Acoustic Country
This month Stuart Ryan explores the style of a brilliant Antipodean guitarist and singer whose move to Nashville made him a modern country superstar.
This month’s modern country superstar travelled further than most to find fame on the Nashville scene. Keith Urban grew up in New Zealand before moving to the USA in his early 20s to make a name for himself in this competitive world. Born on October 26, 1967 in Whangarei, New Zealand, Urban started guitar at a young age and was influenced by rock legends Mark Knopfler and Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsey Buckingham. He started on the Australian country scene, appearing on various TV shows and touring the country as a sideman.
He moved to Nashville in 1992 and initially focused on his band, The Ranch. However, after the band folded, Urban first made a name for himself in 1999 with his eponymous solo album. He soon found success on the country music charts and a busy touring schedule soon followed – Urban is now one of modern country’s superstars and regularly fills arenas across the US and beyond.
Urban, like many of his contemporaries, has great country chops on both electric and acoustic guitar. This month’s study shows how he will accompany himself with tight, consistent fingerpicking. The lessons here focus on the deft nature of his picking hand and his great timekeeping on repetitive fingerpicking patterns like these.
There are two approaches to work on here - playing both un
