Pick Rant!!

[saabfender]

"Why does everyone hate on _____?" Thread #412. Swear I'm going to round them all up and put them in one spot. You know: for the collective amusement.

 

[rohi]

I dunno about the 32 string bass thing, but yeah-- do you. Pick or no pick.

 

[JimmyM]

Why.. WHY on earth is there such stupidity about the whole pick/finger thing?? Why. You play with a pick. Good for you it works. You play finger style, cool. You can play both (I do). Rarely do I pick up a pick, but I always have them with me. Weather, hand sweat, and a thousand other reasons to grab a pick. WHO CARES!!! We don't go on and on about bassists using pedals.

Are you kidding? The effects forum had to institute a rule about arrogant douchebag bassists constantly going into threads there and whining about people using pedals!

However, I do agree that people who whine about pick players are every bit the douchebags.

This topic keeps coming up here on TB, but honestly, in the real world, I've never even heard it mentioned.

I have. A guy in the audience once came up to me and said, "Man, I thought you were a really good bassist at first, but then I saw you pull out a pick and ruin it."

I replied, "Here, let me walk you to the exit door."

 

[mikewalker]

If ole "ThunderFingers" could use a pick from time to time, I think that clears the way for any of us...

(Note: Mr. Entwistle shown using a pick and casually flipping the bird to the 'pick nay-sayers'...)

 

[devnulljp]

Charles Darwin knew that closely related species compete most intensely because of their similarities in morphologies and niches. So, bass players argue about fingers vs. pick, while ignoring the nuances of how trombone/triangle/kazoo/hurdy gurdy players do their thing.

 

[NAME]

A pick is an amplifier with a fix "eq setting"!

 

[okcrum]

Why.. WHY on earth is there such stupidity about the whole pick/finger thing?? Why. You play with a pick. Good for you it works. You play finger style, cool. You can play both (I do). Rarely do I pick up a pick, but I always have them with me. Weather, hand sweat, and a thousand other reasons to grab a pick. WHO CARES!!! We don't go on and on about bassists using pedals. Or Flats. UGH!!! Why this same argument. 38 years having to listen to narrow minded people tell me I am wrong for using a pick!! Poop to that right there. If I want to use a pick, I will. Play 32 string bass, then I will..
Sorry for the rant. I hate it when I am goaded into this stupid argument for no reason other than to taunt...

Rather than argue, just play them this. Pick, fingers, and thumb - use 'em all.

 

[drumvsbass]

this ends the argument in my mind, and I'm a pure finger player.

 

[geesharp]

I've wondered about this for a long time, and I have a hypothesis: Many (maybe even most?) bass players were guitar players first, at least to some degree, and so many/most of them started out on bass playing with a pick because that was easiest and felt most natural. For those folks, learning to play fingerstyle on bass is/was really hard, so they infer that using a pick is "cheating" and conclude that anyone who can play well fingerstyle must have greater "ability" or something. Snipped

I started with classical guitar, and took classical guitar class as a kid. So it's always been fingerstyle for me. When I started playing bass I learned to use pick, but never liked it cause it felt unnatural. So, I went back to fingerstyle.... but I've never heard anyone saying bad things or look down on those who play with picks.

 

[lfmn16]

For me it’s a TB thing. I’ve played with a pick on and off my whole life and no one ever even mentioned it. Just another case of insecure people putting other people down so they can feel good about themselves.

Just keep reminding yourself that TB is not the real world.

 

[eJake]

Charles Darwin knew that closely related species compete most intensely because of their similarities in morphologies and niches. So, bass players argue about fingers vs. pick, while ignoring the nuances of how trombone/triangle/kazoo/hurdy gurdy players do their thing.

Haven't busted out the ol hurdy gurdy in a while..

 

[Oberst]

Just go very British on someone making this an issue and say something like: Listen, my good man, every time you use your finger to go searching for treasure up your nose, you are using your finger as a pick. When I play a stringed instrument of any kind using this device, I am using a plectrum. Perhaps what is putting you off on using a plectrum is that you cannot use one to dig into your nose with the obvious talent you have developed using your fingers.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Pick has a steeper initial learning curve. I think people who look down on it are just whiners who haven’t invested the time required to master a pick. There are things you can do with a pick that simply are not possible with fingers, and vice versa. Whatever works for the tone and attack you want, it’s all good. I started fingerstyle, learned pick, I drift back and forth between the two, although I seem to lose my pick chops quicker after a long hiatus than finger style.

 

[gln1955]

Many people are narrow-minded. Many are insecure. When these two undesirable traits overlap you get the douchenozzles who openly dump on others who use picks, pedals, short scale basses, flats, six-string basses, lines on their fretless and on and on. Their little minds can only hear music with their eyes it seems and can't deal with anything outside of their tiny comfort zone.

 

[cnltb]

Oh how I love these kinds of threads.
I especially enjoy the fact that I won't be able to unread post #1.

 

[TNCreature]

I thought the thread title "Pick Rant" meant we could all pick our favorite rant. But alas, this thread only contains one rant.
Maybe one magical day I find them all in one place...

 

[songwriter21]

Why.. WHY on earth is there such stupidity about the whole pick/finger thing?? Why. You play with a pick. Good for you it works. You play finger style, cool. You can play both (I do). Rarely do I pick up a pick, but I always have them with me. Weather, hand sweat, and a thousand other reasons to grab a pick. WHO CARES!!! We don't go on and on about bassists using pedals. Or Flats. UGH!!! Why this same argument. 38 years having to listen to narrow minded people tell me I am wrong for using a pick!! Poop to that right there. If I want to use a pick, I will. Play 32 string bass, then I will..
Sorry for the rant. I hate it when I am goaded into this stupid argument for no reason other than to taunt...

These ignorant turds have obviously never heard guys like Andy West, Carl Cadden-James, Levi Seacer Jr., David Ellefson, and so on...slew of incredible pick-style players out there. Regarding Seacer Jr., for instance, if Prince had no problem with him ripping a badass solo while using a pick (about the 38:50 mark in the Sign 'o the Times live vid), well, then I rest your case.

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Try to get this tone WITHOUT a pick.


Try to get this tone WITH a pick


Both masters of their choice of how to make bass string vibrate.

 

[BassLaird]

Why did Leo Fender put pickguards on his basses? It makes sense to me that if your bass has a protective pickguard on it, a pick can be, and maybe should be used.

 

[socialleper]

I'm not sure why so many bass players are critical of using a pick. It could be that it is an indication of a "third guitar player" who ended up on bass, making them an intruder or something. Known artists that are the most vocallt anti-pick seem to be vocal about all sorts of stuff.
I've never understood the controversy myself.