The prejudice against pick-playing

[Gothic]

Quick thread summary

Thread starter - "What's wrong with playing with a pick?"

Subject 1 - "Well X had a whole nice long lucrative career playing with a pick!"
Subject 2 - "But Y only needed fingers!"
S1 - "But you can't get X's tone with fingers!"
S2 - "And why would anyone? Fingers sound better!"
Zen forumite -"Guys, play with whatever you want"
S1's supporting cast -"No. Picks ftw!"
S2's posse -"No! Fingers only! Friggin' hacks!"

Etc.

Continue.

 

[Fat Freddy]

I started under teachers orders......FINGERS ONLY!!!.....

But then I wanted to play 'Peaches'.....Not possible to make it sound right with fingers....

I know...Pedals!........Many hundreds of dollars later.........Nope!...Jean Jaques has left the building........

Now....I swear that this is true.....I was on good terms with him back in the 70's and I know how he got his tone.....

I won't go into it too deeply as it's probably available online....

But P bass...green...tort
Roto rounds
Hiwatt valves and a cab that I can only remember by the fact that its cones were somewhat ripped up.......

And.....I'll bet you've been begging me to get to this........

A PICK....Gibson I think.....Black for sure......

So.....A great big raspberry to all denigrators of the mighty pick....

 

[bearfoot]

on average, more people who sound like a guitar player on bass, play with a pick. Half of the bass reviews online with a pick player do not sound like a bassist to me.

but, you almost never hear a fingerstyle player sound like a guitarist on bass.

that's why the prejudice. not saying it's right, but I think that's why.

 

[danesdad]

Chris Squire. Pick. Nuff said.

 

[Road Hat]

It's a real bias in NorCal, I hear it often (explicitly) regardless of proficiency on the instrument. Maybe it's because Phil Lesh makes his home in the area...folks in the music scene have pretty strong opinions both ways about him and his style. I'm 100% pick, no interest in fingers or slap. I play how I was trained (Carol Kaye method), plus untold hours of practice and performance, and I excel at it. I've chosen to spend my bass player lifetime pursuing mastery of a specific style. I don't think that it's limited me as a player, or makes me 'less' of a bass player. I sound like me, which is just what I want.

Also - it's about alternate picking. It's extremely difficult to achieve syncopated articulation on a downstroke and quick upstroke using only fingers. Alternate picking with palm muting, as well as thumb muting (an underutilized technique), has application across many musical genres.

BTW - I learned bass before guitar, and when I do play guitar, I generally fingerpick Travis-style.

 

[bassdog]

Dissing pick style bass playing is total bs snobery that has no place in the discussion of bass playing

 

[somebrains]

There's a specific attack you can only get with a pick, active or hot passive PJ, and an 80's gk or svt.

 

[beaglesandbass]

Anyway, how do y'all feel about the obvious prejudice many bassists have against pick-playing?

I don’t really concern myself with the opinions of people that don’t pay my bills.

 

[cxcxcx]

Speaking frankly, anybody who’s hung up on this pick thing with bass is missing the point music as a whole is trying to make, and obviously has never heard Anthony Jackson or Bobby Vega.

On the other side if it, there are well-known acts that require their bassist to play pick style. As a player, it’s important to be comfortable with fingers as well as pick.

 

[Clark Dark]

 

[juancaminos]

I play primarily with a Dunlop felt pick. Have been doing more finger playing in the last few years but still a pick player mostly.

 

[Super Bass]

I totally appreciate good pick style players and I usually love the tone!

 

[OptimalOptimus]

 

[Kipp Harrington]

Over the years, I've always seen comments looking down on playing bass with a pick. I never thought too much about it, as I also play guitar and know pick-playing has its own technique that needs to be mastered and it's not any lesser than finger or slap or tap.

HOWEVER, I've noticed that whenever I'm searching for YouTube videos for sound samples of specific basses, if the video starts off with someone playing the bass with a pick, I'm immediately annoyed, because I much rather hear how it sounds with finger, and then slap. If pick is included, it's fine, but if it's only pick-playing, I can't help but feel disappointed.

I guess the main reason is I almost never play bass with the pick, so I don't really care how a bass sounds with a pick. But I have nothing against it--I do plan on playing some prog metal in the future, and a lot of that is played with picks.

Anyway, how do y'all feel about the obvious prejudice many bassists have against pick-playing?

I’m annoyed by people doing demos with slap! It seems very “en vogue” to do. Pick playing used to bother me until I started learning tunes that just sounded better with a pick. My first choice is fingerstyle, but I am liking using a pick lately.

 

[Bboopbennie]

Hurt one of my plying fingers years back, so I used a pick. Bad.. got better n better and now I play both ways.
I find on many songs playing live, the pick cuts thru the mix much better. I laugh when someone makes fun of my Slap bass...... I answer CAN YOU USE A PICK !! ~!@#$%^&*

 

[And I]

Sometimes the tone you need is the tone you get with a pick. I agree with the OP that an all-pick (or all slap, etc) demo video is very annoying... but pick playing is a useful skill and sometimes the only "right" sound for the band or the song.

Anyone who hates the tone of bass with a pick should try a felt pick.

 

[Sid Fang]

I converted from playing electric and 12-string folk guitar, so started out playing bass with a pick and spent ages trying to find one that was neither too floppy nor too clicky (in the end Dunlop Nylon .73s or .88s). My rock playing buddies didn't give a poopie how I got the sound as long as I got it, but I did get some attitude from my jazz and fusion playing friends. Ultimately, I learned fingerstyle, and got good enough at it where I don't use a pick for bass at all anymore. Some stuff would be easier for me with a pick, but a lot more stuff is now more natural with fingers. To each their own.

 

[Bruiser Stone]

If I could play at 70% of JJ’s ability with a lifetime supply of fresh Rotos and Ultra Cool picks (and a Hiwatt as a bonus), I would just aimlessly play all the time to satisfy myself, band or no band. So much filthy fun.

 

[countmattula]

I used to be a fingers only person, then learned some slap, and eventually started using plectrum too. (Which is now an especially useful skill when writing songs on a guitar). Honestly these are all just methods to get a specific sound or attack, and none are lesser than the other. Do whatever makes the song sound better. And 9 times out of 10, the people who talk down on other bassist aren't playing in real gigging bands... Because nobody wants a jerk like that in their band. Also, one trait in common with most of the greatest players out there is humbleness...because the best know there is always more to learn

 

[Jay2U]

I like to play finger style as well as with a pick. I'm also a fan of the hybrid possibility: finger picks. Three examples....

Finger

Pick

Finger picks