how to start learning country?

[JohnM]

Lots of listening to the music that spawned the styles you're mentioning, and analyzing said music from a guitar perspective.

Get a good grasp of the sound and feel of the styles before learning a bunch of licks off of lesson videos. Just a personal opinion, but you will get more out of it IMHO if you have a strong sense of the music itself.

I hear lots of players that want to learn country for the licks and flashy aspect of the style, but in a song context that well runs dry really fast!
You end up applying licks in an academic way instead of playing to the song.

That being said, seek out some Merle Haggard, Waylon Jennings, Jerry Reed, Chet, James Burton, Buck Owens, etc... and you'll see how the style has evolved. Albert Lee even in the early 70's was playing stuff every bit as hip sounding as today's players.

yeehaw!