Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Discussion of history's greatest guitar player.

Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby ceciltguitar » Sun Jun 24, 2018 9:52 pm

I was 10 years old when my Dad bought that album and I must have listened to side 1 hundreds of times and side 2 dozens of times. The little boogie bass lick to "What'd I Say" was the first thing that my Dad taught me to play on the guitar. I can play the last 2 superlicks in the series in "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" because they are way up the neck. I have work arounds for the first two - the stretches in the first two licks are big enough (I'm 5'6") that by the time I get to the second 2 licks I'm already discombobulated - LOL.

Terry Efaw is a very nice person and he has an incredible natural talent for music - both performing and arranging for solo guitar! It's always a pleasure to listen to Terry! Terry "gave" me a Saturday night gig at Little Turtle Country Club back around 1995 or 1996 that I held on to until I graduated from OSU and the Navy whisked me and my family away to San Diego.
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby ceciltguitar » Sun Jun 24, 2018 10:06 pm

Doug, have you seen the "Air Trekker jumping stilts"? what I do on a lot of tunes with ginormous stretches is to play the tune capoed up 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 frets, which is useful not only for making the fretting more easily reachable, but also helps in mentally transposing to different keys. A few years back(still 20 later than I should have thought of this) I figured out that since Chet, Segovia, Christopher Parkening, John Williams etc are all well over 6 feet tall, that it was time to start making more frequent use of the capo bar. Hand size does not always correlate to height, but the math of 5'6" to 6'3" comes out to a scale length approximately equal to playing with a capo on the third fret. It's might handy to have a Parker Nylon Fly with 24 accessible frets to facilitate this approach. With the Parker, I can even capo on the 12th fret if I want to - and sometimes I do. Judicious use of the capo is kinda like playng basketball with the hoop lowered to 8 feet.
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Tom Keller » Mon Jun 25, 2018 2:43 pm

The ending lick on Blue Angel has always been a bear for me and of course the super lick.


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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby DagerRande » Mon Jun 25, 2018 8:09 pm

I could easily analyze the difference between the ending lick on "Blue Angel" vs. the "Superlick". I''ll describe what I consider to be the primary differences.

The "Blue Angel" ending is made up of Individually picked notes where there has to be perfect synchronization between the right and left hand in such a way as to sound like you're holding down the sustain pedal on a piano. Notice how as each note is picked, the previous one is still ringing. It's very difficult to play that ending up to speed without creating a few dead notes.

The "Superlick" This doesn't involve much right hand work but the left hand is doing a lot of hammer-ons and pull-offs. The trick is to sweep that flat pick or thumb-pick perfectly to catch all of those. The left hand has to move very quickly and accurately while this right hand sweep is occurring. I've watched Tommy Jones do this many times from only 2 or 3 feet away. I don't claim to be able to do it very well, but I know exactly what to do.

I'm sure that a number of you can say the same. Knowing what to do and being able to do it well are two different things. A good example are coaches in various athletic events.
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Doug Working » Thu Jun 28, 2018 7:03 am

Pickin Palmer wrote:7 - 3 - 0, 7 -3- 0, 7 - 3 - 0.... Anybody know what I'm "typing" about?? CAN'T DO IT - NEVER COULD - NEVER WILL!!


Got me puzzled. Could you explain?

Haven't posted in a few days. Been performing magic shows at the county fair all week, and it's kept me busier than that proverbial one armed paper hanger. BIG CROWDS! Will be performing daily till Saturday. Have barely had time to check my e-mail.

Anyway, maybe you could explain those numbers. Please.

Doug
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Doug Working » Thu Jun 28, 2018 7:06 am

Pickin Palmer wrote:Terry Efaw has fingers the length of my legs - and, he runs that damned thing all the way up - and, all the way back down (several times)- while looking at me like he's petting a dog... ARG!!


I hear Jethro Burns had looooooong, spider-like fingers on that mandolin. I don't know anything about the instrument as far as playing, but I imagine it has similarities to the guitar and requires stretches on a lot of tunes.

I hate guys like that! :)
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Doug Working » Thu Jun 28, 2018 7:14 am

ceciltguitar wrote:Doug, have you seen the "Air Trekker jumping stilts"? what I do on a lot of tunes with ginormous stretches is to play the tune capoed up 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 frets, which is useful not only for making the fretting more easily reachable, but also helps in mentally transposing to different keys. A few years back(still 20 later than I should have thought of this) I figured out that since Chet, Segovia, Christopher Parkening, John Williams etc are all well over 6 feet tall, that it was time to start making more frequent use of the capo bar. Hand size does not always correlate to height, but the math of 5'6" to 6'3" comes out to a scale length approximately equal to playing with a capo on the third fret. It's might handy to have a Parker Nylon Fly with 24 accessible frets to facilitate this approach. With the Parker, I can even capo on the 12th fret if I want to - and sometimes I do. Judicious use of the capo is kinda like playng basketball with the hoop lowered to 8 feet.



You are right! I never thought of it that way! Bingo! Those are brilliant thoughts. I see a light coming on , now. Taller height usually correlates to longer fingers! I should have put that together in my head a long time ago. I'm about 5' 7. Probably shrinking as I get older. At least that's what they say.

I didn't realize Segovia was tall, though.

I do indeed use capo a lot. Last year. I took a $60.00 plunge and bought a Thalia, and I absolute love it. Will never part with it. Kild of like the hair that used to be on my now shiney dome.

I'm ashamed to say I've never heard of a Parker Nylon Fly! Could you tell me more?

Thanks, Doug
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Doug Working » Thu Jun 28, 2018 7:28 am

DagerRande wrote:I could easily analyze the difference between the ending lick on "Blue Angel" vs. the "Superlick". I''ll describe what I consider to be the primary differences.

The "Blue Angel" ending is made up of Individually picked notes where there has to be perfect synchronization between the right and left hand in such a way as to sound like you're holding down the sustain pedal on a piano. Notice how as each note is picked, the previous one is still ringing. It's very difficult to play that ending up to speed without creating a few dead notes.

The "Superlick" This doesn't involve much right hand work but the left hand is doing a lot of hammer-ons and pull-offs. The trick is to sweep that flat pick or thumb-pick perfectly to catch all of those. The left hand has to move very quickly and accurately while this right hand sweep is occurring. I've watched Tommy Jones do this many times from only 2 or 3 feet away. I don't claim to be able to do it very well, but I know exactly what to do.

I'm sure that a number of you can say the same. Knowing what to do and being able to do it well are two different things. A good example are coaches in various athletic events.


That's a great post. It clarifies things a lot. And it gives me "cold feet", thinking about even trying it. Man, just makes me realize again what I already know that Chet was the best!!

I've heard two possibly three versions of Chet playing Blue Angel. Which one are you referring to?

And maybe unrelated, but do you know if "Dizzy Fingers" requires any hefty stretches?

I do believe "Waltz For The Lonely" has a killer stretch. I watched Chet play it on the TV special "Read My Licks", and I vaugly remember trying to work it out on my guitar by watching Chet on the tape....(I love to cheat!) and there was a monster stretch, if memory serves.

Listen to Chet's version of "Emily", on CA goes to the movies. Chet plays it in C. Deceptive! It sounds so smooth in Chet's hands, but it hides a helluva long stretch right in the first measures.

I want to post more, but I'm now falling behind for my practice / rehearsals for my magic shows at 4H this week. I created several brand new illusions just for the event. I'm performimg a week long marathon of magic. Really finding out what I'm made of, skill wise.

Doug
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby DagerRande » Thu Jun 28, 2018 8:12 pm

Doug, I was referring to Chet's original recording of "Blue Angel" when it first came out on vinyl. I also understand that Jerry was his backup guitarist on that recording. I used to play "Dizzy Fingers" a lot back in the early 80's. There are no stretches that I can think of.........just a bunch of high speed synchronization challenges. I played "Waltz for the Lonely" back in the late 80's for a going away party for a music director that worked at the school where I was employed. The one stretch that I can think of is moderate and doesn't compare to the one required for "Cascade". I remember John Knowles once "narrating" Eddie Estes' performance of Cascade at CAAS one year and I'll never forget his description of it as having every familiar Chet lick thrown in except the kitchen sink and he pointed them out one by one as they occurred.
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Re: Any Chet Left Hand Stretches You Just Can't Nail?

Postby Doug Working » Sun Jul 01, 2018 5:39 pm

I believe you are right about Jerry in that tune.

When I watched waltz for the lonely as Chet played it, I suppose my eyes were playing tricks on me. (Funny thing fora magician to say!)

I took out my guitar, and had taped the special on VHS, and tried to play it back slow over and over, and I was trying to imitate what I saw Chet's fingers doing.

Must have been an error on my part.
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