How to Play Bass With a Pick (from an ex-Pick Hater)

Real bassists don’t use picks… except for when they do (a lot). Let’s bust this myth and find out how to play bass with a pick.

By the end of this lesson you’ll be able to answer these questions when your dumb (but endearing) friends ask you them:
- Okay seriously, do legit bassists use a pick?
- Why in god’s name would you want to use a pick?
- Picking the right pick (so you can pick while you pick)
- How to hold these weird little triangles
- Basic bass picking technique
- Different (pick) strokes for different (bass) folks

#PickBassLesson #HowToPlayBassWithAPick #PickVsFingers #ComeAtMeBro

[AaronScutt]

I play both and I must disagree...it is way harder to mute when playing with a pick...it's mostly fret hand muting and it takes way more practice than walking the strings with your fingers IMO.

[ryandavis]

Playing with a pick is a skill on its own. Not everyone can do it well.

[doublea]

"When guitar players pick up the bass and pretend that they can play it..."

I think it's worth repeating that line 😅

[violencefight]

This is great. There isn't enough pick specific bass content on YouTube. The one topic you missed is muting the unplayed strings which is so much harder when playing with a pick.

[GrayMatter]

I started out as a pick player because I was inspired by Jason Newsted. Over the years though, I've learned to play fingerstyle and appreciate both styles. I still use them both to this day and for me, it's really just about what serves the song or what sounds good to your ear. We're all bassists, my brothers and sisters. Let's find a common ground.

[mplsmark]

I’ve found singing comes easier when playing with a pick. Most bass players that also sing lead tend to play with a pick. As a kid, playing with my fingers I found it impossible to even talk while playing with my fingers, even a one word answer to a question. It’s like a mental block, strange when you first realize it.

[Noone-of-your-Business]

I found string dampening a _lot_ more tricky when using a pick. Fingerstyle has me resting all of my fingers on the strings anyway, making it much easier to avoid unwanted ringing.

[SamasakiXBL]

Great video, Josh! I was snobby about picks as well until I realized there's some types of playing that require picks and once you get past the stigma, you improve in both finger and pick. But you forgot one important thing!

Once you drop a pick, don't bother looking for it. Once a pick touches the ground, it is sent to oblivion and it's never going to be seen again 😂

[kentfossgreen]

Here's another fun pick tonal variation option: How tightly you grip the pick. Varying your grip allows you to fine tune the attack component of the pick. There's a nice range available between pick-hits-the-floor and deathgrip.

[joemeza]

I started playing bass with a pick after listening to "apettite for destruction" at the age of 14. I still love Duff's tone.

[Jma]

If I’m covering songs I play how the recording bassist plays. If I’m writing original parts…I still use both hahaha. I encourage everyone to do both! Even for guitar!

[Biosynthnut]

As a former guitarist, back in the 90s. Up until a few years ago I always wanted to learn bass. Newsted, Steele(RIP), and Elifson are a huge part of me wanting to learn it.
Picked up.a Yamaha this past week.
Soaking up this channel like a sponge. Practicing about an hour to two hours a day.
Thank you.

[sdfalco]

I'm 61 years old and have been playing bass most of my life with a pick. I don't even remember why. I use an extra heavy pick and I hold it "sideways". I don't remember why or when I started doing it that way. I do play with my fingers sometimes but it's just not natural for me. I still play the bars in the Tampa area and still love it. New to the channel, love it so far!

[ckhound]

As all my favorite bassists use Picks (Newsted, and Ellefson) I only play with a pick. Personally its the only bass sound I like. (I use a .88 Tortex Triangle personally)

[BarberMister]

Because there is a big difference in the sound of pick down stroking and alternate picking you can combine the two in base parts to sculpt and craft the coolest sound.

[gryzew]

There was a John Paul Jones video interview where he said he preferred the sound of the pick's attack over fingerstyle sound. Let me rephrashe that, the bass god that recorded things like Lemon Song or Ramble On with his fingers, said he preferred the pick (with which he played power chords in Heartbreaker and clunky gallops in Achilles' Last Stand).

[firemedicns]

I am a 75% pick player. It has become a key part of the sound I love to have. I used to be almost completely pick but have practiced more with fingers because of the difference in tone but for playing.

Personally will still be a pick player for the majority of the time as that is my truest love of sound.

[stevenbatke]

Real musicians use whatever the hell needs to be used to serve the song.

[eliezerjk]

Just a trick I learned few years back: use a finger pick (a pick with a looping part wrapping around your thumb) would really help to alternate between using pick and plucking during a song. It takes some times to get use to it, but it really helps if you want to play several dinamics in a song. And also, if I play next song which doesn't require pick, I can quickly clip the pick on my strap (I use thick leather strap so the pick hold nicely)

[markwarner]

After trying out a few dozen different picks, I ended up settling on the Dunlop John Petrucci Signature Jazz III pick. It's actually a bit bigger than a regular J3, and has a really nice textured top that makes it easy to hold on to. It's fairly thick in the middle, but it's also sort-of wedge-shaped so it flies off the strings really easy. Great pick.