11th
Like most young males who picked up the guitar, I was entranced for years by unbridled virtuosity. Only recently have I come upon new (well, old) stuff that recalls my early face-on-the-floor reactions to Jimmy Page’s solo in “Heartbreaker” or Eddie Van Halen’s “Eruption”. No I haven’t gone back to listening to classic rock. I’ll do you one better - I’m listening to country music!
Few genres enshrine virtuosity like older country-western music. Country has always made room for instrumentals, showcasing the latest in guitar technique and audio production. Jimmy Bryant, Chet Atkins, and Roy Clark (seen here) all supplemented their careers playing such tunes with no other purpose than to discourage people from ever picking up the guitar. This video is a wonderful introduction to jaw-dropping skill involved in playing “traditional” music. Part of Clark’s charm here is the conspicuous difficulty of his playing (or so he wants us to think with his tongue hanging out as pigs dance by). If there is any question of the talent involved, well the song cuts out at opportune moments to let Clark keep doing what he does best - flatpick bluegrass-style on electric guitar.
