I must be completely nuts to do this. As a veteran of a whole two years of pickin' in a spare bedroom, I've gone and made an MP3 demo of my playing (not to be heard on a full stomach, please). Beware, this is not good playing here, it's just a newbie looking for input.
http://www.rahul.net/thinker/firststeeldemo.html

If the MP3 link doesn't play automatically, you may need to save the file to disk and play it manually. (Dadgummed computers.)

Also, if the above link breaks, try this one:
http://briefcase.yahoo.com/webmasterbill2

I'd appreciate some frank feedback. Thanks!

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Bill (steel not out of the woodshed) | MSA Classic U12 | Email | My music | Steeler birthdays | Over 50?

[This message was edited by Bill Llewellyn on 31 December 2001 at 12:42 PM.]

A little "Mooney" showing through. All in all you are on your way.

Incidentally, if the music link I gave at the top doesn't work, please use the following alternative:

http://briefcase.yahoo.com/webmasterbill2

Once there, go to the MUSIC folder and click on the firststeeldemo.mp3 file.

Bob Mainwaring. Z.Bs. and other weird things.

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LC. WILLIAMS U12, SHO-BUD PRO1,CARVIN TL60

Great work. You're doing very well, WAY better than I was at two years experience. Nice and clean and in tune, good tone too. Very enjoyable to listen to!

As Buck has said, next step is to learn the actual melody line and incorporate it. In live playing situations, when it's time for the steel solo we are frequently expected to play part or all of the actual melody (and generally the melody and at least one harmony line as well) PLUS working-in one or two tasteful licks and/or substitution chords. At least this is true in traditional country music, gospel, and pop standards. Seems like the old rule of thumb goes "On the first solo, stick close to the melody. If you are lucky enough to get a second solo in the same tune, jazz it up".

I suggest that you try to find a situation where you can jam with some decent musicians who are accustomed to working with a steel player. The experience and interaction will do a world of good to encourage you as a player. Happy New Year!

On the intro, did I hear you have your E string lowered, and raise it after you picked it?

And the 12 string sounds differant, maybe like the tuning on an old Fender 8 string.

I really enjoyed It and I'm glad you shared It with us.

There's no special tuning, if I understand your question correctly. The intro starts on the 15th fret, 3rd string, B pedal down and released, then jumps to the 4th string, C pedal up, down, and up again, then strings 4 and 5 with the B pedal down and the A up then rocked down. My first approach to the intro got kinda weak after that, so I basically punched in at that spot on the 8th fret, 3rd string, rocking on and off the B pedal, jumping to 1st string, 4th string, 5th, and so on, staying on the 8th fret. That turned out ok, so in the future I'll actually try to slide from 13th to 8th which will hopefully enhance the feel. I've also been given some advice on using 2-note harmonies instead of my lonely single note opening, so I may go for that, too.

In the verses, the first is centered on the 8th fret (open C root), the 2nd on the 15th fret (AB down for root), and the 3rd on the 3rd fret (again, AB down for root). (If I knew tab better I'd tab some of the licks out... not that they'd make history or anything!) The three verses were each done as separate takes so I could keep up my composure. Recording is unforgiving so it can be pretty draining unless you do it enough to be accustomed to it--which I don't. And recording steel tracks for scrutiny by accomplished steel players all over the world can be downright intimidating! So, being kinda nervous, the longer I went the more fuzzy the ol' brain got. As a result, the playing on the 1st verse is probably the best, 2nd verse a little lesser, and the 3rd verse is the weakest. I should record myself more often to get used to it and get past studio jitters, which should also help with relaxing on stage (come the day....).

Marc,

Hey, thanks for the invite! It's tempting. Let me mull that one over. It does sound like fun, and these same 4 walls are getting tired of hearing my playing. I'll be in touch.

--

I'd like to again offer my sincerest thanks to everybody for all your kind words and constructive input. This has been a great learning experience for me, and very encouraging as well!
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Bill (steel not out of the woodshed) | MSA Classic U12 | Email | My music | Steeler birthdays | Over 50?

[This message was edited by Bill Llewellyn on 03 January 2002 at 12:30 AM.]

I enjoyed it and listened to it three times.
This is excellent for someone who has been playing only two years.

Since you are asking for constructive comments, I will offer some.

I notice that you tend to use quite a bit of single note picking as opposed to using two notes. A fundamental strength of steel is it's ability to convey movement of a note. You get this by using two strings with pedals and bar movement. This creates a pleasant dissonance which is at the core of great steel sounds. A classic example of this is the steel solo to "Together Again".

Instead of moving up the fretboard during the progression, occasionally go to the lower corresponding fret for variety. Generally speaking, you can obtain a fuller type sound at the lower frets. I believe Jeff Newman calls 15th fret and above "breaking glass" territory

Your intonation is quite good but does lapse in a couple of spots. A good excercise for this is playing scales...perhaps on the third and fifth strings. Another excercise I like to do is simply playing the four standard string grips in ascending order while staying at the same fret. Do this slowly and listen for any variation in pitch.

I am certainly not ever going to set the steel world on fire myself, and have all of these flaws and more (many more) I just wanted to offer some constructive comments. Keep it up! You are doing great!

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Steve Stallings
Bremond, Texas

Hmmm....

Happy 2004, everybody!

(PS: There are two demo links at the top--the second link has died, but the first one still works.)

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Bill, steelin' since '99 | Steel page | My music | Steelers' birthdays | Over 50?

Sorry to ramble, but I really think Bill has what it takes to be a very good steel player. I am proud to call him my friend.

Nice job with the recording also!

Bob P.

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Gary Ulinskas
MSA S-12 + Walker mono

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Gary Ulinskas
MSA S-12 + Walker mono