So, you think it would be hard to top 1,802 Germans strumming along to "Smoke on the Water?"

Well, you should have been in Luckenbach, Texas on August 23 when 1,859 guitar pickers played...yeah, you guessed it: "Luckenbach, Texas." 

Fannin County has a share of this world record because Dr. Gary Sisson and his wife, Debbie Sisson, were strumming right along with the crowd. 

Gary Sisson and his wife, Debbie Sisson

Actually, the Sisson family certainly did their share to see that this world record comes back to Texas to roost, because Gary's son and daughter-in-law, Aaron Sisson and his wife, Tracy Sisson, participated in this remarkable feat, along with Gary's grandson, James  Wampler. 

Aaron Sisson and his wife, Tracy Sisson

"It was an incredible experience!" says Gary.  "Three generations setting a new world record!  There were even people perched in the trees playing along!"

Gary Sisson's grandson, James Wampler

The good folks in Luckenbach forked over the $700 entry fee to the folks at Guinness who were on hand to verify the new world record.  But with the temperature hovering around 102 degrees, the town probably made the money back in sales tax on ice-cold Shiner Boch, the famous dark German/Czech-style beer brewed 130 miles away in Shiner, Texas. 

Everyone who entered the event was sent the chords and lyrics to "Luckenbach, Texas." To set the official record, all the guitar players had to strum for at least five minutes.  To make certain there was no doubt, the song actually went on much longer. 

Then, to be double sure, this guitar ensemble of close to 2,000 pickers decided to strum along to Woody Guthrie's "This Land is My Land" for well over five minutes.

Then, just because it seemed like the right thing to do, the guitar army played "London Homesick Blues," probably better known as "I wanna go home with the Armadillos" by Gary P. Nunn.

This story gets even better, too. 

Each picker paid $10 to be a part of this world record and in total organizers estimate the event, “Pickin’ For the Record,” raised approximately $40,000 that will be used to fund music therapy guitar lessons for America's veterans.  “Pickin’ For the Record” was organized by Voices of a Grateful Nation.