ACCORDI - PENTAGRAMMA - TABLATURE / CHORDS - STANDARD NOTATION - TABLATURE

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A complete instruction guide to Nashville country guitar. With 19 songs, in standard notation and tablature, in the styles of Maybelle Carter, Sam McGee, The Delmore Brothers, Merle Travis, Clarence White, and Doc Watson. Chapters on flat and finger-picking, lead guitar, Bluegrass, Rockabilly, Special sections on string-bending techniques and pedal steel effect; licks, riffs, double notes, shuffle rhythms and much more.

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Series: Guitar Recorded Version TABLATURE
Artist: Danny Gatton

Danny's work was a brilliant combination of blues, rockabilly, and rock 'n' roll. This collection features 11 transcriptions from his album, including: Funky Mama - In My Room - The Simpsons - Slidin' Home, and more. 96 pages

Blues Newburg
Elmira St. Boogie
Fandingus
Funky Mama
In My Room
Muthaship
Pretty Blue
Quiet Village
Red Label
Theme From The Simpsons
Slidin' Home

FLATPICKING COLLECTION VOL.3. SHEET MUSIC BOOK WITH CD & GUITAR TABLATURE. 

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20 Solos by some of the world's greatest guitarists.

Book Contents:
The Old Minor Joe Clark - Gary Brewer
New Five Cent Piece - Doug Rorrer
Sarah Hogan - John Lowell
Wheel Hoss - Wyatt Rice
Saint Anne's Reel - Fisher's Hornpipe, Peter McLaughlin
Kentucky Waltz - Rob Pearcy
Signal Hill - Brad Davis 
Dawg's Pause - Dix Bruce
Fickle Wind - Travis Alltop
Bill Cheatum - Roy Curry
Don't Try This At Home - John Moore
Dry and Dusty - Robin Kessinger
Blinded By Love - Ray Craft with Unlimited Tradition
Alarm Clock - Jim Hurst
EI Cumbanchero - John Chapman
Against The Grain - Tim May (w/Crucial Smith)
Road To Coeoum - James Alan Shelton
Cotton Patch Rag - Cody Kilby
Cascade - David Grier
Big Mang - John Carlini & Tony Rice

Introduction
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine, in conjunction with Mel Bay Publications, is proud to bring you this sampler of flatpicking guitar music from twenty of the best bluegrass guitar players in the business. This CD project, the third in an annual series, originally grew out of requests we recei ved from our readers regarding an audio reference for the material we present in the magazine. All of the tunes on this CD have been transcribed in both standard music notation and tablature within the pages of the third volume of the magazine (six issues). If you are not familiar with our magazine and would like a free sample copy, please write to the address listed below, or call (800) 413- 8296. After we produced the first flatpicking CD sampler in 1997, Bill Bay of Mel Bay Publications approached us about publishing a book that would include all of the transcriptions as well as some information about each of the artists on the CD. That book, Flatpicking Collection: 1997 Annual Edition (MB97342BCD) published in 1998 by Mel Bay Publications, contained all of the transcriptions as they appeared in our magazine during our first year of publication. That first book and CD were so well received, we decided to make it an annual event. What you are holding in your hands is the third book in this flatpicking series.
On the majority of the cuts on the CD the artists play more than one break to each song, however, in most cases you will only find one of those breaks transcribed here. For the most part, the biographical material presented in this book was extracted from more complete articles that were published about these artists in Flatpicking Guitar Magazine.
Please support the artists that appear on this sampler by purchasing the source CDs. If you have any trouble finding these CDs, give us a call and we will help. We owe a special thanks to all of the artists on this CD for their time, effort and talent; their record companies for allowing us to use this material; and Mel Bay Publications for publishing the book. Dan Miller
Flatpicking Guitar Magazine P.o. Box 2160 • Pulaski, VA 24301
 

Gary Brewer ·
The Old Minor Joe Clark
Bio written by Dan Miller
Gary Brewer is immensely proud of his Roan Mountain, Tennessee, heritage and his family's musical tradition. "I am the fifth generation of bluegrass music in my family," Brewer states, matter of factly. "Our family was playing bluegrass before it was called bluegrassthat' s why we sometimes call it 'brew grass,' " he says with a wink and a smile, certainly not wanting to take anything away from his friend and mentor Bill Monroe. The family connection is certainly apparent during one of Brewer's performances. Not a show goes by when Gary doesn't announce, "this next tune will be played in the 'old-time' style of my grand-daddy 'Pap' Brewer." Gary's father, Finley "Jim" Brewer, Jr., who drives the band's bus and picks the guitar, is also called up on stage to sing a few numbers with Gary during the show. Additionally, when the show is close to home, Gary's five year old son, Wayne, will come up on stage with his dad and his "Papaw" to sing a song or two. About a year ago Wayne Brewer even performed with his father on the Grand Ole Opry and became the youngest person ever to perform on that stage. Thanks to Bill Monroe, Gary has an open invitation to perform at the Grand Ole Opry and has done so on several occasions. Gary Brewer began playing the guitar when he was nine years old, beginning on the electric guitar. His transition to the acoustic guitar occurred when he was twelve years old when Gary became fully immersed in bluegrass music. He began listening closely to the albums and eight-track tapes that his dad had around the house. The music that inspired him the most was that of the Stanley Brothers. He says, 'The Stanleys had that mountain influence and mountain sound. They were from the same region of the country and I could identify with it." As a result, his early guitar influences, other than his father and grandfather, were George Shuffler and Bill Napier. He also said that he remembers seeing Norman Blake play on "Hee Haw" when he was a young teenager. Although Gary was exposed to, and greatly enjoyed, the music of many bluegrass guitar players, he has never tried to copy or imitate anybody. He says, "I started my own band when I was fifteen years old and began writing my own material immediately. I was busy doing something that would be all mine instead of copying records. I was hearing what was inside of me on the guitar." When Gary was about fifteen some school mates who had heard that he could play the guitar asked him to join them in a talent contest. He went to one boy's house to rehearse and saw that they had a banjo and mandolin. They started to jam and it developed into a great afternoon picking session. When Gary got home that night he announced to his parents that he was going to start a bluegrass band. He named the band the Kentucky Ramblers and is still, over eighteen years later, playing under that same band name. Gary began his professional career in about 1979 and since that time has recorded 34 projects under his own name; filled in for Ralph Stanley's guitar player on occasion during the early 1980s; actually took Bill Monroe's place on stage at Fan Fair in 1996 and filled in for the Father of Bluegrass with his Bluegrass Boys when Monroe was in the hospital; toured Europe in 1995, selling out every show and recording a highly acclaimed "Live in Europe" album in the process; has been the main-stay act in the mayor of Louisville's music program for the past fourteen years; toured with Bill Monroe; played on the Grand Ole Opry as a featured act; played for President Ointon during a campaign stop in Louisville; recorded the sound track to a soon-to-be-released major motion picture "The Floyd Collins Story"; has played at nearly every major bluegrass event in the country; and eight years ago he started, and still runs, the country's largest free Bluegrass festival. On top of all that, and of special interest to readers of this magazine, he has recorded a highly acclaimed guitar instrumental album which as released in 1995.

When asked about his success, Gary says, "From the time I first started as a teenager, I understood that there was only going to be one Ralph Stanley. I knew that I needed to do something different in order to be recognized. I attribute my success to that fact that I record and perform my own material. I have never tried to copy anyone. Ninety percent of what I do in my show is Brewer material." On the following page, we have transcribed Gary's first break to "Old Minor
Joe Clark" from his Guitar CD. Gary said that he had been fooling around with minor chords one day and began to play the old mountain ballad "Old Joe Clark" out of A minor. He named his arrangement the tune "The Old Minor Joe Clark." The transcription on the next page was taken from a Mel Bay book which contains complete transcriptions of the songs on Gary's CD.

Rob Pearcy·- Kentucky Waltz
Written by Dan Miller

The name Rob Pearcy might not be one that you recognize right away, but take a look at the photo on the CD cover. If you've ever attended Steve Kaufman's flatpick camp, or witnessed any of the flatpicking guitar competitions anywhere from Merlefest all the way west to Winfield, you'll undoubtedly say, "I remember that guy!" Rob is the kind of guy that you'll tend to remember if you have ever seen him. His tall, lanky build, long goatee, lightning-bolt guitar strap, Dan Crary Model Taylor guitar and characteristic hat, complete with its long turkey feather, make him one of the most recognizable players on the flatpicking guitar competition circuit. And although he has removed his hat and dressed up a bit for the cover of his debut solo CD, Hats Off, looking at that long goatee and Taylor Dan Crary model guitar will probably still bring back memories of Rob blazing through "Lime Rock" or sweetly gliding through his fine arrangement of "Kentucky Waltz" on a competition stage somewhere. Rob Pearcy is a bluegrass music teacher by profession (teaching guitar, mandolin, banjo, dobro, fiddle, and mountain dulcimer). That statement, in and of itself, is not one to raise eyebrows. Many bluegrass musicians teach students how to play bluegrass instruments to supplement their income. The unique thing about Rob is that he teaches bluegrass music as a full-time member of the faculty at Hunters Lane High School in Nashville, Tennessee. Rob teaches about 70 students a semester at Hunters Lane. He runs three double length (an hour and forty minutes) classes a day, five days a week. The classes are divided into three blocks--one for beginners, one for intermediate level players, and an ensemble class. There are about 25 kids per class ranging from the ninth through the twelfth grade. The majority of the students enter the program with little or no experience. Rob starts all beginners playing the guitar. By the time the students reach the ensemble class, many have gone on to learn other instruments and have become quite skilled. Regarding the beginning of his interest in flatpicking, Rob says, "I would read Guitar Player magazine a lot and I keep seeing this name pop up-Doc Watson-and his acoustic flatpicking. I had really never heard it. One of the local music stores that I did business with owed me some money in trade for something so I asked them to get me the Doc Watson albums so that I could see what this guy was all about. I got all of the old Vanguard Doc Watson albums and it really changed my life. I thought, 'This is really something else!' I thought it was the greatest guitar playing I had ever heard." While Rob continued to play some electric guitar to make money, his attention and interest began to move more towards acoustic flatpicking. He says, "Frets magazine started that same year and I got the first issue. I read Dan Crary's column and learned how to play 'Salt Creek.' When I had first listened to Doc play, I thought no one else could learn to play like that. After I learned to play 'Salt Creek' reasonably well, I was excited." Rob's first contest experience was at the Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree. Of his first trip to the Smithville event, Rob said, "They had been having the festival all through the seventies. I had heard about it but never had much interest in it. After I won an acoustic guitar and began flatpicking, I thought, 'Well I'll go to that.' I took my Alvarez and it was an amazing event. I was really impressed that the people that played there kind of took me in even though I was this strange hippy guitar player. I wound up jamming with the guys who were the top three guitar players at the contest that year. I was hooked from then on out." After that rust experience at Smithville, Rob spent the next several years entering as many contests as he could find, including the Tennessee State Championship sponsored by Gallagher Guitars. He says, "It was at Gallagher's flatpicking championship that I started meeting the heavy duty flatpickers. I ran into Steve Kaufman, Roy Curry, Danny Roberts, Fred Dugin, and Mike Whitehead. They were all real nice guys and would jam with you-I thought it was the greatest thing." In addition to playing contests, Rob had also started teaching students at local music stores. One of Rob's friends, formerly a bandmate in a few of the country bands Rob had worked with over the years and at that time was a teacher at Hunter's Lane High School, brought Rob in on a new program the school was developing to teach kids bluegrass and acoustic music. Rob was rust asked to serve on the advisory committee to help choose teaching materials. A year later, when one of the teachers left the program, he was hired as a teaching assistant. He now has been working as a full-time member of the faculty for the past ten years. Having had ten years of experience teaching many students how to flatpick, Rob had the following to offer when asked to talk about what he has learned about teaching the art of flatpicking the acoustic guitar: "I see my main task as trying to teach them how to learn. As Dan Crary says in some of his instructional stuff, 'Everyone teaches themselves.' Someone else can show you how to do it, but you still have to get down to the task of doing it. I look at my job as like being a coach, and I show them the right things to do in order to learn. In flatpicking, I think it is important to learn the alternating pick technique. If I can teach them to get the alternating pick direction correct, they seem to really smooth out. It is such a simple thing that students tend to think that it is not that important." On the following pages we present the first break to Rob's arrangement of "Kentucky Waltz." This has been one of Rob's favorite contest pieces over the past several years. If you hear Rob pick it, you'll know why.
 

Contents:

1. Old Minor Joe Clark - Gary Brewer
Arranged by Gary Brewer, BMI
Source CD: Guitar - Gary Brewer
1995, Copper Creek Records (CCCD-0137), P.O Box 3161, Roanoke, VA 24015
Gary Brewer - guitar,

2. New Five Cent Piece - Doug Rorrer
Traditional
Source CD: Tradition: A Tribute to Doc & Merle Watson - Doug and Taylor Rorrer
Flyin' Cloud Records (FC-033). 168 Glenridge Drive, Eden. NC 27288 mediaman@vnet.net
Doug Rorrer - guitar and bass, Taylor Rorrer - rhythm guitar, David Holt - banjo, Kirk Sutphin -
fiddle, Scott Freeman - mandolin

3. Sarah Hogan - John Lowell
John Lowell, Old Cart's Music, BMI
Source CD: Growling Old Men - John Lowell & Ben Winship
1998, Snake River Records (SRR-015), PO Box 215, Victor, ID 83455
John Lowell - guitar and lead vocal, Ben Winship - mandolin and harmony vocal

4. Wheel Hoss - Wyatt Rice
Bill Monroe / Unichapel Music - BMI
Source CD: New Market Gap - Wyatt Rice
1990, Rouonder Records (Rounder CD 0272) Rounder Records, One Camp Street,
Cambridge, MA, 02140
Wyatt Rice - guitar, Rickie Simpkins - violin, Sammy Shelor - banjo, Ray Legere - mandolin,
Ronnie Rice - bass

5. Saint Anne's Reel / Fisher's Hornpipe -
Peter McLaughlin
Traditional
Source CD: Cliffs of Vermillion - Peter McLaughlin
1996, Dog Boy Records (D8-02), PO Box 57233, Tucson, AZ. 85732
Peler Mclaughlin - guitar, Tom Rozum - mandolin, Laurie Lewis - fiddle,
Jerry Logan - bass

6. Kentucky Waltz - Rob Pearcy
Traditional
Source CD: Hats Off - Rob Pearcy
1998, Blue Current (BC 1001), Blue Current Records, 137 Rebel Rd, Smyma, TN 37167
Rob Pearcy - guitar, Craig Duncan - fiddle, Terry Smith - bass

7. Signal Hill - Brad Davis
Brad Davis
Source CD: Climbin' Cole Hill - Brad Davis
1996, Raisin' Cain Records, (RCCS-1902) PO Box 890, Madison, TN 37116
Brad Davis - gUMr, Greg Davis - banjo, Big Buford - mandolin, "Thumper" - bass

8. Dawg's Pause - Dix Bruce
Dix Bruce
Source CD: Tuxedo Blues - Oix Bruce
1998, Musix (CD 102) Po Box 231005, Pleasant Hill, CA 94523
Dix Bruce - guitar, Bob Alekno - mandolin, Mike Wollenberg - bass, David Balakrishnan - violin

9. Fickle Wind - Travis Alltop
Randall Hilton, Greasy Creek Pub., BMI
Source CD: Two Different Worlds - Travis Alltop
1998, Travis Alltop, PO Box, Nashville, TN
Travis Alltop - lead vocal and guitar, Dave Miller - mandolin, Elmer Burchett - banio, Kenny
Smith - bamooo vocal, Ronnie Simpkins - acoustic bass

10. Bill Cheatum - Roy Curry
Traditional
Source CD: Flat Top Specialist - Roy Curry
1999. Roy Curry (282598.8) PO Box 15163, Chattanooga, TN 37415
Roy Curry - guitar and bass, Bobby Bums - mandolin

11. Don't Try This At Home - John Moore
Dennis Caplinger, John Moore
Source CD: Bluegrass, Etc.
1996, Tricopolis Records
John Moore - guitar, Dennis Caplinger - banjo and fiddle, Jim Green - bass

12. Dry and Dusty - Robin Kessinger
Traditional
Source CD: Robin Kessinger
1996, Jim Martin Productions, PO Box 152, SI. Albans, WV 251n
Robin Kessinger - guitar, Luke Kessinger - bass

13. Blinded By Love - Unlimited Tradition
(Ray Craft - guitar)
Ray Craft, Doabie Shea Music, 8M1
Source CD: She's Gone - Unlimited Tradition
1998, Doabie Shea Records (DS-CD-4oo1) PO Box 68, Boones Mill, VA 24065
(540) 334-1118, Ray Cralt - guitar and lead vocal, Scolly
Sparks - Tenor Vocal, Dan Tyminski - Bamone Vocal, Shayne Bartley - mandolin,
Jason Hale - bass, Craig Smith - banjo, Aubrey Haynie - fiddle

14. Alarm Clock - Jim Hurst
Jim Hurst - N.N. Guido Music
Source CD: Open Window - Jim Hurst
1998, N.N. Guido (NR20617),
poBox 396, Fairview, TN, 37062
Jim Hurst - guitar, Missy Raines - bass, Fred Carpenter - fiddle, David Harvey - mandolin

15. EI Cumbanchero - John Chapman
Herdandez - Peer Inl - BMI
Source CD: Love's Gonna Live Here - The Chapman Family
1997, DigiGrass Records (DG1oo5CD) 417-882-5078
John Chapman - guitar, Bill Chapman - banjo, Patti Chapman - bass, Jeremy Chapman -
mandolin, Jason Chapman - bass, TIm Crouch - fiddle

16. Against The Grain - Crucial Smith
(Tim May - guitar) Tim May
Source CD: Crucial Smith
1997, Micah Records, 615-321-5526
TIm May - guitar, David Holladay - bass, Chris Joslin - dobro and banjo,
Kyle Wood - mandolin

17. Road To Coeburn - James Alan Shelton
James A. Shenon (mountain Empire Music - BMI)
Source CD: Road To Coeburn - James Alan Shelton
1997, Copper Creek Records (CCD-0154) P.O Box 3161, Roanoke, VA 24015
James Alan Shenon - guitar, Ralph Stanley II - rhythm gUMr, Steve Sparkman - banjo,
John Rigsby - mandolin, James Price - fiddle, Ben Issacs - bass

18. Cotton Patch Rag - Cody Kilby
Traditional
Source CD: Live From Winfield - Kilby, Shadd, Cosgrove
1999, NN001, PO Box 185, Cowan, TN, 37318
Cody Kilby - guitar

19. Cascade - David Grier
David Grier, Roo Flatpicking Music, ASCAP
Source CD: Hootenanny - David Grier
1998, Dreadnought Records (D 9801), PO Box 60351, Nashville, TN, 37206-0351
David Grier - guitar, TIm O'Brien - mandolin, Dirk Powell - accordion

20. Big Mang - Tony Rice & John Carlini
John Cartini (Garden Street Music, Queen's Counsel Music, ASCAP)
Source CD: River Suite for Two Guitars - Tony Rice & John Carlini
1995, Sugar Hill Records (SH-GD 3837) PO Box 55300, Durham, NC 2n17-53OO
John Carlini - guitar, Tony Rice - guitar

CRARY DAN, THE FLATPICKER'S GUIDE. SHEET MUSIC BOOK with CD & GUITAR TABLATURE .

LIBRO METODO DI MUSICA CON CD. 
SPARTITI PER CHITARRA CON :

ACCORDI, PENTAGRAMMA E TABLATURE.

Series: Guitar

Medium: Softcover with CD
Artist: Dan Crary

Dan Crary is one of the top flatpickers in the United States. His book teaches how to play accompaniments, cross-pick, play lick strums, and lots more, and the examples in the book are explained on the accompanying CD by Crary himself. The CD also allows guitarists to play along with the songs in the book.

112 pages

COMPLETE COUNTRY GUITAR BOOK. Fred Sokolow. CD TABLATURE

Product Description:
This book is an encyclopedia of Carter flatpicking style back-up, bluegrass back-up, Carter flatpicking style lead, Doc Watson-style lead, Clarence White-style bluesy lead, Atkins/Travis fingerpicking style, rockabilly guitar style, Nashville lead styles, and Western swing. The tunes and exercises in the book are included on the CD. Fred introduces each tune with page numbers to locate the corresponding material in the text. Stereo split track recordings allow you to hear the guitar through one speaker, separate from the band. In notation and tablature.

Product Number: 93935BCD
Format: Book/CD Set
ISBN: 0786628413
UPC: 796279042567
ISBN13: 9780786628414
Series: Complete
Publisher: Mel Bay Publications, Inc.
Date Published: 11/11/1997

Song Title: Composer/Source:
Amazing Grace Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Arkansas Traveler Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Banks Of The Ohio Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Beautiful Brown Eyes Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Bluegrass Back-Up Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Bury Me Beneath The Willow Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
C & W Vamp Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Can The Circle Be Unbroken Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Careless Love Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
I Am A Pilgrim Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
I Never Will Marry Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Jimmie's Blue Yodel Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Just A Closer Walk With Thee Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Lonesome Road Blues Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Luther's Walk Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Nine Pound Hammer Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Railroad Bill Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Red Apple Juice Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Rockabilly Rave-Up Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Rockin' With Carl Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Roll In My Sweet Baby's Arms Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Sally Goodin Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Scotty's Boogie Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Shamblin' Along Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Soldier's Joy Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Steel Bending Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Take This Hammer Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Talking Guitar Blues Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
The Great Speckled Bird Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Turkey In The Straw Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Wabash Cannonball Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Wildwood Flower Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Worried Man Blues Arr. By: Fred Sokolow
Wreck Of Old 97 Arr. By: Fred Sokolow

INTRODUCTION

Country guitar means a lot of things to different people. To some it's the easy strumming
of Hank Williams; to others it's Albert Lee or Jerry Reed playing a hot electric lead in a con-
temporary C&W tune; to still others it's Mother Maybelle Carter picking the "Wildwood Flower,"
Eldon Shamblin playing jazzy riffs on Bob Wills' "San Antonio Rose, " Lester Flatt backing up
Earl Scruggs on the "Foggy Mountain Breakdown, " or Carl Perkins rocking out, hillbilly
style, on "Blue Suede Shoes."
And there are still more performers who shaped the diverse traditions and styles of
country guitar playing: Jimmie Rodgers, Doc Watson, Merle Travis and many more.
All the traditions sparked by these major artists are very much alive. Listen to a country
radio station for an hour and you'll hear most of the above-mentioned styles demonstrated by
lead and back-up guitarists. Your enjoyment of one or two of these traditions prompted you to
pick up this book.
A discography at the end of "The Complete Country Guitar" will help you put these musical
influences in historical perspective. More importantly, the body of the book shows you how to
play in the styles of all these artists. Everything from mountain music to the modern Nashville
sound is examined. Licks and s cales are diagrammed and written out in music and tablature,
and a recording enables you to listen to all the tunes and musical examples while studying
the charts and paperwork. (The greatest pickers of all time learned by listening to records
and imitating them -- and few of them ever had any written aids.)
If you're a beginner, you'll want to start with the basics (tuning up, playing simple chords
and strums); otherwise you can open up to the chapter on your favorite type of country music ...
listen to the recorded tunes on the recording .... study the notes and diagrams that precede the
accompanying music and tab ... and finally, comparing the music/tab to the recording, play
like Clarence White or James Burton.
Whether you're a professional picker looking for some new licks or just someone who
wants to pick and sing some country favorites, I hope you find something useful and enjoyable
in this gold mine of guitar riffs.

SONGBOOKS
Countless songbooks are available that contain your favorite country tunes with
the words and music. Since most of them include chord grids, you can learn songs
from them. Just figure out (by ear or trial and error) which strum fits a given tune,
and read the chord grids while you strum. If the song is written in a difficult key
(Eb or B, for example) you can use the transposing method in the MUSIC THEORY
APPENDIX to change the key, or you can use a capo to make difficult keys easy.

HOW TO USE A CAPO
Various capos, made of rubber, metal and plastic are available at guitar stores. They depress
all of the guitar strings at whichever fret the capo is placed, which then raises the guitar's pitch.
If you playa G chord with the capo on the 2nd fret (acting as though the fret in front of the capo
were the 1st fret of the guitar), it's the same pitch as an A chord-because A is two frets higher
than G.
One of the capo's main uses is to enable you to raise a song's key (e. g. from G
to A) and still play in the original key's chord fingerings. This is handy if a song is
written in G but you can sing it better in A; or if you learned an arrangement using
G fingering but need to sing in a higher key. Here are some other situations in which
the capo is handy:
1. If a song is written in a difficult key (Ab or B, for example), or if someone's
singing voice calls for a difficult key, pick a nearby easy-to-play-in- lower
key and capo up the difference between the two keys. To play in Ab: G is one
fret below Ab, so capo up one fret and play G fingering. (You can use the
transposing method in the MUSIC THEORY APPENDIX to change all the
chords in the tune from the original key to the capoed key. ) To play in B: A
is two frets below B, so capo up two frets and play A fingering.
2. If you want to play higher up the neck - for variety's sake, or to sound different
from another guitar - but you want to stay in a given key: use the same
process as above. For instance, to playa tune in E, higher up the neck: C is
four frets below E, so capo up four frets and play in the key of C (using the
transposing chart if you need to). To play in G, way up the neck: D is five
frets below G, so capo up five frets and play in D.

PRACTICING SUGGESTIONS
Practice your chords and strums by playing along with the tunes on the recording.
Whether a song is an exercise in fingerpicking or electric lead styles, you can
accompany it with the strums in this chapter. The music /tab will tell you which chords
to play and your ear will tell you whether the rhythm is a country shuffle, waltz or
country frock beat.
It's also excellent practice to try to find by ear the appropriate strums and chords
to familiar songs. From childhood on, we all learn hundreds of nursery rhymes,
folk songs and country and pop tunes, most of which only use three or four chords.
Hunt for these - trusting your ear - on your guitar.
Try using songbooks or sheet music to learn some simple tunes. Once you know
the changes* to a tune, the best way to smooth out your rhythm and chord-changing
technique is to play with another guitarist -- especially one whose playing is at a
slightly higher level than yours. This can be demanding on both of you at times, but
it can also be a lot of fun.
Changes" = the musician's shortened term for "chord changes."

 CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION .
HOW TO READ TABLATURE.

BEGINNINGS
TUNING UP
FIRST POSITION CHORDS
HOW TO HOLD A FLATPICK .
STRUMMING PATTERNS
SONGBOOKS
HOW TO USE A CAPO
PRACTICING SUGGESTIONS

CARTER·STYLE BACKUP
THE CARTER·STYLE LICK
BASS RUNS (BURY ME BENEATH THE WILLOW IN 5 KEYS)
I NEVER WILL MARRY
AMAZING GRACE
JIMMIE RODGERS-STYLE BACKUP:
JIMMIE'S BLUE YODEL. .
HAMMERING·ON
PULLING-OFF
TAKE THIS HAMMER
I NEVER WILL MARRY
TALKING BLUES (TALKING GUITAR BLUES)

BLUEGRASS BACKUP
THE G RUN
MORE TAGS
EXTRA RHYTHM STROKES
LESS STROKES
ENDINGS
BANKS OF THE OHIO
ROLL IN MY SWEET BABY'S ARMS
WABASH CANNONBALL
AMAZING GRACE

CARTER·STYLE LEAD
FIRST POSITION MAJOR SCALES
G MAJOR SCALE & WILDWOOD FLOWER
C MAJOR SCALE
WABASH CANNONBALL & D MAJOR SCALE
THE GREAT SPECKLED BIRD
A MAJOR SCALE & WRECK OF OLD 97
E MAJOR SCALE & CAN THE CIRCLE
BE UNBROKEN
A WALTZ·TIME CARTER-STYLE LEAD:
BEAUTIFUL BROWN EYES

DOC WATSON-STYLE LEAD
FAST FLATPICKING TECHNIQUE
FIDDLE TUNES
SOLDIER'S JOY
TURKEY IN THE STRAW
ARKANSAS TRAVELER
SALLY GOODIN
EMBELLISHING A SIMPLE MELODY:
WRECK OF OLD 97 (PART I)
WRECK OF OLD 97 (PART II)
LONESOME ROAD BLUES
FLATPICKING EXERCISES

CLARENCE WHITE-STYLE BLUESY LEAD
BLUE NOTES (FLAT 3RDS. 5THS & 7THS)
CHOKING THE STRINGS
LONESOME ROAD BLUES
CROSSPICKING
NINE POUND HAMMER
RED APPLE JUICE
CROSSPICKING PATTERNS

FINGERPICKING MERLE TRAVIS CHET ATKINS-STYLE
FINGERPICKS
FINGERPICKING PATTERNS:
RAILROAD BILL .
I AM A PILGRIM
BASS RUNS & FINGERPICKING: .
I AM A PILG RIM
FINGERPICKING MELODY
RAILROAD BILL .
BANKS OF THE OHIO .
WORRIED MAN BLUES .
FANCIER FINGERPICKING & BANJO
ROLLS: WORRIED MAN BLUES .
MOVEABLE CHORD & HOW TO USE THEM .
FINGERPICKING ALL OVER THE FRET-
BOARD: I AM A PILGRIM .
CARELESS LOVE .
JUST A CLOSER WALK WITH THEE .

ROCKABILLY A LA SCOTTY MOORE & CARL PERKINS .
SCOTTY'S BOOGIE (pART I)
SCOTTY'S BOOGIE (PART II) .
THE MOVEABLE BLUES SCALE: .
ROCKIN' WITH CARL
BOOGIE WOOGlE BASS PATTERNS: .
ROCKIN' WITH CARL (BACKUP)
ROCKABILLY RAVE-UP .
CARELESS LOVE .

NASHVILLE LEAD STYLES .
CHORD FRAGMENTS HANK SNOW-STYLE:
WABASH CANNONBALL .
BURY ME BENEATH THE WILLOW .
CHORD FRAGMENT MAJOR SCALES: .
GREAT SPECKLED BIRD .
C & W VAMP .
SOME NEW F·FORMATION LICKS AND
A JAMES BURTON-STYLE SOLO .
BEAUTIFUL BROWN EYES
I NEVER WILL MARRY .
CHICKEN PICKIN' & SLIDING SCALES: .
RED APPLE JUICE .
ROLL IN MY SWEET BABY'S ARMS
MORE STRING-BENDING WITH THE SLIDING
SCALE: STEEL BENDING (pART I) .
PEDAL STEEL LICKS: .
STEEL BENDING (PART II)
NINE POUND HAMMER .
SOME PRACTICE SUGGESTIONS
THE LUTHER PERKINS-STYLE BACKUP
LICK: LUTHER'S WALK .

WESTERN SWING .
SALLY GOODIN
TAKE THIS HAMMER
A DIMINISHED SCALE .
WHEN TO USE THE DIMINISHED SCALE .
SHAMBLIN' ALONG
CARELESS LOVE .
TEXAS-STYLE CHORD COMPING: .
SALLY GOODIN BACKUP
MORE ABOUT PASSING CHORDS:
SHAMBLIN' ALONG BACKUP .
CARELESS LOVE BACKUP

EQUIPMENT APPENDIX .
GUITARS & STRINGS
AMPS & ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT .

MUSIC THEORY APPENDIX .
NOTES ON THE GUITAR FRETBOARD
MAJOR SCALE & INTERVALS
CHORDS
CHORD FAMILIES & TRANSPOSING .

HOW TO PRACTICE WITH RECORDS .
DISCOGRAPHY .