Slide guitar technique.... need some advice.....

Recycled_Brains · Post by **Recycled_Brains** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 2:59 pm

i'm trying to teach myself how to play slide guitar (not lap-steel or anything, just on regular elec. or ac. guitar) and it's tough as hell.

any pointers from any of you who may have more experience? i've been playing axe for 12 years now, but this is a whole 'nother animal to me.

-ryan

DupleMeter · Post by **DupleMeter** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 3:14 pm

the fist problem might be that the strings are a bit too low for slide - meaning you'll get a lot of "clanking". typically slide players raise the action so they can get good contact without hitting frets or the fretboard with the slide.

Are you in an open tuning? Tends to help the whole process. Instead of standard (EADGbe), try open G (DGDGbd) or open D (DADF#ad) or the minor equivalents.

HTH

drumsound · Post by **drumsound** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 4:05 pm

Keep a finger behind the slide ,it focus the tone and pitches. Of course there are times when artisticaly you'll want those. But in the begining you're better of muting slightly behind the slide. I find slide a little easier when I lay the guitar donw on my lap, but I'm not really a guitar player so any little cheat helps me.

chovie d · Post by **chovie d** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 4:09 pm

good advice from steve. also, dont forget sometimes its necessary to slant the slide to get certain two note combos which are used alot in rock and blues.

Recycled_Brains · Post by **Recycled_Brains** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 7:48 pm

thanks guys. i noticed that muting behind the slide helps, i just need to tighten it up a bit. my action on my electrics is pretty high, because i tune down really low sometimes, but maybe not enough for slide stuff. i can't really go any higher unless i had a dedicated guitar for this purpose. i'm hoping to pick up either a resonator or a lapsteel as my next instrument purpose. maybe if i could lay off buying pre's and mics.....

i do use open tunings for a lot of stuff i write, and that definately makes things easier.

i appreciate all your input guys. keep the suggestions coming!

-ryan

madtho · Post by **madtho** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 8:36 pm

get a whole mess of different slides. I've got a dozen or so and they all do different things.

Brass tube
Chromed tube (also brass I think, but different character)
super thick glass
super thin glass (kind of scary when I bash the frets)
pill bottle
wine bottle neck (ordered from one of those acoustic guitar magazines, has a slight curve, nice)
short ones
these are cool
I saw a pic of Ry Cooder with a glass tube about 4" in diameter once.

Slide guitar is so fun.
-mad

Electro-Voice 664 · Post by **Electro-Voice 664** » Mon Mar 05, 2007 10:25 pm

my action on my electrics is pretty high, because i tune down really low sometimes, but maybe not enough for slide stuff. i can't really go any higher unless i had a dedicated guitar for this purpose.

You can buy a slide nut that goes over your regular one to raise the action. Like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/MICRO-Perfect-Nut-H ... dZViewItem
Or stick a screw driver/drumstick in there ala Sonic Youth.
Have fun, good luck!

douglas baldwin · Post by **douglas baldwin** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 7:10 am

When I first started on slide ("back in sevventy-sevventy-one, therebouts," he said with a shaky voice and a gleam in his eye) I made my slides from the necks of Mateus wine bottles. You take a fine-bladed hacksaw and cut around the neck as much as you can for about 5-10 minutes. Then heat the score mark you've made with a candle for a minute or so and dunk it in a pail of water. The glass cracks right along the score mark, if you're good and lucky. Then you take some 120 grit sandpaper and smooth over the edge.

Or you go to Guitar center and buy one of those Dunlop slides.

Or you go to a Sears hardware store and buy a Craftsman deep socket wrench that fits on your finger of choice. Lowell George used a Craftsman, and I've been using them since about '76-'77. They come with a lifetime guarantee!

Although I started on acoustic in open tunings, I quickly went to electric, standard action, and standard tuning. I also keep an electric around with high action, heavy strings and in various open tunings, but I don't like to haul too many guitars around for gigs, so I stick with the standard-standard approach, mostly.

Three quick tips for playing slide well:
1) For accurate pitch, keep the slide directly over the metal fret, not between the frets. It's not like pressing a note down with your fingers, y'know. It's sorta like the slide IS the fret.
2) Practice playing simple melodies - "Twinkle, Twinkle," "Mary had a Little Lamb," whatever, both on a single string and across several strings. Mute the strings between each melody note so it sounds like the friggin' melody! You can mute with your fretting hand (by lifting the slide just a tiny bit) and/or with your picking hand (by muting strings with your fingers).
3) Listen to all the great slide players. Some of my faves:
Blind Willie Johnson: "Dark Was the Night"
Elmore James: "Dust My Broom," "It Hurts Me Too"
Duane Allman: everything
Lowell George w/Little Feat: "Lafayette Railroad," stuff on "Waiting for Columbus." Master of the long, high note.
Warren Haynes: oh Christ Jesus! Every blessed note!
Bonnie Raitt: power and simplicity
Derek Trucks: Every blessed note including the ones he hasn't played yet!
Sonny Landreth: brilliant for minor-key tunings and fretting behind the slide.
Rory Block: she is possessed, sacred, a conduit for higher powers.

My next area of exploration will be listening to the masters of classical Indan ragas who are playing modified slide guitars. Any recommendations?

Recycled_Brains · Post by **Recycled_Brains** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:13 am

douglas baldwin wrote: Warren Haynes: oh Christ Jesus! Every blessed note!

you ain't lyin!

i once made a beer bottle neck slide by putting the bottle inside an old sock and smashing the fat part off on the curb outside my mom's house, while holding the neck tightly. was a little jagged, but it worked.

thanks for the tips.

-ryan

chovie d · Post by **chovie d** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:37 am

i'm hoping to pick up either a resonator or a lapsteel

cool, im tryin to play lap, pedal steel and squareneck dobro...it's WAY different than bottleneck slide (whcih I am not very good at) Lap steel is fun and fairly easy to use in a rock context...the hawaiian and country sounds take a bit more skill with bar slants and more exotic (to my dumbass ears) tunings.

Mudcloth · Post by **Mudcloth** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:39 am

I have a Guitar Player magazine from 1992 with a great interview of Ry Cooder. He uses a glass slide cut from a Bo Joseph Amaretto bottle. He also has slides cut from Kentucky Fighting Cock and Old 101. Thick glass. One thing I changed after reading this interview was that I started putting the slide on my pinky finger, as opposed to my ring finger. This allows me to fret with rest of my fingers/thumb giving me more versatilty. I have ridiculously small pinkys for some reason so I wrap a small piece of t-shirt around my pinky for a snug fit.
Like madtho said, try different slides. I have a bunch of different slides but I mostly use an 11/16 craftsman, mostly. They're about a quarter a piece at the pawnshop.

Another great player you should check out is Earl Hooker. My favorite record of his is Two Bugs and a Roach. He played in standard tuning and sometimes used a wah pedal with his slide. He's bad, you know.

these_go211 · Post by **these_go211** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 8:53 am

"Or you go to a Sears hardware store and buy a Craftsman deep socket wrench that fits on your finger of choice."

wow, nice one douglas!

JdJ · Post by **JdJ** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 11:41 am

I play in standard tuning. It does make you speed up string to string transitions, but I find it useful because I didn't have to relearn the neck. You also get the stacked 5ths thing...

I practice intonation exercises regularly- usually referencing to an open string. Damping the strings with your picking hand is as important as behind the bottle as far as I'm concerned. Not damping behind the bottle can sound cool and ghostly- not damping a string with your right hand that shouldn't be ringing rarely sounds cool.

Play as much as possible! Slide rules!!

kayagum · Post by **kayagum** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 1:44 pm

douglas baldwin wrote:My next area of exploration will be listening to the masters of classical Indan ragas who are playing modified slide guitars. Any recommendations?

Here's your guy: http://www.vishwamohanbhatt.com/profile.htm

Another monster slide player- Robert Randolph- he rocked on his appearance on Austin City Limits- and he brought all of his teachers of sacred steel playing from his church- very cool!

craigb156 · Post by **craigb156** » Tue Mar 06, 2007 3:11 pm

Also check out Jack Rose. OMFG!

Though my personal favorite is Chris Whitley.

I find I can't really play until I find trhe right tuning (as I am just learning) and then it just opens up in a way. I'm liking CGCGBE lately.

Craig

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Slide guitar technique.... need some advice.....

Slide guitar technique.... need some advice.....

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