All Guitar Lessons
Search, filter, sort—or hit “Surprise Me” to jump into one of CGO’s 300+ lessons 🎸Some content lives in its own sections, and some is organized a little differently…
Hundreds of mini lick lessons with demo video & tablature
Speed adjustable country & bluegrass jam tracks to play along to (recorded by me here in the Woodshed)
Shortcut to step-by-step flatpicking lessons on songs played at real bluegrass jams
Build improvisation skills with structured paths through lessons, with a few exclusive videos to guide you
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Wildwood Flower in G
Lesson ID: A0228 Learn the classic American folk standard “Wildwood Flower” with this step-by-step traditional country and bluegrass guitar lesson. Originally recorded by the legendary Carter Family, “Wildwood Flower” has become one of the most iconic flatpicking songs for anyone wanting to master old-time...
“Dear Mr. Arizona” Cowboy Waltz by Soonka
Video lesson coming soon! In the meantime, find the guitar tablature for Instrumental Breaks 1 and 2 below. Click the download button in the top right corner of the PDF viewer to download a print-friendly tab sheet. IMPORTANT NOTE: There’s an unusual B7/F# chord...
Dust in a Baggie by Billy Strings
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...
Church Street Blues
Lesson ID: A0208 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play “Church Street Blues” written by Norman Blake (we’ll cover this song the way Tony Rice played it). There are basically three parts to this song — the guitar break, verse, and chorus....
“One Bud Wiser” Country Guitar Riffs
Lesson ID: A0203 In this guitar lesson, we’ll take a close look at some acoustic country guitar licks from “One Bud Wiser” performed by Gretchen Wilson in her documentary called Undressed. This documentary follows Gretchen as she walks you through her life on the...
Outlaw Country Drop D Riffs and Strumming
Lesson ID: A0202 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn a few country guitar riffs in the style of Charlie Daniels. We’ll also use the chord progressions from “Long Haired Country Boy” by Charlie Daniels to practice some country strumming patterns and chord embellishments. Overall,...
How to Play Happy Birthday on Guitar
Lesson ID: A0200 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play “Happy Birthday” on guitar. This bday arrangement combines picking and strumming, and it has a little bit of a country feel to it. You can download the Happy Birthday Tablature below the...
Texas Swing Chord Progression on Guitar
Lesson ID: A0199 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn a jazzy Texas swing rhythm guitar progression. First we’ll take a look at a must-learn Texas swing strumming pattern. Then we’ll work through a practice progression in the style of “Two-Step Down to Texas” by...
Easy Flatpicking Intro – Grateful Dead
Lesson ID: A0197 In this guitar lesson, we’ll take a look at some simple rhythm and lead from the song “Ripple” by Grateful Dead. First, we’ll work through two basic chord progressions in G and we’ll add some vocals for those of y’all wanting...
Flatpicking in the Style of Kenny Smith
Lesson ID: A0196 In this guitar lesson, we’ll take a close look at a flatpicking break in the style of Kenny Smith. This is a fairly advanced guitar break that will really help you build up some strength in your fretting hand. The hardest...
Nobody’s Darlin’ but Mine
Lesson ID: A0195 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on a guitar solo that follows the melody of “Nobody’s Darlin’ but Mine” written by Jimmie Davis. In this lesson, we’ll focus on the version of this song as it was recorded by Merle Haggard....
Flatpicking in the Style of Norman Blake
Lesson ID: A0193 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on some Norman Blake style flatpicking using a progression that we’ll borrow from Norman’s song “Randall Collins.” In the first part of this lesson, you’ll learn a nice flatpicking break that goes along with the...
“Walk On Boy” in the Style of Doc Watson
Lesson ID: A0192 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work through a progression from the classic song “Walk On Boy.” The original version of this song was written by Mel Tillis and Wayne Walker. The flatpicking arrangement that you’ll learn in this lesson is similar...
Fingerstyle Guitar Inspired by Colter Wall
Lesson ID: A0191 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on some bluesy country fingerstyle guitar that’s inspired the song “The Devil Wears a Suit and Tie” written by Colter Wall. First you’ll learn the main chord progression that we’ll use to practice this type...
Jerusalem Ridge
Lesson ID: A0190 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a flatpicking guitar arrangement that goes along with the old classic bluegrass fiddle tune “Jerusalem Ridge” by Kenny Baker and Bill Monroe. This is a catchy flatpicking guitar arrangement that will help...
Tyler Childers “Nose on the Grindstone” Strumming
Lesson ID: A0189 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play some chord embellishments in the style of “Nose on the Grindstone” by Tyler Childers. First, we’ll work on a few country strumming patterns that’ll help you get that “dirty” country sound Tyler...
Tennessee Waltz in Drop D
Lesson ID: A0188 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on a flatpicking arrangement that follows the melody of the classic song “Tennessee Waltz” written by Redd Stewart and Pee Wee King. The practice arrangement in this lesson is inspired by a version performed by...
Flatpicking in the Style of Molly Tuttle
Lesson ID: A0187 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on some flatpicking in the style of Molly Tuttle using a common “I-IV-V” chord progression that we’ll borrow from the song “White Freightliner Blues” by Townes Van Zandt. Molly Tuttle adds her own twist to...
Johnny Cash Style Intro and Bass Walks
Lesson ID: A0186 In this guitar lesson, we’ll work on some Johnny Cash style rhythm guitar. First we’ll take a look at an intro progression and learn a few bass line walks that will give your playing that Johnny Cash country sound. Then we’ll...
12 Bar Bluesy Country Guitar Solo in E
Lesson ID: A0182 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a 12 bar bluesy country guitar solo in the key of E. This guitar solo sounds great over the 12 bar blues progression that we studied in the previous guitar lesson here...
12 Bar Blues in the Style of Merle Haggard
Lesson ID: A0181 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a 12 bar blues progression in the style of Merle Haggard. This is a progression that we’re borrowing from the old classic song “Blues Stay Away From Me” originally recorded by The...
Man of Constant Sorrow
“Man of Constant Sorrow” was first published by Dick Burnett in 1913 and later made popular by the Stanley Brothers in the 1950s. In this guitar lesson, we’ll show you how to play “Man of Constant Sorrow” in the style of The Soggy Bottom...
I’ve Been All Around This World
Lesson ID: A0179 In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play the traditional song called “I’ve been All Around This World”. First we’ll work through the main chord progression to this song and we’ll practice singing the verses with the chords & lyrics....