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Post new topic Alternating(?) bass line (travis picking?)
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Author Topic:  Alternating(?) bass line (travis picking?)
Chris Walke

 

From:
St Charles, IL
Post  Posted 13 Dec 2000 6:01 am    
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I just received my Kelly Joe Phelps instructional tape from Homespun. I'm really eager to learn his style of lap style acoustic playing. He tends to use the alternating bass notes, constantly hitting the octaves with the thumb, like Travis picking, I think. My first hurdle, of course, is to gain some independence between my fingers and thumb. Does anyone have any exercises they could share to help me build this skill?

As a side note, I'd like to add that when I started playing lap steel and reso, I was a little resistant to the idea of finger picks. I eventually forced myself to use them. Phelps plays without picks, and I started trying to work with my bare fingers. I quickly realized that I prefer the fingerpicks now. They seem so natural. Who'da' thunk it? SO...

...Those of you struggling with getting used to fingerpicks: hang in there. They'll seem to become a part of your hand soon enough.
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Michael Johnstone


From:
Sylmar,Ca. USA
Post  Posted 14 Dec 2000 1:30 am    
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It's not much different from doing it on regular 6 string guitar.When I do it on steel,I find there's more you can do on pedal steel in terms of actual bass lines-you're kind of limited on a fixed tuning to just octaves or 1s and 5s in the same inversion up and down the neck.You'd be bustin' ass to get much more than that on a lap steel-depending on your tuning(and skill),of course. Not to mention trying to get melodic counterpoint on the high strings at the same time.If you really want to get into it though,Dom7th chords played on C6 w/pedals is the ticket. -MJ-
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Chris Walke

 

From:
St Charles, IL
Post  Posted 14 Dec 2000 7:51 am    
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Michael,

Phelps does some amazing stuff playing lap style with this picking technique. When I first heard him, I thought he was playing bottleneck style and fretting with his fingers as well as using the slide. He does pretty much stick to octave bass lines, but he mixes things up enough to fool the listener into thinking he's doing more. Pick up an album called "shine-eyed mr zen" and you'll hear what I'm talking about. He's a fantastic singer too.

BTW, he plays in open D.

I never did much fingerpicking on standard guitar, so travis style is not a technique I'm adept at. So I was wondering if there are any excercises to help achieve the independence between fingers and thumb.

[This message was edited by Chris Walke on 14 December 2000 at 07:52 AM.]

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Bob Stone


From:
Gainesville, FL, USA
Post  Posted 14 Dec 2000 9:44 am    
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Chris,

Lately I've had a breakthrough in being able to obtain a steady alternating bass beat while fingerpicking on the 6-string guitar. Try practicing (I was playing acoustic)while watching tv. You can keep the guitar volume down (and avoid those dirty looks from your wife) by muting with your right hand. To me, the main thing is to first keep the bass line solid, then get the skeleton of the melody, then add more notes and syncopation. After all, rhythm is the first element of music.

I have a friend that told me he learned to play the banjo while watching tv and practicing his rolls. It helps pass the time while doing boring, mechanical practice.

Gamble Rodgers was a great thumb-style guitar picker who sang and told stories while picking hot stuff. He used to warm up by playing while carrying on conversation with friends backstage. Talk about coordination!

By the way, some of the old Cajun records from the 50s and 60s have some great two-steps played on non-pedal steel Travis style. Check out some Aldus Roger and the Lafayette Playboys re-issues.
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Aaron Schiff

 

From:
Cedaredge, CO, USA
Post  Posted 15 Dec 2000 12:55 pm    
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Chris, I have been Travis style picking for almost 40 years. Used to watch Merle from front and center at the Town Hall Party show in Compton, CA during the 50's. The pattern that I started with began with a pinch between thumb and middle with the thumb on the 6th string and the middle on the 1st. Next is thumb on either the 5th or 4th. Next is index on 1, 2 or 3. Next is thumb on the 6th or 5th. Next is middle on 1, 2 or 3. Next is thumb on the 5th or 4th. It looks like this, P,T,I,T,M,T. The pattern is somewhat syncopated with the thumb maintaining a steady beat and the fingers in between. Practice the pattern on your leg when you don't have a guitar (walking, driving, watching TV). After about a year, I was able to maintain a steady beat with the thumb and work the fingers independently. Also, I decided that if Merle could play with two fingers, so could I and I substituted the index for the middle.
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