Lesson Plan

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Lesson notes

Shotgun Down The Avalanche is a heartbreaking song from American singer-songwriter and Grammy Award winner, Shawn Colvin. It appeared on her debut album ‘Steady On’ which was released in 1989.

The lesson is based on her acoustic live performances, in particular the Lost Concert in Amsterdam and a performance collaborating with Alison Kraus on violin.

The song features a compelling fingerpicking arrangement in Drop D-tuning, where the guitar is capoed at the 5th fret. It contains a fast travis picking-pattern, picking out melodynotes and lots of embellishments, which is covered thoroughly. For that, basic fingerpicking skills are absolutely necessary in order to get this song down.

Also, keep in mind, throughout the years, Shawn has been playing this song in many different ways and the student is encouraged to make it their own as well.