Diary of a Player by Brad Paisley Read Free Book Online Page A

Guitar,” and you don’t need me to point out that the man picked as well as anyone ever has.
    You can still hear Chet’s extraordinary playing on countless recordings, including songs by Hank Williams, Kitty Wells, Elvis Presley, and the Everly Brothers. Next time you hear “Cold, Cold Heart” by Hank Williams or “HeartbreakHotel” by Elvis, think for a moment about the great Chet Atkins standing right beside them playing his guitar. And when you hear one of those incredible Everly Brothers classics like “Wake Up Little Susie” or “Bye Bye Love,” reflect on the fact that the Everlys might not have made nearly as much musical history if Chet Atkins hadn’t been not only in the studio with them, but also in their corner.
    Chet Atkins was much more than a great player. His trademark “Atkins style,” which my grandfather and Hank Goddard loved, is very hard to master. Of course, Chet was influenced by hearing Merle Travis before him, as well as other all-time guitar greats, like Django Reinhardt and Les Paul. As the story goes, Chet heard Merle on some old-time radio program, playing with his thumb and index finger on his right hand, and just assumed Merle had to be using at least three fingers.
    That’s how Chet developed his own distinctive style of playing with his thumb and the first two fingers on his right hand—occasionally the first three. That’s the same style that countless others have tried to master, most of them failing miserably. That’s also the style my grandfather loved and the style that somehow came easy to Hank Goddard. Thanks toHank, it’s a style that I learned and that is part of the bedrock of how I play today.
    More than anyone, Chet built what became known as the Nashville Sound. When Chet was running RCA Records’ country division, he helped bring the world a generation of great artists, including legends like Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, Jerry Reed, and Charley Pride. Before he passed in 2001, Chet Atkins did it all, and he did it all well. Chet once said, “Years from now, after I’m gone, someone will listen to what I’ve done and know I was here. They may not know or care who I was, but they’ll hear my guitar speaking for me.”
    I think it’s safe to say that Chet Atkins’s guitar is still speaking to us and speaking very eloquently.
    Steve Wariner and I spoke about our two amazing guitar teachers, and soon we finished the song that we wrote together for Hank and Chet—two guys to whom we owed “more than just this song.” When it came time to record it, I brought Hank’s personal guitar from back in West Virginia to the session. Steve brought one of Chet’s guitars. In the studio, when I opened up the case of Hank’s old Gibson to show Steve, we found the bulletin for Hank’s funeral laying right there on top. A second later Steve opened up the case thatheld Chet’s guitar, and right on the top was the bulletin for Chet’s memorial service at the Ryman. Looking almost identical! It turns out Steve had used the guitar when he played Chet’s service and hadn’t taken it out. Steve and I both felt like we were in some strange
Twilight Zone
episode. When the song was finished, I felt such a sense of pride. It really did capture who they were, I think, and I know that Hank would have loved being remembered right there alongside Chet Atkins, right on top where he
always
belonged.

    T hank you, Hank, for all those years of telling me, “Take it, Brad.” From the bottom of my heart, I don’t think that I ever would have taken it nearly as far without you and your shining example.
    Guitar Tips from Brad
    LESSON # 3
    Start off acoustic. You have a lifetime to get plugged in.

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CELEBRITY
    When you’re a celebrity It’s adios reality
    â€”“Celebrity,” written by Brad Paisley

    S o I got pretty good on the guitar. And