Members Mr.Grumpy Posted February 16, 2012 Members Share Posted February 16, 2012 A few more tips then... I like having a guitar set up just for slide, not everyone has that luxury. But it's a great way to get use out of a 'cheap/crummy' guitar with a warped neck, bad frets, whatever. Just raise the bridge up to get the action nice and high. Heavier strings help too. Open tunings (tuning your guitar to a chord) makes it easier to play rhythm, but can be confounding if you try to solo - the normal pentatonic 'box' patterns aren't there anymore. However, even a simple, bluesy double-stop slide riff can sound cool - check the guitar solo in ZZ Top's 'Sharp Dressed Man' for an example. Pick with your fingers, not a pick. Muting (deadening) un-used strings is important, probably why your slide playing sounds messy. With a little amp-like distortion, you only need 2 or 3 strings sounding at a time, if that. You have to intonate the notes yourself, so you must LISTEN to yourself playing and get used to hitting the note more-or-less in tune. Playing with backing tracks will help here, because it will be very obvious when you're playing out of tune. Developing that natural ear to hit notes on pitch takes practice. The heavy vibrato that part of the slide guitar sound helps cover up less than perfect intonation. I play slide 'over handed', lap-steel style myself. I never got the hang of playing slide the normal way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gdsmithtx Posted February 16, 2012 Members Share Posted February 16, 2012 And I can safely say I don't {censored}in get it. I can't seem to do all the cool {censored} other people do. What's the secret? The second half of this DVD is a really good resource for standard tuning slide playing: Warren Haynes: Electric Blues & Slide Guitar It is available used all over the place, and is also on Netflix. The non-slide portion of the DVD is excellent too. Here's the intro performance to the slide portion of the DVD: [video=youtube;TIBdT_sIJ3c] A random Warren slide lesson that came up on youtube: [video=youtube;J5OLrK3WtvA] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Angry Tele Posted February 16, 2012 Members Share Posted February 16, 2012 practice. billy gibbons uses low action and super light strings so the so-called "slide set-up" is a myth and Jeff Beck and Page play in standard tuning so theres that too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MyNameIsMok... Posted February 16, 2012 Members Share Posted February 16, 2012 practice.billy gibbons uses low action and super light strings so the so-called "slide set-up" is a mythand Jeff Beck and Page play in standard tuning so theres that too. It's not a myth, it's an approach. And a valid one for a beginner's momentem. The hard stuff can come later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 thanks for the tips. I guess my problem is it seems to be difficult to make notes ring out rather than be a sloppy mess. considering how easy some people make it appear, I was surprised at how difficult it was.are you deadening the notes/strings you don't want? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 Here's a little somewhat sloppy and pretty basic slide junk from a gig a while back in standard tuning. Slide stuff starts at about the 2 minute mark. [video=youtube;Hafts5dL5UQ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 It's not a myth, it's an approach. And a valid one for a beginner's momentem. The hard stuff can come later. Yeah, I don't think one can play Dave Hole tunes with normal action. If one's style is very heavy-handed and percussive, its a necessity to have higher action and thicker strings (though at that point, I would recommend the more versatile lap steel). IMHO, heavy-handed playing can be even harder because it can sound very messy very fast. But if you want soloing, and especially to be able to swap between playing slide and not in the same song, it really helps to develop the light touch from the very start and not develop habits that may need breaking later. If someone wants to do George Harrison licks I suggest they work with the everyday guitar, concentrate on the BGD strings (which create a chord) a thin glass slide, some compression and a light touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members genesis3 Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 The alternate tuning to open G is way fun because a world of licks lie lined up string to string to string , etc with very little slide movement. Pick and fingers will get you exploring them.. One thing that is cool is sliding into or out of those lined up notes string to string by a half or even quarter step...As you fiddle with it, your pick hand will sort learn when and where to mute Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jimash Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 All of the tips here are good and sensible. I can play slide but mostly shy away from it.Since I can't cop some of the famous licks or remember where the notes are in open tunings I ususlly ( but not always) do it in standard or drop D, but I am pretty much gassing for a lap steel in Em for the Gilmour thing. anyway the best slide player I ever played with did what he said was Duane Alman technique. He used his fingertips to mute the strings individually and play them very deliberately. It was amazing. I can't do it. Palm mute is pretty important if you are playing with some gain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Flatspotter Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 That's my favorite Zappa solo, too. Frank pinched it from The Torture Never Stops. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Grantus Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 I'm a total hack but what works for me is open tunings and the Stew mac slide nut on my Dano played lap steel stylehttp://www.stewmac.com/shop/Nuts,_saddles/Resonator_nuts,_saddles/Slide_Guitar_Extension_Nut.html?actn=100101&xst=3&xsr=3668 That looks like an interesting idea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members stomias Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 standard tuning... http://www.fileswap.com/dl/qixpSX1y/Mixdown_(4).mp3.html Open tuning http://www.fileswap.com/dl/IEKwg7xQ/lr11final.mp3.html Inspired by tuning lapsteel to a Maj7th chord http://www.fileswap.com/dl/YmhvV6xtDg/Rmods_(1).mp3.html Open E slide with some banjo! Will eventually have vocal tracks so feel free to use it as a BT............ http://www.fileswap.com/dl/WtloTRO/vpmegnocompnewfade.mp3.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MyNameIsMok... Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 anyway the best slide player I ever played with did what he said was Duane Alman technique. He used his fingertips to mute the strings individually and play them very deliberately. It was amazing. I can't do it. Palm mute is pretty important if you are playing with some gain. Yeah, I forgot about the full clawhammer technique, when you rest your fingers individually on each string. This produces awesome results, but takes more dexterity/a lighter touch. Kind of an intermediate to advanced skill level approach (best if you've been playing for some years first developing touch). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dZjupp Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 right hand - fingers, no pick. when i started to play slide like this (granted i became infatuated with derek ttrucks and saw him twice in the past year) i found way more control and better tone. also moved from a brass slide to a glass slide. whats great about getting good at slide is that when you whip it out at a show, it can be a total show stopper since its soooo different than playing normal lead. i find alot more emotion coming through on slide than anything else (playing lead). Also what helped me was moving to 11's. i don't think i even raised my action but the bigger strings provided much better control overall. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members AndrewGG Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 I use a hybrid pick and fingers technique for slide, and have a cheapo Chinese Squier Strat set up just for slide-high action because I like to use a heavy slide and dig in. Slide guitar isn't the easiest technique to learn, and you need to be super accurate in placing the slide or it'll sound crap. I use 12s on the Strat and a heavy, chrome-plated brass Dunlop #228 slide. Practise, practise, practise... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members photon9 Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 This is one of my favorite slide solos ever. I don't know if Frank played it but I kinda doubt it. Still awesome anyway. [video=youtube;WJF-oMbozZE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WJF-oMbozZE EDIT: Self-correction. Frank didn't play it. Sneaky Pete Kleinow did. I never heard of him before this either. Impressive. It's odd that wikipedia describes the solo as an aural nightmare. I think it's beautiful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Just_Might_Be_a_One-Shot_Deal Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ajympt Posted February 17, 2012 Members Share Posted February 17, 2012 I have tried and failed a few times myself with the slide adventure - I always approach it with delusions of grandeur and end up with "asthmatic cat caught in a screen door " someday I will get it right ..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Doctor49 Posted February 18, 2012 Members Share Posted February 18, 2012 Yeah, I forgot about the full clawhammer technique, when you rest your fingers individually on each string. This produces awesome results, but takes more dexterity/a lighter touch. Kind of an intermediate to advanced skill level approach (best if you've been playing for some years first developing touch). think its easier if you start off with slide doing this (once you have fiddled around with left hand to get the pressure, weight and accuracy feeling.) If you learn to do it first with pick and heavy touch, the clawhammer right hand will be a lot harder to get .A bit like learning flamenco with a pick. Sneaky Pete did stuff with lots of people including the Byrds.And I think the "aural nightmare" is only a writer's contrast to the "dreamy smoothness" decription of the start of the piece.........not a reflection of the musical quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted February 18, 2012 Members Share Posted February 18, 2012 EDIT: Self-correction. Frank didn't play it. Sneaky Pete Kleinow did. I never heard of him before this either. Impressive. It's odd that wikipedia describes the solo as an aural nightmare. I think it's beautiful. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/It_Just_Might_Be_a_One-Shot_Deal Yeah, that's not slide guitar either. There is a lot of pedal and knee lever action going on on that pedal steel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members photon9 Posted February 18, 2012 Members Share Posted February 18, 2012 Yeah, that's not slide guitar either.There is a lot of pedal and knee lever action going on on that pedal steel. You're right. It is a pedal steel. Sounds amazing to me though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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