SOUTH of ENGLAND STEEL GUITAR FESTIVAL JUNE 2018

[Jim Pritchard]

Hi everyone,
Due to the cancellations of both my weekend gigs with the 'Dusty Rhodes Band', I will now be attending this years Festival 9th & 10th.
Iv'e had a look back at last years comments & photos etc. and my thanks to all of you for your kind comments. It was a great weekend and looking forward to this one being the same..... or better !

In answer to the question "were there any videos?". Yes there were, and here is one of them, (but not all publishable )

My take on 'Corrina Corrina'.

[Ken Byng]

Hi Jim - I'm delighted that you are able to participate after all, but sorry that your gigs have fallen through for no fault of your own.

I have a feeling that next weekend could be even better than last year. We have Spencer Scott and Kevan Bartholomew making their first appearance, and they are both first class players. I'm going to bring a broadcast quality video camera so if any of the weekend's performers are happy to be recorded I will make DVDs of their segments available to them.

[Basil Henriques]

Ken, Pat and I were really looking forward to seeing you again, I think that I was the first to pay up this year (for both Pat and myself) That's why our picture is on the performers page, unfortunately we won't be attending; we WILL however definitely be attending the shindig in Thornton Watlass.

With Bob Brolly in hospital recovering (hopefully) from a stroke and a brain haemorrhage, I have no gigs for the foreseeable future and consequently lots of time to practise. (Something I haven't done since I had that 'silent' practise in the break at last year's SESGF. (a faux pas that Pat won't let me forget))
I can promise you that whatever I play at NESGF WILL be recognisable ! and won't elicit a "Basil Bashing" session on this forum like last year's SESGF performance of 'Steel Guitar Rag did. I still revisit the post, and maybe that's part of why I'll be absent this year..

the LEAST recognisable version of the Steel Guitar Rag lick I've ever heard:

Maggie Thatcher brought a few new words into popular usage, "intransigent" being one, which I feel is quite descriptive of some of the viewpoints expressed in the post that I ponder over.

https://www.thebritishsteeliessociety.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=25&t=8576&hilit=Steel+Guitar+Rag&start=60..

It's definite that I will be playing my 1970 Emmons PP for Donny and the gang at Thornton Watlass, and will be including normal 'E9th' stuff. I will also have a Fender Pedal steel Guitar with me should the need arise to revisit tunes from my past..

[mick hearn]

Basil - I am sorry to hear that you will not be there as I was looking forward to it. You have been supportive of my playing and I appreciate that and the material you have sent me has been more than helpful. Please don't keep reading that post.

Looking forward to seeing you at Thornton Watlass.

[Ken Byng]

Mick is right Basil - you must stop going over old ground and revisiting those posts if they cause you anguish or frustration enough to pull out of the Fest. OK so some people don't agree with you. Does it matter? No. I've had my share of fall outs with one or two on here, but I don't lose any sleep over it.

[jonshack]

I checked in here to wish everyone luck with the festival, I won't be able to make it but I enjoyed last year and learned a lot from the experience.

Basil, I'm really saddened that you've taken that thread as a personal attack. You have cherry picked a quote from my post that otherwise praised you effusively. I hope some people will read the whole post to put in context, it's on the 5th page! viewtopic.php?f=25&t=8576&hilit=Steel+Guitar+Rag&start=40

Of course we can all be sensitive and sometimes we only hear criticism, even in the midst of heartfelt praise. The idea that you were the victim in that thread is a misrepresentation though.

My cheeky remark about SGR was in reference to the video you posted at the top of that thread and was meant in good humour, hence the emoticon. If anyone thinks it's massively unfair they can take a look at the video and then give me a bashing, but please don't take the line that I was having a pop at Basil's inarguable talent on the steel guitar.

Sorry to bring it all up again, I'm sure we don't need to retread that path but I don't want my remark to be taken the wrong way. I stand by it within it's context. If it has lead to Basil not attending the festival, I sincerely apologise, that was far from my intent as I hope is clear in the original thread: his being there was invaluable to me personally.

I hope everyone has a good time at the weekend. I was chatting to a new player at our gig on Sunday who is attending, I'm sure you'll give him a warm welcome. I tried to encourage him to play but he hasn't got up the courage yet. It's definitely a test of nerves but well worth giving a go.

All the best to everyone and Basil, I really hope there are no hard feelings.
Jonathan

[Ken Byng]

Thanks for your post Jonathan. Hopefully Basil will read it and respond positively.

Firstly I don't believe that you have anything to apologise for. There is absolutely no way that your comment constituted a personal attack on Basil or 'Basil Bashing' as he referred to it, and I find it really surprising that he has found it necessary to repeatedly go back and revisit posts that are nigh on a year old. We are all in the game of trying to drum up interest in steel guitar, and the fact that you made the effort along with Harry Bohay to attend and perform at last year's festival was appreciated very much by all of us who were there.

I am guilty as charged of taking things the wrong way on here sometimes, and on occasion going in with a heavy boot with my response when I feel that I have been wrongly challenged by a poster who has got their facts skewed. That is the problem with the written word - it can be taken a number of ways. Basil and I come across as being pompous and bombastic to some, but that's life. We are both old, and one of the things that happens to a lot of people as they age is that they become opinionated. You said what you said at the time because it's how you honestly felt, but most of us know it was said with tongue in cheek. However, I clearly remember you telling me last year in the car park how forthcoming Basil had been with you concerning information. Basil is a very kind person, as I found out once when I was in dire straits with a stripped leg thread in my Sho~Bud. He didn't know me personally but he came to my rescue and I won't forget that.

We don't have the level of camaraderie and commitment in England that the Scots have with their monthly steel guitar meets, but I think that with some effort we can get something approaching it with the annual north and south of England steel festivals. We have some new faces at this year's festival, and hopefully that trend will continue next year. The venue is pretty costly to hire, and the festival will almost certainly make a loss. But if it achieves the same level of performances and enjoyment as last year, it will be worth it.

Finally - if the new player that you referred to makes himself known, he will be made very welcome by all and given a lot of genuine encouragement.

[Basil Henriques]

Ken, Jonathan and all, I don't know how to respond. At this point in time I am very distraught, with Pat having a bad cold and severe cough and Bob Brolly having suffered a stroke, my musical world (the Hawaiian/Swing stuff with Pat or the Country & Irish stuff with Bob) is in tatters, so I can only concentrate of making my bars. I cannot find it inside me to put together the words that normally spring forth from myself like is expected.
It's all just overwhelming at the moment.

I MUST say, the SESGF is about all of you, so please let the discussion about me be like water under the bridge..

[jonshack]

Understood Basil, I'm sorry to hear you're going through a worrying time. All the best to Pat and Bob and yourself.
Jonathan

[Basil Henriques]

Thanks Jonathan, and remember the trick of always having a bit of spare under the right foot ! (I did mention it when I saw/heard you play)