Conference napalm::guitar

    I think you'll find much of the "country style pickin'" is pentatonic &
    plain old major scales with a few twangy stretches thrown in. If you
    know what these are, fine. If not, there are lots of sources. You might
    want to be a little more specific, for example what tunes/artists are
    you trying to play.
    
    Paul

    There is also a new column in Guitar Player magazine call Hellecaster
    1001. The column by Arlen Roth also has quite a bit of country pickin'
    in it.
    
    Placy
    

    Talk about deja vu all over again...
    
    Just saw "Country Guitar" magazine, from the Guitar World folks,
    includes tabs for some coiuntry hits, etc.
    
    There is a good book by Arlen Roth called "Nashville Guitar" published
    by Oak.  They also have a book called "Bluegrass Guitar" which might be
    helpful.
    
    							Brian
    

>    There is a good book by Arlen Roth called "Nashville Guitar" published
>    by Oak.

    Me 'n Arlen (and a very old Telelcaster of his) spent a long night in
    the studio together once and although I've never quite understood his
    having published instructional materials on heayy metal guitar playing,
    I *CAN* tell you Arlen knows how to play country stuff inside, outside
    upside-down and backwards. (I was mixing, thank God.)

    --Ron

    Hi Richard,
    
    The previous replies have good pointers and you should definitely get
    some published material, book, cassette, video, whatever...
    
    While you're waiting for that stuff to come through the mail,
    here's a pedal steel kind of lick that sounds really country, IMHO:
    
    Using the key of guitar ( E ) to illustrate, this is a 3-note chord
    that has a bend in it.  Start in the position shown by striking the 
    three notes and then bend that F# (under your middle finger) up to a 
    G#, or two frets.
    
    	| | | | | |
        + + + 1 + +
        | | | 2 | |  11 fret
        + + + + + +
        | | | | 3 4  12
        + + + + + +
        | | | | | |
    
    Once you get the physical part down, you can do things like play each
    note individually and the make the bend, or start with the chord
    'pre-bent' and release the bend to get some different effects.
    
    You might try putting your index (1) finger right behind your middle
    finger, *particularly* on an acoustic, for extra horsepower in making
    the bend.		

    You might also want to check out the Jim Weider video tapes (on
    Homespun).  They're called Rockabilly Guitar I and II and in them
    he covers licks from guys like James Burton, Scotty Moore, etc.
    While not technically country I guess, it sounded to me like these
    might be interesting for you.  I've got another of his tapes which is
    basically just an excuse to show off he and his friend's mouth
    watering collection of vintage Fender gear, but he demonstrates some
    of these licks and it's similar stuff to what John posted.  Kind of
    a funny guy, enjoyable to watch, and does a good job of showing you
    the mechanics of the licks.
    
    /rick

    What is meant by "pedal steel ?" I noticed some licks in Country Guitar
    Magazine that said "Pedal Steel."


    Jim

    It means a pedal steel guitar...this is one of those things that looks
    like an ironing board you see guys play in country bands.  It may have
    more than one neck, and will have anywhere from 6 to 12 strings per
    neck. The pedals are used to bend the pitch of selected strings.  The
    instrument is not fretted but played with a slide. 
    
    Now, many players of regular guitars like to imitate the sound of a
    pedal steel, especially country players. This is done usually by
    playing a chord, then bending one or more (but not all) of the notes of
    the chord, to simulate the pedal effect. 
    
    There are also bender devices which may be fitted to a regular guitar,
    the best known are the Parsons-White B Bender, the Bigsby Palm Pedal
    and the Hipshot.
    
    							Brian 

    RE:8
    
    Thanks !
    
    Jim