Best advice for a new PSG player?

[country frank]

Good afternoon everyone,

I am lucky enough to have snagged a carter starter from these very boards and i think I am getting along fine with the thing.

Being a bluegrass banjo player [and as such utterly unable read music and too lazy to apply myself to tablature] i have been 'feeling' my way around the PSG and treating it very much like my banjo playing 'intuitive rather than technical' about sums it up.

My question is; without getting me all confused with codependents [thats kids right?], what would be your advice to someone starting out on PSG?

I am thinking specifically bar, pedal and lever shapes, shortcuts and general tricks ?

Finally i know, i shouldn't be asking for shortcuts and tricks but to be honest, it served me well on the 5 string and i have loved every minute of the past 25 years picking on that thing.

Many thanks in advance and all the very best from London. Frank.

[JohnDavisStringsHere]

Ere you go Frank follow at your own risk.......

[simon_f3]

Frank, I think John has summed it up in his video, but as a newbie myself, I found that learning the chord shapes up and down the board (e.g. G on 3rd, G on 6th, G on 10th, G7 on 8th...) was a really good way to get something tuneful out of the beast. Just knowing where your I, IV, and V chords are, relative to each other, will mean you can busk most classic country songs straight off.
I've been playing about a year now and can just about knock out a tune or two, but I'm getting more an more confident with playing along (chords rather than melodies) with tunes if I know the chord progressions. Sadly there's no substitute for seat time, but it does pay off, and you will see yourself improving very quickly!
Good luck in your quest,
Sid

[country frank]

John and Sid, so very much appreciated!

John, the video is so helpful - loads to get my teeth into on that and i'm getting right onto the G at 6th as we speak. [I didn't know that could happen and i think it will unlock some doors for me].

Sid, [luckily] i am already pretty ok with the stock bar chords and positions, [i play lap steel and have done for years], that said its always good to be reminded of the 101's on any instrument and i thank you for your input.

Right, better get on with it!

Truly grateful from London.

[Haddock]

Hi Frank
On top of the top tips you’ve had so far, as a recovering banjo player myself, I thought I’d chip in. The fingerpicking thing is similar in many ways to banjo, particularly if you’ve done any ‘Keith’ style melodic playing. A lot of scales and riffs can be played using alternate strings where the next note is usually pickable on another finger. This means you can build up your scales almost like you do rolls on the banjo. Ive spent a lot of time on scales played across the neck rather than up and down and it really helps with the culture shock of having 10 strings. And the top two chromatic strings are great for little show off licks that will be easy for a banjo guy if you suss out the opposing note thing. Just like banjo high G when you work round about the 5th fret. No accident that Bill Keith also got stuck into playing pedal steel!

Cheers
Calum

[simon_f3]

Oops, sorry Frank - didn't realise you had a good bit of lap steel experience under your belt! In that case you'll have no trouble with PSG. I dabbled with lap steel for a number of years but getting pedals opened a whole new world to me. Sadly it turns out to be a world of confusion, toil, and what probably amounts to an addiction(!), but a new world nonetheless
For a few bits and pieces on PSG stuff, I found the following very useful:
1.) John Davis, either on Youtube or in person *This is the best resource I have found for PSG
2.) Sierra Steel website lessons with Joe Wright: http://sierrasteels.com/lessons/lessons-index.html *Some good stuff on harmonic scales here, which helped me no end.
3.) Steel Picking Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHM8uFK2a4xx4za2nDRsvCQ *Note to admin, this is deliberately a URL, not a Youtube link as it goes to the channel page and not a video
4.) Anyone on this forum, particularly if you are after a backing track or advice on how to play a particular piece or section of a piece.

Now I need to stop all this hypocrisy and actually put some hours in on my own guitar...

[country frank]

Calum, excellent advice and to be honest i have the finger picking thing pretty nailed [although scruggs style more than kites melodic style], i found it strangely 'transferable' to the PSG EXCEPT for 5 additional strings of corse ;0)

I am still really at sea on how to use the top two strings though, everything i do sounds out of tune so more practice there for sure.

John the film you kindly posted at the top of this thread is so dense and valuable, i am revisiting that frame by frame to garner the nuggets inside, a very big THANK YOU!

Sid, again many thanks and i think i might have boasted prematurely as i simply can't find the G on 6th and 9th [damnit!], i MUST be pressing the wrong things [like most males of my age usually do ].I'll check those links out and once again many thanks to all of you for this input. Very much appreciated.

Frank.

[Donny Johnston]

Hi Frank, to get the G on the 6th fret you need to use the pedal which raises the B strings to C# and the E/F knee lever at the same time, I don't know if your using the Emmons or the Day set up, that is why I haven't said 1st or 2nd pedals. G is not at the 9th it's at the 10th with the bB/C# pedal and the G#/A pedal. Try sliding from the 3rd to the 6th to 10th and finish at the 17th, now your playing pedal steel. these chords are inversions of G, a simple slide like that will help your intonation, positioning and bar control. Walk before you run and all the usual rules . To get a G7 at the 6th fret just use the E/F lever. Enjoy. Donny

[bob adams]

FMG! LD.... Looks like you're back after all!

[JohnDavisStringsHere]

Frank, I have a few more"help" videos if you check out my you tube channel, as before follow at your own risk.......