Devin, Author at Country Guitar Online

Two Mid-range Acoustics for Country & Bluegrass

April 13, 2025October 30, 2017 by Devin

mid-range acoustic guitars for country bluegrass music

Lesson ID: A0146

In this video, I’ll show you the two mid-range acoustic guitars I use for country & bluegrass. These are the two guitars you see in most of the lesson videos. They’re not that expensive, but I think both of them have a nice natural wood tone that works well in country & bluegrass. The first one is a 1999 Martin D-15 (Martin has recently changed the name to D-15M) and the second is a 2009 Martin D-16GT. If you’re in the market for an acoustic guitar in this price range, I’d always recommend buying used because you can get much more guitar for your money.

Also in this video, I’ll show you my favorite guitar capo for country & bluegrass, my favorite guitar strings for country & bluegrass, some bone bridge pins that’ll give your guitar extra sustain, and a couple other random tips you might find useful.

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Overview
00:40 min	Martin D-15 and Randy Schartiger Guitar Repair
02:11 min	Favorite Guitar Strings for Country & Bluegrass
02:51 min	Favorite Guitar Capo for Country & Bluegrass
03:40 min	Interesting Capo Tip!
05:46 min	D-16GT and Custom Bone Bridge Pins

Randy Schartiger’s YouTube Channel https://www.youtube.com/user/pretourious

Randy working on my D-15:
Video 1 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnPk2RXIPwY&t
Video 2 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PW-n91o5QLE&t
Video 3 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paobWvuEfL0&t
Video 4 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaBYDgxcIx0&t
Video 5 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WswxDuzzpE
Video 6 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGufWgZ6quE&t

Bob Colosi Bone Bridge Pins http://www.guitarsaddles.com/products.asp

Start Climbing the Neck in D Riffs and Scale Theory

April 13, 2025October 21, 2017 by Devin

learn country bluegrass guitar riffs in D

Lesson 13 – Rhythm Fill Riffs and Lead Guitar Course

Course Outline Previous Lesson Next Lesson

Lesson ID: A0138

In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn four country & bluegrass guitar riffs in the key of D that work up the neck a ways. These four riffs can be pieced together to create a guitar solo or you can use them as rhythm fill riffs. They’re all around great riffs that’ll give that country & bluegrass sound we’re going for. After you learn the riffs, we’ll talk about the guitar scales we’re using today to create these riffs so you can see where the notes are coming from instead of just learning licks and playing them from memory.

Lesson Overview

Guitar Riffs

Video 1 – Intermediate Breakdown

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Overview
00:17 min	Riff 1 with Tablature
01:36 min	Riff 2 with Tablature
03:25 min	Riff 3 with Tablature
06:10 min	Riff 4 with Tablature

Video 2 – Full Breakdown

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Riff 1 Breakdown
04:14 min	Riff 2 Breakdown
05:18 min	Syncopated Rhythm in Country & Bluegrass
06:32 min	Riff 2 Breakdown Cont’d
09:17 min	Riff 3 Breakdown
13:18 min	Riff 4 Breakdown
18:05 min	Riff Recap

Scale Theory

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Overview
00:58 min	D Major Scale, 3rd Position Shape
02:10 min	Major Scale Practice Tips
02:44 min	D Blues Scale, 3rd Position Shape
03:52 min	How to Use These Scales When You’re Improvising Solos
05:06 min	Simple Country & Bluegrass Improvising Example
07:08 min	Analyze Riff 1 with the Scales
09:20 min	Your Homework

Member Content

Backing Track

Member Content

Guitar Scale Charts Guitar Riff Tablature Woodtone Strings

Big Sciota

April 13, 2025October 1, 2017 by Devin

Lesson ID: A0137

In this guitar lesson, I’ll teach you how to play “Big Sciota“, a traditional song credited to Burl Hammons. This song is named after a 231-mile stretch of river in Ohio that was very important to many Native American cultures. It is believed that Ritchie Stearns was the first to attach words to the tune, and much later, “Big Sciota” was made more popular by Old Crow Medicine Show.

Overview

Playthrough with Tablature

Chord Progression

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Rhythm Overview
01:03 min	“Big Sciota” Chord Progression
03:21 min	Playthrough with Tablature
05:50 min	Helpful Chord Transition Tips

Backing Track

Big Sciota Guitar TAB Rhythm Guitar TAB Woodtone Strings

Railroad Bill

April 13, 2025September 25, 2017 by Devin

Lesson 5 – Hybrid Picking Rhythm Course

Course Outline Previous Lesson Next Lesson

Lesson ID: A0140

“Railroad Bill” is an old traditional song based on a legend about a man in south Alabama during the post-Civil War era known as Railroad Bill. Sources suggest that Railroad Bill was a “Robin Hood” type of character that would steal from food trains and sell items to poor families at below market prices. As legend has it, Railroad Bill’s ghost is still roaming the L&N Railroad tracks to this day.

This song has a great melody that we’ll play using Chet Atkins and Merle Travis style picking. This is a challenging tune, but if you relax your right hand and take it slow, everything will fall into place with a bit of practice. We’ll focus on hybrid picking in this lesson, but feel free to play these arrangements with a thumb pick or finger plucking if you find that more comfortable. Download the tablature below the lesson video. Hope y’all enjoy learning this one!

Lesson Overview

Playthrough with Tablature

Arrangement 1

Video Start Time	Lesson Topic
00:00 min	Arrangement 1 Preview
00:42 min	Line 1 Breakdown
04:10 min	Extra Hybrid Picking Detail
07:36 min	Line 2 Breakdown
13:05 min	Line 3 Breakdown
15:53 min	Practice with Me