Flatpicking licks are what make guitar sing. When Colin leans into that E minor pentatonic over a G chord, something magical happens—simple notes become a story. If you’ve ever heard Doc Watson tear through a bluegrass tune and wondered how he makes it look so easy, you’re about to find out.
The secret isn’t complicated. It’s about understanding which scale fits which progression, and then practicing until your fingers do the work without your brain getting in the way.
Why Flatpicking Matters
Flatpicking means using a flat pick on open strings. It’s the foundation of bluegrass, country, and folk guitar. Doc Watson was one of the greatest bluegrass flatpickers of them all—he made it look effortless because he understood the theory underneath. Once you know what Colin’s about to teach you, you can apply it to any key, any song, any style.
The Secret: Relative Minor Scales
Here’s the thing about music: all music is the same. You’ve got 12 notes, same scales, same chords. It’s just how you arrange them. In the key of G, your basic progression is G-C-D (that’s your 1-4-5). Most people would use the G major scale. Colin uses something smarter—the E minor pentatonic.
Why? Because E minor is the relative minor to G major. Same notes, different home base. When you play E minor pentatonic over a G chord, every note fits. The scale contains the foundation you need, and you get a whole lot more color than sticking just to major scale notes.
Resolve to G
The trick that separates good players from great ones is this: resolution. You can play all the E minor pentatonic notes you want, but you’ve got to resolve to G. Land your phrases on G notes. End passages on G, not E. That’s what tells your ear you’re home. Find G on the 3rd fret of the 6th string. Find it on the open 3rd string. Know where they are, and your playing will sound intentional instead of wandering.
The Practice Setup
Get a friend to strum the G-C-D progression for you. Or loop it on your phone. Then practice the E minor pentatonic scale over top. Play around. Let your fingers explore. Make mistakes. That’s how your hands learn—not from thinking about it, but from doing it until it becomes muscle memory.
The progression doesn’t change. The scale doesn’t change. You’re learning the relationship between them. Once this clicks in the key of G, you can transpose it anywhere. It’s the same pattern on every string.
Building Your Vocabulary
Flatpicking is conversation. You start with scales, then you build licks—short melodic ideas that fit the progression. Stack a few licks together, and you’ve got a solo. Master the E minor pentatonic in G, and you’re ready to explore open flatpicking riffs in other keys. The C key progression teaches the same lesson in a different shape. And when you want to expand beyond flatpicking, pick vs fingers guitar will show you when to switch techniques for maximum impact.
For the full foundation on fingerpicking approaches, check out the fingerpicking guide. It’ll round out your understanding of what’s possible with different picking methods.
Don’t overthink it. Play the scale. Find the root note. Listen to Doc Watson records and let your ears tell your fingers what to do. That’s how you build licks that matter.
