Playback Sessions Podcast

Billy Strings Shares His Practice Method for Progress

Sun, 05 Jul 2026 21:00:00 -0500

In this episode, Billy Strings sits down with his longtime mentor Rob Cappelletto at Carter Vintage Guitars in Nashville to talk about breaking out of ruts, rethinking practice, and staying a student even at the top of your game.

We cover Billy’s journey from instinctive, ear-based bluegrass to studying jazz, Bach, and fretboard fluency through Sonora. He breaks down how specific exercises shaped his new record, shares stories from the road (including playing with Ringo), and gets candid about nerves, self-doubt, and the grind of staying sharp as a performer.

Chapters:
00:00 Intro – Playing Without Thinking
00:12 How Billy Found Sonora & Met Rob
01:59 Does Music Theory Kill Creativity?
03:28 Learning to Apply New Concepts on Stage
04:18 Billy’s Early Years: Playing by Ear
06:10 Hitting a Plateau & Seeking Growth
07:12 From Practice to Performance: The “Escanaba” Story
09:31 Chord Mastery & Playing the Changes
11:12 Robb and Chris Thile Story
12:15 Breaking Out of the Bluegrass Box
14:06 Balancing Jazz, Bach & Tony Rice
15:15 Real Progress: Chord Integration in Old Tunes
18:56 Early Influences: From Hendrix to Doc
21:11 Improvisation, Melody & Staying Connected on Stage
27:24 Playing with Intention & Audience Energy
34:57 Rob & Billy Jam + Practicing What Matters
37:31 Dealing with Success, Doubt & What Comes Next

📍 Filmed at Carter Vintage Guitars in Nashville, TN.
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#BillyStrings #Guitar #Sonora #RobCappelletto #Bluegrass #GuitarPractice #Improvisation #FretboardFluency #HighwayHypnosis #CarterVintage

Andy Wood's One Secret to Playing FAST

Thu, 02 Jul 2026 17:00:00 -0500

Andy Wood, a virtuoso guitarist with deep musical roots in bluegrass, rock, country, metal, and fusion, shares transformative insights on technique, tone, and practice strategies in this episode.

00:00 Introduction and Mindset Shift
01:08 Andy Wood's Practice Techniques
02:27 Exploring Slide Guitar Techniques
07:08 Community Announcement and Free Resources
10:34 Signal Chain and Gear Discussion
15:31 Speed and Practice Approaches
15:44 The Metronome Mistake
16:01 Learning vs. Practicing
16:39 The Bell Curve of Speed
18:17 The Bicycle Analogy
18:50 Practicing at Target Tempo
19:53 Precision Over Speed
20:48 The Importance of Clean Playing
25:28 Student Success Stories
27:24 Advice from the Front Porch

📍 Filmed live at Carter Vintage Guitars in Nashville, Tennessee.
🎸 Follow us on IG: @playbacksessions

🎥 Filmed at Carter Vintage Guitars
Host: Spencer Handley
Guest: Andy Wood
Executive Producers: Spencer Handley
Camera/Sound: Mitch Goudy

Billy Strings vs The Hardest Bluegrass Tune Ever Written

Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 -0500

Billy Strings sits down with his teacher Robb Cappelletto to break down one of the toughest bluegrass tunes ever written. In the process they break down the playing of Tony Rice. From tone to touch, to the subtle moves that redefined acoustic guitar. If you’re a flatpicker, this is essential viewing.

📍 Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
1:45 - Winterhawk Recording 1990
7:56 - Theory Breakdown of Fishscale
11:57 - Billy and Robb Play Fishscale
16:55 - Tony's Technique Influence on Billy
30:17 - Billy and Robb Play Bye Bye Blues

📸 Filmed at Carter Vintage Guitars in Nashville, TN
🎙️ Follow @playbacksessions for more

Guests: Billy Strings, Robb Cappelletto
Executive Producers: Spencer Handley, Ben Montague
Production Manager and Design: Aly Jordan
Video: Richard Handley, Zane Dumont
Audio Lead: Keith Cypert
Editors: Carl Reeverts, Clayton Hopkins