Level: 2/3
Tuning: Standard

The black country blues guitarist Arnold Shultz taught his style to several local Muhlenburg musicians including Kennedy Jones. Kennedy passed it on to other guitarists, notably Mose Rager, a part-time barber and coal miner, and Ike Everly, the father of The Everly Brothers. Their thumb and index fingerpicking method created a solo style that blended lead lines picked by the finger and rhythmic bass patterns picked or strummed by the thumbpick. This technique captivated many guitarists in the region and provided the main inspiration to a young Merle Travis. Cane Break Blues is a straight forward country blues played in the key of E. It is an easy example of Kentucky thumbpicking.