How many of you do this when playing bass?

[nashman]

I think it might be a "showman" type thing - like a golfer twirling the club in his hands after a good shot.

[MarkMgibson]

Originally Posted by carpcutter

One more hoverslider here. Good to know I'm not the only one.

I'm also a bodyslapper (keeping time by smacking the body and frequently strings with the right hand), which is a lot more sonically noticeable. I always thought it was a relic from conga playing, but I've seen the behavior in other players many times over.

Yeah, I do that too. I'll drum either my hip or the top the guitar. Then again, I do the same thing whenever there's music playing, I'm always drumming out the beat on the car steering wheel or somewhere. Used to annoy the hell out of my ex-wife.

[guitardefector]

I lower my left hand between pauses, shake it a bit, come back to the fretboard and continue playing. Relieves a tired wrist and gets the blood flowing again.