Should you buy a pedal steel guitar

That Claire de Lune is sooooooo hard to even work out, let alone play. I'm quite pleased with my idea to do the video as today I have watched quite a few of the 'how easy they are' videos, and they're all making it sound so simple. BJ Cole has all those movements in his head - dead impressive.
 
markmann said:
Nice. So you have a BR4 which I believe was a one year model and I think it also has a P90 pickup similar to the one in my BR9.
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I have no clue what your are speaking of except for a P90? The fifth knee lever and Franklin are add ons I think?
I am not a PSG player, I am just a hacker.
 
I whacked my middle fingers last knuckle on my left hand yesterday with a hammer. Got fatigued and missed. No guitar for awhile.
That don't stop me from playing the PSG!
 
rob aylestone said:
I bought a pick set ....... that's progress
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What a pain in the ass they are when you have never used them. I am finally begining to get some speed up and hit the strings I am aiming for.
After awhile I was able to play my guitar with them, not great but passable. I was a bit surprised when I picked up the guitar and started, I thought
for sure it would be a disaster and an exercise in futility.
 
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That's the first time I've listened to a piece somebody has stuck up and kind of really heard every bit. I can imagine lifting you out, putting me in and not telling the difference. I can see in my head, each little lick and knowing how hard or easy it was and how damn hard it is even when you master the stupid complexity, to conjure up what non steel people folk won't even notice. Nice work, I feel the pain and the satisfaction.

I have not yet mastered right foot volume pedal. The dexterity to match the decay against the pedal movement is not at all easy.

Love it!
 
Slouching Raymond said:
Nice tune, dogooder!
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I think I am going to do another track with the PSG but not erase that one. Too much out of tune and not exactly over the 'fret" in lots of spots. I didn't think it was to bad for a first try. That was about 4 or 5 months ago. I have gotten better. Picked up some speed and hitting the strings I intend to more consistently, know the "fretboard" and where things are a little better. I think in the one instrumental section it should be heavier and distorted. Each lick was improved on the fly with no practice to speak of, I think I can do better.
As for Robs comment on the volume pedal. I have been using one live on stage forever with my guitar for the exact same FX so it wasn't as difficult as it could be. I should adjust mine a little. With it backed off all the way it should be silent and I am still getting a small amount of signal. If it is rack and pinion which I think it is, I should be able to loosen the rack and adjust the pinion (gear on the volume control). I will have to open her up and see.
 
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Joking aside - I know how to play drums, but have an odd coordination. 3 limbs is fine, but if I add the fourth than one of the others seems to stop. So if I play a clever hi hat rhythm with two hands and my left foot, I suddenly realise the kick has stopped, or if I concentrate on the hands and kick, the hihat pedal sort of seizes up? I've struggled with dancing with the same problem. If my legs are doing the right thing, my arms sort of stop working - and I've even tried to learn to fly three times, and with a hand on the throttle, and the yoke, then my rudder control was terrible. rudder and yoke = fine, but reaching over to prod a few buttons on the radio, and it goes wrong again!

I'm wondering if this is why my pedal control on the PSG is dire?
 
rob aylestone said:
Joking aside - I know how to play drums, but have an odd coordination. 3 limbs is fine, but if I add the fourth than one of the others seems to stop. So if I play a clever hi hat rhythm with two hands and my left foot, I suddenly realise the kick has stopped, or if I concentrate on the hands and kick, the hihat pedal sort of seizes up? I've struggled with dancing with the same problem. If my legs are doing the right thing, my arms sort of stop working - and I've even tried to learn to fly three times, and with a hand on the throttle, and the yoke, then my rudder control was terrible. rudder and yoke = fine, but reaching over to prod a few buttons on the radio, and it goes wrong again!

I'm wondering if this is why my pedal control on the PSG is dire?
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I'd say your prefrontal lobe is not allowing you to function as automatically as you'd like. It's not switching off your conscious mind - it needs to ease up and let you loose.
 
When the corpus callosum is severed, dividing the left and right cerebral hemispheres, your left and right brains function independently, each as one. I suppose a drummer with this condition could maintain two totally different rhythms, but wouldn't be able to combine the two harmoniously.

www.pbs.org

Your Brain: Who's in Control?

Dive into the subconscious to see what’s really driving the decisions you make.
www.pbs.org
 
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spantini said:
When the corpus callosum is severed, dividing the left and right cerebral hemispheres, your left and right brains function independently, each as one. I suppose a drummer with this condition could maintain two totally different rhythms, but wouldn't be able to combine the two harmoniously.
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I think I will load a bowl and smoke to that!. Learned some new stuff on the PSG this morning. Every time I sit down to it, it is a new adventure. Found the 4 chord with no knees or pedals, 1/2 step above the 1 chord with no knees or pedals. Wasn't expecting it there, not in the books I have. Next time I get on it I will figure which inversion it is.
 
I found when I add the top string I have the Four7 chord. It is odd going up to the higher 9,10 strings, the thinner strings, your pitch is descending in relation to the 8th string. On the guitar as you move from string to string at the same fret the pitch always gets higher.
 
Lapsteel and pedal steel are fun. I have not ever owned either but have played my band mate's or collaborator's in the past. I recently added acoustic slide to a song, and instead of playing it traditionally I open tuned the guitar to A and played it on my lap. It adds a unique approach and, IMO, makes the sliding much more intuitive/controllable. It's something I could see doing more if it fits into future songs.
 
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