Slapping with finger tips?

Yes. As one that doesn't really go in for full-fat slap lines but that likes to punctuate my fingerstyle lines with the occasional percussive slap/pop accent, it is a routine technique for me.

 

Yup, it is called tapping. It is a very worth while technique.

Good luck!

 

I’m fairly sure that’s not what the OP is talking about. I think he’s talking about striking the string with a finger tip rather than with the thumb like traditional slap technique, not tapping over the fretboard.

 

Fair enough. In that case, disregard OP.

 

John Myung's style is like that.

 

I heard a guy talking about Bootsy's technique of slapping with an open palm and hitting the strings with his fingers. He said Bootsy was "patting" the bass.





Then there's the Entwistle typewriter technique.

 

I do play like this from time to time, usually switching off from thumb to, as you say,get a better sound.


I don't think there is any downfall to playing like this and do think I tend to be more accurate playing this way.

In this vid I'm playing on an amp that isn't mine so I'm jumping all over technique wise to try to get tone I like. The sound on the vid is pretty bad so you can't really hear the difference.


You can see me using this technique around 00:29 and again at 1:01 and 1:23.

 

Ryan Martinie of Mudvayne kinda plays like that. Here's a clip of him from Warwick's Fuss on the Buss event.

 

That is the first thing discussedi in Chuck Rainey's 4th book...

 

It's a very good way to slap natural harmonics.

 

I play with this kind of technique in a thrash metal band. I think it sound good and it's easy and fun to do fast galloping rythms like this.

 

Doug Wimbish slaps that way.

 

Thanks for posting! I can’t do traditional slap to save my life but I’ve been playing around with something similar. Glad to know I’m in good company.

 

On the one hand, it's totally awesome to find out I'm not the only person with this sweet funky style.

On the other hand, it's frustrating to see my own personal sweet funky style, which belongs only to me ever, and nobody else, showing up on part 1 of a guide book.

 

There is nothing new under the sun and there is always someone better than you.

I’m was worried someone would tell me I was a terrible bassist for doing this.

 

That’s a huge part of Ryan’s technique, plus the weird tuning

 

Yeah when I first started playing bass I kept using the traditional slap technique. But then as I got tired of that I started incorporating the finger slap like Entwistle or Martinie to get those percussive sounds. Can really add a lot to songs.

 

...from 1985, no less!!

 

I do it this way. I refuse to slap any other way because it is natural this way to me.