The Carter Family ~ Mike Seeger Page One

The Who Family? Kim Cartasian? Miley Cartasian?

I include the Carter Family because its seminal music history. If you grew up in America you would recognize the music immediately. If you missed out on the Carter family don't feel bad since they were before many of our time. Like the thirties.

However if you are interested in the roots of country and folk music then this selection will fill a big gap in your finger style acoustic guitar arrangement songwriter knowledge.

And if you are aware of just how influential the Carter Family were you came to the right place! The American folk renaissance of the early 1950s and '60s spawned the new genre of singer songwriter and the Carter Family defined the art of finger picked accompaniments.

Many of your favorite recording artists site the Carter family as an influence including Bob Dylan and Nile Rogers. Donovan has an interview in Guitar World magazine where he says that he taught John Lennon how to play Maybelle Carters style of claw hammer finger picking. You can't get much more influential than that! Mr. Party Get Lucky himself, Niles Rodgers also sites them as influences.

Woody Guthrie took their Hawaiian style slide guitar chord progression and melody and turned it into this land is your land this land is my land. Most Americans have grown up hearing these Carter family melodies without realizing it. Hallelujah. If these were other people they would be playing the gospel or the blues but these are rural Virginia God fearing country folk music long before Television. They wrote hits too!

The Carter Family ~ Mike Seeger Page One | Page Two | Page Three