturday afternoon from 1:00 to 3:00 (Central Time), a radio program called Good n'Country, which is available on the internet at www.kfai.org, featuring my friend Ken Hippler as country DJ.

I am from Minnesota, although now living in Colorado, and in Sandstone, MN is a small 300 seat theater called Midwest Country, and when they have such people as Bill Anderson, Connie Smith, Gene Watson, Dale Watson, Billy Walker, Jean Shepard, Stonewall Jackson, and others, the place is sold out for two shows. Of course, the audience is over 40, but it should say something to the promoters that there is still an audience for country music.

Let's hope that somehow these record producers, promoters and DJ's see the light as to who is really wanting some good old country music.

Thanks for letting me comment.

Dennis

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MSA S-10 Sidekick
Gorilla Amp with Digitech RP100 Processor
pedalman@msn.com
www.geocities.com/mnpedalman/index.html

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"So support Real Country Music......and just maybe you might get to hear it the way you would like for it to be....."

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Ricky, dear friend, I reread your post many times and I have to ask just how far do you think we should take this advice.

Suppose the singer decides not to carry a band at all and just bring canned tracks?

I wouldn't support such a show. IMO, if the promoters see attendance is not adversly affected by the lack of a band, they will encourage the artist to never hire any musicians. That's how karoke has killed many small venues.

This is not that far-fetched. A few years ago the late-great Waylon perfomed in a local 2000 seat hall, without any band, just prerecorded tracks. I'm a big fan, but I didn't attend.

Best regards,
-j0ey-

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1985 Emmons push-pull, Session 500, Nashville400, 65 re-issue Fender Twin, Fender Tele

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"I'm ON the PGA tour "

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Oh, the night my wife and I went out and caught Dale, he came out for 3 encores, so he must be doing something right!! I've seen real "professional" shows in the arena where I work who don't do so much as one!!

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Rebel™
ICQ 614585

http://users.interlinks.net/rebel/steel/steel.html

When I decided not to go to DW's Aug 21st gig in Buffalo he said he was steel-less because a replacement could not be ready in the short time he had.

I assumed he ment a Steel will be worked in.
I was wrong, unless it's RD.

I suspect die-hard Dale fans will go if there's no live musicians at all.

I just don't support that. I don't think we're "hurting country music" by holding onto standards such as wanting live musicians. I think we're helping.

I'd find another team to support.

Some of the best bands and sounds you'll hear around here are 4 piece, with NO guitars. Drums, Bass, Fiddle, Steel. PERIOD. However, that wouldn't sound real good if you were trying to cop current "N'ville" stuff.

Herb plays with Cornell Hurd, a 9 piece band. Those guys have a distinct sound with great, fun music. They would not have the same sound, etc. scaling back to 4 or 5 piece, nor would you want them to. Same as Dale going 9 piece. Dale was great with 3. Better with Ricky. Anymore and it would drastically change his style and sound, diminshing it, I think.

Contemporary bands typically carry 5-6 pieces incl. keys, etc. which is needed sometimes if they are going to be playing that style of music.

It's all the style of music you are trying to capture, IMHO.

Danny

[This message was edited by Danny Naccarato on 21 October 2002 at 03:47 PM.]

Spade Cooley had one of the best western bands ever, with triple fiddles and horns. Tex Williams had as great a band, and he had vibraphone as well. Bob Wills had triple fiddles and the occasional horn section, Hank Thompson had a trumpet.

Ray Price had fiddles and Buddy Emmons or Jimmy Day on steel.

Would any of these great bands improved Buck Owens? Would adding great musicians improve Buck's sound?

Not IMHO, because Buck had one of the best bar bands around... yes, basically a wonderful, well-rehearsed bar band. No twin parts, no fiddle section, just the guitars playing individually with the occasional fiddle solo. That was the sound he was seeking, and what his fans expected.

Likewise, putting the great Buck Owens band behind Hank Thompson or Bob Wills would have been quite disappointing to the fans of those stars' music.

I don't know where I'm going with this, other than to say it's up to the Dale to decide where he wants to go. I played with Dale on Sunday at the Little Longhorn. I was confident on the standards he chose, and felt very inadequate on the stuff I know Ricky had a big part in. Ricky has big shoes to fill with that gig, and since he hasn't completely left them, there's not a whole lot of room for two sets of feet in there.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

For example, I'm a big fan of Tom Russell. I dug him when he was travelling with a full band. Now it's just him and Andy Hardin, and I still love to catch his show and I love those songs of his. And I like what he and Andy have done with the arrangements to make their two piece, unplugged approach work. And locally, Ian Tyson has gone to a three piece unplugged setup as well. Sure, I'd love to hear Ian with the Great Speckled Bird again (boy o boy with Buddy Cage and Amos Garret...would I ever like to see that lineup again), but it doesn't mean I don't like to hear what he does now. I do. Summer Wages and Four Strong Winds are still the same great songs they always were.

If people like me stop going to hear Tom Russell and Ian Tyson because we'd prefer that they have more instruments in general and a steel player in particular will that make them hire full bands that they probably can't afford to carry? I don't think so. Same goes for Dale Watson - he's a soulful and energetic performer, with tons of great songs. Well worth going out to hear, and well worth supporting.

quote:

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"Ricky, I don't think you realize just how important you are to Dale Watson's sound. I think Dale realizes it even less."

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Signed, a RICKY FAN TOO !!!!!

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"Let's go STEEL something"
If it feels good, do it. If it feels COUNTRY, do it twice
jpp

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he would say to the audience...if thereīs no steel, itīs not country anymore...and you know what his reply was......

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If this is true it's very disappointing. Bottom line is, there are plenty of pro players available to work Dale's gig, for pro money. As far as having to learn 200 songs, Dale should provide the core material that will always be played in a 90 minute show and expect that to be learned by a new player. If there are 'calls', shout out the key and intro progression, count it off and here we go. Ricky, I'm sure you've told him exactly that, haven't you? If he's working without a steel player, he can blame no one but himself.

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"there are dozens of Dale Watson's in Nashville". That I have a hard time believing

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Me too
Why did Roger Wallace choose Austin rather then Nashville which is just a couple hours
from Knoxville?

If one refers to a soulful, traditional country-styled songwriter with a great voice, I can see that there could be a large number of this type of singer in N'ville, though I doubt the number is "dozens." But I'd grant the writer's overstatement to be a hyperbole to make the point. And if making music full-time for a living is not included in the criteria, there could very well be "dozens."

However, if the criteria for a "Dale Watson" is all the above, plus touring the world non-stop, keeping a band together for years, and making records continually, always adhering to his own personal artistic vision, I'd like to know who these many guys are, since I'd undoubtedly have heard of at least some of them.

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Herb's Steel Guitar Pages
Texas Steel Guitar Association

[This message was edited by Herb Steiner on 22 October 2002 at 02:15 PM.]