tremblap Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 Dear all I played finger style for 22 years now, and the only thing I know to do with a pick is scratch the strings, or play steady downpicking loudly... I would like to spend more time with a pick to explore new sonorities, in a subtle phrasing way like Steve Swallow is so good at doing... but I know how hard it is to loose a bad habit, so I would like pointers at a) a good, decent grip and right hand technique in general (the hour of youtube perusing just gave me blunt punk downpicking... nothing against it when I need it, but that is already in the pocket ;-) some clever exercices to make the thing fluid. I am not afraid of practicing so no magic trick required: just the right instructions... a bit like the epiphany I had when I was 17 and got a first good bass teacher (a real one, not a guitar guy) that told me to alternate fingers and damp the remaining strings, checked my back and shoulders and gave me the right basics (btw, his teaching is great, he now made methods and did some free videos: they are amazing and they are here: http://www.howtopracticebass.com/) Any good pointer welcome. pa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraightSix Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) In my experience, it's all in the wrist action - get that nice and loose and the rest will fall into place. There are many ways to hold a pick and many pick shapes and thicknesses - find what you feel most comfortable with. I'm not a fan of very heavy picks (many bass players use very thick/stiff picks 1mm or more thick). I use Tortex yellow (0.73mm) or green (0.88mm). Practice with a drum loop or metronome downstrokes and up/downstrokes and remember that palm muting with your picking hand can be fantastically effective: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6bhcDlfwWc&feature=related"]Bobby Vega[/url] Edited January 18, 2012 by StraightSix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muzz Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) Bobby Vega's yer boy for watch-and-learn stuff: a really lovely feel with a pick. Not sure about any tutorial stuff from him, tho. Doh! Vega cross-post! Edited January 18, 2012 by Muzz Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraightSix Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 (edited) Much love here for Mr B.Vega I think he has a DVD you can buy from his website. Edited January 18, 2012 by StraightSix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 18, 2012 Author Share Posted January 18, 2012 ok will check the dvd then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StraightSix Posted January 18, 2012 Share Posted January 18, 2012 [url="http://www.bobbyvega.com/store.php"]http://www.bobbyvega.com/store.php[/url] "The pick" - $20 I'd be interested to hear what you think about it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Watch this guy....... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xUcV05ebZQ&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xUcV05ebZQ&feature=related[/url] Carles Benevant - THE nuevo flamenco bassist, Plays with Paco De Lucia and loads of others, Monster player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmpZx_g6kXw&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmpZx_g6kXw&feature=related[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Another bump for [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Carles Benevant - tremendous player.[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]And of course check out the great Bobby Vega - as funky as they get.[/font][/color] [color=#282828][font=helvetica, arial, sans-serif]Garry[/font][/color] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 Just a thought. I got a lot of my picking technique from Al DiMeola's book (which is about guitar not bass). Essentially its all about economy of movement and making sure that the pick remains near the strings at all times in order to contribute to the accuracy of phrasing etc. I never gig with a pick on bass and only use one on guitar but, on the occasions when I pick one up and rip off a few licks, its obvious that the skill is completely transferable. It is also important to note the rhythmic potential of the up-stroke vs the downstroke in terms of phrasing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 19, 2012 Author Share Posted January 19, 2012 wow this is very helpful (and exactly what I was looking for: inspiration !!!) I'll order the book and the dvd and will keep you posted pa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 19, 2012 Author Share Posted January 19, 2012 Bilbo, which method do you refer to? Too many google pages are not helping me (law of diminishing returns ;-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBod Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 I've seen Steve Swallow play (fairly close) a few times over the years - he doesn't make it look easy! Makes you feel pretty uptight just watching him...although the sound doesn't reflect this. I guess some of that may be from his double bass days. He also makes quite a mess of his bass with the pick..... I'd also look to Bobby Vega for inspiration...or maybe Colin Hodgkinson (but I can't remember if he always uses a pick or not). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 19, 2012 Share Posted January 19, 2012 You can get a secondhand version here for £2 + postage (total £4.80). http://www.amazon.co.uk/Al-Meolas-Picking-Techniques-Meola/dp/079351018X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326990058&sr=1-1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 20, 2012 Author Share Posted January 20, 2012 great! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz66 Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 Also try the Carol Kaye DVD, it's got some useful stuff on playing up and down strokes and a few good exercises. She goes into a bit of detail on how to hold the pick and achieve a big sound. I also just received the Bobby Vega DVD and he's great but it's more useful for inspiration and showing you what is possible. Regarding picks, I struggled for a while and tried loads of different kinds until the jazz guitarist Nigel Price put me onto the ones he uses. They are dunlop 2mm gator and I finally felt comfortable with it. I'd never considered using a pick that thick ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 I'd like to see the Carol Kaye DVD, do you have more details? The only thing that Amazon send back is a £43 cassette... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaz66 Posted January 22, 2012 Share Posted January 22, 2012 try this http://www.carolkaye.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=22 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 22, 2012 Author Share Posted January 22, 2012 this is very expensive! 43$ for a dvd and a book... I'll check for a UK distributor! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lobematt Posted January 24, 2012 Share Posted January 24, 2012 [quote name='tremblap' timestamp='1327229217' post='1507939'] I'd like to see the Carol Kaye DVD, do you have more details? The only thing that Amazon send back is a £43 cassette... [/quote] Try contacting carol direct on the forums on her website, she's always very helpful an pretty quick to respond! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 dear Matt I don't see myself telling her that 18$ for international shipping is quite intense... I'll check the Al Dimeola first and theBobby Vega dvd ($20 including shipping - more like it ;-) and will go to Ms Kaye if I need more help... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lobematt Posted January 25, 2012 Share Posted January 25, 2012 Well i did mean just ask her to explain her picking technique a little or ask her some questions, rather than tell her about her extortionate shipping prices! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tremblap Posted January 25, 2012 Author Share Posted January 25, 2012 I got that Matt, but my joke was not clear enough... sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devinebass Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 (edited) I love messing around with pick playing... probably because I'm really into Steve swallow, Carles Benavent and Bobby vega lol! Anyway, here's a little demo I did for Overwater basses using a pick... http://snd.sc/x9Hf8X Ez, Scott Edited January 31, 2012 by devinebass Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted January 31, 2012 Share Posted January 31, 2012 Nice one, Scott. Getting chords to work on the bass is always a tough one but the concept works here. Very Swallowesque tonally but I don't think even Steve could pull that off quite so convincingly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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