Thank you very much very helpful. If you dont mind the suggestion, same settings just use neck pickup for when you are using slide and bridge pickup for when using fingers. Saw lots of Derek videos and i hardly saw him use the bridge pick for slide. Neck gives a warmer sound. Thank again for the trick =)
Yea very helpful I had wondered for a long time how Darryl trucks got that unique style of slide tried to mimck but it just never sounded nothing like him.now I know why and that makes a lot of sense I really don't play to much slide but I will incorporate a volume pedal for my playing anyways thanks
I am a huge Derek Trucks fan. I've seen him (guessing) 35-40 times and listen to him nearly every day. For me this lesson really nails it. Derek really is like another voice and I think you don't just talk about it but really explain it. With the volume swells and mirroring this with taking and signing. This really worked for me. Obviously there's a lot more to be said but this gave me a lot of ideas. Dan Toppos videos are also great. There's others who try to come into the Derek universe, but never really get there. Thanks 🙏
Stood in line to pay $12 to see Derek when he was 9. Saw him again with the Allmans at Bonnaroo. His performance, along with Doyle Bramhall II at the Beck tribute was spectacular and I cant wait to see him again.
Trucks gained alot of his slide singing style by listening to and studying the 'sacred steel' players like AJ Ghent and Aubrey Ghent, peeps seem to think of his sound being very Allman's influenced, which it can be, but he owes credit to the gospel steel guitar tradition & players ..
@@baliscotsurf I would say parallel conclusions to Harri rather than Trucks being influenced by him, as the indian influence on Trucks is from sarod player Ali Akbar Khan & indian lap slide player debashish amongst others..
Nice job man.. great editing nice atmosphere for the vid. Love the little bb king sounding blues licks playing gently in the background too haha. Nice touch.
I just saw DT live for the first time when he came out in Phish's second set at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center a few weeks ago. I always knew he was great, but seeing it live was something else. The back and forth between Trey and Derek was amazing as well. Worth looking up to watch on YT.
I think you're overselling the volume pedal; maybe you should have called this "The Trick to Sounding like a Lap Steel" or something like that. Derek doesn't use a volume pedal at all. If you watch, he's controlling everything from the volume knob on his SG. The vocal dynamics in his playing comes from levels of attack, raking, phrasing, and knowing when to pluck. Don't get me wrong, you're licks sound good, but the variation in levels doesn't sound anything like Derek. Also, I notice that you're playing a lot of bridge pickup, which is really edgy. Occasionally Derek will use that pickup, but more often than not he's using neck pickup to get a rounder sound.
Hey Brian, thanks for the comment you are spot on with the volume pedal points and you're correct that obviously Derek isn't using one so it's more of a pedal steel approach to how the notes end up sounding or "singing" from the guitar. I studied with an amazing slide master (David Tronzo) who got me way into the volume pedal, check him out if you haven't hear of him yet! Thanks for checking out the video and really appreciate your comment!
@@julesleyheyes Tronzo, I love his Slow Poke band and solo albums, Roots etc. I didn't realise he was such a beautiful & soulful player, & not always playing the cutting edge jazzer he's known for..
Derek plays with no pedal, he changes the volume with his hands. I also find him very effected by how Susan is singing that night. Seems like if she really lays in her solo, Derek will really respond.
Absolutely amazing playing and tone! I personally like to use the volume knob on my guitar and use a lighter or harder touch to adjust volume and grit dynamically What amp and pedals you using for the sound?
Thanks Aiden! I’m playing through a Ceriatone 50 watt OTS into the boss waza tube amp expander direct into logic to record the audio... all of that gear is highly recommended, it’s easy to use and sounds great 😎 thanks for checking out the video Aiden!
Thanks Ray! Good start already with a fender amp, I always try and get the tone right on the edge of breaking up (if I can afford to crank the amp), I've been really liking the BK butler tube driver for distorted tones recently, but I'd recommend getting comfortable with the amp right around the breakup point where it starts to get distorted!
@@julesleyhe Thanks for getting back to me. Not sure what you mean. I usually have the amp on Clean with some Chorus and overdrive and I do have a Ernie Ball volume pedal which I haven't really used. I also have a phaser, distortion, reverb, and delay pedals. I don't play in any bands. I play mostly resonator and acoustic guitar. I have a Gibson Les Paul. I just need a basic starting point to dial in with any effects or combination of effects that you can recommend. I really like the sound of Warren Hayes set up. Thanks Ray
Respectfully, I was under the impression that Derek doesn't use pedals at all - just his hands and the guitar controls. It's perfectly okay to add to the technique armory, and perfectly okay to seek to approach Derek's transcendent playing. But is this really Derek?
Hey RG52, you're completely correct about this- I appreciate this thoughtful observation! I'm wanting to do more vids specifically on Derek and talk more about this... you're entirely correct about just hands n amp, we'll tackle this more in upcoming videos. Thanks for checking out the video!
Where do you keep your volume knobs set when you're using the pedal for control? Where do you have your levels set on your amp? I have an Allen Sweet Spot and I have to keep the volume around 2 so it's not too loud for the practice room, but that makes it super hard to get an overdriven sound without a separate pedal
Hey Jason, usually leave the volume on the guitar up all the way and then play with the volume pedal from there, the EQ on the amp is all at 12 o'clock and both the preamp/ power amp volumes are at right around 4 o'clock... It's hard to get a bad sound out of this amp (seriously!) and I'd recommend trying to find an AMP that works for you. Once I found this Ceriatone I feel like I finally understood the importance of a good amp, and makes you want to not really play with too many pedals!
Great lesson. I have a question about something Derek does a lot. When he wants to really highlight a note, he sort of slides way down the neck, then slides way up to the note, and does something I can't quite pin down with his right hand to make it sound awesome. If you watch the "greatest slide guitar solo of all time" video with John Mayer, you'll see him do it at around 0:35 and then again at 0:38. What exactly is he doing with his right hand there?
Great question slugbo, this is one of those exciting slides up on all of the strings where the right hand muting is pretty much solely responsible for leaving (most likely) the high e string open to have the lone note sounded on the high e string... I plan on doing some more videos talking about right hand muting since that's such an important topic with this style of playing so stay tuned for that- and thank you so much for the question- GREAT Q!
With the right hand? ..If you’re talking about what I think you are, Derek is just taking his right hand off of muting the strings more or less, and letting the slide do a “glissendo” over the strings, can be done upwards or downwards technically, SRV used to do a similar glissendo technique often, sans the slide on his finger.. SRV just did it w his fingers gently on the strings. (I know this because I have at least about 15,000 hours of delirious slide guitar practice under my belt lol)
Nice vid Jules. I get what you're saying about the volume pedal, but Derek Trucks doesn't use a volume pedal (at least live he doesn't). How is he getting the same dynamics without the pedal?
Hey Frank, GREAT point- and funny how I didn't realize just how much I use the volume pedal myself until I made this video... Derek plays the volume knob on the SG a bunch, but once he gets it set at a certain point he just relies on his fingers/ touch to play dynamically. When you get the amp cranked to an ideal level the guitar volume knob is the name of the game and that's where Derek likes to get his singing tone!
Great lesson and tips! Are you using a compressor to help with sustain? I find when doing single string runs I start to lose volume if I don't pick again. If I crank up the boost and OD pedal then it sounds too distorted but the sustain is there. I would love a cleaner tone with sustain. Thanks if you happen to reply and if not, thanks anyway for a great video!
Hey thank you EW! I'm not using a compressor here- I've certainly used one in the past and it helps but this amp give me all the sustain I'd ever need, and at nice clean tones too! Hope that helps, and thanks so much for checking out the video!
@@julesleyhe One more question if I may, do you put your volume pedal in front of the pedal chain so it reduces the gain when volume is reduced or at the end of the pedal chain so that the gain remains intact when the volume is lowered?
The sound of the volume pedal is great, ive used it in live performance with/without slide. Have you considered not striking the strings with the same attack, so you don't fall foul of it all being the same volume? Plus with a reactive amp its possible to control the gain output with the intensity of attack.
Great sounding demonstrations and excellent playing. Though the video could be renamed "Get a Volume Pedal." There was more on that than anything else specifically about Derek Trucks' playing. Just wondering, does Derek Trucks use a volume pedal? I've never noticed, but I will admit that listening to your demonstrations, I totally agree that your playing with the volume swells on the pedal sounded fantastic and more dynamic than the playing without the pedal/without swells and the pedal on full. And it did have more of a Trucksy vibe when you used it.
Thanks for the spot on comment, Patrick! I definitely will do more vids on Trucks/ sans volume pedal next time.... I love Derek's playing/ the way I play them most of the time I use the volume pedal to give a lil more dimension to each note- but you're totally correct, Derek doesn't use one himself. I'm working on a lot of lesson content so I'll be sure to do another version of this vid sans volume pedal!
@@julesleyhe Awesome. Thank you for responding. It would be great to learn more about Derek's playing style. Once again, your playing (and tone) was fantastic, and I do think the volume pedal sounded great. It did give the lines a more human, vocal-type quality.
So is the overdrive coming from the amp? I read somewhere in the comments I think that you’re using a 50 watt Ceriatone amp. Is there a model name for the amp? I assume it’s one of the dumble clone models? Sounds great! By the way, I read in the comments you’re using a Dunlop volume pedal, I went through tons of volume pedals in my 48 years of guitar playing and my favorite is the Hilton Pro (9 volt powered version). I do lots of country gigs where I’m emulating pedal steel guitar licks and I got tired of pots wearing out or strings breaking on the various volume pedals out there and so I discovered the Hilton volume pedal and I love it. They’re expensive but excellent and I’ve been using mine for several years now ( I have 3 on 3 different pedalboards). Anyway great video and playing. Hope to hear more about which Ceriatone you’re using, thanks
Hey man, thank you for this great post! Yup it’s a 50 watt Overtone Special, I love this amp and really am able to get so many different great tones out of it. I’ve only heard great things about the Hilton volume pedals, I will definitely be checking that one out. Thanks for checking out the vid! 😊
Cool video, a bit misleading as you aren't really sounding so much like Derek Trucks since he's not using a volume pedal, he will do some swells with his knob occasionally. This is more steel sounding. Still a super cool technique and great tone and playing.
Indeed Chance, I love that you compare it to pedal steel as that's definitely a sound I'm fond of and the volume pedal really takes it there almost instantly. Great comment- thank you for checking out the video!
Thanks Douglas! I'm using a Dunlop volume pedal, I absolutely love it... Derek doesn't actually use a volume pedal but he uses the volume knob on the guitar exclusively (I'm just about to put out some more videos on this so stay tuned!)
Thank you Sebastian, I use one- but Derek doesn't!!! I have to do another video with way less volume pedal next time if I'm doing authentic Derek! Thanks for checking out the video!
@@julesleyhe y donde esta el sonido de dereck podes recomendarme algun tips para lograr ese sonido y por lo menos tratar de tocar algo de el saludos y gracias .
That's completely true, Knut! I have to do another video like this where I don't lean on the volume pedal so much because you're right Derek doesn't use one(!)... That said, I love to lean on the volume pedal a bunch and recommend having one for that, but you're totally correct that Derek doesn't use one and only uses the volume pot on his SG.
Hi Trevor, the Dunlop volume pedal- mainly because I've broken the string on so many other Ernie Ball volume pedals that I don't want to do that anymore!
First time this channel. You sound great. So are you saying he’s volume pedal? Would be good to show what amp ,what settings. You appear to be using the bridge pick up only. For channel called guitar and camera be nice if you actually put the camera on the volume pedal since that’s kind of what the video was about. 😢 so we can see what you’re doing.
Thanks Brian! I’m playing through a ceriatone OTS 50 with a hint of reverb from the hall of fame reverb. I use the volume pedal a whole lot but Derek is mainly using the volume knob on the guitar, I just like illustrating how advantageous I feel like it is to use a volume pedal especially for slide just because now you get so much more expression out of every note!
This does not sound like Derek Trucks because he doesn't use a volume pedal and when he does use his volume knob it's not in the way you show. This is a sacred steel lesson.
@@julesleyhe Yes, but you're unecessarily going to lead your students away from Trucks' sound, because constant volume is a hallmark of his style. So this video is your own interpretation and preference (a mix of Trucks licks and sacred steel volume swells) but not a trick to sound like Trucks. Actually the part where you play without volume pedal is where you're spot on, but you play it as being undesirable!
@@roderickbalt8993 you are a troll - go make a video of playing like Derek trucks and show us how it’s done mr expert. He still nailed the essence of what trucks is doing.
I really enjoyed this.. but can I suggest maybe less talking. So much talking before getting to the demo and explanation. Enjoyed otherwise though. Good work.
Hey David, thank you and great suggestion!!! I will definitely focus more on playing/ less talk- the coolest part of these vids is being able to watch them over n over, eliminating the need for me to blabber too much! Thank you for appreciating the video!
Thank you! We actually stopped playing music in the background in all of our new videos. I wish i can edit it out of this video but that's impossible lol
Years of practice helps. Ask yourself, are you really practicing (repetitions)? Or just noodling. If you can get 2 to 3 hours a day of practice. You will achieve your goals in any facet. If you can “find” time to do more than that. Pff. You might go places.
