greg leisz lap steel tuning

I just liked the sound of the guitar and I wanted to do it. The Robert Plant / Alison Krauss album was another amazing record. He didnt introduce anyone. He basically gave me a banjo. I didnt listen to contemporary music for a long time, probably from around the late Seventies until the late Eighties. It complements it so well. Why am I going there? I had no idea. She was unhappy with her producer and had lost her guitar player because I think it was her boyfriend and they had broken up. http://archive.guitarplayer.com/archive/artists/frisell.shtml. You dont meet the artists. We went in the studio to make another record and the band broke apart during the dramas of making the second record. 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. Girlfriend is a classic My absolute favorite steel player. 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. Gretsch Custom Shop Tour. : Wikipedia : Charles Lloyd & The Marvels, Funky Kings, The All Star Band, Watkins Family Hour, Works Progress Administration : | Greg Leisz I havent really been hunkered down as much in the last couple of months, particularly since Ive been vaccinated. Theyd stick it in their wallet and maybe theyd lose it, or maybe theyd write it down. Leisz enjoyed collaborating with her for nearly twenty years straight, and this musical dynamic is always worth listening to. 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. He said, OK, Im going to do a Hop Wilson song where I can feature you. That was a big deal for me since when we actually did go on tour, I just played utility. Up to an additional 30% off shop-wideEnjoy weekend savings on Fender, Gretsch, and moreShop now, View similar gear from other sellers on Reverb. I dont know how else to describe how I feel. T Bone actually had me come in and overdub. We and our partners use cookies to Store and/or access information on a device. I saw her on Saturday Night Live. I worked on a bunch of stuff with her, including a bunch of stuff that was never released when she got dropped from Warner Bros. To jump ahead, youre on Right on Time on Car Wheels on a Gravel Road. Tell me your first memories of being a kid and hearing music that really reached you. They did all that stuff in Nashville. It sets the tone for the rest of the track, seguing smoothly into Alison Krausss vocals. 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. That was great, for me. Anyway, it was great for me. The same thing happened when I heard pedal steel on records that I listened to. They were different sessions and I recorded with her sitting right next to me while I overdubbed. With good reason -- the man's resum is daunting, boasting spots with Joni Mitchell, Sheryl Crow, Peter Case, Paul Westerberg, Me'Shell NdegeOcello, Victoria Williams, Joe Cocker, Dave Alvin, k.d. Going back here, can you talk about playing with the Smashing Pumpkins on Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness? At least that's what David told me 25 years ago. Long story short, we made one record. The last plane flight I was on, I went to New York at the beginning of last February. Thats another one of those random things. That was the first time I worked with him. A marvelous pedal steel player, Leisz has some of the most tasteful playing and impactful tone. At the 2:44 mark check out Leiszs cool harmonic lick that echoes the vocals. All Lap Steels 2022-2023 Asher Electro Hawaiian Junior Lap Steel Black with Gig Bag! Please excuse my ignorance, but what is a "bolt-on push pull"? If it didnt have a purpose, theyd just take it out. We want to hear it. Ive worked with Lucinda a lot since then, and even co-produced two of the last three albums [The Ghosts of Highway 20 and Down Where the Spirit Meets the Bone] that shes made. Utilize the major scale on common positions of the fretboard using foot pedals. Shes the one that comes in and walks away with it. I did his whole record last year, which isnt out yet. Youre on Paula Coles I Dont Want to Wait, which was an enormous song. I actually didnt think much about a career. I loved it. I was pedal steel and lap steel and some mandolin. mastering by Greg Calbi. It really wasnt like I saw the Beatles on TV and said, I want to be like them. I never really did that. This track features mostly acoustic guitar and vocals, and the pedal steel is so smooth. Copyright 2023 Penske Business Media, LLC. We spent two hours on the phone with Leisz, and just barely scratched the surface of his life and career. Starting in 1986 or so, your credits list gets insane pretty quick. Does he mostly play E9? And then I went, Holy shit. I texted back to see if it was real. He basically put the band together since he was the only person that knew everyone that ended up in it. It was an amazing experience. We just did a video of whats going to be his next single. The key to it working out was we had a couple conversations on the phone. I started meeting people that came out of almost the punk era in the Eighties. Did you work with Taylor? On the fall leg, Van Morrison didnt do it. Custom pedal steel t-shirts, mugs, posters, and moredesigned in Asheville, NC. Send us a tip using our anonymous form. Married to Mai Leisz . Editors picks Leisz spent his younger years catching acts like the Byrds and the Flying Burrito Brothers in Southern California clubs. 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. Podcast 66: Greg Leisz on Buddy Emmons. Especially the solo on "Pony". Once I got to the point where I could hang out in bars, I used to go to country bars. 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. David Murphy (left) photographed by Richie Tyndall. Steel guitarist Greg Leisz, who first made his name playing on Americana records from Dave Alvin, Lucinda Williams and Bonnie Raitt, has more recently been playing on progressive-jazz albums. What sort of career did you see yourself pursuing? He began playing guitar and soon added dobro and lap steel. I wanted to figure out how to make those sounds. Well, thats a good question. In January 2008, Leisz joined the group Works Progress Administration, a band composed of Leisz, Sean Watkins (guitar), his sister Sara Watkins (fiddle), Glen Phillips (guitar, vocals), Benmont Tench (piano), Luke Bulla (fiddle), Pete Thomas (drums), and Davey Faragher (bass). 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 All are renowned in the business, but some are less well known to the general public. Thats another crazy story. Email admin@steelguitarforum.com for technical support. lang, adding pedal steel to this Grammy-winning album. By clicking Subscribe, I agree to receive exclusive offers & promotions, news & reviews, and personalized tips for buying and selling on Reverb. Related Stories It starts out sounding like a Neil Young song with just an acoustic guitar, but then it has some synths. Thats what he did. The earliest Hawaiian lap steel tuning was open A low bass, E-A-E-A-C-E. Today, most open tunings for lap steel guitar fall into 3 primary categories: It has a deep, full body sound, with amazing resonance. John Bohlinger. It was the sound of it. It wasnt from the manager or a business person. But once I started hearing songs on the radio I liked, Id memorize them and play them on the piano. And then I was like, Wow, I can actually play this stuff. Ive come full circle with him. Tony Berg is a producer Ive worked with quite a bit. I overdubbed on the song. He heard my pedal steel and thought that was something that Joni would embrace in her music. These two have such a great melodic sense, and their instruments weave in and out of each other to create a beautiful tapestry of sound. Heavier Models), Parts & Hardware (Where to Find, Details, Info), How To Open Up the E9 Tuning (for Pedal Steel), The Chord Guide for E9 Pedal Steel Guitar, The Art of Right Hand Technique (for Steel Guitar), The Elixir of E9 Pedal Steel: Harmonized 6ths, 200 Country Riffs & Licks for E9 Pedal Steel, 7 Best Pedal Steel Albums (That You Must Hear), Backing Tracks (Where To Find, Info, Types), 7 Songs Featuring Greg Leisz On Pedal Steel, Buddy Emmons Characteristics: How They Can Improve your Playing, Recording & Mixing the Pedal Steel Guitar, Pedal Steel: 5 Best Ways to Use a Compressor Pedal, How to Record Pedal Steel (and Capture its ALLURING Sound), C6 Fretboard Diagram Flat & Sharp Notes, Universal Tuning & Copedent for Pedal Steel, Pedal Steel Copedents (Info, Types, Details). The group released their debut album, WPA, on September 15, 2009. His tone (on recent recordings) is, in my opinion, the best you will find in the world. Interestingly enough, there is this thread between Victoria Williams and Joni Mitchell. That was amazing. 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.. It didnt say who it was from. As a janitor, Id work at City Hall, just cleaning bathrooms and stuff like that. She wanted something very specific. I went back to Chicago and worked on that with James. Those threads can have a huge impact on your musical journey. I sometimes just took day factory jobs in Orange County. They had gotten interested in doing stuff with live musicians. Similar to playing with a slide or playing pedal steel, the lap steel uses a bar that slides across the strings. Im fully vaccinated, have been for some time. And my wife and I spend a lot of time together during the pandemic since were both musicians. Hes credited with playing 12-string too. Theres one song where you can really hear how its cut up and moved in the track. 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. Billy was in one room working on his stuff and James was in this other room working on his song. A couple of months later, a box came to my house and it had a banjo in it. 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. I didnt know it was Eric Clapton. Mint items are in essentially new original condition but have been opened or played. I went through a little bit of soul searching. Use the modes of the C major scale in the open pedal position to play over chord changes. Greg Leisz is my favorite modern pedal steel player. Without Brian making that suggestion, I dont think she would have thought of it. No matter who I play with, I try to integrate what Im doing with what Im hearing. Jim Scott ended up mixing that album. Some of you may know about Gaby Moreno. lang, Wilco, Lucinda Williams, Bruce Cockburn, Shawn Colvin, Paula Cole, and the Venturesto name a few. She was just like, I dont need this anymore.. I really liked working with her. It was one of those things where it was just an afterthought as he was making this record. That was kind of a cool thing. I basically was just playing music with my friends. I was drawn, even before pedal steel, to traditional slide-guitar music. anyone know? He originally just wanted me on Killing the Blues. I just worked with his engineer. I didnt play live with her. The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time I had met Victoria before that. I hope I didn't make a fool of myself. I dont think the one I play on was in Pretty Woman. Yeah. Diagrams that display the major scale notes on the E9 fretboard. T Bone has a lot of I dont want to say he delegates, but he trusts musicians to just do what he thinks theyre going to do. I think hed become aware of my playing on a couple of other records, especially this K.D.