Martin Harley's - Guide To Slide

As the lapstyle virtuoso switches to a strapped electric, we quiz him on exactly how to get to grips with a bottleneck

- Chris Bird / Stuart Williams

CHOOSE YOUR WEAPONS

Not all slides are created equal…

“When you’re playing slide guitar, obviously you need one of these. The slide you use and the finger you use it on is really personal. I’ve come to slide guitar from playing lap steel, so traditionally I’m comfortable playing that way with a heavy tonebar. But for this new record, this instrument is much better. So it’s very much a learning curve for me. I’ve been through glass, ceramic, short, fat, heavy, and all kinds of slides. I’ve settled on this fairly heavy brass slide at the moment. I’m not sure how much it weighs, but it’s quite thick, so heavier than the regular Jim Dunlop slide that you’d just walk into a store and buy. It’s a bit more cumbersome, but the advantage of a heavier slide is better sustain. What you lose in manoeuvrability I think you gain in tone and sustain. The one thing I would say is that it just takes time to get comfortable, and everyone’s approach is going to be different. So try a bunch of stuff until you find something you’re happy with. You’ll find metal slides have a different sound to ceramic or glass slides which are smoother and have a less bright or aggressive sound to them.”

DIGIT-AL PICKING

Get your fingers used to slides and picks

“When I first started playing slide, I was much more comfortable on the third finger, and I don’t think that’s unusual. Your little finger is not really your pointing digit, so I felt that I got better tone on my third finger. But over time, the notion of having these three fingers to work independently on the fret has created more voicings and more tonal opportunities than having a slide on the third. So my little finger has become the natural choice.