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Fingers v.s Pick is it a crime?.....Resolved!!

#3
agreed, i have nothing against using a pick, i do for certain songs but i use my fingers as much as i can when i can. i used to play everthing with my fingers, now i use a pick every once and awhile, i can honestly say though; i could not play everything we do with a pick, and have it sound right. but i could play everything with do with my fingers and have it sound the way i want it too......if that makes any sense?
 
#4
Great video clip Birdland11. I can never understand the word "versus" in these type of threads. I agree with all you said. Like with strings, this is a personal choice. So I dont see what all the ill feeling and arguments are about.

Hopefully your clip will put an end to this particular subject.

Good work !! :)
 
#5
My pick tone and my finger tone sounds pretty much the same. Unless I'm playing 8th notes or if I'm really trying to emphasize my pick tone.

The song in my sig is played with a pick. When I made the bassline I thought of it as a "fingerstyle bassline", but it only sounded right played with a pick.
 
#6
Finger vs Pick is a crime!

But I do have a few things to add to the video I noticed:

I seems like you prefer fingers, and that pretty clear in the video. You say it's warmer without a pick, and it definitely is, but you forget to mention that you get more attack sound with a pick. Also it's clear that you are not as good with a pick as with your fingers.
This go against your point, although I overall agree with you.

Personally I really do think that some songs are easyer to play with a pick, and some are easyer to play by my fingers. And it does make a difference sound wise.
It seems like you lean towards fingers in the video, although your overall message is that it dosn't really matters.
One thing that is definitely harder to do with your fingers is chord work.

Just to tell an anecdote I know that J. Mascis (Dinosaur Jr.) told Mike Watt to use a pick when touring with his band J. Mascis + The Fog, because J. Mascis preferred the sound of a picked bass.
 
#9
Everybody should go to You Tube and also watch Ed Friedland the bass whisperer demonstrate some basses. He covers all styles seamlessly including fingers, pick, slap, palm mute, fretted and fretless and does it all with virtuosity. He shows how good all of it can be very effectively. I wish I could do it all so well as he does.
 
#10
Great video, great arguments. I don't understand how people can expect to be a working bass player only knowing how to pick. You can if you're playing in one band and break out, but the majority of us will end up lending our services to many different types of people since there aren't enough bassists to go around. You can do that by only knowing fingerstyle, however.


Also, I really liked your video on Let Me Ride by Dr. Dre. I've been wondering how to play that bassline.
 
#12
Tupac said:
Great video, great arguments. I don't understand how people can expect to be a working bass player only knowing how to pick. You can if you're playing in one band and break out, but the majority of us will end up lending our services to many different types of people since there aren't enough bassists to go around. You can do that by only knowing fingerstyle, however.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately you can't, if you start auditioning for rock/punk/metal bands you'll find plenty of them want somebody to who can play with a pick because it fits the band sound better.

Even mostly finger players like Frank Bello & Flea use a pick on some songs, look at Johnny Christ who plays both styles, they all know that one style doesn't fit every song , by not being able to play with a pick you're limiting yourself and the bands you can join.
 
#13
Guys, this thread is becoming similar to the "Pick V Fingers" one.

Can we not all just agree that it is worth while to be able to play with both methods ? The more tools you have available the better.

If someone chooses just one "tool," well that's their call. I'm sure that everyone can decide for themselves which sound they prefer.
 
#14
As written on some other threads already, I play both styles. Maybe 2/3 finger and 1/3 pick. I play a lot of stuff, varying from blues via rock to old school hard rock and heavy metal in all it's variations. If a pick sounds better, so it'll be a pick. If the 'rounder' attack of the fingers is required, it'll be fingers.
There's absolutely no reason to say that the use of a pick on an electric bass is bad. I suppose some bassists were upright players in their former life, still sticking to the fingers only technique.
 

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