originally Steel Strung or Gut Strung ?

[basilh]

Here's one for the "Slack Key" fraternity to consider, It's certain that the 3 Mexican wranglers (employed By King Kamehameha to teach the Hawaiians how to manage the herds of wild cattle roaming the islands) used GUT String guitars.
So just exactly WHEN did the Slack Key style start to use steel strings, and moreover aren't steel strings departing from the originality of the SOUND and style ?
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AND, to further cloud the issue of the Hawaiian guitar, were the first ones (Played by Joseph Kekuku, Gabriel Davion and others) steel strung or gut ?

[garrysmith]

"...Music of questionable quality played by American minorities..." pretty much describes most of my record collection.

[gouranga]

Give us some links Gary, if there is any on Youtube. be nice to hear.

Take care.

Gouranga

[Bill Stig]

Hi Baz,

In Lorene Ruymer's book "the Hawaiian Steel Guitar" there are a number of conflicting reports of Joseph Kekuku's claim to have invented the steel guitar. In one article from B.M.G. magazine it states that in 1927/28 Kekuku "used a plain wire 3rd and 4th string in place of the usual covered variety" (P.2). Also, there is an article from "Kila Kila, The Story of the Steel Guitar" by Dr.Donald Mitchell published in 1973 that says that in 1889, while still at school, Kekuku changed the strings "from gut to wire for more sustain" (p16).

Bill