prob not first time this photo has been posted. just funny heheh
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Pick Rant!!
- Thread starter iriegnome
- Start date
prob not first time this photo has been posted. just funny heheh
Someone should design a pedal that makes your bass sound like it's being picked with a pick and using flats, even if you're using rounds and finger style.
If ole "ThunderFingers" could use a pick from time to time, I think that clears the way for any of us...
View attachment 3199266
(Note: Mr. Entwistle shown using a pick and casually flipping the bird to the 'pick nay-sayers'...)
^THIS^
Also, if it works and it sounds good, and harms no one, you should never have to justify or defend your techniques and methods.
I'm going back over to the double bass side of Talkbass where this conversation never comes up.
For the longest time, and mostly due to an injury to my right index finger, which around 25 years ago was almost severed at the knuckle, but has since healed up almost 100%, I played exclusively with a pick.
The only time I got into a (VERY SHORT) debate on this face to face with another bass player, the conversation was as such:
Him: Real bass players don't play with a pick
Me: Well, when a real bass player offers me his opinion I'll listen, by the way, John Entwhistle, Paul McCartney, Chris Squire, Roger Glover, Mike Dirnt, Matt Freeman & I agree on one thing: You suck
The only time I got into a (VERY SHORT) debate on this face to face with another bass player, the conversation was as such:
Him: Real bass players don't play with a pick
Me: Well, when a real bass player offers me his opinion I'll listen, by the way, John Entwhistle, Paul McCartney, Chris Squire, Roger Glover, Mike Dirnt, Matt Freeman & I agree on one thing: You suck
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If anyone comes up and says, “You should be playing with your fingers.” You just look at them like they’re crazy and hold up your fretting hand and say, “I am!!”
As George Carlin said... (kind of)
Think about this; think about how stupid the average bass player is, and then realize that half of 'em are stupider than that
Think about this; think about how stupid the average bass player is, and then realize that half of 'em are stupider than that
IN the big picture who cares? Just get 'er done.
I guess I'm a bit of an odd one. I played guitar off and on for many years before picking (no pun intended!) up a bass. Instinct was that the pick would be the easiest starting point, but I found that the string spacing difference to be prohibitive, so I immediately went to fingers. Well finger - adding the middle finger got me stumbling a lot. After three years, I'm just now getting to where I can get through a song or two with a pick. I don't really care for the tone a pick produces, but it sure is easy on the plucking hand for those damn running eighth note 80s rock lines! (Finally starting to incorporate the middle finger in my finger style as well.)
I guess I'm a bit of an odd one. I played guitar off and on for many years before picking (no pun intended!) up a bass. Instinct was that the pick would be the easiest starting point, but I found that the string spacing difference to be prohibitive, so I immediately went to fingers. Well finger - adding the middle finger got me stumbling a lot. After three years, I'm just now getting to where I can get through a song or two with a pick. I don't really care for the tone a pick produces, but it sure is easy on the plucking hand for those damn running eighth note 80s rock lines! (Finally starting to incorporate the middle finger in my finger style as well.)
Last edited:
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I just had to "educate" an anti-pick guy the other day....he works at my office. I called him in and showed him a YouTube of Bobby Vega. He actually conceded the point.
I'd trade all my problems AND my left nut right now for "pick vs. fingers" as something to lose sleep over.
From what I've seen.... its insecurities.
Always seems like the guys that diss pick players... dont have much speed.
Always seems like the guys that diss slap... cant
Always seems like the guys that diss extra strings... cant
Even most drummers that diss double kick... cant
Just like the guita*ists that diss solos... cant
Whats funny is that I personally know examples of each of these and they all have one major thing in common....
Enough time has passed that they could not only have learned what they're dissing... but actually be really great at it.
I played guit*r in a band once after previously doing session work on bass for them... so I was tasked with showing the new bassist the parts and at one point she said "oh im not a slap bassist". I said, well slap is one of the styles so if you want to be a bassist, its probably a good idea that you at least get decent with it.
Always seems like the guys that diss pick players... dont have much speed.
Always seems like the guys that diss slap... cant
Always seems like the guys that diss extra strings... cant
Even most drummers that diss double kick... cant
Just like the guita*ists that diss solos... cant
Whats funny is that I personally know examples of each of these and they all have one major thing in common....
Enough time has passed that they could not only have learned what they're dissing... but actually be really great at it.
I played guit*r in a band once after previously doing session work on bass for them... so I was tasked with showing the new bassist the parts and at one point she said "oh im not a slap bassist". I said, well slap is one of the styles so if you want to be a bassist, its probably a good idea that you at least get decent with it.
Bobby shuts up a lot of anti-pick dopes
Good going, Roger!
Wow that was some pick rant thanks for sharing
and because of this I am going to play my entire next gig with a pick to po the masses ha ha ha and maybe just maybe I will slap Fly Me to the Moon yeah that will get'em go'in
There are a lot of things brought up on Talkbass continually, that I never hear brought up in the real world.
It’s all about the style. I’m in a cover band. I’m not going go play Green Day with my fingers. Could I? Sure. But it will sound closer to the track with a pick. So I play with a pick. Could I play Sublime with a pick? Sure. But it will sound closer to the track with my fingers. This argument is so simple I don’t know why it keeps coming up. Go with what the song leads you too. Thumb, Fingers, Pick, playing card, tongue, feet, elbow, beer bottle. Who cares? Just my opinion.
I came to this thread expecting to get to pick between some different rants... :/
You gotta PICK your battles!!!
Ok I'm done with that now...
When I first started playing, about 14 years ago, EVERYONE and their brother/sister/half-uncle was using picks on bass in my area. In trying to find other bass players to network with, most of what I ran into was guitarists who "...like play[ed] bass on the side 'cuz it's so easy, bro" and had no groove in the least. Straight 8ths and 4ths on the root with maybe a 5th thrown in. Local guitar stores were that or people trying to shred on bass and folks acting like they are gods, but this all flew in the face of what I heard in the music I listened to. I about crapped myself when I met a guy who played for a ska-rock band and used his fingers, plus he could groove. I stayed after their show and talked with him for hours over coffee and a few smokes. He gave me some tips on floating thumb and arpeggiating that I still use today.
For the longest time, I was in the minority by playing with fingers, especially when I did pop/slap as well. Eventually, my sphere expanded and I was no longer hitting the teenie bopper music venues. Saw a lotta pickers, but far more finger players than I'd seen before. It took me getting really into Justin Chancellor, Krist Novoselic, and Chris Joannou's bass tone and finding out that a pick was a big part of that tone to get me off my pick phobia. Now, I do it for the tone and dynamics since I use effects or a very overdriven tone. I will still use my fingers for motown stuff, but I also dig the 60's pick on flats tone of Carol Kaye and the like. It's nice to have variety
Ok I'm done with that now...
When I first started playing, about 14 years ago, EVERYONE and their brother/sister/half-uncle was using picks on bass in my area. In trying to find other bass players to network with, most of what I ran into was guitarists who "...like play[ed] bass on the side 'cuz it's so easy, bro" and had no groove in the least. Straight 8ths and 4ths on the root with maybe a 5th thrown in. Local guitar stores were that or people trying to shred on bass and folks acting like they are gods, but this all flew in the face of what I heard in the music I listened to. I about crapped myself when I met a guy who played for a ska-rock band and used his fingers, plus he could groove. I stayed after their show and talked with him for hours over coffee and a few smokes. He gave me some tips on floating thumb and arpeggiating that I still use today.
For the longest time, I was in the minority by playing with fingers, especially when I did pop/slap as well. Eventually, my sphere expanded and I was no longer hitting the teenie bopper music venues. Saw a lotta pickers, but far more finger players than I'd seen before. It took me getting really into Justin Chancellor, Krist Novoselic, and Chris Joannou's bass tone and finding out that a pick was a big part of that tone to get me off my pick phobia. Now, I do it for the tone and dynamics since I use effects or a very overdriven tone. I will still use my fingers for motown stuff, but I also dig the 60's pick on flats tone of Carol Kaye and the like. It's nice to have variety
