Personal History

I was first introduced to the lap steel guitar when I was 12 years old. My parents enrolled my brother and I in the Honolulu Conservatory of Music. We had Oahu 6 string lap steel with a white mother of pearl finish and a white Oahu amplifier, volume pedal, and needed accessories. We played for two years and we got good enough that we played at school talent shows, church functions and we even played at the Wester Washington State Fair in Puyallup WA. At the end of the two year contract my brother and I had a decision to make. Continue on, and our parents would buy us double or triple neck console guitars or opt out. This would commit us to another two or three year contract. To 11 and 14 year old boys this was a lifetime, especially since we wanted to play baseball, hike and camp. We both decided to abandon the steel guitar.

After a 41 year hiatus I decided to renter the steel guitar world. At first, my motivations were mixed. I had been playing hockey and enjoyed the game very much. Even though it was shinny league, it still could get rough. After receiving two concussions in the same season, it was time to find a new hobby with my health intact. I have always enjoyed country music, everything from Bob Wills to George Straight. I also enjoy swing, blues, jazz and oldies rock and roll. Many people do not realize that the pedal steel guitar was used by bands like the Doobie Brothers in Tell Me What You Want And I Will Give You What You Need, and South City Midnight Lady. Or the Eagles in Ol' '55 written by Tom Waits who also played the steel. Other rock bands that had a steel guitar from time to time in the band included Poco, Bob Dylan, Steely Dan, Byrds and Judy Collins. In all of this music from country to rock it was the steel guitar my ear was always drawn to. I needed a hobby and this seemed like the one for me. Little did I realize, I would become infected with a passion for this beautiful sounding guitar.

I started doing research on pedal steel guitars and which one would be best for me. I finally settled on a Carter D10 8/5. This guitar has two necks with 10 strings on each neck, 8 pedals and five levers. I had the standard Emmons setup. I also purchased a Peavy Nashville 110 amplifier, Goodrich volume pedal, cables, picks, and instructional material from Jeffran College of Music. After an agonizing 6 month wait, my guitar was shipped. When I received my guitar, I set up my guitar and began using the instructional materials I had purchased. I soon realized, this was not going to be sufficient. I was going to need an instructor. I then began searching for an instructor and found 4 in the local area and one was within 15 minutes of my house. I called him and set up an appointment.

In my next post I will describe my gear.