These Female Guitarists Shred Like No Other

Elizabeth Cotten

Cotten created a unique method of fingerpicking called “Cotten Picking.” This alternating-bass method was born when she was first learning a stringed instrument. Her brother, a lefty, had a banjo, and this right-handed girl flipped the bando upside down so she could hold it. When she switched to guitar, she kept the picking style, and the rest is history. Her notable instrument is a Martin 000-18.

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The More You Know

  • When Prince was a kid, his father put him on stage at a James Brown concert where he danced with the singer until security took him off the stage.
  • Before they became (arguably) the biggest pop act of all time, The Beatles had a hard time convincing record labels to sign them. In 1962, they were rejected by Decca Records, whose boss said “guitar groups are on the way out.”
  • After Kurt Cobain passed away, Dave Grohl almost joined Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers after they played together on Saturday Night Live.
  • Dolly Parton once entered a drag queen celebrity impersonator contest AS HERSELF and lost.
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