| Scroll through Chuck's Song Notes while you enjoy his music... |
New!
Till There Was You |
Jan 2012 - Here's a lap steel/ saxophone duet arrangement of Till There Was You. Although I hear the Beatles' version when I worked up this rendition, the song was originally a featured number in the musical, the Music Man.
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| Poor Man's Roses |
Sept 2011 - I'll be doing another Patsy Cline theater tribute for a few shows in December, so I'm in a Patsy mood. Like most musicians, I love playing around in my home studio. I always enjoy turning vocal tunes into instrumentals (blame it on the Ventures), so I had some fun on my six string lap steel with my version of Poor Man's Roses. |
Autumn Leaves |
Feb 2011 - I decided to revisit Autumn Leaves on the lap steel. I have always loved Eva Cassidy's version, so I wanted to capture some of her sense of melody. The tune is in the key of Bbm, not the most friendly key for my 6 string C6th tuning. However, I discovered some open strings and hammer-ons that kept me interested. I'm using my Ricky Frypan and a newer version of Band in a Box, recording and mixing with Cool Edit Pro (Adobe Audition). |
Amarillo by Morning
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Over the years I've played "Amarillo By Morning" too many times to count, but I thought I might revisit it with the tenor sax (Horns of Plenty) and the lap steel. Hope you enjoy the arrangement.
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Because
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I have always loved revisiting the songs that I listened to as a teenager. Here's an old Dave Clark 5 tune. I wasn't sure what steel guitar/tuning to use for my arrangement, so I split the difference and plucked my lap steel for the first part and then switched over to the E9th neck of my pedal steel. This way I can really hear the difference between the two instruments.
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Crazy
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I've played many different arrangements of "Crazy," but I always loved Patsy Cline's definitive version. I wanted to try this rendition on my 6 string lap steel since I usually perform this tune on the pedal steel. Having just six strings instead of ten limits my choice of notes, but I love the tone of the lap steel.
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Dream
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I always loved "Dream" by the Everly Brothers (from Shenandoah, Iowa). I decided to work it up, mostly on the Frypan with a bit of my pedal steel.
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| Everybody's Talkin' |
July 2011 - I just finished watching a documentary on Harry Nilsson, the singer-songwriter popular in the l960-70s. Although he wrote hits for other acts, he won a Grammy for his version of Fred Neil's "Everybody's Talkin'" from the movie, Midnight Cowboy. I immediately remembered the tune and Nilsson's great vocals and decided to try it out on my Frypan. Hope you enjoy the arrangement.
Chuck |
Harlem Nocturne |
Chuck Lettes on 6- string Rickenbacker Frypan.
Tuning: (highest) GECAGF (lowest). |
In the Still of the Night
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I have been working with a variety band, and one of the tunes we cover is The Five Satins' In the Still of the Night.
I have always loved "Doo Wop" music, and this tune's melody is a natural for the steel guitar. I'm using both necks on my steel guitar, an old MSA, plus I added some tenor sax (The Horns of Plenty). Hope you enjoy the arrangement.
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Summertime |
Chuck Lettes - Rickenbacher Frypan. |
Sweet Someone |
I have always loved Jerry Byrd's version of Sweet Someone from his recording, Byrd in Hawaii. I'm using my Ricky Frypan tuned to a modified C6th-(highest string) GECAGF (lowest). There's a lot of music to be made with six strings.
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