Pick vs. Fingers

[coolarrow]

I have been mainly an acoustic player for 35 years strumming and finger picking chord shapes mostly. Lately I have been watching several on line video sources learning how to handle my new LP Studio and am finding that the pick is not my friend.

I know that Lindsey Buckingham uses finger picking on the electric guitar and I have watched several videos of Derek Trucks and John Mayer also use their fingers.

I think my fingers on the fretboard will develop faster than a pick in the right hand.

Has anyone ditched the pick in favor of the fingers for electric playing and found it more convenient?

Thank you for any insight.

CA

[mr. beaumont]

Why not use both? Check out hybrid picking. It's not that hard to pick up, I taught myself back when I was 16. I thought, of course, at the time, that I had invented something

[1neeto]

Check out Richie Kotzen. He plays just about anything on the electric guitar and never uses a pick.

https://youtu.be/WDiDhiNB3vo

[Gordon Currie]

Depends on what you want to do. It is quite challenging to get the same speed and clarity on faster passages with fingers as with a pick. Probably why, for every Jeff Beck, there are dozens of equally great players who only use a pick.

Also, certain fingerpicking techniques don't translate well to electric.

The biggest thing you will lose is easy control over attack. If that is important, either use a pick or spend a LOT of time developing the same facility with fingers.

If you're playing a jazz-influenced style, it can often work well, as you can get a piano-like approach that is still somewhat unique and fresh. On the other hand, playing more rock-influenced styles might be frustrating.

Personally, I've worked too hard on picking techniques to ever give them up, although I spend a lot of time doing hybrid picking.

[redir]

I almost always use a pick with an electric guitar and almost always just use fingers with the acoustic guitar. IDK why but it always felt funny to me to finger pick the electric. I'd say just go with what ever feels right.

[Nymuso]

I use both, often in the same song. When I don't want the pick, I palm it. On some songs, e.g., Sultans of Swing, I use bare fingers. But for some heavier rock stuff, I like the pick, particularly to elicit pinch harmonics. It's good to be skilled in both.

[muscmp]

as usual, it just depends. i'll use fingers and/or a pick on electric and acoustic. mostly what i feel like playing.

play music!

[Steel and wood]

There is no right or wrong, it's what is best for you but you may be limited by your choices though.

For me it depends.

I generally use a pick on my electrics for both rhythm and lead, but feel very comfortable hybrid picking with a metal fingerpick on my middle finger (James Burton trick) if the song's tempo/jam calls for it. (I'm heavily influenced by a lot of the country guitarists but I wouldn't call myself a chicken picker). Having said all that, my Telecaster can also inspire me to play simple banjo roll type rhythm and my Samick Royale semi inspires me to loosely Travis pick, using a plastic thumb pick and metal fingerpicks for both.

And speaking of hybrid picking .... only after I mastered a combination of banjo rolls, hammer on and pull-off techniques which are now second nature was I able to become a really good hybrid picker and indeed lead player.

Again, good luck!

[perttime]

There's no particular reason not to play electric with your fingers. Jeff Beck and Mark Knopfler do.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=23KHLW2dw_o

For me, some things come easier with fingers, and others with a pick.

[M Hayden]

I play with fingers on both, and find that the technique translates fine.

[Pickcity]

Pick and fingers for me. I forced myself to halfway learn both when I was young and I'm glad I did. Almost always I use a pick along with my middle and ring fingers.

Even the greats who mostly use their fingers can use a pick if they want to, I would guess. Maybe not all of them, but most.

I see no reason not to try and learn both, but ultimately it is your playing and only you know what works best for you.

[Bob Womack]

I play with both. For the really fast stuff nothing except a pick will do. But for some of the slower, melodic stuff the fingers give me a wider range of picking articulation than a pick can.

Bob

[maxtheaxe]

Check out Jeff Beck "Live at Ronnie Scott's"...very well done video and Beck's playing is an electric finger-style clinic!

[rwmct]

Originally Posted by Gordon Currie

The biggest thing you will lose is easy control over attack. If that is important, either use a pick or spend a LOT of time developing the same facility with fingers.

Johnny Winter comes to mind. Though he did use a thumbpick.

[jwguitar]

Originally Posted by coolarrow

I have been mainly an acoustic player for 35 years strumming and finger picking chord shapes mostly. Lately I have been watching several on line video sources learning how to handle my new LP Studio and am finding that the pick is not my friend.

I know that Lindsey Buckingham uses finger picking on the electric guitar and I have watched several videos of Derek Trucks and John Mayer also use their fingers.

I think my fingers on the fretboard will develop faster than a pick in the right hand.

Has anyone ditched the pick in favor of the fingers for electric playing and found it more convenient?

Thank you for any insight.

CA

I have been fingerpicking on the electric guitar for years now. I played with a pick for years but you can do so much more with fingers.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kql475UcWt4