As I have stated several times on this forum and in my website bio info,
the reason I play steel guitar today is because of Rusty Young, even
though I doubt seriously he knows it.

The first time I ever heard and understood what I was hearing
was a PSG was Rusty on Poco's first album Pickin' Up the Pieces.

I was 14 and from that moment it was never a question but that I WOULD
play PSG, and as much like Rusty Young as I could manage.

I have absorbed many influences and deeper understanding of the history
of PSG and the instruments' major figures in the ensuing 36 or so years,
But at the core of it all was my fan-boy admiration and visceral
response to Rusty's playing (a ZB Custom thru Fender amplification I
feel I should add ) when I was a teen.

I used to "stalk" Rusty whenever Poco came to the DC area; I would crash
Poco sound checks and just watch and listen; a couple of times I even introduced
myself.
His patience with a steel guitar wannabe who didn't even own an
instrument was remarkable.

Well, I'm gonna be crashing another Poco soundcheck on June 2nd, except
this time I'll have legitimate reason to be there.

Eric Brace and I (of Last Train Home) will be performing as a duo,
opening for Poco at Ashland Coffee & Tea in Virginia.

This is gratifying to me in
that I get to bring it "full circle" and play on the same bill with my
initial and primary influence; and yet somewhat disturbing to me in that
in our short set I'll probably play more steel than Rusty will all
evening. (not better...just more)

Life is weird.

I'm hoping that 36 years of playing experience will carry me through the nervousness.
Wish me luck...

Fan-boy dva

PS. I'm trying to decide whether to play the Zum or the ZB for this show... hmmmm let's guess which one

------------------

"I've got the 'ZB Jeebies™' !"

"Pickin' it 'old school' on the Pedizzle Stizzle"
1998 Zumsteel U12 "Loafer" 8&6 :: 1973 ZB Custom D-10 8&5 :: Vintage Fender 'Tube' Amplification

www.dvanet.net :: zbcustom73@dvanet.net :: www.lasttrainhome.com
:: My Tribute to the Hot Club of America in Hi-Fi
::A Zumsteel Picture Gallery:: A ZBCustom Picture Gallery

[This message was edited by Dave Van Allen on 18 May 2005 at 07:51 AM.]

------------------
'95 Mullen D-10 w/ E66 (E9) & Mullen (C6) pups - It's still one smooooth puppy!
'04 Artisan S-6 - "The Home Depot scrap pile refugee"
Photo page: http://www.davidhorch.com/music

quote:

---

One question - you'll be playing PSG in a duo situation?

---

Yes Dave, PSG in a Duo. Me on PSG with Eric Brace on Vocal and Acoustic Guitar. MP3 Examples of this musical anomaly are available here; scroll down to "LIVE "Bootleg" Stuff!!" and try out "Dogs on the East Side", "My Sally", "Hendersonville" or "Tonight"...

"Sparse, yet remarkably full bodied"(like a glass of merlot)... the duo gives me lots of holes to fill trying to make up for our regular 9 piece band

[This message was edited by Dave Van Allen on 18 May 2005 at 11:39 AM.]

quote:

---

we do have a song that I quote Rusty's solo to Bad Weather in my solo... maybe he won't notice...

---

hey, it's meant as the sincerest tribute... most nights nobody in the venue even knows what it is but me,and I play it for exactly the reasons I stated

quote:

---

my fan-boy admiration and visceral
response to Rusty's playing

---

quote:

---

in a room full of Poconuts and in front of the man himself?... I'd do it

---

I think not...
it's just a string of notes in space and time, that happen to fit the chord progression of a tune we play.

It's the recombinant DNA of music...

Quote him twice...just to make sure he hears it!

Have a great time.

Russ

I know I'm obsessing about this now...
it's interesting the way my addled mind works (if at all) sometimes...
I was dithering which guitar to pack for the gig tonite for some reason, Zum or ZB; Zum for reliability, ZB for sentimental reasons.

So I finally decided as I was waking up this AM "if you don't pack the ZB you'll regret it. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon — and for the rest of your life." (sorry Bogie)

so I packed both gosh darnit, and I had a vivid vision of my side of the stage looking like peering thru a window into 1969... the ZB, the SF Twin Reverb with the aluminum trim 'round the grille... fortunately I wasn't driving at the time.

Maybe Rusty will have a flashback-

Anyway... on to Ashland!!

I've got my copy of "The Pedal Steel Handbook" for RY to sign, I've got my "period" axe and amp, I've got my picks and...WAIT- do I have my picks? hold on gotta check... whew...

did I leave the water running in the kitchen?

hmmm....

Rusty flew in and managed to leave his bar and picks in another suitcase, apparently the one he brought back from Europe
dva to the rescue... Mr Y will be using my bar and a set of my spare picks tonite...

I did play the ZB , and the quote, and Rusty shook my hand afterwards so I guess he wasn;t too upset...

& I got compliments on our set from all the guys...

Short and sweet:
Got to the soundcheck and set up my ZB. POCO arrive about an hour late, bad traffic from airport. Rusty grinned at the site of "hey, an old ZB" but became preoccupied with equipment issues too numerous to list; during soundcheck he discovered he left his picks and bar in another suitcase back at the hotel too far to retrieve.
DVA to the rescue, with my bar and a spare set of unbent picks.

Eric and I played a short but very satisfactory set, (the POCO fans were extremely receptive and appreciative of our offering) and next to last was the tune in which I quote a sizeable chunk of Rusty's "Bad Weather" solo. Up until then I had not been particularly nervous as I was so busy filling in the holes in the duo situation. I recorded the set, and although I do not remember doing this, just before the quote solo you hear me say "heeeere we go!..." and launch into it (I will post the exerpt once I get it mp3'd) played the quote just fine, finished the solo and then I got nervous! My foot on the volume pedal stated vibrating. That passed relatively quickly, our set ended.

As I was coming off stage Rusty walked up and shook my hand and told me he enjoyed our set and "you're a fine player, man", but gave no indication he'd caught or cared about the quote...

At that point I was floatin'

POCO played a very fine set, and when it came time for Rusty to play "Heart of the Night" (one of the two tunes he played on pedal steel) he thanked me on-mic for lending him my bar "'cause the dog ate mine..." and commended me again as "Big Dave, a fine steel guitar player"... he proceeded to demonstrate that he still has THE touch that made me wanna play like him in the first place... (I have a short movie I took with my digital camera of the HOTN solo I will also post)

He graciously signed my copy of his 1978 "Pedal Steel Handbook" that I've owned since - oh, 1978, and hung out and shot the breeze while he packed up at night's end. I told him "I'm never washing that bar again!"

All in all it went as well and better than I could have hoped, and after thirty five years of playing still feeling like fan-boy ain't such a bad thing

------------------

"I've got the 'ZB Jeebies™' !"

"Pickin' it 'old school' on the Pedizzle Stizzle"
1998 Zumsteel U12 "Loafer" 8&6 :: 1973 ZB Custom D-10 8&5 :: Vintage Fender 'Tube' Amplification

www.dvanet.net :: zbcustom73@dvanet.net :: www.lasttrainhome.com
:: My Tribute to the Hot Club of America in Hi-Fi
::A Zumsteel Picture Gallery:: A ZBCustom Picture Gallery

[This message was edited by Dave Van Allen on 10 June 2005 at 09:12 AM.]

quote:

---

Big Dave, a fine steel guitar player

---

quote:

---

By the way listened to your sound clips of "Kind Woman". Very cool, I could almost hear the words in your playing.

---

gosh... thanks John!