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How to Play Country Songs and their Essential Guitar Tricks

Learning how to play country songs is a fun experience because of the genre's very unique sound. In order to achieve the sounds of Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Linda Ronstadt, and more, one must have an understanding of the essential country guitar playing tricks. Here are just a few for you to learn! 

 

DOUBLE STOPS

Double stops require hitting two strings at a time, usually done with your fingers and not a pick
(Check out the GIF above as an example). It provides that signature, twangy sound found in a lot of country guitar songs. It's also helpful to pick the strings with your second and third finger so you can play double stops along with bass notes for some true country style. 

 

BOOM CHICK

Popular in many country songs, this technique accentuates the bass note of a rhythm guitar, hence the "boom." It's a fairly simple technique and a ton of fun for those getting started with country style guitar. The strum pattern is composed of two parts, the boom and then the chick. The "boom" is the bass note of a chord, and the "chick" part is created by strumming the rest of the chord. 

 

CHICKEN PICKIN'

The technique is another staple in country guitar playing. To really achieve the right sound, you should be using an electric guitar with a real trebly sound like a Telecaster set on the bridge pickup for that twang. Using a slap-back echo, each pick should be short, and punchy, like a staccato sound. 

If you enjoyed this, why not check out our entire course on Country guitar? 

Get the full course here.

 

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