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Licks and Tricks

Country Bluegrass Jam in G – 12 Bar Picking Workout

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ountry Bluegrass Jam in G – 12 Bar Picking Workout
Lesson ID: A0223

Looking to improve your acoustic guitar chops for country and bluegrass? Here’s a 12-bar picking workout that’s perfect for building your flatpicking technique and rhythm skills. This short guitar lesson features a classic 12-bar progression in a traditional country and bluegrass style.

Every time I sit down to practice, I like to warm up with something like this—simple, melodic, and rooted in the traditions of acoustic country and bluegrass guitar. This wasn’t rehearsed or polished—just some spontaneous flatpicking, strumming, and riff ideas I thought I’d share with tablature included.

If you’re a fan of players like Tony Rice, Norman Blake, or Doc Watson, or you’re just starting your journey into bluegrass and country acoustic styles, this video is for you. Take a listen, grab the tab, and pick up a few new licks for your next jam session.

12 Bar Picking Workout TABWoodtone Strings

Red Haired Boy

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red-haired-boy-guitar-lesson-with-tablature
Lesson ID: A0220

In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a nice bluegrass flatpicking arrangement for “Red Haired Boy”. This song is one of the most common fiddle tunes played at bluegrass jams. NOTE: We’re going to play “Red Haired Boy” using key of G chords and scales, but we’ll capo the 2nd fret so technically this is in the key of A.

After you learn the flatpicking break, practice along with the “Red Haired Boy” backing track that comes with this guitar lesson. “Red Haired Boy” guitar tablature is available for download below the lesson video.

Lesson Overview
Playthrough with TAB

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Full Breakdown

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Backing Track

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Red Haired Boy TablatureWoodtone Strings

Chicken Pickin’ Lick 3 in A

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Lesson ID: A0218

Here is Chicken Pickin’ Guitar Lick 3 in the key of A. This is a fun country guitar lick that travels up the neck in a really creative way. We’re going to combine Lick 3 with Chicken Pickin’ Licks 1 and 2 to create a complete guitar solo that’s 12 measures long in total. After you learn all of the licks, practice them over the full-length backing track that’s available with this lesson post.

I prefer using Woodtone Triangle Picks (black) in .71mm for chicken pickin’ because shape, size, and flex of these picks feels perfect.

Backing Track
Woodtone Strings

Dust in a Baggie by Billy Strings

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dust-in-a-baggie-guitar-lesson-intro-break-1
Lesson ID: A0209

In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play the guitar solos from “Dust in a Baggie” by Billy Strings. We’re going to cover the popular version on YouTube where Billy is playing this song on a couch. We’ll cover all the guitar breaks that Billy plays in this version. The tablature files are available for download below the lesson videos.

Guitar Break 2

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Guitar Break 3

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Guitar Break 4

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Backing Track

This backing track loops the Guitar Break Chord Progression over and over. Enjoy!

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Guitar Break 1 TABGuitar Break 2 TABGuitar Break 3 TABGuitar Break 4 TABWoodtone Strings