Post #123568 by Tiki_Bong on Thu, Nov 4, 2004 5:12 PM

Virani,

Good question, as it irks steel lovers to no end when people mix them up.

For the most part, there is 1) slide playing, and 2) steel playing. I know they sound the same, but there is a difference.

(Dobro usually implies a 'resonator' guitar which can be a wood or metal body, but has plates inside the 'resonate' the sound of the playing. These were the 'way to go' before electric amplification).

1. Slide Guitar playing - this is typically done wearing the guitar in the typical fashion - hanging it around your neck. The height of the strings from the fretboard in not such that you cannot 'fret' chords with the guitar; this means the typical finging or pressing down of the strings to form chords against the fretboard. The 'slide' is hollow and worn over the finger like a tube of sorts. Tunings can be standard (E,A,D,G,B,E) or open. Playing usually involved 'fretted' chords and slide work. Slide playing is also typically Delta blues ala Dickie Betts or Bonnie Raite type stuff.

2)Steel Guitar playing - the guitar is played in a horizontal position either on one's lap or on legs. The steel bar is solid and held in the fingers. There are NO raises frets on the fretboard, only fret markers. The string height is very high so the strings don't contact the fretboard when the steel bar is applied. The tunings are always open tunings (C6th, G major, E major etc). You cannot 'fret' chords, you can only make chords structures by usually playing the root and 5th, root and major or minor 3rd, or root and 7th etc.

In my unbiased opinion, slide blows and steel rules!

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[ Edited by: Tiki_Bong on 2004-11-04 18:03 ]