Tuning a Pedal Steel Guitar with Paul Franklin & John Bohlinger

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The pedal-steel legend who's played with everyone from George Strait to Megadeth shares some advice at tackling the hand-jiving, knee-jerking instrument.
A decade ago, Vince Gill and Paul Franklin recorded Bakersfield, a tribute to the raw-boned country music that came out of the rough-and-rowdy clubs patronized by oil-field hands and agricultural workers in the ’50s and early ’60s-packed with songs by Merle Haggard and Buck Owens. And we visited with them for a Rig Rundown then.
Now, just for the good times, these two legends of modern country music-the real deal kind-have recorded Sweet Memories: The Music of Ray Price & The Cherokee Cowboys. Price was known for his warm, baritone approach to melody, which is a perfect springboard for Gill’s and Franklin’s nuanced approaches to their own instruments.
If you don’t know Gill’s work, it’s about time you got informed. He has won more CMA Awards than any performer in history, plus 21 Grammys. He’s also sold more than 21-million albums and is currently in the Eagles, where his sweet tenor voice and skill with harmonies makes him a perfect match. (You can also hear Gill talk about his work on Cory Wong’s Wong Notes podcast, from November 2020.)
Although Franklin spends his time over the pedal steel, this artist is no slouch. He’s played on more than 500 albums, has been named Best Steel Guitarist by the Academy of Country Music multiple times, and is in the Steel Guitar Hall of Fame and the Musician’s Hall of Fame. Franklin is the most nominated artist in CMA history. He is also a member of Grammy-winning outfit the Time Jumpers.
Along with the PG video team, I met them at Gill’s Nashville studio, where they recorded Sweet Memories. The goal: to get a close-up look at Franklin’s steel rig and some of the incredible acoustic guitars Gill used on this album.
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[@jeffmoore4437]

I was lucky enough to have a Granddad who was an excellent steel guitar player that subscribed to this method of tuning, and also to meet and speak at length with John Hughey early on in my development who also explained this principle of tuning to the band to me. Thank you for passing this on to the next generation.

[@guitarpicker6844]

A tuner is much like a GPS. Awesome to have, but if you depend on it too much, you're lost without it.

[@snapfinger1]

Tempered tuning. Finger pressure. Intonation. We could go on all day.

[@davidkellymitchell4747]

Older musicians usually tuned to a piano and hoped the piano was in tune and like Paul said the rest was by ear. I remember some musicians carried a tuning fork but only used for one note. Usually A-440.

Very interesting! Love it!

[@user-jh6su9bi6p]

Started out using the b flat of the telephone dial tone

[@rogerYT69]

so cool!

[@ramonmoreno8014]

what's the app again? can't find it in the play store, or it's named something else

[@paulbrennan2069]

Cleartune