The longer scale of the Strat (as opposed to traditional Lap steels) seems suited to this type of stuff. We recorded that song with Don Heffington on drums and Greg Cohen on bass. When I spoke to Eric, he said to me, Do you know Hop Wilsons music? I said, Yeah, I know it really well. He was surprised. Just interested in his equipment and tunnings. He doesnt really talk to the audience. At first he said, Ill play a solo in the middle, and then you play a solo, and Ill play a solo. Eventually he said, I just want you you to play all the solos. It was amazing for me because I got to be featured. And then Paul Carrack. They had two different studios in the same complex. As was already mentioned, his work on the album "Girlfriend" by Matthew Sweet is great. How did you feel when you first heard the record and realized theyd used that much of your work? The first couple minutes of this track display how well these two musicians can create soundscapes within songs. s-10 sierra crown gearless 3 x4 - Regal RD45 - fender hotrod deluxe. I think hed become aware of my playing on a couple of other records, especially this K.D. The 6 string lap steel is great for Hawaiian, blues, slide guitar licks, many country songs, dobro style riffs and can imitate a lot of what can be played on the 8, 10 and 12 string tunings. 6.9K views 1 year ago On this Greg Leisz interview, how playing with artists like Dave Alvin, k.d. Custom pedal steel t-shirts, mugs, posters, and moredesigned in Asheville, NC. Pedal-Steel Guitarist Greg Leisz on His Years With Joni Mitchell, Eric Clapton, Bruce Springsteen, and Daft Punk, Neil Young Sets Release Date for Vintage Seventies Bootlegs, Kiley Dean Began As Britney Spears Backup Singer. And so she goes through this whole process where she has these hits and she makes another record and it didnt do well, and the label immediately stopped supporting her. Why was I even there? Its kind of a disappointing thing. I didnt know it was Eric Clapton. Im looking at your credits and theres a 10-year gap after the Funky Kings and before you start racking up a ton of credits. Check out these 7 songs that feature Leiszs fantastic pedal steel playing. In 1975, he toured with John Stewart (formerly of The Kingston Trio). That was enormous, yeah. Thats because Ive done a lot of stuff with T Bone Burnett. This album is a seminar in playing with taste. Tony Berg is a producer Ive worked with quite a bit. from $995.00 $1,773.00 Sale SOLD 2022 Electro Hawaiian Model 1 Lap Steel Custom $3,900.00 Sold Out Sale 2022-2023 Asher Electro Hawaiian Junior Lap Steel Trans Cherry with Gig Bag! This is all very helpful. The C6 tuning for 6 strings is (beginning with string 1): E C A G E C. Lap steel players have been spelling their tunings from high to low for many years. This was a time where I met a lot of people like Victoria Williams and Lucinda Williams, Dave Alvin, Dwight Yoakam, Rosie Flores there was a bunch of people that all kind of knew each other and were playing in the same clubs in L.A. in the late Eighties. I didnt meet him. This would encompass all the work he does with T-Bone, and likely the Bon Iver and other indie records he's doing these days. Pedal Steel Guitar: Why Its So Hard To Play, Pedal Steel Guitar WEIGHT (Lighter vs. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. I especially love what came out of that. Everybody was trying to get record deals. I guess they could have learned it from the version we did. 8 bars over a 1:3m:4:5 chord sequence - bliss! Great player all aroundlap, non-pedal, pedal, dobroetc etc Ironically, I used to play a lot of gigs with Greg in the '80s -- I was playing steel and he was playing guitar. My wife plays bass with David Crosby. Leisz has such a great melodic sense, and this song has it on full display. I was like, Im going to try and keep playing music and try to get better. I saved up my money one summer and bought my first pedal steel and started teaching myself how to do that. Custom pedal steel t-shirts, mugs, posters, and moredesigned in Asheville, NC. Note chart for the E9 pedal steel neck. What sort of career did you see yourself pursuing? That band was really the brainchild of this guy named Richard Stekol, who was one third of the songwriting triumvirate of that band. Greg Leisz plays a Weissenborn Style 2, Style 1, and teardrop model with an original metal tailpiece (anyone seen another?). Thats someone I met many years earlier when he played in Ace in the Seventies. When I look at Discogs and AllMusic, I go, I forgot about this record and that record But for me, its the breadth of the stuff that Im most proud of, not necessarily the number.. Leisz spent his younger years catching acts like the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers in Southern California clubs. It is very versatile and there is a lot of learning material available online. And then he did the Jeep commercial on the Super Bowl. Leisz grew up in the garage band culture of mid-1960s Southern California. Theres one song where you can really hear how its cut up and moved in the track. I knew right then it was all up to me. He was great. I didnt listen to contemporary music for a long time, probably from around the late Seventies until the late Eighties. It was. Tell me about playing on Bruce Springsteens Wrecking Ball. Youre on Youve Got It and We Are Alive. With good reason -- the man's resum is daunting, boasting spots with Joni Mitchell, Sheryl Crow, Read Full Biography Overview Biography Discography Songs Credits Related Share on facebook twitter tumblr Credits One of Bill Frisells favorite musicians to work with, Greg has such a characteristic style of playing and it always shines with Frisell. Lang record Ingnue. Youre on Paula Coles I Dont Want to Wait, which was an enormous song. Every one of the past 30 years has been that busy in the studio, and hes still found time to tour with the likes of Joni Mitchell, Jackson Browne, Eric Clapton, K.D. By the next year, the Beatles were on Ed Sullivan. The band got signed very quickly because there was already a songwriter that had a couple hit songs. But she was fine with it. Hed been with her for a pretty long time. Although this track has Leisz on lap steel, I couldnt help but include it! To wrap here, how do you feel when you look at your credits and just see hundreds and hundreds of songs? I just went in and overdubbed on one song. Its similar. Also, its interesting to me that it even happened at all. But I was playing in garage bands and he was doing folk music. Tell me about your friendship with him. But the backing of that commercial, the producer took guitar from Moonlight Motel. After all these different attempts to put music behind that commercial, since its Springsteen talking with music behind it, they wound up just using that pedal steel. He's on all of them.. And she got Roy Bittan. I just liked the sound of the guitar and I wanted to do it. Jim Scott ended up mixing that album. I had played a very little bit on a record [2010s Clapton] three years before when Doyle Bramhall brought me into the studio to meet Eric. Tell me your first memories of being a kid and hearing music that really reached you. What they did was amazing. The first note of the solo slides up to the 12th fret. The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time His tone (on recent recordings) is, in my opinion, the best you will find in the world. And they cut some stuff up. Music wasnt brought to me through older siblings or really through any older kids. As a janitor, Id work at City Hall, just cleaning bathrooms and stuff like that. Greg Leisz - lap steel guitar & electric guitar Gary Novak - drums Written by Mai Leisz & Greg Leisz Engineered by Kevin Smith Recorded at Groove Masters Studio in Santa Monica, CA Mixed by Alan Hertz Mastered by Joe Gastwirt. I taught myself how to play. I never even listened to the Dead. Doyle said, Hes kind of interested , I met him and he was so immediately just a normal guy. But its been a crazy year, just like it has for everybody. She was taking parts off and replacing them. Were all surgeons, the guys in the band. Greg's always been one of my favorites, from his work with KD Lang to Peter Case to Bill Frisell--I have dozens of CDs he played on that I bought just to hear him. But I love that song. [Editors note: Leisz does, in fact, play on the Pretty Woman version of the song.]. It was just basically recorded in a bedroom. He showed me the song [River Runs Deep] and pulled out an acoustic guitar. I saw Rosie play in San Francisco a couple years ago - she was great! Includes a bonus section of over a hundred pages of extra chord charts, key references, and more! I also didnt have parents that thought it was a good idea. It was the sound of it. Definitely check out the Sara Watkins album, he's all over it. I guess because of that, Ive been fairly active. In Southern California, kind of North of L.A., near Santa Barbara. She made one record before that, at least. Please check the fields highlighted in red. They just took pieces of it and moved it around. Part of his universal appeal -- which certainly draws on the experimental nature of those influences -- comes from an open-minded approach to lap and pedal steel, an approach that casts aside Nashville references. When I taught myself how to play the electric guitar when I was 13, 14, its a visceral thing. Editors picks I am a huge fan of Greg's playing, and had the pleasure of meeting him after the show. And then I would live off that money and play music for as long as I could. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. To me, thats really interesting to do that. Email admin@steelguitarforum.com for technical support. He said, Im maybe going to go on tour next year. Let's connect. It has a deep, full body sound, with amazing resonance. He said, Im not sure what songs Im going to do. Long story short, we made one record. Every instrument and musical note seems to fall right in place, with great sounding timbres, and Leiszs pedal steel is no different. Tabs that display the major scale harmonized in sixthsthese pockets or positions on the fretboard are great to utilize when playing. I spent a lot of hours in country bars learning how to play, but my musical background has always been very wide. He is one of my favorites. If you have a certain kind of shy disposition, youre usually intimidated because you dont know what to say and you just hope the person that is intimidating wont be intimidating because of something that you say. Versatile and musically accommodating, Greg shapes up many tracks with his pedal steel playing. She Ended Up Finding Herself. And my wife and I spend a lot of time together during the pandemic since were both musicians. She came in and she was real sweet. I did a little bit of that. Getting paid for anything is always a pain in the neck. As well as Ryan Adams "Ashes & Fire", he is on a few tracks. I really enjoyed his work on the recent Blue Ridge Rangers" album (John Fogarty). But I spent a couple of summers working as a forest ranger in Idaho and fighting fires. anyone know? That happens a lot of the time. An example of data being processed may be a unique identifier stored in a cookie. At least that's what David told me 25 years ago. A detailed look at one of the most challenging and mysterious aspects of steel guitar playing: the right hand An In-Depth Guide to Picking and Blocking How to Efficiently and Accurately Play Notes on Steel Guitar with Info, Advice, and Tips Great for Pedal Steel, Lap Steel, and Console Steel Guitar Lets start with Roxette and their hit It Must Have Been Love. Add To Cart. Leisz grew up in the garage band culture of mid-1960s Southern California. But anyway, I actually had the experience of playing with him live in the studio. These lap steel tabs and songs were played on an 8 string Excel Jerry Byrd frypan lap steel. There was a lot of stuff in your head, so you didnt think that was a possibility. She decided she wanted to take over the production of the record herself. Great for diving into single note playing possibilities and runs on the tuning. For any of you that don't have the book from fellow Forumite Andy Volk entitled, http://www.myspace.com/video/lol/robert-plant-alison-krauss-killing-the-blues-with-lyrics/24448189, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxvTTRKvfEU, http://www.laweekly.com/2004-04-08/news/south-of-here/. I live in a place thats a good place to hang out during a pandemic since its very close to nature. Hed even introduce me in the set. You wouldnt think of Beck as an artist to employ pedal steel much, but when you hear the sonic space that Leisz fills within his music, its understandable why any musician would want to utilize him. Well, no. Greg's toured or recorded with Dave Alvin . It was pretty terrifying. I just got contacted. Utilize the major scale on common positions of the fretboard using foot pedals. I was usually to shy to go up and talk to anybody about it, but I just kind of absorbed the music. Eric Clapton. And my experience with that is, a lot of people that Ive worked with, you think theyre going to be intimidating, but theyre so good at making you feel comfortable that you wind up singing that persons praises. I feel very fortunate we got through the whole year. With tasteful use, the blues scale can go a long ways in many musical styles and playing environments. Thats just a huge, huge record. That was great, for me. I didnt know him then. But once I started hearing songs on the radio I liked, Id memorize them and play them on the piano. That was the first time I worked with him. I actually went to the same high school as Jackson. Once I could actually play the guitar, I started meeting a couple of other kids in the neighborhood and wed play together. Larry Klein bought me onto Turbulent Indigo. Was this the 1998 tour with Bob Dylan and Van Morrison? #raylamontange. They were just guys that were factory workers during the day that played country music at night. They had gotten interested in doing stuff with live musicians. I was like, Now I have to get an electric guitar. That was the start of the garage-band culture of the Sixties. That was kind of a cool thing. For blues, rock, jazz, and many other styles, using the Mixolydian scale in the form of harmonized sixths can be a great avenue for musical expression. If someone asked me for my phone number, Id gladly give it to them and write it on a piece of paper. There was something called new country. Once that started happening, I had been pre-conditioned to play that kind of music. February 21, 2023. Pick up any Matthew Sweet album.. Going back here, can you talk about playing with the Smashing Pumpkins on Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness? Ive worked a lot with him. I was drawn to the records that I guess now we talk about as folk-rock or country-rock and I kind of got pulled into the pedal steel through that music, through hearing it on the records that I liked. It starts out sounding like a Neil Young song with just an acoustic guitar, but then it has some synths. They did two version of that song. That was fun since I had done all these albums with Dave in the preceding years. Weve been doing live streaming shows from the Bay Area. For more ideas on utilizing the pedal steel sonically, check out the page below, Stay up to date on articles, tabs, and more, The pedal steel is much easier than it seems if you approach it with certain essentials in mind. I put it together myself from maybe a few takes. The idea that you were going to have to go to Vietnam and maybe kill people, it wasnt conducive to thinking about being a musician. She seems sweet. This edition features pedal-steel guitarist Greg Leisz. I didnt have any role models or anyone that would suggest that could even be a possibility. I got pretty good. It was that tour. Join The Robert Plant / Alison Krauss album was another amazing record. Being a mailman was great because you had a car and you drove around and delivered mail. That was fascinating since I spent more time with her and got to see more process. There was a Judy Collins album called Who Knows Where the Time Goes. Youre on Safe and Sound with Taylor Swift and Civil Wars. Almost all of the keys are provided. And its interesting to me that youd think of that. On pedals,he plays both necks very well and he told me he's been playing a U-12 Sierra on the Bill Frisell gig.On lap,he plays a number of tunings and seems to come up with nice stuff even if it's a tuning he just made up to suit a certain song.No slouch on standard guitar either.I've been trying to get him on the forum as he's aware his name I already knew it and I came out of the Sixties and had a folkie background and could understand that stuff. He does some nice work on Jakob Dylan's "Women And Country". She Ended Up Finding Herself, Hear Ann-Margret and Pete Townshends New Take on the Everly Brothers Bye Bye Love, Through the Morning, Through the Night., video where Jackson is getting a heart transplant, David Lindley, Multi-Instrumentalist Who Shaped the Sound of Soft Rock, Dead at 78, How Deem Spencer Learned to be Vulnerable on His New Album adultSW!M, Suki Waterhouse Won't Take Romance For Granted on New Single 'To Love', Travis Barker Says His Finger Ligament Surgery Was a 'Success' After Postponing Blink-182 Tour, J-Hope, Boygenius, and All the Songs You Need to Know This Week, DeSantis Disney Appointee Said Tap Water Might Be Turning People Gay. On the fall leg, Van Morrison didnt do it. He was inspired to pick up the pedal steel after hearing Sneaky Pete Kleinow and Buddy Emmons. I heard this, and could not get that steel guitar sound out of my head. Starting in 1986 or so, your credits list gets insane pretty quick. His tunings include low G (D G D G B D) and a secret tuning that he uses in three different keys-one for each of three instruments. As an Amazon Associate Playpedalsteel.com earns from qualifying purchases. Free Shipping if you live in the North American US - email me directly for shipping everywhere else. Another year went by, and one day I got a text. Getting to all the great records hes played on would have resulted in an interview longer than Infinite Jest and the uncut edition of Stephen Kings The Stand combined. It was Steve Gadd and [organist] Walt Richmond and Doyle and Eric. It didnt say who it was from. Thats another one of those random things. Why am I going there? I had no idea. Lindley's style led me to Greg Leisz, my greatest inspiration. It was very quick. She was living in Nashville and he was in Los Angeles. They were referencing a lot of what they thought of as Seventies music, and using it. The early Eighties must have been rough then. The pedal steel has an uncanny ability to add so much to any recording, especially one that features a singer-songwriter with an acoustic guitar. John Bohlinger. Eventually, when I finally got one, I had friends that I could play along with. Playing on that record was a big deal to me. All Lap Steels 2022-2023 Asher Electro Hawaiian Junior Lap Steel Black with Gig Bag! Im wondering if thats something youd ever like to do.. To view the purposes they believe they have legitimate interest for, or to object to this data processing use the vendor list link below. The reason Im on this song [laughs] is because Jim called me and said, Im mixing this song. She was just like, I dont need this anymore.. http://archive.guitarplayer.com/archive/artists/frisell.shtml. I ended up working on a few other albums with him. It wasnt from the manager or a business person. Continue with Recommended Cookies, Tabs can be a great way to reference musical patterns and learn new playing ideas on the pedal steel guitar. My first musical experiences were hearing her sing around the house. I dont think the one I play on was in Pretty Woman. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. I can teach myself.. Leiszs tone is crystal clear on this one, and is captivating. He also writes songs. Pedal Steel. I didnt have one and said Id like to play it. I grew up in a family where I didnt have older brothers or sisters. Help While he was mixing, he had a conversation with her and she said, Theres a song in there called Right in Time. When we recorded it, I wanted to have a 12-string guitar go through the whole song, but they talked me out of it.. So tasteful! More recently, you worked with Phoebe Bridgers. Similar to playing with a slide or playing pedal steel, the lap steel uses a bar that slides across the strings. I love the layering and devotion to the song instead of the instrument. Thats another crazy story. He began playing guitar and soon added dobro and lap steel. She didnt want a lot of guitar parts. Youve been really busy recently. I'm pretty new to the world of steel but I'm completely captivated by the subtle detail work Greg Leisz does on 'Bon Iver, Bon Iver.'. It has a deep, full body sound, with amazing resonance. He was still married to her at that time. And until the record came out, I didnt even see the producer until after I finished the session. Not to be pigeonholed in just roots music, Leisz (pronounced "Lees") has also played with the likes of Beck, Matthew Sweet, Bad Religion, the Smashing Pumpkins, and Brian Wilson. He tried to get a deal as a solo artist and he was told that he should get a band around him. If you think about that era, I was in the mid-Sixties conundrum generation where you had a generation gap and a draft. We met the day I got the studio. I was basically asked to play all the guitars on the album. Right on Nate! Around the 1:32 mark, Leiszs beautiful harmonics grace the listener in the higher frequencies. I love that song too. It is always a pleasure to hear Leiszs playing. One lesson that will aid your set of lap steel guitar lessons nicely is this one from your friends at the National Guitar Academy: Slide Guitar Tuning: The Essential Guide. Gretsch Custom Shop Tour. It was one of those things where it was just an afterthought as he was making this record. Enjoy weekend savings on Fender, Gretsch, and more. Leisz has an amazing ability to generate sounds that the pedal steel isnt usually associated with. I had to decide whether it was good myself. And then I was like, Wow, I can actually play this stuff. Greg Leisz is prolific, to say the least. I wanted to know where she wanted me to play. On pedals,he plays both necks very well and he told me he's been playing a U-12 Sierra on the Bill Frisell gig.On lap,he plays a number of tunings and seems to come up with nice stuff even if it's a tuning he just made up to suit a certain song.No slouch on standard guitar either.I've been trying to get him on the forum as he's aware his name comes up from time to time.Hey Greg - you out there? And it came out really good. I said, Oh great. And I had to go, How do you deal with that? But thats another story. That was the case with Joni Mitchell. Ron called me and said, I just want you to know I used your pedal steel in this Jeep commercial. We were both sitting there with acoustic guitars and I play a little on this song. His playing on this track sits well in the mix with a tone that hooks the listener. I was able to play a lot of different kinds of music. Powered by Infopop www.infopop.com 2000 Its kind of funny. Diagrams that display the minor pentatonic scale notes on the E9 fretboard. Terry . And when she was young, she actually sang in a Broadway musical and light opera in the mid-Forties, during the war. Some of it is credited and other things arent properly credited since that thing was a mess in the latter stages of that record. They were all playing together and I was in the band with them. Hearing Leisz' work on that Bon Iver album convinced me that pedal steel is where I want to head. All Rights reserved. Its overwhelming. Your purchases help youth music programs get the gear they need to make music. I really liked that project. I had met Victoria before that. Then you were with Joni Mitchell on Turbulent Indigo in 1994. All are renowned in the business, but some are less well known to the general public. The key to it working out was we had a couple conversations on the phone. Use the following techniques: Hold the bar in between your thumb and middle finger. Playpedalsteel.com also participates in affiliate programs with CJ, PartnerStack, and other sites. I never really liked the Grateful Dead, and now Im in Bobs band the Wolf Brothers with Don Was. K D Lang's "Ingenue" album has superb playing by Greg Leize. The year after that, Morning Phase was the album of the year. Classic country shuffle styles for Band-in-a-Box, by BIAB guru Jim Baron. He just sits up there in his golf shirt and jeans and is up there like he just walked out of his house and went down to the local bar and hes onstage playing. lang's Grammy-winning Absolute Torch and Twang and joined her on the resulting tour. He has an uncanny ability to always connect with the listeners ears. My understanding is he uses a '66 bolt-on push/pull for most of his studio work. And it was a cool thing to get to do that. I love the Victoria Williams song Crazy Mary. You play on that. At some point, Roxette came to town for a gig and they asked me to come into the studio and play with them. It wasnt the first band that wasnt successful that I was in, but it was the band that had the most attention focused on it, quite a bit in a very short time. We did a spring leg and a fall leg. It really wasnt like I saw the Beatles on TV and said, I want to be like them. I never really did that. Up until that time, it seemed like there was always some kind of a studio you worked in. In 1987, Leisz began working with Dave Alvin (formerly of The Blasters). Lap Steel. She decided she wanted to go play some live shows. Hes the one that knew me. I recently tried to just make a list of the names of the people Id played with, but it was so many that I had to stop. I love how unconventional Leiszs pedal steel has been on many recordings. What happened in that time? youtu.be. I started teaching myself how to play out of these folk-music books, which basically had songs by the Kingston Trio and Burl Ives, like On Top of Old Smokey., When I heard Tom Dooley by the Kingston Trio, that totally hit me. Put your index finger on top of the bar, which helps you guide and control it. A few weeks later, they called me back and I did another song. He was doing a record with her. Actually, Ive been working a lot with Jackson Browne. Oh, man can Greg play the steel! Yeah. I have to go back pretty far. Facebook 0 Twitter LinkedIn 0 Reddit Tumblr. You get very disillusioned about that being a possibility, but you still keep doing it. Once I got to the point where I could hang out in bars, I used to go to country bars. Log in, Steel Guitar Forum LLCPO Box 237Mount Horeb, WI 53572 USA. "Legends of the Incredible Lap Steel". It was from Eric. I did a couple of songs, and then a couple of days later, I played on another song. Im not going to try and edit what you do.. I really just worked with one of the guys. When legendary artists head into the studio nowadays, theres a good chance theyll have Leisz play steel on the production. I basically was just playing music with my friends. To make a long story short, I knew her engineer and he asked me to come play on the record. Those guys are people that I just and I watched the Daft Punk segment, which was great. But I have worked on several other sessions with him, including several where we played live in the studio, like Mutations.
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