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Article: Picking Travis: train man. (country guitar improvisation; includes a 48-measure composition illustrating four Merle Travis-style figures) (Brief Article) (Column)
- Article from:
- Guitar Player
- Article date:
- November 1, 1994
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1994 New Bay Media. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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TRAVIS PICKING SOUNDS AS FRESH AND IMMEDIATE today as it did 40 years ago on Elvis records such as "That's Alright Mama" and "Mystery Train." If you're into rockabilly and roots country, it's essential to have a strong Travis groove in your bag of tricks.
"Train Man" is a 24-bar blues consisting of four must-know Travis licks. Some playing tips:
* Use the classic country right-hand grip: flatpick, middle, and ring fingers.
* When playing chord forms, your ring finger (a) takes the highest note, your middle finger (m) the next lower one.
* The foundation for each lick is the strong, alternating quarternote bass line. Play it with ...