Lesson ID: A0177
In this guitar lesson, you’ll learn how to play a country and bluegrass flatpicking guitar solo that you can practice over a chord progression from the old classic song “Sunny Side of the Mountain” by Harry C. McAuliffe and Bobby Gregory. “Sunny Side of the Mountain” was first recorded by Hank Snow and it has been recorded by several other country and bluegrass artists over the years. “Sunny Side of the Mountain” is also a really popular song to play at bluegrass jams.
The guitar solo that we’re learning today is challenging but it is doable for newer pickers if you slow it down a bit. Overall, this solo has a really nice melody and it is loaded with some hot bluegrass licks that will help improve your flatpicking accuracy and speed.
Overview
Playthrough with Tablature
Full Breakdown
| Video Start Time | Lesson Topic |
|---|---|
| 00:00 min | Measures 1 through 5 |
| 08:49 min | Measures 6 through 9 |
| 14:08 min | Measures 10 through 13 |
| 18:01 min | Practice the First Half of the Solo |
| 19:22 min | Measures 14 through 17 |
| 24:44 min | Measures 18 through 21 |
| 30:20 min | Measures 22 through 25 |
| 34:38 min | Practice the Second Half of the Solo |
New lesson! Thanks again for all the lesson requests. Plenty more on the way soon! Hope y’all have a great weekend – Devin
Add a public comment……I was watching the Country Music documentary by Ken Burns and saw a segment with the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band. Found their CD at the library (Will the Circle be Unbroken) and they did this song with Jimmy Martin. Best song on the album.
Just listed to it on Spotify https://open.spotify.com/track/36k1nmmtVwhcZDXOyVbifq?si=CMK0ADn4QhOcWHcoFk4JOA I like it! Hadn’t heard their version of it. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks for this one..have a nice weekend!
Thanks Jocelyn!
New guitar? Ambertone HD28? Looks like a beaut
Yep! Just got it last week! I’ve been loving it. It’s an Ambertone D-18…it has more of a D-28 look to it until you see the mahogany backs and sides. Found it randomly at a local shop and couldn’t leave without it.
Nice! I didn’t realise the D-18 came in ambertone. I thought yours sounded more mahogany-like but I figured I was just hearing wrong, ha. Loving the colour.
Yeah I’d never seen an ambertone D-18 either. It’s a 2012 and somehow it’s not a custom shop with the ambertone. My cousin was telling me that he heard some guitar shops can special order a larger quantity of a “custom” Martin and Martin will make them through their regular production line or something like that. Either way, it’s a cool guitar.
This one’s nice! Thanks Devin. By the way, is that a new guitar? Looks really cool.
Thanks Joseph! Yep, got a new one! It’s a 2012 Martin D-18 with an ambertone finish. Pretty happy with it so far.
Nice guitar! And also a really nice lesson as always. The lick you showed later in the video is killer. Thanks man!
Hi Devin what is the thickness of your pick?
Hi Jocelyn! The pick I’m really enjoying now is the BlueChip TP40 with the right handed speed bevel. It’s a great size and thickness…their website says it’s 1.0mm thick.
Thanks and have a nice day.
Hey Devin does the lesson is recorded with an amplifier and a microphone? The sound is just great. I was shopping for an amplifier but the sound wasn’t good. Any suggestions?
Thanks! I record the lessons unplugged with a couple of different microphones and we do some mixing and mastering on the audio after it’s recorded. I don’t plug in a lot but I have a Fishman Loudbox Mini 60W amp that I like. It’s really small and has a great sound. I also have a K&K Pure Mini as the pickup in my acoustic guitars…I like it because it picks up a lot of the natural wood tone.
FIshman Loudbox Mini –> https://www.guitarcenter.com/Fishman/Loudbox-Mini-60W-1×65-Acoustic-Guitar-Combo-Amp-with-Bluetooth-Brown-1500000259618.gc?source=4WWMWXGL&storeCode=&source=4WWRWXGL&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI4_qZsOLb5gIVAdbACh3l7gwaEAQYBCABEgLjDvD_BwE
K&K Pure Mini –> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000P5OULA/?creativeASIN=B000P5OULA&linkCode=w61&imprToken=yQk8Yv9uVo.7Sx.x36LRlw&slotNum=3&tag=1010128-20
I really thank you!
Hi Devin, happy new year.Have you ever had a looper? I think I could do my own rhythm and practice solo over it. What do you think about it? Have a nice day!
I know there’s a lot of looper, different prices and not easy too choose somethings. Could you help? Thanks again.
Thanks Jocelyn! Happy New Year to you also! I think you would love using a looper. It’s really good for practicing rhythm and lead. You could start with one of the free jam looper apps if you have a smart phone…I downloaded one called Jam Looper a while back and it’s pretty good. The downside is that I had a hard time setting a perfect loop without a pedal to click at a precise time. Maybe there’s another app that would let you record the main loop and then crop the section so it would keep looping over and over… Read more »
I’ll let you know for sure…have a nice day and thanks for the advices….really appreciated!
I use JamMan by DigiTech. There is a little bit of a learning curve. $300 I believe. I’ve used mine during some live gigs, but you have to be careful. Press the wrong button, and your audience will hear some strange stuff going on. There is also a download app called Strum Machine that has 1000+ songs in it’s library. Add your own songs, change keys and tempos on the fly. Auto finish/Auto tempo increase for speed buildup. Many in my Bluegrass circle use it. $60/year subscription. I bluetooth it to our camper stereo and entertain the night sky, coyotes,… Read more »
This has been fun to learn! Is there a strategy behind your pick directions? Some seem a bit unnatural to me. Is it more about tone or pattern?
The pick direction in this one is more about pattern…keeping that DUDUDUDU alternate picking going over every eighth note count 1&2&3&4&. I use this method for most of my flatpicking to build up speed. It helps me keep the down up down up motion going with my pick, and if I have a hammer-on or something like that, I’ll pass over the non-picked noted with my pick just to keep the alternate picking motion going. I think it’s fine to deviate from the pick directions I have in the tablature, though, if you like something else better. It’s helped me… Read more »
Thanks Devin for another terrific lesson on Sunny Side of the Mountain.
I’m into week two of my first full lesson with this song and feel I’ve almost cracked it. I love the transcending notes of measure 15-17 and going to try to use it in some way for a break with something else maybe.
Is this bluegrass?
Yep, this would be more of a bluegrass flatpicking break for this song.
Anybody using Strum Machine?
Yes, really useful for keeping time and I think it’s easier than using a metronome. Makes fiddle tunes more fun to play esp when you’ve played them to death already!
I’ve been playing this intermittently at our weekly jam for awhile but never had a real solo to contribute . This is a challenge but I’ll keep at it.
The hillbilly little wing, lol..
Nice. Fun to play.
the hillbilly little wing. what key is this being capoed at the 4th fret ?