Teardrop

[Ahmad Hasan]

Hi there!
the rookie is back, this time i tried to cover Teardrop (Johnny Farina's Version) only by ear
tell me what you think and as always any tips are most welcomed

[JohnDavisStringsHere]

There is no doubting your enthusiasm but a little more time in the woodshed would be good I am afraid it's a pain we all have to go through………..keep on doing what your doing

[Ken Byng]

Ahmad
I am not familiar with Johnny Farina's version of this beautiful melody (nor do I want to be), but as a 14 year old back in the early '60's I was mesmerised by this track played by Santo Farina with his brother Johnny on rhythm guitar.


JD is being tactful when he suggests that you do a bit more woodshedding. There is no doubt that you are on the right track, especially with your right hand picking and palm harmonics. However, some more familiarisation and accuracy with the actual melody line wouldn't go amiss, as you are in fact way off throughout your recording. I think Santo played this on his neck tuned to C#m, but Basil will correct me if I am wrong. Good luck with this superlative steel instrumental.

[Ahmad Hasan]

thanks guys for your replies, i sure have a long way to go
and by the way i played it in E6th and for some reason i found that Johnny Farina's Version is somehow more interesting

[Ken Byng]

Thanks Ahmad. Some of us find that Johnny Farina's playing is a very pale reproduction of his brother's. He just doesn't have the finesse, the dynamics or the articulation in his playing. Santo simply had so much feel and soul, which Johnny can't replicate in any way. Keep at it, you are on your way and you just need the experience that only time can provide.

[Ahmad Hasan]

thanks Ken for your comments, i have a long way to go as i've only been playing for couple of months and i actually agree with you that Johnny is not as good as his brother, i just found it more challenging than the original but hopefully i'll get better

[Jif]

i just found it more challenging than the original but hopefully i'll get better

You will, it's just a matter of practice. It's good to have a go at songs, I've learnt a lot just by doing this, especially if you are working off Tab instead of trying to work it out yourself.

For me the key is practicing the fundamentals on a regular basis, i.e. put aside at least one night a week to practice scales, picking exercises etc, there's plenty of instructional material out there. Take your time when doing it, if you get it wrong, stop and repeat until you get it right, same applies to learning songs. It's amazing how quickly you improve and it inspires you to keep going with it.

Best of luck

[Ahmad Hasan]

thanks for the advice Jif, i sure need to practice a lot! i just have a request: could we start a topic or a thread about learning the basics of scales and music theory and such ? it's my first time to play any instrument and
to be honest i can't afford buying any material right now
so, is there any free lessons out there ? that would help a lot

[Jif]

Hi Ahmad,

The problem I found when starting playing Lap was the number of tunings you can use, which one should I use? I think it depends on what style you want to play. In the end I found a couple that suited me and kinda stuck to them, at least until I get a bit more proficient. I've been playing more Pedal Steel recently so I'm a bit behind on the lap at the moment.


Anyway, here's a few links that may help you to get started,

http://www.steelc6th.com/getting_started.htm

http://www.well.com/user/wellvis/steel.html

http://steelguitarwizard.com/

http://www.squidoo.com/learn-to-play-lap-steel-guitar

http://www.planetgaa.com/C6/index.html

http://www.mikeneer.com/lapsteelin/

http://guitar.lovetoknow.com/lap-steel-fretboard

This is a really useful tool for working out chords and scales in different tunings,

http://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/guitar/index_rb.html

Hope this helps

[Ahmad Hasan]

thanks a lot Jif!
it sure does help, i'll get back to practice
wish me luck