MOTHER MAYBELLE CARTER: An American Original

GOOD MORNIN’, Y’ALL!

“…that, became one of  them benchmarks of really fine Country Guitar playin’ heard even today.”

A mighty fine day it is and I would want to talk to you about an equally mighty fine woman.

Yep, mighty fine truly is Mother Maybelle Carter.

As we all know, the Country Music Scene is dominated mostly by us menfolk. But, did you know that most of the guitar playing styles in Country Music from the Traditional to the Contemporary came from Mother Maybelle?

Uhuh, she learned to play that guitar on her own. Along the way, she developed a curiously unique playing technique. And that became one them benchmarks of really fine Country Guitar playin’ heard even today.

“…most famous of them is called The Carter Scratch.”

She had quite a number of Guitar Playing Techniques and one of the most famous of them is called The Carter Scratch. Which, comes by other names: The Thumb Brush, The Carter Lick, and The Church Lick.

“It is a distinctive style of rhythm guitar playing. Wherein the melody is played on the bass strings, usually low E, A, and D. While rhythm strumming continues above, on the treble strings, G, B, and high E. This often occurs during the break. The style bears similarity to the “frailing” style of banjo playing and is the rhythm Boll Monroe adapted for Bluegrass Music two decades later.”

To better show how it is done, I will share with you all a video by none other than—Mother Maybelle’s eldest—Helen Carter!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MooFjZ2CyaY

Wasn’t that beautiful! Yep, you would notice that even up to now Mother Maybelle’s playin’ style truly had such an influence and impact on the Country Guitar-playin’ scene.

By the way, if you kind folks have your own guitar stories to tell or any story for that matter. Please, feel free to share them with us. We’d give it a read and maybe, share them with other country folks out there. Just visit us at our Accounts:

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Thank you!

This is Our Kind of Country,

May y’all be Safe and Well and…

“MAY THE LORD GOD ALMIGHTY BLESS US ALL AND SET US FREE!”