Chet Atkins (ATKINS CHET)

When you try to describe the career of Chet Atkins, chosen by themselves alone determine the resonant. "Legendary" - beginning guitarists will be useful to know that Atkins has achieved unprecedented success as a guitarist and producer, coming out of a very simple environment, you can imagine. "Comprehensive" - such is the effect of the Couple in the styles of contemporary guitar and country music from its roots Hillbilly to involvement in the car show-business. "Absolute" - a dedication to the Couple to his whole life, from his early youth, as well as on top, which he reached, and which rarely admits himself, despite all the admiration of his colleagues and countless awards, received. And finally: "Impossible" - about his more than half a century's contribution to music.

Biography and career

Chester Burton Atkins (p. 1924) grew up on a farm in the vicinity of r. Latrel, Tennessee. In the evenings, after the exhausting daily work, the people gathered to sing and pomuzitsirovat. Musicality was in the blood of the Couple: his grandfather and uncle were able to play the violin, and his father even taught music. Even as a child, having heard somehow blind street guitarist, Chet I became interested in music. Mastered the basics of playing the guitar and violin, he began to gain experience, speaking at local dance parties and concerts. Thu heard on the radio music of different styles and artists, fascinated by such jazz guitarists as George Barnes and Les Paul, as well as the western swing group The Sons of the Pioneers and their guitarist Karl Farr. From an early period commencing on the guitar to simulate playing piano, then what he was realized in a variety of arrangements of piano compositions, Thr gradually moved beyond the game of his predecessors, using more than two fingers of his right hand.

30's and 40's were a golden age of radio, and across America, hundreds of radio stations broadcast numerous concerts and shows, including live. As a teenager, Chet was playing in the accompanying convoys on local radio stations, and in 1942. was taken for permanent work session musician on a major radio station in Knoxville in his home state. In the subsequent four years of life Couple consisted only of work on radio and training on the guitar, that does not slow to affect the growth of its skills and reputation.

By the time brother Chet, Jim, has already made his career as a guitarist, working in New York Big Band under the famous Fred Waring, which also worked, and Les Paul. In 1945, Jim has agreed to audition for his brother to have a larger radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. They needed a guitarist to replace himself Merla Travis, who so skillfully mastered finger style of play that this style has become synonymous with his name - "Travis-piking". Atkins, with sixteen years of listening to Travis on the radio, won the audition, but soon he had a conflict with the leadership of the station, and he went with her, having worked there for only six months.

After working for some time as a "free" guitarist and violinist, Atkins learned that Red Foley, star of the famous radio show, Grand Ole Opry, is looking for a guitarist to replace Roy Acuff. After meeting with Foley Chet immediately offered a one-minute solo every Saturday night in a live concert, broadcast nationally. However, Chet was too good for his proposed work. Producers and the audience wanted to hear folk and country, and the style of Chet with a noticeable influence of guitarist Django Reinhardt bore the imprint of jazz, and he was again dismissed.

In 1947, Atkins received a new proposal. Steve Holes, while the head of the label RCA Victor, heard a recording of one of his speeches on the radio Couple. Enjoy it, he suggested Chetu recording studio as a fully independent artist. This record had no commercial success, but the instrumental tracks '49, the "Galloping on the Guitar" and "Main Street Breakdown" became popular screensavers on the radio. In the same year, settled in Nashville, Chet was the accompanist on recordings of the best known names of country music, such as Hank Williams, Eddy Arnold, The Carter Family. He also recorded as a solo artist, releasing his first on Victor LP in 1951. In addition, he gradually began to produce most of the session label in Nashville.

In 1956, RCA has built his famous "Studio B" in Nashville, and Atkins was appointed one of its directors. Working musician, producer and executive officer at the same time, Atkins was at the heart of events in country music. Over the next few years under his leadership went to record such artists as Elvis Presley, Don Gibson, Charlie Pride, Waylon Jennings and many others. His innovative methods of production hits propelled country music a long way from its roots Hillbilly. The new trend, called "Nashville Sound", facilitate the consolidation of country music as one of the most commercially successful styles in the U.S..

During this period, Atkins actually defines the sound of guitar in country music. His game he has eclipsed its predecessor Merla Travis, and, in turn, served as the inspiration for the future of the great names such as Scotty Moore, Eddie Cochran, George Harrison, Albert Lee and others. Thr released a lot of instrumental albums, songs with which even renders the pop charts: "Mr. Sandman, "" Yakety Axe "," Country Gentleman "and a number of other. At the same time, he cooperated with such musicians as Les Paul and Lenny Breau.

In 1968, RCA Chet appointed vice-president of his country-wing for his many achievements, but Atkins began to feel bound by creatively. In 1982 he moved to the label, Columbia Records, which released a number of works together with its ideological "disciples" - George Harrison, Mark Knopfler and Albert Lee. Over the past two decades of the century and his life Thr recorded several new albums, including with his longtime collaborator Les Paul.

Chet passed away on June 30, 2001 at the age of seventy-seven years. In Nashville, one of the streets named after him, and in the center of his monument, depicting Atkins, playing the guitar. Known as "Mr. Guitar", he remembered by millions of listeners as a true gentleman of country music.

Style & tricks

The outstanding success of Chet Atkins was based on his mastery of the technique of finger musicianship. This style of guitar playing, traditional name of which "choke", developed in the 19 - early 20 centuries., Mainly in the Appalachian Mountains in Kentucky and Tennessee. Its foundation is the moving bass line, usually performed "claw" on the thumb, and the melodic line in the upper strings, performed by another finger or another "claw" on it. Early recordings of guitarists finger, made in 20 years, have shown their high performing skills. These instrumentalists, . as Sylvester Weaver, . Mississippi John Hurt, . Mose Rager and Ike Everly (father of the famous duo subsequently Everly Brothers) in the finger style performed by highly sophisticated party in the blues, . hilbilli and commercial production company Tin Pan Alley,
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From finger guitarists Chet Atkins to the greatest popularity was Merle Travis, Mose Rager developing ideas and Ike Everly. Through its broadcasts on radio station WLW in Cincinnati, Ohio, Travis has inspired a whole generation of young guitarists in t.ch. Chet Atkins. Chet adopted from Travis his manner of playing, while eventually started to play with two fingers is not as Travis, and four. By the mid-fifties Thr replaced his idol status in the best guitarist in this direction. Mastered finger style, Chet also supplemented it with new methods of melodies, such as game intervals, harmonics, puloffy to open strings, gammoobraznye passages, electronic effects, and many others. The concept of "style of Chet Atkins" so broadly that some very good guitar players would be free to co-exist in him, never repeating each other.

Example 1 shows the basic pattern of finger-style couple, which can be heard in his early recordings for RCA. Put your left hand in the position of the chord, and fixing the fingering, focus on making sound right thumb. Take notes of the bass line with your thumb or a claw on it, and notes of melody - the first and second fingers. If you play the usual mediator (such as Joe Maphis, and many modern country music guitarists), the melody notes are taken second and third fingers. In both cases, mutes the bass strings of the palm base. Count the rhythm of "two", kicking at 1 and 3 beat,.








Audio file 1
Sound file 2
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EXAMPLE 2. Thu studied the possibility of facilitating play fast passages through the use of open strings. This is reflected in a number of specific techniques, two of which are shown in this example. In the first part of music combined in 6 position with open strings D and G. Every note nezaligovannuyu Thr extracted fingers in accordance with the fingering (p - a big, i - first, m - the second finger). The second part consists of a series of double pools to the same open strings. Such techniques can be heard on many of his recordings.

As an electric guitarist, Chet one of the first to use the technique of artificial harmonics, which borrowed from the artists on the pedal-style guitar, and most clearly demonstrated in "Chinatown, My Chinatown" '56 year. Artificial harmonics can take on any part of the vulture, . touching the index finger to the strings to the octave (12 frets) above the fret, . on which it is pressed, . soon, . you pulled her thumb, . located above the signature stamp for the index,
. Example 3 notes in the form of small diamonds indicate the harmonics, and the numbers in parentheses at the tablature indicates which fret to touch the string with the index finger of his right hand (this should be done directly on the doorsteps fret). First played only harmonics, and then they alternate with the usual notes. Over the last three cycles, hold the chord fingering A6 / 9 fingers of his left hand. A plus would be if you have strong nails on his right hand. Thu attached great importance to this aspect.

Guitars and Equipment

For 50-bit and 60-ies the name of Chet Atkins was inextricably linked with the guitar by Gretsch. In the mid-50's thanks to this cooperation has appeared semi-acoustic guitar 6120 CA. It was followed by "Country Gentleman", "Tennessean" and notch 6121. These instruments were levers Bigsby, and on the "Country Gentleman" was also presented the first serial humbucker. With its distinctive rattling sound, Gretsch guitars are the favorite tools of guitarists and rockabilly styles of country.

The beginning of his career, Atkins played the guitar Gibson, models, L-7 and L-10 with a modification of the Les Paul. In 1950 he began to use the D'Angelico, in which he played a few years before its nominal model Gretsch. In 1982, Chet Atkins returned to Gibson as its partner, with the idea of issue-notch acoustic guitar with nylon strings. Today the line models of Gibson Chet Atkins includes this tool, its version with steel strings, and reissue models "Country Gentleman" and "Tennessean" Gretsch Company.

In the mid-50 Thr (as Scotty Moore and Carl Perkins) used the power Ray Butts Echosonic with built-in delay. Later, he played through different amps - Standel, Baldwin, Fender Princeton modification Paul Rivera, and Deluxe Reverb.

Like his ideological inspirer and collaborator Les Paul, Chet liked to experiment with sound in the studio. His recordings were among the first demonstrating the now shirokoupotrebitelnymi effects, . such as Reverb ( "Blue Ocean Echo, . , 1955), . tremolo ( "Slinkey, . , 1956), . wah-wah ( "Boo Boo Stick Beat, . , 1959), . and chorus, . DeLay, . harmonizer, . Compressor, . Distortion, . phase shift and mikrosintezator.,