Freight Train, Part 1

from: Fingerstyle Guitar with Stevie Coyle

This lesson is part of the course Fingerstyle Guitar with Stevie Coyle.

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Learn to play fingerstyle guitar, from traditional Travis-picking tunes to arrangements of contemporary fingerstyle tunes, song accompaniment and more, with acclaimed performer, teacher, and entertainer Stevie Coyle.

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While My Guitar Gently Weeps

The Beatles’ classic “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” makes a great fingerstyle guitar piece. In this lesson, Stevie shows you how to get an alternating bass going (Travis style) and then find the melody on the treble strings. Learn the infectious signature melody and bass line that start the verse in Part 1.

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Lessons on the C-A-G-E-D system and learning the fingerboard
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Freight Train

Freight Train, Part 1

Freight Train, Part 2

Variations on “Freight Train,” Part 1

Variations on “Freight Train,” Part 2

Variations on “Freight Train,” Part 3

Freight Train, Part 1

The fingerpicking classic “Freight Train” comes from Elizabeth “Libba” Cotten, a great guitarist who played a right-handed guitar turned upside down, playing bass notes with her index finger and melodies with her thumb. You can see her play “Freight Train” here. “Freight Train” is played in the key of C, with just four chords (C, G7, E, and F), and Stevie gets you started playing steady alternating bass notes on the C and G7 chords with pinches for the melody notes. You’ll get lots of opportunities to play the first half of “Freight Train” along with Stevie in this video.

"Freight Train" (Available to subscribers)

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