Country Guitar Lessons
Country style guitar playing is definitely its own beast and as such, definitely calls for its
own type of lessons that we’ll call country guitar
lessons. From chicken pickin' to hybrid pick and fingers picking, to jump
picking, to double stops and double stop bending to imitate pedal steel guitar, there are techniques galore to
learn to play country music. As Contemporary Country becomes more prevalent, elements of all other styles seem to
be merging with your country playing, not to mention the revival of Bluegrass.
From 1979, when Albert Lee began to play with Eric Clapton, strong elements of country
guitar and rock guitar with a blues twist became interwoven. Today you hear solos in songs by country charting
artists like Rascal Flatts that would sound just as relevant if they were in a rock song. As a matter of fact,
when you listen to today’s music scene on every genre of radio station, R & B, Hip Hop, Pop, and
Alternative, all neglect even the use of the guitar solo, so that if you want to listen to the art of the
guitar solo, you listen to classic rock stations, smooth jazz, or country. This fact has been attracting
guitarists in droves to all things country, because that is where today’s guitarist can really get an
opportunity to stretch out and play.
If you just happen to be a great singer as well, it seems to be in country music where the great
guitar playing and great singing front man resides, as witness Brad Paisley, Keith Urban, and Vince Gill. In
addition, there are great singer/players on the Bluegrass side of the isle in Ricky Skaggs and Tony
Rice.
One of the biggest challenges that a guitarist faces in today’s country band is to know when to
step it up and when to lay low. Almost every time I see a great country show there are a couple of acoustic guitar
players, a couple of electric guitar players, a fiddle player, a pedal steel player, plus the expected bass and
drums, with the occasional piano. That sound can become cluttered in a hurry unless you know exactly what you’re
doing, and I really believe that country guitar
lessons can give you that knowledge. And just as a sidebar, it seems
like half the folks on stage are singing, so it probably wouldn’t hurt to take some voice lessons
too.
I would say that to play in the current country music market, a guitarist needs to be as
versatile as possible and be able to play across multiple styles of music. Country music has become an enormous
melting pot and the country music guitarist has their work cut out for them. Country guitar lessons are, without a doubt, the
fastest way to get up to speed with the demands of this style, and it sure would help if the guitar teacher you
choose is well versed in all the multiple guitar styles that contemporary country music draws from.
The Guitar Lesson Expert is one of the best choices you could ever make to lead you down the path of country guitar
playing.
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