Songs to practice with a pick

trasser · #1 02-10-2011, 01:12 PM

Hey.

I just started using a pick after playing with my fingers for 6 years. Which songs are good to practice to gain speed and learning to play alternate picking and string skipping?

Thanks
-Martin

MrGotBass · #2 02-10-2011, 01:18 PM

All the songs you normally play, but with a pick.

sevenyearsdown · #3 02-10-2011, 01:18 PM

Some old Grand Funk RR tunes. Anything by Matt Freeman.

stratovani · #4 02-10-2011, 01:43 PM

Rush. Tom Sawyer would be a good place to start.

rockstarbassist · #5 02-10-2011, 02:03 PM

Lots of AIC, Pantera.

flowlikeocean · #6 02-13-2011, 12:49 AM

Check out Megadeth's early catalog, some difficult pick songs which will really help to get down speed and accuracy. (The B-sides are really chock-full of wonderfully difficult songs for playing with a pick: see "My Last Words" for an example.)

Dertygen · #7 02-13-2011, 04:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stratovani

Rush.

That'll kill him...

Good range of strings but not overtly difficult in my suggestion, which in actuality is what I did so being more opinion than fact, is RAtM's Bombtrack

themurm523 · #8 02-13-2011, 04:53 PM

Any Tool songs, Justin Chancellor uses a pick

Jeff 66 · #9 02-13-2011, 04:55 PM

"Sweet Emotion" by Aerosmith.

It's not that difficult, but playing it with a pick will help with the string skipping and alternating.

stratovani · #10 02-13-2011, 09:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dertygen

That'll kill him...

Good range of strings but not overtly difficult in my suggestion, which in actuality is what I did so being more opinion than fact, is RAtM's Bombtrack

Perhaps, but as Trent Reznor says in Rush: Behind the Lighted Stage, if you can play Rush, you can play pretty much anything.

manbearpig97 · #11 02-13-2011, 09:16 PM

A good one for speed is Parallel Universe by RHCP.

walterw · #12 02-13-2011, 09:33 PM

meh.

i say do the opposite, practice slow, simple-ass lines so that you can get the feel, tone, and time where you want them. (i'm a bass-playing guitar player, so i've always used a pick on bass and am only just now getting halfway OK at fingerstyle.)

picks are good for fat, grindy, repetitive lines.

pnut166 · #13 02-13-2011, 09:51 PM

Synchronicity II. I learned it the other day; it`s a beast. AIC - Rotten Apple.

john_martin_sai · #14 02-13-2011, 09:54 PM

Beach Boys tunes!

ThorGodOfBass · #15 02-20-2011, 10:04 PM

I'm gunna go out on a limb and say "sons of plunder" by disturbed. It's kind of an oddball song. And John Moyer is no genius. But it's a very athletic song to play, it jumps around alot and is very fast.

Also sober by tool. It's an almost guitar style picking that alot of bassist never bother to learn, and it proves that four note chords can sound good on bass.

Hysteria by muse. Again speed and precision are the name of the game with a pick, anyone can hammer out a four note rise against song but if you can keep up with you left hand, while jumping strings every few notes your made. Also, if ANYONE can recreate that tone I'd luv to hear how.

ThisisCraigP · #16 02-21-2011, 12:05 AM

Not to threadjack but what's the best pick for metal?

EpiRipper · #17 02-21-2011, 12:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ThisisCraigP

Not to threadjack but what's the best pick for metal?

A metal one of course!

summerson1 · #18 02-21-2011, 12:14 AM

punk rock. theres a few punk rock songs that skip strings and punk and picks go together quite beautifully

SactoBass · #19 02-21-2011, 12:22 AM

Anything by YES.

drewfunk · #20 02-21-2011, 12:26 AM

Matt Freeman lines in Rancid. Check out the song "Black Lung".