Video's of Me a newbie playing some songs

[David Ridgeway]

A blessed day to everyone

The link is at the bottom of this post and I apologize for the length of my comments, please forgive me

I am posting this link at the suggestion of a gentleman who is a steel player. He thought that you all might enjoy these videos of me playing a few songs but I really must tell you a bit of a story first because I am a newbie to playing the steel guitar.

I have been off of work for quite some time because of 2 knee surgeries. The 1st knee surgery was for a total knee replacement – Titanium to be exact (I can hear steel guitar music coming through my knee) not really just a stupid joke. I had returned to work after 3 months of recovery but then, yep you guessed it, I fell at work on the very same knee and as a result I have been off of work this time for 6 months Apr. 2012 till now Oct 2012.

For the first 2 ½ months I really didn’t do anything except convalesce and then one day in June I was listening to some music (no not through my knee) and I heard the Steel Guitar very clearly in the back ground and I remembered I had my little Dickerson Lap Steel sitting in the corner covered up and not being used. I started tinkering with it but I wasn’t serious. Sometime in the middle of July I started looking for steel guitar stuff and I found “The Steel Guitar Forum”. Through this site I discovered that there was a “vast world of steel guitar stuff” that was available through the internet, who ever came up with the idea and brought it to fruition thank you so much for the Steel Guitar Forum.

At this point I would like to thank several people:
One of my Pastors who is a steel player – 12 String Pedal who has helped me to get started and who helped me to realize that the Steel Guitar is a life long learning instrument and that it takes lots and lots of practice

Mr. George Boards for his instructional materials & Steel Guitar Camp which were instrumental (no pun intended) in my progression in learning this beautiful sounding instrument. While I realize that there are many wonderful Lap Steel products out there, I personally decided to choose Mr. Boards product and it has helped me immensely.

I would also like to thank Doug Beaumier for his books and CD’s titled 25 Songs and 25 More Songs for Lap Steel. Though these are not teaching materials, the songs that I am playing are from these books.

The praise for these gentlemen could be for anyone on this forum or anywhere in the world they just simply happen to be the ones who have been involved more closely in my endeavor to learn the Steel guitar and this is my personal testimony of how each of these men has helped me to slowly progress forward in the learning of what I believe is one of the most beautiful sounding instruments that I know of.

I read a post where someone on the forum was selling a steel guitar because he couldn’t find anyone where he lived to teach him the steel guitar so he felt like just giving up. Many of you here on the forum encouraged him to keep his guitar because there were sources available on the internet where he could learn. I saw that he asked to close his post and that he was going to keep his guitar because of all the encouragement that “You” the members here gave him. I was deeply moved at the “Circling Of The Wagons” so to speak, that you expressed towards this person.

Well as I said I have been off for 6 months but only 3 to 3 ½ months of that time has been spent in serious practice with my little Dickerson. At 55 years of age I am starting out late in learning an instrument that takes years to perfect so I spend as much time as possible with my little baby.

My day:
5:00 a.m. = Make coffee, go to my office turn down the volume and practice, clean around house and practice on my lap steel until I get sloppy i.e. start making a lot of mistakes, after I’ve been away from my lap for a while I go back and start up again

I have learned from many people Practice, Practice, Practice. Other than physical therapy and cleaning around the house I have all kinds of time. I don’t really post a lot here but I do read and take pointers and information from here and it has helped.

I am definitely no Jerry Byrd, Buddy Emmons, or any of a myriad of the wonderful steel players that are on this forum but it is by God’s grace and people like you here on this forum that I have progressed and moved forward ever so slightly and that is my goal, to move forward in the use of this instrument.

I would like to say though that I had thought of giving up but after being able to play with backup music I had gotten the feeling that I had actually accomplished something and that I was actually progressing forward and it has caused me to endeavor to persevere.

So to those out there that are new and are thinking of giving up, “Don’t” there is a vast and enormous store of knowledge here on the forum, and on the internet as well.

Thanks for reading and please forgive the mistakes on the videos.

The Lord Bless You All

David (Pop’s)

http://www.youtube.com/user/patriot435?feature=guide

[James Kerr]

David,
I watched your Tubes and can easily see why you are encouraged to keep going, because you really are going places, the work you have put in stands out a mile.

James.

[Frank Freniere]

I like it! Keep going!

[Michael Robertson]

Downright beautiful, just as simple as it supposed to be.
I have the same MOT model also in six and eight string.
You are doing a great service to yourself while you are convalescing from your knee condition.
Please keep it up not only for yourself but for those around you.
55 years old hahaha I’d like to be fifty five again.
Michael

[Doug Beaumier]

Nice playing, David. You're well on your way! I'm glad to hear that my song books have helped you to learn! I think you have a lot of potential and all of the tools you need to succeed. I notice that you've slowed down some of my backing tracks a bit. That's a good idea for learning. What software did you use to do that? Thanks for posting your videos!

[Jeff Spencer]

Fine work David. It was/is Dougs stuff that got me playing lap steel instrumentals in public at a steel guitar club - that place is full of steel players so you can only imagine the terror I do and still have experienced. WEll done and keep it up. I am 51 and loving it!!! Mistakes?? as Buddy would say " I aint finished yet!"

[David Ridgeway]

Doug:
I'll try really hard to keep this as short as possible and I would like to say Thanks You for all of the nice compliments

Ok:
What I do is convert all of the tracks that I'm going to learn (a few songs at a time) both melody and play along, into a wave format using a product called CDex from Sourceforge and save them into individually made folders with the song titles so that they're easy to find.

On my computer CDex saves the converted songs into my user folder on the C: drive. To retrieve the song I do the following
1) Goto C:
2) Click on "user or users"
3) Click on the folder with my personal name on it
4) Click on "My Music"
5) Click on "MP3"
6) Click on each successive folder that appears until I get to the saved song. The song will appear like this



I then move the song to it's designated file folder and work with it from that folder.

This is the "WAV Formatted Song" that "MUST" be used in Audacity so I do not change this title because if I need to make another Audacity change this is the song format that "HAS TO BE USED" in Audacity otherwise you'll have to go through this whole process again because of this I also made individual folders within the "Song Folders" i.e. "Original Melody & Original Play Along" titled folders. I also make individual folders for my "Tempo Changes" i.e. "Melody & Play Along". I got tired of repeating the above process so I took the extra time at the front end to save time and effort in the long run.

I then use "Audacity" to "Change Tempo", this is found in the "effects" tab. It allows me to change the tempo without changing the key or pitch.

When the "Change Tempo Window" appears I start out at a -35.00 and sometimes -40.00 for my slowest speed depending on the song. I then "Export" through Audacity and save it in the designated folder for that song title. I save it as "-35.00" in that folder and then repeat the process until my last save is "-5.00".

This is what my Master Folder looks like



After clicking on the song folder "Can't Help Falling In Love"


After licking on the Play Along folder


This is what I use and how I do it. There may be a simpler way and I know there are other software programs I just tend to use the free stuff if I can find it.

For me, doing it this way allows me to play along with Doug on the melodies while I can also look at the tab for memorization as well as the tone, pitch, sound, which ever you want to call it especially the slants I can hear how far off I am eventually I get to the point of playing without looking at the tab and have progressed in speed.

BTW; Thanks again for all the compliments

Sorry that this is so long winded, you know Pastor's we love to talk

The Lord Bless You All

David (Pop's)

[David Ridgeway]

Type-O

I don't "lick" the folders

It's a good thing I'm not running for some political office. The press could really run with that

[Doug Beaumier]

Nice work, David. I'm a big fan of Audacity. It's a great program... and it's free! Keep up the great work.

[Daniel Policarpo]

That sounded great. I like everything about the video, the sound, the tone, the steel. Nice! Keep 'em coming.