How To Play The Stable Song On Guitar? The 127 Detailed Answer

Start with the basics and learn guitar by memorizing your guitar strings. Here are some tips and acronyms to help you remember all 6 guitar strings.

By DanMacy

How many strings does a guitar have?

Most guitars have six strings. The modern guitar evolved from earlier stringed instruments like the lute. By the 16th century, ADGBE tuning (like the top five strings of the modern guitar) was commonly used. After constant experimentation and technological advances, the body and design have been modified to improve volume and tone. Around the mid-19th century, the modern six-string EADGBE-tuned classical guitar design was born.

Why EADBE? The short answer is that standard tuning is the most practical and comfortable way for your hands to play both chords and melodies, a conclusion drawn centuries ago.

A balancing act

The standard tuning system balances several factors:

Playing Chords: How easy is it to play groups of notes?

How easy is it to play note groups? Playing Melodies: Can melody lines be played without stretching too much?

Can melody lines be played without stretching too much? Using open strings: How many keys and chords can open strings use?

How many keys and chords can open strings use? String flexibility and tension: How well can the strings be bent and how much tension is on the guitar body?

If the guitar were tuned with larger intervals between each string, it would be difficult to play chords. Setting it to smaller intervals lets you play melodies, but not simple chords.

The easiest way to start memorizing guitar notes and strings with acronyms

The six strings on a guitar can be thought of in descending or ascending order. The thickest string is called the 6th string. In standard guitar tuning, this is tuned to E and is often referred to as the “low E string,” meaning the lowest note you can play. If you then move the fretboard down, the 5th string (the A string) is tuned to A, the 4th string (D string) is tuned to D, the 3rd string (G string) is tuned to G tuned, the 2nd string (B string) is tuned to B and the 1st string (high E string) is tuned to E.

One of the most common tricks used to remember string names is to create a memorable sentence where the first letter of each word represents each of the guitar string names.

Starting with the thinnest or 1st string, the order would be E-B-G-D-A-E. Here are a few sample phrases to get you started:

Easter Bunny gets dizzy at Easter

Every boy gets dinner at eight

Elvis’ great Great Dane ate everything

Or start with the thickest string or the 6th string and move on to the 1st string. Here are some example phrases for E-A-D-G-B-E:

Eat all day and just grow tall

Every amateur eventually gets better

Eddie ate dynamite Goodbye Eddie

To really make it stick, make up your own sentence. It doesn’t have to be great, it just has to be unforgettable. The crazier or more unusual, the better.

Memorizing the fretboard

On the fretboard, also known as the fretboard, you shape these notes. It’s a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, laminated to the face of the neck that the strings travel across between the nut and bridge. Where you press on each string on the fretboard, the vibration of the string changes, causing the pitch to change.

Learning where the strings are on the fretboard will help take your practice to the next level.

Build your skills by exploring our guitar chords video library. And don’t worry if you’re not already a Fender Play member. Click here for a free trial.

Learn how to play the Gm chord and incorporate it in a variety of cross-genre ways – from funk to pop to rock. Learn more with Fender Play today.

By Dion Wallace

The Gm (or G minor) chord, like many minor chords, often produces a sound that exudes uneasiness or alternates between optimism and pessimism. The chord produces a heightened sense of anxiety and creates a sense of anxious contemplation.

Whether you’re worried about the unknown or hoping for the best despite grim situations, the Gm chord exhibits a bright but timid sound that gives it bite when played. Let’s learn more about this chord and how to play it.

Embedded content: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rby8z8JDKNs

Playing the Gm chord

When it comes to the wide variety of minor chords, the Gm is one of the least common. Despite its low frequency in mainstream music, the chord’s unique sound is worth learning and using to add unexpected punch, emotion, and an unfamiliar – almost unsettling – sound when the occasion calls for it.

While it’s not a standard chord in many songs, there are a few ways to play the G minor chord.

The standard (and most popular) way to play the Gm chord starts at the 3rd fret. Bar your finger across all six strings, over the third fret.

From there, place your ring finger (third finger) on the fifth fret of the fifth string — the A string. Add your pinky to the fifth fret of the fourth (D) string.

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the low E (6th) string

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the G (3rd) string

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the B (2nd) string

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the E (1st) string

– Ring finger: 5th fret of the A(5th) string

– Pinky: 5th fret of the D (4th) string

From the low E string, strum down six strings

However, for many beginners, locking along the fretboard can be a difficult finger technique to master. Because of this, there are alternative versions of the Gm chord that make picking up that angsty chord a lot easier (and less angsty when trying to play it)!

A simplified version of the G minor chord just requires placing your index finger on the first 3 strings (E, B & G) on the third fret. The change is that you only put your ring finger on the 4th (D) string at the 5th fret. It’s important to note that when playing this simplified version of the Gm chord, don’t strum the low E and A strings.

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the G (3rd) string

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the B (2nd) string

– Index finger: 3rd fret of the E (1st) string

– Ring finger: 5th fret of the D(4th) string

From the D string, strum four strings down

Although this version of the Gm chord is easier to play, you sacrifice a fuller, richer sound to play this simplified rendition. While it’s not a bad idea to start by learning the easier version, work your way up to developing greater dexterity and improving your barre chord techniques, eventually playing the full chord and realizing the tonal versatility of G minor to use .

What notes are in the Gm chord?

The notes of the G minor chord are similar to those of the G major, with one notable difference.

The G chord is made up of the notes G, B, and D. The Gm chord is made up of G, Bb, and D. That one semitone flat makes a “big” difference for this minor chord, giving it a fuller, darker sound .

Songs using the Gm chord

The Gm chord knows how to play with your emotions, and that’s what music is supposed to do. Familiarize yourself with the anxious qualities of the Gm chord and train your ear to listen to its apprehension.

pop songs

Right from the start, Cherry Glazerr’s “Had Ten Dollaz” sets the mood with a restless but unbridled guitar riff. As Clementine Creevy’s vocals break through, the Gm chord’s stunning sense of dread is revealed.

“When I’m feeling down and frowning… just give me a sign, girl” – the chorus of Brenton Wood’s catchy, contemplative ’60s classic “Gimme Little Sign” epitomizes the troubled tone of the Gm chord.

rock songs

Add a harmonica to some rhythmic Gm chords, warbling harmonies and up-tempo percussion and you have a #1 hit. At least that’s what the Beatles did with their classic From Me to You, which features the G minor chord and gives an unexpected twist to this catchy ditty.

You wouldn’t believe a band as upbeat as The Beach Boys would fit a chord as celebratory as Gm into their upbeat surfer tunes. But this is where it comes into its own in “California Girls,” right next to the horn accompaniment and its signature, enticing harmonies.

From rock classics to more modern tunes, Cherry Glazerr’s “Had Ten Dollaz” showcases the angst of the G minor chord in full.

Alternative rock isn’t a subgenre that shys away from heartfelt acoustic tracks. So Plain White T’s “1, 2, 3, 4” delivers a somber but serious acoustic track, punctuated by the Gm chord

blues songs

Whether it’s a pop song, a rock song, or a bluesy funk track, like Atlanta Rhythm Section’s “Spooky,” the versatility and unsettling tone of the Gm chord can be felt across genres.

Country Songs

Life in the country can be filled with love and loss, and Garth Brooks’ “Wild Horses” uses the Gm chord perfectly to underscore that feeling, accompanied by sad fiddle notes.

Expand your playing skills with the Gm chord. Use it to give your songs an unexpected tone and burst of emotion.

If you want to learn how to play even more chords, browse Fender Play’s chord library, learn about chord types and get tips on how to master them.

If you’re not already a member, sign up for a free trial of Fender Play!

Some of the most famous country songs prove that you don’t need complicated fingerpicking to create a classic. Many hits since the 1950s are easy to learn for even a beginner, and most use simple guitar chords as well.

Check out 17 of the best easy country songs on guitar below to learn today.

1st Medicine Show “Wagonwheel of Old Crow”.

You might recognize this song from Darius Rucker’s 2013 rendition, but the original was a song written by Bob Dylan and Ketch Secor in the ’70s. They released it in 1973 and it’s been one of the most popular country songs ever since.

The lyrics take you on a journey down to the “land of the pines”. But the best part is that this crowd pleaser is easy to learn.

Wagon Wheel follows the same four chords repeatedly. You don’t have to quickly switch your fingers to get it, and it has a smooth strumming motion. We believe that beginners will both enjoy this song and find it easy to get used to.

Chords: G, D, Em, C

2. “Ring of Fire” by Johnny Cash

“Ring of Fire” is a fun song because it depicts a metaphor of love as fire. In this 1963 classic, Johnny Cash sings about falling into the ring of love.

It’s a great beginner guitar song because it only has three chords. The strumming pattern is fast, but not so fast that new guitarists can’t pick it up. If anything, the fast strumming makes it the perfect first challenge for a beginner guitar song.

Many new guitarists find Johnny Cash songs easy to learn. If you want more music from him check out “I Walk the Line”, “Hurt” and “A Boy Named Sue”.

Guitar chords: D, C, G

3. “Jambalaya” by Hank Williams

“Jambalaya” is a 1952 hit that tells a feel-good tale about staying in the bayou. With lyrics like “Jambalaya, a-crawfish pie and-a file gumbo” we think it has a nostalgic quality.

Not only is it fun to sing along to, but it’s one of the easiest songs to learn. You only need to memorize two chords, and you won’t change your chord hand much for this song.

On the other hand, the strumming pattern is trickier. “Jambalaya” doesn’t have a linear strumming movement, but more of a shuffle.

But don’t fret. Once you get the basic starting rhythm, it stays the same throughout the song.

Chords: C, G

4. “Jolene” by Dolly Parton

If you’re looking for a moody, poetic song that isn’t too difficult to learn, choose “Jolene”. In Dolly Parton’s 1974 hit, she begs Jolene not to take her husband away. The lyrics are a mixture of heartfelt, creative and artistic.

Luckily this song only has three chord changes. You can strum all six strings for each layer, which means you can put all the work into memorizing chords. Even if you slow down the song, it still sounds good.

There are other easy but more challenging songs from Dolly Parton’s discography that you can practice. For example, “I Will Always Love You” has four chords and “Coat of Many Colors” has five.

Chords: Am, C, G

Next: The Best Country Songs of the ’80s (Our List)

5. “Cruise” by Florida Georgia Line

The 2012 Florida Georgia Line song is a contemporary, upbeat tune that compares a girl to a song. It’s a great tune for lazy days outdoors or in good company.

It has four chords that repeat throughout the song and it’s easy to switch between them. For example, you can leave your third finger in place when going from G to D.

When it comes to strumming, “Cruise” has two main shifts in its pattern. But they’re not too fast and we think new guitarists will enjoy them.

Chords: G, D, Em, C

6. “Take Me Home, Country Roads” by John Denver

“Take Me Home” has become one of country’s greatest songs since it was released in 1971. He’s instantly recognizable to listeners outside of the country music scene, and with good reason. This nostalgic song takes you on a journey down country roads into the mountains of West Virginia.

It’s also easy to play. You only have to move your first two fingers when switching between chords.

The strumming is a bit more nuanced. Some beats will have you strumming harder than others, but that’s what gives the song its moving vibe.

You may need to keep your thumb down to keep the strings from resonating. But that only adds to your practice.

Chords: G, D, Em, C

7. “I’ll Be Somebody” by Travis Tritt

This song tells the story of Bobby, a boy who lives in financial difficulties and dreams of becoming a musician. We find it inspiring for aspiring musicians, both mentally and in practice.

To play “I’m Gonna Be Somebody” you need to move all your fingers along the four chords. But the switch isn’t fast, and you don’t have to move the guitar’s neck up and down.

The melody makes for easy strumming. Some people recommend this as the first song to learn on your guitar. As a bonus, it sounds good on electric guitars.

Chords: G, C, D, Em.

8. “On the Road Again” by Willie Nelson

Willie Nelson’s 1980 song is a lighthearted retelling of his excitement about getting back on the road.

It might be a bit challenging for beginners since it has five chords. But there’s no quick change between them, so it’s still one of the best easy country songs on guitar.

The Strum pattern isn’t too complicated either. It goes down twice and then up-down.

Want another Willie Nelson song? Listen to “Mammas Don’t Let Your Babies Grow Up To Be Cowboys” which also features five chords.

Chords: C, E, Dm, F, G

9. “Sixteen Tons” by Merle Travis

“Sixteen Tons: originated in 1947 as a folk song. But in 1955, Tennessee Ernie Ford made a country cover of it to revive it.

This tune sings about a laborer carrying sixteen tons of coal. So we find the song a bit dark, but the melody is fascinating.

To play Sixteen Tons, you’ll learn a mix of strumming and fingerstyle. It has a variety of chords, but transitioning between each is not difficult.

Overall, “Sixteen Tons” is one of those easy country guitar songs that introduces you to more precise string movement. Here you can try more easy folk guitar songs.

Chords: Am, F, E, Dm.

10. “Rocky Top” by Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

“Rockytop” was released in 1967 and is a song about returning home. In it, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band looks at Rockytop as the bill-free and smoke-free place they want to return to.

This song is neither too fast nor too slow. Strumming is a little tricky as it involves both finger picking and strums.

Most of the song follows the same chord progression, but the outro gives you a bit of a challenge to end it with fast F, C, and G notes.

It’s not the most famous song on our list, but it’s one of the most well-written country songs on guitar.

Chords: G, C, Em, D, F

11. “El Paso” by Marty Robbins

“El Paso” is a western ballad about a Texas cowboy who has to flee his homeland after a shooting. But over the years he misses a girl named Feleena whom he loved so much that he is traveling home.

The interesting story fits the strumming pattern. You’ll pace up and down quickly, then pause between sequences below.

The chord transitions are slow, so hold each one for a while. However, at the very beginning you start with a rapid progression between A, D, F#, A, F#, D fast. Easy enough to learn, unique enough to be satisfied when you finish.

Chords: G, Em, D, A

12. “If You Say Nothing at All” by Keith Whitley

“When You Say Nothing at All” was first released in 1988 and has since had versions by Alison Krauss in 1995 and Ronan Keating in 1999. This is the perfect light country guitar song to dedicate to a loved one. It sings about someone understanding you without saying a word.

Stick to about three main chords throughout the song. You can keep your pinky and ring finger in the same place and only use your front two to switch between chords.

The strumming style goes from six, five, and four strings to strumming. The speed is relaxing and smooth so you don’t have to rush to memorize it.

Chords: G, D, C

13. “Strawberry Wine” by Deanna Carter

1996’s Strawberry Wine evokes memories of a young summer in love. It was a huge hit in its year and has four main sections for you to learn. We suggest you get the main chords of the chorus first.

The song is slow, so finding your rhythm on the chords isn’t difficult. The strumming isn’t too complicated either.

If you have an electric guitar, you can practice the bridge solo. It picks up the tempo over the rest of the song, but adds an interesting twist to this simple country guitar song.

Chords: C, F, G, Am.

14. “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton

David Allan Coe performed the original “Tennessee Whiskey” in 1981. But you may be familiar with Chris Stapleton’s version, which incorporates influences from R&B music.

Despite the name, the song is actually about helping someone get better when alcohol was their only love. The lyrics and rhythm combine to make it a soulful but slow-paced song that new guitarists can easily enjoy.

The main chords through the song are A and Bm. If you put a capo on the 2nd fret you can play it with G and Am.

Some parts of the song make you strum hard. But the rhythm is constant, giving the song a beat without having to be fast.

Chords: A, Bm.

15. “Friends in Low Places” by Garth Brooks

“Friends in Low Places” is a playful yet mysterious song about not fitting into fancy places or formal wear. The song feels like a story and consists of only three main chords.

The strumming moves faster than the chord changes, and you pause in between. This might not be the first song to learn on guitar, but it’s a great bridge to more precise combinations.

After you learn the main chorus, try the introduction. It consists of fast fingerpicking and chorus shifts. And for another good, easy country song to learn from Garth Brooks, check out “The Dance.” Also try more finger picking guitar songs as Country uses this technique a lot!

Chords: G, Am, D

16. “Achy, Breaky Heart” by Billy Ray Cyrus

Many TV shows, parodies and music videos have referenced this hit since its release in 1990. It fits the trend of groovy, upbeat music with moodier lyrics. In this song, Billy Ray Cyrus tells an ex that she can tell the world why they’re over, but not his aching, broken heart.

The chord progression is as simple as it is catchy. It goes A A A E and then reverses to E E E A. So you won’t change it too much, but you need to focus on the hard strumming pattern.

This is another song that sounds great on both electric and acoustic guitars. It’s fun to play and the kind of song people can sing along to.

Chords: A, E

17. “It’s Your Love” by Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw’s 1997 hit has a sweet, slow and romantic guitar melody.

It has a so-called driving pattern for strumming, which contains four beats at the same time.

There are only four main chords in this song and the shifts are slow. You’ll hold the same chord for two driving strums at once, making it predictable enough to memorize.

The strumming alternates between harder and softer sounds. We recommend muting the chords by holding your hand on them and trying the drive pattern first to see if you get the beat.

Another great Tim McGraw song is “Meanwhile Back at Mama’s”.

If you ever want to find easier great country songs on guitar, we always recommend checking out your favorite artist’s discography.

Chords: G, C, Em, D

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A great karaoke performance doesn’t just depend on vocal ability. The song you choose is just as—and maybe even more important—important.

If you have a good voice but sing an obscure song nobody knows, chances are your performance will be a dud – because half the fun of karaoke is singing along with the other performers!

Luckily, whether you’re in the mood to play a ballad, something traditional, or a country-pop smash — or anything in between — one of these 10 tunes should do the trick. They’re all well-known songs that are guaranteed to be a big hit with audiences… You might even get a standing ovation and feel like a real country superstar!

This article is free to read, but not free to produce! Make a pledge to support the site (and receive special perks in return). LEARN MORE…

From the January/February 2020 issue of Acoustic Guitar | BY ADAM PEARL

Early one afternoon last September, Molly Tuttle, holding a spruce and mahogany dreadnought that appeared to be not much younger than 80, showed me the back of the guitar, which showed telltale paint wear. Tuttle explained that the instrument wasn’t actually a vintage instrument, but was recently manufactured by Pre-War Guitars, who had applied a proprietary finishing treatment to make it appear as if it had been played for decades. “I don’t even know where pre-war aging ends and mine begins,” Tuttle said with a laugh, testament both to the realistic portrayal of the disturbing and that she was anything but precious with her boutique guitar.

Only in her mid-20s, Tuttle is one of the great pickers of her generation and a fine banjoist and singer-songwriter to boot. Using bluegrass and country as a springboard for a deeply personal approach to Americana, she has received prestigious awards for these contributions: Tuttle won the International Bluegrass Music Association’s Female Guitarist of the Year award in 2017 – a first for a woman – and the following She received the same award that year and was also named Instrumentalist of the Year at the Americana Music Honors & Awards.

Tuttle, who lives in Nashville, had kindly agreed to film an exclusive video lesson for AG and it was decided that an ideal location for this would be Gryphon Stringed Instruments in her hometown of Palo Alto, California not far from AG’s headquarters in the San Francisco Bay. The location was only fitting as her father, Jack Tuttle, has been teaching various bluegrass instruments at Gryphon for 30 years; It was there that Molly bought her first Martin at 12, just before she began performing and recording traditional music with Jack and her brothers as the Tuttles.

Molly was in Palo Alto to perform at Gryphon’s 50th anniversary party, which took place the day before. We filmed the lesson in a rehearsal room whose blue walls are adorned with portraits of jazz greats John Coltrane and Miles Davis, juxtaposed with West African folk instruments and cheap vintage cowboy guitars. Although there was a bit of a hectic activity outside the room – the Gryphon team seemed to be rebuilding the place after the party – Molly seemed unwavering and focused on the music. She spoke softly but had a commanding presence as she strummed her guitar and her powerful voice filled the room. The elder Tuttle filmed the proceedings and seemed to silently admire his daughter’s skill on her instrument.

In class, the younger Tuttle, with her clear and logical teaching style, not to mention her rhythmic panache, revealed the secrets of her diverse right-hand techniques. She has broken down cross-picking, clawhammer, fingerpicking and other approaches through both the lens of traditional folk repertoire and the guitar parts and songs on her first full-length solo album, When You’re Ready (Compass Records). What follows is a condensed and lightly edited transcription of the lesson into text and notation—material no doubt sufficient for months of woodshed introspection.

Whether in your songs or in instrumental performances, you make excellent use of cross-picking. Can you break that approach down to a traditional song like “East Virginia Blues” like you did with “Wildwood Flower” in the April 2017 issue of this magazine?

Cross-picking usually involves alternating between three strings—often fourth, third, and second (Example 1a). On the guitar, this pattern sounds like a banjo roll. I also play the three-string banjo, which is perhaps what attracts me. Since you’re sounding the three strings together, you’ve usually pressed some kind of chord shape. For “East Virginia Blues” we play from the open C form (Example 1b).

The first thing you need to do is get familiar with this basic cross picking pattern. Since this is a three-note repeating pattern, you’ll need to iterate through the pattern twice and add two more notes at the end to make it fit exactly in a bar of 4/4. Now we have eight eighth notes (as in examples 2a–b). And once you have this pattern, there are a few different ways you can approach selection direction. I like to do it alternately: down-up (example 2a). The other way people like to do it is down-down-up (Example 2b).

Play these two to find the one that feels more comfortable to you – the one that you can play faster and more accurately. They have different sounds, and you may want to learn both so you can choose the one that works best for the song you’re using it on. To me, the alternate picking approach has a slightly more defined sound for each note, while down-down-up sounds a little mellower.

To play “East Virginia Blues,” start by learning the melody, then transfer it to guitar by matching the cross-picking pattern around it [sings “East Virginia Blues” and accompanies himself the guitar]. When using cross-picking patterns to fill in a melody, the melody notes are often staggered so that they are a bit more anticipated or syncopated, rather than just falling straight onto the downbeats like you would if you only have a single-line melody pimped. So a really good first step is to play the melody and fill it with strums (Example 3a). Then, instead of strumming, add cross-picking to fill in the gaps between melodic phrases (Example 3b). It’s a really nice alternative, and it sounds really pretty for a song like this, which is kind of based on the Stanley Brothers’ version featuring George Shuffler, who was known for his cross-picking style.

You get such a big sound out of your guitar – often courtesy of so-called rest hits, which means something very different on a steel-string guitar than on a nylon-string guitar. Can you explain the technique?

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My understanding of a rest stroke in bluegrass is that when you hit the string with your pick on a downstroke, the pick doesn’t come off the string [demonstrated on guitar] like it does when I play eighth notes [ex fast tempos] – the plectrum comes down on the adjacent string to the floor. Whether for playing a bass run or G-runs with lots of downs in a row, it helps cut the band in a bluegrass setting. On slower songs like [The Carter Family]’s “Carter’s Blues,” I use rest hits with leads (similar to example 4). This tune works well with lots of downbeats, and you can play it as rest hits to get that big, boomy sound on the guitar.

Another right-hand technique you’re known for is the clawhammer-style guitar, where that hand produces a barrage of notes. How did you come across this approach and can you explain how it works?

It’s more commonly played on the banjo than the guitar—it’s often heard in early music. As a teenager, I listened to old-time music and heard Gillian Welch play the clawhammer banjo on some of her songs. So I started learning the banjo style, and then when I was at a music camp in California, there was a guy named Michael Stadler who taught a class on clawhammer guitar. I had never heard of it on guitar but thought it was very cool and it showed me the tuning I still use a lot which is similar to a banjo tuning. It’s basically an open G, but instead of B, which is the third of the G chord, you tune the B string to a C – something banjo players sometimes do on their instrument as well. So the tuning of the guitar is D G D G C D which has a cool modal sound.

The first pattern most people learn is called “Bum-Diddy”. Try it by making your hand a really loose claw. Guitarists have different techniques, but I use my index fingernail and sometimes my middle fingernail to hit the strings with downstrokes. When you strum these strings, your whole hand should come up at an angle and your thumb should grab one of the lower strings. In the banjo, the fifth string is a high drone, but in the guitar, the drone is low. So in this tuning, I usually strum the fifth string—the G note—with my thumb. Every time my hand comes down my thumb catches that string and on the upstroke I pluck the string (Example 5a). The very first song I learned to play a Clawhammer-style guitar – “Little Sadie” – uses this pattern a lot. Hear how the bum diddy pattern fits into the melody (Example 5b).

I practiced this song a lot at camp and when I got home I created my own rhythms and syncopation with this style. From there I started using the clawhammer technique when writing songs. “Take the Journey” is a song I co-wrote with my friend Sarah Siskind. When I started it I played it in standard tuning with a pick, but I heard straight away that the melody was modal and could work really well in modal tuning and in the Clawhammer style. After we finished writing the song, I came home and came up with this idea (Example 6).

Their song “Sit Back and Watch It Roll” also sounds like it’s in a modal mood.

The song uses the same tuning I taught the Clawhammer guitar – open G again with a floating fourth – creating an ambiguous sound, no third in it. One day at my house I was just playing around with the guitar after playing clawhammer style but using a pick and came up with this riff (Example 7). From there I harmonized it and that [the top line of the riff] became the melody of the song [plays and sings “Sit Back and Watch It Roll” a bit]. I use some cross-picking on the bridge (Example 8). And on the outro, I trade leads with Sierra Hull playing the octave mandolin (Example 9).

You’re also obviously an accomplished fingerpicker, as heard on The High Road.

On “The High Road” I play without a pick and do fingerpicking with three fingers. I grew up playing three-finger banjo, which made it a little easier for me to learn fingerstyle guitar. But it’s still a different technique on the guitar – you have these bass notes played in a steady rhythm instead of the more syncopated, rolling patterns used on the banjo. I play “The High Road” with a capo on the third fret in G major – which causes it to sound Bb. Here’s part of the solo I do throughout the song (Example 10).

The title track of When You’re Ready also appears to have a capo on the third fret. can you disassemble it

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The riff on it is kind of cross-picked and sounds a bit banjo-like. I like to use a capo so I can get all those open, ringing strings. If I didn’t use the capo I would have to brake a lot and wouldn’t have that flowing, open sound that I love about this song. It starts with just a guitar riff (Example 11).

I’m holding my pinky down on that high drone [on string 1], which evokes the sound of that high fifth string on a banjo. The high drone is the 7th of the Am7 chord as well as the 9th of the Fadd9 chord, so I can have minimal movement between chords, although I play around with the inner voices of the G-shaped chord and with the suspended fourth [C] on this chord.

Talk about the rock influence evident here and there on the new album.

On my song “Light Came In” (“Power Went Out”) the final rhythm came as I was playing around with an electric guitar I just got from Collings [at Eastside LC]. When I was in middle school I listened to punk rock – a lot of Operation Ivy and Rancid – and when I was in a rock band I learned the basic rhythm style of such groups [plays a power chord in even eighth beats].

Years later my friend Maya de Vitry and I were playing guitar at my house one day and we came up with the chorus for “Light Came In” with this chugging rhythm. Then when we recorded the album, I worked with [engineer] Ryan Hewitt, who worked with a lot of punk rock bands. He and I had that in common and we thought it would be kind of cool to incorporate it on the album in a little way. So I just play a chorus and then move on to the second solo (Example 12).

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What were you thinking about when you played this solo?

I play a harmony with myself – thinking in small triads forms the throat. I would say it came from my time at Berklee – learning all these shapes and intervals all over the fretboard and always thinking about how to connect them in new ways.

what she plays

Molly Tuttle currently plays a Pre-War Guitars dreadnought with a torrefied spruce soundboard and Honduran mahogany back and sides, and a Thompson D-BA Custom with an Adirondack top and Brazilian rosewood back and sides. She uses D’Addario EXP17 Coated Phosphor Bronze Medium strings (.013-.056), a Dunlop JD JazzTone 208 pick and a Shubb FineTune capo. Although she played the pre-war unamplified in our class, she hooked up an Audio Sprockets ToneDexter preamp for the live work.

This article originally appeared in the January/February 2020 issue of Acoustic Guitar Magazine.

A master songwriter, Gregory Alan Isakov captures rich snapshots of life with deceptively minimalist arrangements.

It’s no surprise that Colorado singer-songwriter Gregory Alan Isakov’s music has always had a place of its own. His heavy-hearted indie folk feels at once cavernous and intimate, like journal entries scrawled on landscape paintings.

He sees the world through the eyes of a traveler and this sense of spaciousness seems to define his life and approach to music. Isakov spent the first six years of his life in South Africa before his family moved to Philadelphia, PA.

Someone once said, “You’re really great at writing!” And I said, “Just haven’t had any friends in like 20 years!”

“My parents moved to the States in 1986,” he tells us. “It was during the height of apartheid and it was an intense change. You know, it’s a whole different vibe growing up with mango trees and then moving to Philadelphia. It is grey. I was scared of the things I saw on TV – tornadoes from Wizard of Oz and stuff like that! We had a one bedroom apartment and after that my dad got a job so we moved quite a bit. We changed schools a couple of times. I graduated high school, but I dropped out. I’ve done some travel, hiked part of the Appalachian Trail. I could never sit still.”

When he’s not on the road, he can be found on a farm in Colorado, raising everything from sheep to medicinal cannabis. But even now, the songwriter admits he’s naturally shy. That he doesn’t simply carry the “Performer” label, but during those formative years music became a reliable companion in a somewhat subtle lifestyle.

“It’s strange,” he says. “Looking back, my two brothers and I always had a band in the basement wherever we went, so we became very close and played a lot. Someone once said, ‘You’re really great at writing!’ And I said, ‘I just haven’t had any friends for like 20 years!’”

inner world

Instead, music became a tool to define himself independently of his family or social life.

“It was just about nurturing this really wild inner world that I think is in all of us and really spending a lot of time there,” he says. “That’s where songs come from for me. People often say, “Who is this song by? Where does this song come from?’ And I can never answer that and I wonder if people ever tell the truth on it. That’s not my experience of how it works, you know?”

It came from a love of travel and a love of the countryside because I was so shy. But that’s what made me do it, you know?

Ironically, the first sign the itchy musician was putting down roots came when he enrolled at horticultural school in Colorado. Music and a vocation in agriculture were natural bedfellows for Isakov. Farming allowed him to work, create and space to think and be inspired, while music provided the creative outlet he needed.

“It stuck,” he says. “I think any kind of landscape makes it into your music, you know? I worked on this farm throughout college and in the winter I had a lot of free time and wanted to travel and sleep in my truck. I thought, “Well, if I could just pay for my campsite with songs, that would be great.” So I fell for it. It came from a love of travel and a love of the countryside because I was so shy. I still am, I think, but that’s what got me going, you know?”

Thousands of miles of travel and seven albums have followed, and Isakov has earned a reputation for making polished music. His latest album, Evening Machines, is a typically masterful construction that builds a sense of airiness and spaciousness out of calm acoustic arrangements.

“I remember [at the age of 14] me and my guitarist broke our four-track because we were like, ‘We’re never going to sound like Pearl Jam!'” Isakov laughs. “Then I realized that lots of quiet music and lots of space in my writing came naturally to me… To say the most with a brief thought fragment. I love Leonard Cohen as a poet because he is so frugal. It’s like the whole world is slowing down and there’s space. That’s what I want to achieve with my music.”

In the end it comes down to the craft. “That always blew my mind,” Isakov concludes. “Creating something with your hands is so rare these days. But we play these wooden boxes with strings and create something out of nothing.”

The ’67 sound

How a veteran J-50 found its way to becoming a mainstay

Isakov’s instrument of choice is a ’67 J-50 Gibson. “It was given to me by a friend,” he explains. “He’s a farmer with a ranch up in Nebraska. He is a veteran and brought this guitar to Vietnam. One day he said, “I left you some in the garage…” I thought it was weed because he’s been smoking weed all day. I looked in and there was a buffalo skull and this guitar case. It smelled like a library book and the neck was just bent to shit but I took it to a friend in Ithaca, New York and he steamed the neck and refretted it and I’ve only played this guitar ever since. ”

Gregory’s album “Evening Machines” is now available through Dualtone Records.