Instruments and Influences

 

My main squeeze is a .                                                                 That means there's no engraving and that the body is nickel plated brass. The tricone, or triplate as they used to be known, was invented by John Dopyera, a Czech migrant to the USA, in 1926 in an attempt to make a guitar with the tone and volume to compete, pre electronic amplification, in dance bands. The square necked versions became hugely popular with Hawaiian lap steel players

 

With advent of the Great Depression, the cheaper, single cone,                                        guitars were introduced and after a split in the company John and his brother Rudy formed a new company selling guitars with a                                   . THESE were Dobros!

 

I use a                                    German Silver slide made to my own measurements.

 

I use mostly open D (DADF#AD) or open G (DGDGBD) with the occasional instrumental in D6 (DADF#BD).

 

Who has influenced me? Well, the obvious first answer is of course Ry Cooder, as much for his willingnes to mix genres as for his slide playing and also Leo Kottke, Sonny Landreth and most recently Kelly Joe Phelps. Seeing and meeting the late, great Sammy Mitchell was a huge inspiration to me.

I like songwriters who tell a story so in that area the likes of Richard Thompson and Joe Ely have influenced me. Nick Lowe, for me, has a great way with words