Guitar Players - What's the Secret to Picking

[930addict]

I've been teaching myself guitar over the last 10 months. I've become ok with finger style picking and can play, Hotel California, Dust in the Wind, Everybody Hurts(REM), Good Riddance(Time of your life), Oh what a feeling(Boston) and some others just using finger style picking but am finding that my fat fingers fumble around when I try to go too fast. So on several occasions I've tried a guitar pick and find it extremely awkward and usually just get frustrated. So what's the secret to using a guitar pick? Any good online videos? I've looked but haven't seen any that really goes into the technique.

[Don Ro]

Other "real" guitar pickers will chime in.
After years of 3 finger & 4 finger picking I tried using a pick and really only strummed.
As I see it, it's all about the back & forth movement of the pick.
Good luck learning.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Practice.

[intakexhaust]

ha...
I recently watched a documentary of Jimi Hendrix. Seeing him close up and how he wailed away with a pick, just wild yet in control all at the same time.

[Lothar]

Work at it and be prepared to hear the same song over and over and over again.

Picking is a coordination thing. When you are working on something new, it might seem impossible to make your fingers follow a new pattern. However, if you keep working on it a little at a time, the impossible becomes second nature.

[Nostril Cheese]

Loosen up your thumb, finger and wrist. You may also want to use two fingers on the back of the pick while starting out. Its gives you a bit more stability. Imagine rotating the pick in a small circle. That's how you build up speed. After a while it becomes fluid.

[Cajundaddy]

First, don't feel like you must use a pick. Jeff Beck, Vince Gill, and tons of other players use finger style very effectively and it has become part of their sound. If you are comfortable playing finger style and it works for you, don't fix it if it ain't broke.

If you do want to learn to use a pick and perhaps switch back and forth between the two, here is a video that might work. Griff is a friend of mine and he does an online lesson series mostly focusing on rock and blues. He is quite a player but also a good communicator. See if this is helpful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6N8G7lTI2M

[930addict]

Originally Posted by Cajundaddy

...here is a video that might work. Griff is a friend of mine and he does an online lesson series mostly focusing on rock and blues. He is quite a player but also a good communicator. See if this is helpful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6N8G7lTI2M

Thanks for that video! I couldn't find one that talks about anything other than how to hold the pick and maybe some exercises. The morse code sound he talks about and the pick getting stuck on the strings is exactly what has been plaguing me. But how he describes the actual movement of the pick should come from the thumb and not the wrist makes perfect sense. I think this has been my problem as when my wrist twists it causes the pick to come up under the string. Now...I practice. Thanks, again.

[Charles Freeborn]

Play slowly. Try to get some groove into the tunes at a very slow tempo and then add in speed as you get more proficient.
Homespun tapes has an incredible assortment of instructional materials in nearly every style imaginable.
My favorite instructor is Woody Mann, but I'm more than a little jaded on account of he's a friend. Mike Dowling is also excellent.
There are numerous music camps throughout the country for all kinds of music. They're usually held in summer, so that season is wrapping up now.
Here's a sample of Woody's playing & teaching:
""

""


-C

[stuartj]

Originally Posted by BlueSkyJaunte

Practice.

Practice. Repetition, muscle memory.

Like finger style (which i find harder) its about repetition. Tone is in the hands and both finger style and pick- and most players use combinations of the two offer wide tonal variations.

First step is simple exercises, pick single notes up and down (good chance to practice sclaes at the same time), and playing to a metronome. Use this to build speed timing accuracy and to understand pick attack and tonality.

As always, there are no shortcuts.....

Edit: Just watched Cajun's video- that is spot on.

[targa911S]

what are these "pick " things?

[Rick Lee]

This is all you need to know and he's the best teacher there is.

[BlueSkyJaunte]

Originally Posted by stuartj

Like finger style (which i find harder) its about repetition.

...

As always, there are no shortcuts.....

I find it all hard. I'll be the first to admit that I don't put in anywhere near enough time practicing. I also HATE "exercises" and avoid them like the plague. I'm also short-attention-span theater about what I want to learn to play at any time. Add this up and I still have grade-school level skills after playing for 25 years.

Sometimes I wonder if "talented" is just another word for "obsessive practicer".

[Rick Lee]

Do rudiments unplugged in front of the tv. You'd be amazed how easily you can burn up three hours of practice while watching tv. Then do the fun stuff with your amp in your music room.

[stuartj]

Originally Posted by BlueSkyJaunte

I find it all hard. I'll be the first to admit that I don't put in anywhere near enough time practicing. I also HATE "exercises" and avoid them like the plague. I'm also short-attention-span theater about what I want to learn to play at any time. Add this up and I still have grade-school level skills after playing for 25 years.

Sometimes I wonder if "talented" is just another word for "obsessive practicer".

Amen. 10% talent, 90% work. It is all hard, but making progress - whatever that may mean to you or me, is immensely rewarding. Its soul food. The exercises are only a means to an end, except there really is no end.....

[Cajundaddy]

Like most things, we get out of it as much as we put into it. Guitar is a process and spending just 5-10 minutes warming up with picking exercises and scales every time you play the guitar will add up over time. Your are just putting a little skill in the bank.

[craigster59]

I tend to finger pick more than using a pick. If you want to take Charles Freeborn's advice and hit up a music camp, you can't do much better than Jorma's Fur Peace Ranch....
https://furpeaceranch.com/workshops.html

[esample]

Originally Posted by 930addict

I've been teaching myself guitar over the last 10 months. I've become ok with finger style picking and can play, Hotel California, Dust in the Wind, Everybody Hurts(REM), Good Riddance(Time of your life), Oh what a feeling(Boston) and some others just using finger style picking but am finding that my fat fingers fumble around when I try to go too fast. So on several occasions I've tried a guitar pick and find it extremely awkward and usually just get frustrated. So what's the secret to using a guitar pick? Any good online videos? I've looked but haven't seen any that really goes into the technique.

If you taught yourself how to play Hotel California and Dust in the Wind in less than a year, you don't need advice from anyone. Kudos

-e.

[dennis in se pa]

I am a little over 2 years into learning the guitar. I practice every day, but don't work too hard at it. I have found what was mentioned above to work for me - start out slow, then build up speed. It is the repetition that gets your hands and fingers going where they need to go on their own. I only play 15 songs but I play them all twice a day. I only play for me. At 64 it takes a little longer to learn than when I was a pup, but the steady improvement is very satisfying.

[Charles Freeborn]

...and....if you need a rhythm section to practice with, look no further than your garden shed....