Learn to Play Slide Guitar Like a Pro

[Marianne Preston]

What is referred to as a "slide guitar" is actually a technique, not
an instrument. Slide guitar is played two ways: the player can hold
the guitar normally or horizontally. If it is held normally then the
player puts a covering on one of the fingers on his or her left hand
and makes sound by sliding the left hand up and down the strings. The
object covering the players' fingers is often referred to as a
bottleneck because that was the first material used. If the player
holds the guitar horizontally then the player uses a steel, which is
similar to a bottleneck but, not surprisingly, composed of steel. To
play the guitarist will slide the steel up and down the frets of the
guitar. This is referred to as playing a "steel guitar".
The slide or steel guitar is an essential part of popular music. While
it is true the genres of soul, country and jazz have had their share
of great slide guitarists throughout the years, legendary slide
guitarists always seem to gravitate towards the blues. Robert Johnson,
Muddy Waters, Eric Clapton, B.B. King, for example, Name a blues
luminary and chances are he is an accomplished slide guitarist. So if
you want to play blues guitar or soul or country or any of a number of
other genres you'd best learn how to play the slide guitar.
The slide guitar can be played on either an acoustic or an electric
guitar as long as it doesn't have nylon strings. For a slide guitar to
play correctly it must be set up differently from a traditional
guitar. The instrument must be strung with heavier strings (no super-
slinky) and a high action. With respect to tuning there are two
options; standard and open. A player who has enough guitars to
dedicate one exclusively to playing slide should experiment with open
tuning. Otherwise it is easiest to use standard tuning for slide
playing.
Through the years different musicians have made their slides in many
different ways. The most common materials are glass and metal though
some early musicians used a bone or a knife. Different materials make
different sounds; it's a matter of preference. Slides can be purchased
from your local music store or they can be made at home. Copper tubing
and the tops of glass medicine bottles are the most popular homemade
slides. Duane Allman, considered by many to be the greatest slide
guitar player ever, used a Coricidin medicine bottle. The company and
medicine are now defunct but replicas are still made for guitar
players.
The slide can be placed on the second, third or pinky finger. The
second finger is the largest and gives you the ability to hold down
all the strings with the slide. If you play with the slide on the
second finger you have hold the third and pinky fingers in the air,
which makes it unnatural to most guitarists. Also, it leaves only one
finger to mute the strings, which proves difficult. The third finger
gives you a little less fret coverage and not quite as strong sound
but it also gives you two fingers to mute the strings. This is how
Duane Allman played.
The last option is to put the slide on your pinky finger. This allows
you to play normally with your first three fingers and consequently is
the choice for those desiring to combine slide and normal playing. The
pinky slide is much smaller and generally don't cover all the strings.
Eric Clapton and Muddy Waters play using this method. Slide guitar
playing has been around for over a hundred years and has been used by
countless celebrated musicians. It is a great technique for any
aspiring guitarist to learn.