Description
In this country guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a classic country boogie woogie style rhythm (in the key of D) as well as a pedal steel style, country lead. I’ve often found that when I try to learn country guitar, I become frustrated because it’s usually played at such an insanely fast tempo. Maybe you’ve found that to be the case as well? In this lesson, I’ve tried to take some classic country guitar licks and slow them down to a tempo that’s within reach. You’ll also learn how to play a hybrid picking style country rhythm, using your pick plus your middle and ring fingers on your right hand.
Part 1 - Free Guitar Lesson
Part 2 - For Premium Members
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Slow Walk-Through - For Premium Members
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Video Tablature Breakdown
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Love the sound and feel of this one! Once again!
Love that country twang! Now I need to break out my twang plank and get started.
I am a self proclaimed advanced beginner at guitar but I need to voice a negative opinion here. I don’t have a real lot of time to learn all of these lessons. If I am lucky I can pick two lessons in the course of a month and devote enough time to become fairly decent at playing them. My complaint? If Brian keeps posting such terrific lessons I am going to have to quit showering and shaving and eating and doing laundry and other daily requirements in order to learn every weeks lessons. Darn you Brian! :o)
What fun is doing laundry, eating, and shaving? Showering is also overrated. More guitar gets my vote 🙂
Oh sure…fuel the fire!
I agree…. LOL…… Sometimes, after a hard days work, I log on just to listen to his awesome guitar work while relaxing with a drink before going to sleep….
Brian!!!!! How’d you know I just got a new Telecaster!!!!!!!
Perfect, thank you!!!
Roberto
Brian, Lovely youve don it again. I get about one lesson in six so your not alone SquireWire such a problem. But dont you just love the quality of all Brian’s lessons….Makes you want to play even more and learn ever faster!!!
Hey John, I was being optimistic with my two lessons a month reference. One in 5 or 6 is probably a bit more realistic. I am okay with that because I am slowly learning them a little bit more quickly. Something I do like about the lessons is that they get us to learn the neck of the guitar. I guess I mean that in the mechanical sense of playing but a big sticking point for beginners is moving out of their comfort range and maybe just playing in just the first position. Kudos Brian!
Well I said couple weeks ago I was going pass a that weeks newest lesson
To continue working on my hybrid picking. Here we go wish me luck..
Hi Brian, just a heads up….on the backing tracks…looks like “slow with guitar part” is the same as “with guitar part” ……
Roberto
Good catch Roberto, I’ve corrected this now. You may need to refresh this page, but the correct track has been added.
This a great way to teach an old dog new tricks! Thank you! This old dog can’t read the light gray colored text without a magnifying glass. Other than that I will be a subscriber for years to come! Thanks!
I also have difficulty with the font … not a big deal, but it does tire my eyes trying to read the text.
Did you know that you can adjust the font in your browser? For example in Google Chrome, you can go to “View” > Zoom In – and it will increase the font size. Each browser has an option to either view or increase font size.
Even quicker to zoom in (or out) – just hold “Ctrl” and roll the mouse scroll wheel.
Brian, Really love the country guitar lessons. Until this lesson my favorite on your site is the one from sometime last year in the key of A.
What I like so much about this is all my influences are country players but as you mentioned they’re incredibly challenging to pick apart their solos, keep the key and tempo. I have two online subscriptions, yours and Ken Carlsons Country Guitar Chops. You two are some of the best teachers on the web. This lesson will greatly help me because Kens site is very difficult material but this lesson can help bridge the gap perfectly since I really got my starts in all the blues lessons here before gravitating towards country guitar.
Thank you for all the lessons.
huh, Is there anything you cant play, oh but wait you have a whole week to come up with this stuff (lol). Amazing work Thank You!
Brian you keep this up, I might have to become professional 🙂
Brian, you really do make an effort to vary the styles, and I can see from the post, everyone loves it. Is there much in the way of Rockabilly here, or am I missing it?
Thanks for this one !!! I’m having more trouble with the rhythm on this one. I wanted to learn to use more than one finger and your bring that out of me Thanks again man.
I tell you what funny on this one, I got so caught up in playing the D and plucking the the notes around the D i just screwed around making songs out of the D and i’m only now today, getting back to the rest of the song..LOL I taught my poor pinkie had callaus’s before…pulling notes and baring from the 5th fret up has gives it a new glow of RED!!!! lol
Hi Brian,
Squirewire mentioned the speed of learning re your output . I just wanted to let you both know that your lessons and the variety of choice has set a constant interest and improvement in my playing and speed of learning. At the moment that ability has also been accelerating at a very rewarding and surprising pace. Its thanks to Active Melody that I am pushing back old boundaries to my basic playing of many year ago. So there is a sense of achievement coming through as I get lessons up towards the speed of the jam tracks etc. Many Thanks
This one is really great to get my fingers to go where they don’t seem to want to but I can tell it’s worth the effort and will make me a better player
Nice lesson. Challenge both the fingering on the left hand combining that with the hybrid picking with the right. Hardest thing is getting both the grove and a decent even sound with the hybrid once you get the hang of it of the piece. Just got put in the reps and stay with it.
Hi Brian, been away for a while and come back to find a whole new website ! I love the vidio tab breakdown – especially that slow down facility. I’m picking up on some very basic folk guitar playing of my youth and have found the rate of progress realy slow so big contrast between a very standard bunch of chords that i can hit with no hesitation and any new stuff that, even after weeks and months is far from fluent. Good news is that the pace is picking up and pieces like this quickly look achievable. All credit to your teaching and to all the resourses that go along to support each lesson.
Help !!!
Brian you have already almost stopped me in my tracks in my on-line tuition from another superb (and very well known) blues tutor.
I joined Active Melody only very recently and have already listed well over 20 of your “back catalogue” that I just have to learn (already covered 4 so far). I am particularly drawn to your
“No Accompaniment” lessons.
Now you are distracting me into Country – I love it.
HI Brian.. Well I finally took the leap and went premium.. I’ve been following your freebies forever and I think you are one of ( if not the best) online instructors out there! I recently retired, been playin off and on for over 50 yrs but settled into a ‘comfort’ zone. I now have the time to go to the next level… Thanks! My group will love it too ! You’re great…
Great sound! I’m not surprised by your versatility anymore; thank you for another great lesson! Here’s a take on Ernest Tubb’s “Walking the Floor Over You” by Earl Hooker (one of my all-time favorite guitarists, he was an early influence on Otis Rush), followed by his amazing blast through “Wipeout.” Hope you like it (Earl Hooker played slide in standard tuning, and played everything with so much feeling).
Uh, here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IxT6dTuIWO0
Great lesson, Love that country sound. Working on hybrid picking. Not good at it YET but working on it . Need more lessons like this. Not that all your lessons aren’t good lessons but this one is extreme. Love it Thanks
this lesson drove home the fact in need to go back to some more basic lessons and get better at them before tackling one like this.
Love the lessons. Best ones I’ve found and your interests in guitar are very similar to mine i.e. country, rockabilly, fingerstyle, blues. Lokking forward to learning them all.
Hi
Sorry if I’m being dumb (or this has been answered elsewhere), but can anybody suggest why I am unable to download any of the MP3 tracks on this one? If I click the DOWNLOAD MP3 button it just plays the track.
Have never had problems before – and can still download some of the backing tracks (EP109 for instance).
Any ideas? Thanks in advance.
Try to RIGHT click on the “Download MP3” link and choose the “Save As..” option to download it to your local hard drive. If you’re on a Mac, hold down the “control”key and click.
Yep, tried that already. If I right click on the link I don’t get the “Save As..” option. I get ‘Open in new tab’, ‘Open in new window’, ‘Copy link’ and ‘Inspect element’, none of which obviously do the job.
As no one else seems to have this problem, I guess it’s down to my computer settings. Darned if I know what though.
Ok, resolved now. Was Firefox – can access the ‘save as’ running in safe mode. Thanks for the help – sorry for turning it into a mini thread – will use the forum next time!
Brian, you noted a “fumble” in the video. How often would an average amateur guitar player have fumbles when playing leads?
I honestly don’t know how to answer that question. Each person is different.
Whew, this is pretty advanced. I’ll never be able to learn all that but I’ll get a few nuggets out of it. .I love it tho .
This will be great stuff on the new custom built telecaster I’m getting tonite ! I’m getting the intro pretty good so far ,peace, Marv
I must be getting better because I’m actually getting this. I thought I would have trouble with it.
The bit i struggle on is the volume on the finger plucking it’s a tad quite and not prominent enough against the pick strokes , perhaps i need different effects or new strings or maybe longer nails i am catching the strings with the inside tip of the fingers ? any tips out there from you chicken pickers ?
I love this lesson , i have been hammering away at it for two days and it’s nearly there. Can’t wait to have this baby in my locker and i ain’t giving up util i have nailed this baby .
I give up on this one. .next
Well, I have the whole thing memorized but I’m not satisfied with my tone and my pluck isn’t loud enough or something. .I have to figure those 2 things out before I continue. .I can do it all about half speed tho. .
Brian you took me by surprise with this extraordinary lesson ..really fun learning this one and it is suddenly my top active melody favorite! Between your video and the tab sound slice, software, this is coming along pretty easy for me.. ( I been practicing hybrid country elsewhere for a few seasons now so this came easier than I originally had thought! Almost have it down this am! thanks so much and I’m very happy to be here ,, the full membership is outstanding!!!!
Love this one! Another of the “I’ll never be able to play that!” lessons!
Was it a struggle? You bet! Can I play it? Um, gettin’ there!
The timing at the end is really hard for me for some reason but
I ain’t quittin’!
Thanks so much!
Keep playing! Don’t stop!
Just discovered this one! After a week or so, have it up to about 75% of the full speed. Can’t quite imagine getting to 100% but who knows? This has satisfied my lust for twang for now 🙂
One of favorites, nicely done!
Play the chord shapes…the dirty little secret about lead guitar😎…