Country - pedal steel type licks

Haz478 · September 2020

Hi,

fumbling around last night found that playing e and b string 12fret then bending g string at 11th fret upto 13th fret sounds cool. I guess it’s bending into e chord.

Are there easy country songs that I could have a go at that use this type of thing. Most that I can find are break neck speed?

don’t know much country stuff?

any recommendations?

Jota · September 2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aSRpbLOfo0

Jota · September 2020

Jota · September 2020

EricTheWeary · September 2020

Levi Clay on youtube has a few country/steel type bends videos might be worth a look. He was on here but I think his account might be closed now.

Can't particularly think of any simple examples but if you listen to artists like Jim Campilongo, Greg Koch, Jerry Donahue, Roy Buchanan there's a lot of that kind of stuff going on in music that's country influenced but isn't the typical big hat, truck drivin' Nashville type country if that's any easier to listen to.

Danny1969 · September 2020

What you did is called bending into the third, so rightly as you said you made an Emaj triad by bending the F# into a G# which is the third in the scale of Emaj.

Another cool sounding one is hit the open A string, then hit the 12 fret harmonics on the B and E string together. Then go behind the nut and bend the B string up a whole tone to C# ...... Then again you have a major triad chord of A, C# and E

To create a cool sounding on in Cmaj hit the 12 fret harmonics of the G, B and E string and then go behind the nut and bend the B string up a semitone to C .... so now you have G, C and E which is a Cmaj triad inverted so the G is first instead of last.

Country style bends are some of the most inventive I think, really good fun

Jota · September 2020

Another one that also has some cool pedal steel style licks:

Jota · September 2020

Haz478 · September 2020

These are great thanks all @Danny1969 just tried those,

Bennyboy-UK · September 2020

Something to add here is also make use of a volume pedal to swell into notes and bends - its a fundamental steelie technique - and what your right foot is for

Jota · September 2020

Bennyboy-UK said:

Something to add here is also make use of a volume pedal to swell into notes and bends - its a fundamental steelie technique - and what your right foot is for

Or your pinky.

Jimbro66 · September 2020

Just to show what can be done with those type of bends here is the master at work

menamestom · September 2020

A cool variation is fret the A and D on the 12th fret and bend the G up from 11 to 13. it's a great way to end a song.

Also Fret high E 12th fret and bend the B 12 to 14.

idiotwind · September 2020

Clarence White liked doing these bends so much he invented the B-Bender to make it easier.

Adrian at Anyone Can Play Guitar has some good lessons on country licks, like this one:

Dominic · October 2020

Jimbro66 said:

Just to show what can be done with those type of bends here is the master at work

the second half of that is amazing.....I've tried for years to get some of his bends pitched correctly and its very difficult
He plays a great version of Jerry Reid's breakdown near the end........which I play too and have done for years because it took so bloody long to learn but when I listen to him play it he has so many tiny nuance bends going on it's mind-boggling.
RIP ....the master bender

Keefy · October 2020

Dominic said:

Jimbro66 said:

Just to show what can be done with those type of bends here is the master at work

the second half of that is amazing.....I've tried for years to get some of his bends pitched correctly and its very difficult
He plays a great version of Jerry Reid's breakdown near the end........which I play too and have done for years because it took so bloody long to learn but when I listen to him play it he has so many tiny nuance bends going on it's mind-boggling.
RIP ....the master bender

RIP? He had a stroke a few years ago but I wasn't aware he had died.

DLM · October 2020

@EricTheWeary ;

Levi is (still) @missmisstreater on here if you need him[1]:

https://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/comment/2337309/#Comment_2337309

[1] I realise that sounds odd, but trust me the truth is odder: His name is used in my house as kind of the opposite of a safeword... I've long found guitar YouTubers that the missus finds even more odious, but none of their names have the same weight with her as Levi's.