Chet Atkins' Certified Guitar Players

BY BOB DOERSCHUK The late Chet Atkins was many things: A self-taught guitar virtuoso and multi-instrumentalist. A technical revolutionary, who built on Merle Travis’ fingerstyle approach to reach a level of sophistication previously accessible only to classical guitarists. As a record label executive and producer, Atkins was the prime mover in transforming Nashville into a music industry mecca. He was also the founder of the most exclusive guitarist club in the world. The only way in was to be anointed by Atkins himself. Just four got the nod during his lifetime, three of whom survive to this day. Tommy Emmanuel, John Knowles, and Steve Wariner share the distinction of being Certified Guitar Players (CGPs), along with the late Jerry Reed and Atkins’ longtime guitar partner Paul Yandell, who was invited into the group by Atkins’ daughter Merle after her father’s death in 2001. Their bona fides are many and varied: In recognition of his musical accomplishments, Emmanuel has been named both a member of the Order of Australia and an official Kentucky Colonel. Knowles gave up his career as a physicist to pursue music, win a Grammy, and inspire guitarists with his FingerStyle Quarterly. Wariner is a triple-threat whose instrumental...

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