SIX COUNTRY Pickin' Trailblazers!

In this special feature Jon Bishop looks at six guitarists that defined hot country guitar. If you want to improve your picking then read on, it could be just the ticket!

- Jon Bishop

The electric guitar is one of the key instruments in the country music ensemble, providing as it does the backbone of the groove and often playing exciting single-note solos. Country guitar is a blend of many styles including, jazz, blues, cowboy, swing and gospel styles.

In this feature we will focus in on three core picking techniques with a view to developing the facility required to play some hot country lead guitar. The first of these is flatpicking, the country name for picking with down and up (alternate) pick strokes.

The second is fingerstyle. Country guitarists often add a thumb pick as this accentuates the attack for the bass notes. The third technique is the country guitar favourite, hybrid picking. Hybrid picking combines the advantages of using the flat pick (plectrum) along with the extra facility and tone of the fingers.