Chet

King Picker and Pioneer of the Nashville Sound

Mark Ribowsky

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Hardback

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English

Chicago Review Press
14 October 2025

Folk & traditional music; Country & Western music; Individual composers & musicians, bands & groups; Biography: arts & entertainment

Chet Atkins was one of the most legendary country guitarists of the 1950s, but his influence spans both instruments and time.

The Country Gentleman developed a distinctive picking style that helped pioneer ""the Nashville Sound."" Atkins's musical prowess impacted the jazz, blues, and folk styles of the 1950s and expanded country music appeal to pop music fans. In the more than two decades since his death, Nashville has remained his not-so-humble-anymore domain, but this musical deep dive is the first long-form exploration of Atkins's discography and legacy since the guitarist's own autobiography more than fifty years ago.

With never-before-seen detailed analyses of Atkins's overwhelming industry influence, this is a perfect read for music fans everywhere.

By: Mark Ribowsky
Imprint: Chicago Review Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 228mm, Width: 152mm,
ISBN: 9780897336925
ISBN 10: 0897336925
Pages: 352
Publication Date: 14 October 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Mark Ribowsky is the author of over thirty books, including music biographies of the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Otis Redding, Lynyrd Skynyrd, James Taylor, Little Richard, Isaac Hayes, Bill Withers, the Everly Brothers, and Hank Williams. The much-praised Hank: The Short Life and Long Country Road of Hank Williams was acclaimed by Library Journal as ""the greatest biography yet"" of the troubled king of country.

Reviews for Chet: King Picker and Pioneer of the Nashville Sound

""Biographer Ribowsky (Hank) explores in this comprehensive account the life and legacy of country music legend Chet Atkins, who wrote, produced, and played on more than 1,000 songs, including 113 under his own name. . . . Ribowsky highlights Atkins's distinctive finger-picking technique . . . and such career highlights as helping produce Elvis Presley's early hit 'Heartbreak Hotel.' Other milestones include signing some of the 'biggest names to ever hit country music, ' including Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings, and shaping the so-called 'Nashville sound, ' which infused country with poppy tempos and helped revive the genre in the mid-1950s. Ribowsky's studious research and unapologetically awestruck tone . . . make this a worthy ode to an important figure in American pop culture. Country music fans will be engrossed."" --Publishers Weekly