This track is beautiful and Leiszs pedal steel comes in almost right away. I think hed become aware of my playing on a couple of other records, especially this K.D. That was fun since I had done all these albums with Dave in the preceding years. That happens a lot of the time. 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? We just did a video of whats going to be his next single. They ended up pulling it because of that incident. In 2010 and 2011, Leisz toured with Ray LaMontagne as a member of his backing band, The Pariah Dogs. Hearing Leisz' work on that Bon Iver album convinced me that pedal steel is where I want to head. Greg's playing on Bon Iver is some of my favorite steel playing of all. The same thing happened when I heard pedal steel on records that I listened to. 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. He has played on so many noteworthy productions, with so many great artists, that to say he has been influential in modern music is probably an understatement. We were both sitting there with acoustic guitars and I play a little on this song. Thats because Ive done a lot of stuff with T Bone Burnett. Here, these artists tell their complete stories, giving an up-close look at life on musics A list. The other guy was Steves co-producer [Ray Kennedy]. I had to decide whether it was good myself. I got a job as a janitor and as a substitute mailman for a while. Continue with Recommended Cookies, Tabs can be a great way to reference musical patterns and learn new playing ideas on the pedal steel guitar. Why am I going there? I had no idea. I thought, Well, my names in there. It sort of became an avenue to make a living by expanding my vocabulary as a guitar player. Feb 12, 2008. The sound of the guitars blew my mind. 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. That band was really the brainchild of this guy named Richard Stekol, who was one third of the songwriting triumvirate of that band. And she got Roy Bittan. I think that happened when she was on tour with Neil Young. At first, she thought shed use Brians jazz band. 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. She was bringing in a lot of guitar players and people she knew to overdub on songs that already had guitars on. Lindley's style led me to Greg Leisz, my greatest inspiration. February 21, 2023. I had seen her play live when she opened for Sarah McLachlan in Los Angeles. Thats one of my favorite Lucinda Williams songs. We already have a guitar player. I could see it as a smart thing to do. This track has such a sweet groove to it, and Leisz adds just the right ambience to float with it. It is in near mint condition and comes with a custom deluxe Cedar Creek hardshell case. Once you get an instrument in your hand and start playing it, you go, Wow. Then you teach yourself something and youre able to do it, you can apply it, its mind-expanding. These five tunings for 6 string lap steel guitar are great starting points for anyone just beginning the lap steel adventure: C6 - C E G A C E - The C6 tuning is by far the most common modern tuning for solid body lap steel guitars. 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. Rolling Stone interview series Unknown Legends features long-form conversations between senior writer Andy Greene and veteran musicians who have toured and recorded alongside icons for years, if not decades. Very nice and tasteful playing. I just liked the sound of the guitar and I wanted to do it. It can help with memorizing note names/positions, locating pockets, learningkey signatures, and more. 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. She had already done all her drum parts and vocals and most of the bass. More recently, you worked with Phoebe Bridgers. Another close collaborator is Bill Frisell, with whom he tours regularly and is featured on the albums Good Dog, Happy Man, Blues Dream, The Intercontinentals, Disfarmer, All We Are Saying, and Guitar in the Space Age. Pick up any Matthew Sweet album.. The record came out and you cant even hear what I played. That album [Loose] was a really great album for me. After the band broke up, he became a popular musician both in the studio and on the road. She didnt want a lot of guitar parts. The Robert Plant / Alison Krauss album was another amazing record. To me, thats really interesting to do that. Sometimes you just kind of go, Why did they pay me the money? Leisz has such a great melodic sense, and this song has it on full display. Yeah. Shes fantastic. Fortunately, my mother was musical, even though she sang more opera. That pretty much sums it up. The 100 Best Albums of 2022. 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. This track will really take you on a ride into the sonic frontiers, and Leisz shows just how much expression the pedal steel is capable of. My wife plays bass with David Crosby. Victoria played guitar and I played pedal steel on it. Playpedalsteel.com is compensated for referring traffic and business to these companies.if(typeof ez_ad_units!='undefined'){ez_ad_units.push([[300,250],'playpedalsteel_com-large-leaderboard-1','ezslot_8',176,'0','0'])};__ez_fad_position('div-gpt-ad-playpedalsteel_com-large-leaderboard-1-0');report this ad, Pedal Steel Fretboards (Info, Functions, Types), Pedal Steel Guitar in Nashville (Shows, Players, Info), Pedal Steel on Todays Music Scene: A Hidden Gem, 9 Best Pedal Steel Guitars (That Sound AMAZING). What happened in that time? I went back to Chicago and worked on that with James. At the 2:44 mark check out Leiszs cool harmonic lick that echoes the vocals. Watch this gear and we'll notify you if it becomes available again. I was usually to shy to go up and talk to anybody about it, but I just kind of absorbed the music. Married to Mai Leisz . Why was I even there? Its kind of a disappointing thing. They just took pieces of it and moved it around. 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). If you think about that era, I was in the mid-Sixties conundrum generation where you had a generation gap and a draft. Its kind of funny. Nonesuch Records 2001 . Its overwhelming. ], Note: Messages not explicitly copyrighted are in the Public Domain. I taught myself how to play. I didnt have any role models or anyone that would suggest that could even be a possibility. She made one record before that, at least. Kiley Dean Began As Britney Spears' Backup Singer. It is always a pleasure to hear Leiszs playing. 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. My understanding is he uses a '66 bolt-on push/pull for most of his studio work. He said, Im not sure what songs Im going to do. It wasnt much. Leisz's ability to add whatever a track needs always feels natural and timeless at the same time. I basically grew up inside of that. Hes the one that knew me. Email admin@steelguitarforum.com for technical support. Youre on Paula Coles I Dont Want to Wait, which was an enormous song. He is a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. She had a strong vision. This is a gorgeous Asher Acoustic Hawaiian Teardrop Lap Steel owned and played by Greg Leisz who had been using it for recording and touring with Jackson Browne. 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). 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. Especially the solo on "Pony". Four years later, I worked with her again on Taming the Tiger. He spent time at the Ashgrove, the Troubador, and clubs on the Sunset Strip . I didnt know him then. 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. We got a record deal because of Jack Tempchins past of writing songs for the Eagles on their early records. Hed heard me play pedal steel, but he didnt know I had blues knowledge that went deep. Billy was in one room working on his stuff and James was in this other room working on his song. The year after that, Morning Phase was the album of the year. It was the sound of it. Tunings The Lap steel guitar is not tuned in standard guitar tuning ( E-A-D-G-B-E, low to high). They tweaked it here and there and made that the track. August 20, 2019. He also writes songs. 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: Private Messages I actually went to college for a while and studied geology. Im very lucky. At least that's what David told me 25 years ago. Greg Leisz net worth is $800,000 Greg Leisz Wiki: Salary, Married, Wedding, Spouse, Family Gregory Brian Leisz (pronounced "Lease") (born September 18, 1949, Buffalo, New York, United States) is an American musician. 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. My understanding is he uses a '66 bolt-on push/pull for most of his studio work. Note chart for the E9 pedal steel neck. But I love that song. Oh, man can Greg play the steel! Getting Started (C6th Hawaiian Tabs)Hawaiian Steel Guitar. Well, in those 10 years, I spent a lot of time playing in clubs, basically. How has your pandemic year gone? He met Jules Shear. I really do like what I played on that song. I swear to God, I said to myself, I dont know who this is texting me. I think I had to think for five or 10 minutes. Add To Cart. When we ended up playing together, it was kind of fun even though he barely remembered me. He's on all of them.. All recordings used a Boss RV-5 set on hall reverb, a Fender black face Vibro-Champ amp and a Shure SM-57 mic. When I heard electric guitar on records, I wanted to play that. 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. So tasteful! Jim Scott ended up mixing that album. Its a song called Moonlight Motel. Its the last song on the record. Use the following techniques: Hold the bar in between your thumb and middle finger. To wrap here, how do you feel when you look at your credits and just see hundreds and hundreds of songs? Hundreds of pages of practice, instruction, and reference materials for E9 pedal steel. And then I started working with some musicians that were playing in some of the folk clubs in Southern California. There was something called new country. Once that started happening, I had been pre-conditioned to play that kind of music. Playpedalsteel.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. If it didnt have a purpose, theyd just take it out. I dont think the label was very confident. 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. Hes help put the pedal steel on the map of countless areas of music that it probably had never been before. I just got contacted. K D Lang's "Ingenue" album has superb playing by Greg Leize. I was also on Where Have All the Cowboys Gone, which was pretty big too. 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. I think I became really aware of his tone and his playing. The people that you meet and have a connection with, suddenly theres another connection later on. When she was making Car Wheels, that was really at the end stages of the record. We hadnt even learned many songs when we got our record deal, and Arista, Clive Davis, signed the band. Once you start using the low C# tuning on the lap steel, you have completely different instrument than an 8 string tuned to G E C A G E C A. Help I love how unconventional Leiszs pedal steel has been on many recordings. All the parts have a reason for being there. The group released their debut album, WPA, on September 15, 2009. Ive come full circle with him. It was just that Billy Corgan was allowing James to do one song on a double album. Any kind of musical style or production can probably be enhanced one way or another with a touch of Leiszs pedal steel, and this track is no exception. Thats another situation where I wasnt involved in the tracking. I was like, Now I have to get an electric guitar. That was the start of the garage-band culture of the Sixties. When he was working on it, I got brought in. anyone know? All Lap Steels 2022-2023 Asher Electro Hawaiian Junior Lap Steel Black with Gig Bag! He came out of that world in England where he heard Muddy Waters and it was all over for him. Leisz's playing has appeared throughout the years on recordings by Aaron Neville, Alison Krauss, Amos Lee, Beck, Bill Frisell, Black Crowes, Bon Iver, Bruce Cockburn, Bruce Springsteen, Cass McCombs, Chuck Prophet, Daft Punk, Dave Alvin, Eagles, Emmylou Harris, Eric Clapton, Glenn Frey, Grant Lee Buffalo, Haim, Jackson Browne, Joe Cocker, John Fogerty, John Mayer, John Stewart, Joni Mitchell, k.d. Ive been very fortunate since all my friends and family have remained healthy and fine. When I saw Greg with the Intercontinentals a few months ago, he was playing an Asher lap steel, Bob Hoffnar's Emmons push-pull, (Greg uses a PP for recordings he told us), and what I thought it was an old Rickenbacker lap in some kind of E tuning. Youre on Safe and Sound with Taylor Swift and Civil Wars. His heart gets taken out because its broken. Search Originally played on the lap, the instrument was a modification to the Spanish guitar, whereby the strings were raised by a half inch, creating what was at . Send us a tip using our anonymous form. Honestly, though, I hardly play it as I've been really focusing on C6 (and E6). Pedal Steel. Once I could actually play the guitar, I started meeting a couple of other kids in the neighborhood and wed play together. 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. And then he did the Jeep commercial on the Super Bowl. Im wondering if thats something youd ever like to do.. As far as chords on different frets, one of the essential techniques for playing steel (as opposed to just slide . 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 is going back to her second album. And then Paul Carrack. 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. 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, 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, The 6 Best Ways To Use Compressors: TIPS & Tricks, 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), Almost Every Chord Youll Ever Need for E9, Easily Utilize the Nashville Number System, All Major and Minor Pentatonic Scales, Modes, Major Scales, An In-Depth Guide to Picking and Blocking, How to Efficiently and Accurately Play Notes on Steel Guitar with, Great for Pedal Steel, Lap Steel, and Console Steel Guitar, Over 100 Pages with Graphics, Illustrations, & Practice Exercises, Great for Country, Alt-Country, & Honky-Tonk Styles. He was a member of Funky Kings who released their eponymous debut album on Arista Records in 1976. Were going to try and match the sound and have you play the 12-string in the parts that arent there. If you look at the credits, it has two players playing 12-string on the song. His tone (on recent recordings) is, in my opinion, the best you will find in the world. He was already famous before he graduated because of the Nico thing. He basically gave me a banjo. With his ability to add texture to the music, and unconventional sonic expressions to the music, his playing feels like putting the final piece into a puzzle. You can do anything you want. He asked me to come to Chicago and I was there. Interestingly enough, there is this thread between Victoria Williams and Joni Mitchell. Brian didnt think that was a great idea. Hundreds of pages of practice, instruction, and reference materials for E9 pedal steel. I saw Rosie play in San Francisco a couple years ago - she was great! Youre touring with Bob Weir now. 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.'. But once I started hearing songs on the radio I liked, Id memorize them and play them on the piano. I didnt study music because I didnt think that was a career option for me. The key to it working out was we had a couple conversations on the phone. Up until that time, it seemed like there was always some kind of a studio you worked in. He appeared in the 2016 Cameron Crowe cable television series Roadies, accompanying Jackson Browne on three songs in the last episode of the series. I got pretty good. It is very versatile and there is a lot of learning material available online. The lap steel guitar, also known as a Hawaiian guitar, is a type of steel guitar without pedals that is typically played with the instrument in a horizontal position across the performer's lap.Unlike the usual manner of playing a traditional acoustic guitar, in which the performer's fingertips press the strings against frets, the pitch of a steel guitar is changed by pressing a polished steel . In 1987, Leisz began working with Dave Alvin (formerly of The Blasters). For decades, the Southern California-based multi-instrumentalist has been a go-to guitarist and pedal steel player for musicians such as Eric Clapton, Buddy Miller, John Mayer, Bill Frisell, k.d. When legendary artists head into the studio nowadays, theres a good chance theyll have Leisz play steel on the production. The best way for me to do that was, I felt, I needed to play music, not sit around and wait for something to happen.