by pedalman » Sun Aug 29, 2010 1:15 am
Hello, and thanks Billy and Basil for the welcome.
Basil, I will add some info to my profile soonest but here is a little info.
Apologies for the delay in replying, its a busy time for year or a photographer especially one who lives just 10 miles south of the border and does most of his work ooer the border at Gretna Green averaging three or four weddings per day from april to september some as late as 6pm.
My user name " pedalman" is wasted on me in relation to the PSG but as I was a racing cyclist and still enjoy getting out on the two wheeled torture machine so the name covers both interests.
Billy, I have been in touch with Jim Gorrie for four years now and visited him in Edinburgh a couple of times we were trying to organise a visit where I could get out with Jim to see you at a gig somewhere but we didnt get that done , We will have to sort that out.
I just received my BSS newsletter, front cover ........say no more .....I will have to get a visit with Jim organised to meet you and enjoy some live music.
I have had a pedal steel for 30+ yrs and was playing it 4 / 5 hours a day from tab for the first 10 yrs but lacked confidence to get into a band , I can make the steel sound like it should , im told my sound/tone is good and I can hear myself im not too far off the mark sound wise but my musical knowledge is very very basic and I struggle in that department badly, hence the confidence thing.
Players in my area are very thin on the ground , I know of four in a 100 mile radius ,Jim in Edinburgh and Dave Midgely in Carlisle are the two I know but getting a few together on a regular basis like they do in Bristol is not going to happen here .
I was told at the age of twelve after five yrs of music lessons on lap steel that I would regret stopping those music lessons, when I got my first pedal steel aged 28 I did deeply regret not continuing with it all those years before......now aged 53 I require another lifetime or a lottery win so I can retire early and have the next 10 - 20 yrs for solid practice !
My dad played Lap steel ( Hawaiian / country ) in several bands in the cumbria area when I was growing up, I probably first heard the the sound of the steel guitar when I was still in the womb with all his mates practicing at our house the steel sound is so ingrained into me, I love it.
He played predominantly country but mixed A lot of Hawaiian instrumentals into a gig, we had a rack full of Hawaiian records in the house and thats what i started off playing when I was 7yrs old.
As the year goes on into september I get less busy at work and I will get onto the bss forum more , maybe even find out if anyone is gigging up in Hadrian wall country or a reasonable a traveling distance .
Regards Alan.