Playing without finger picks - Just gave up on it.

J D Sauser · From: Wellington, Florida

I posted about the fact that after seeing the Buddy Emmons 1987 Christmas video floated around on youtube recently (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K064QL5YOGk) on which (at 55:00) it is disclosed that BE played so far thru WITHOUT finger picks (WITH a THUMB pick, thou), I decided to give it a try.
I had a year ago gone from 2 finger picks to a 3rd one, and became somewhat comfortable with it after 3 months. Interestingly in the discussion on the aforementioned video, BE mentions the "same" 3 months to get "over the hill" with it. So, abut 7 weeks ago, I stored my metal picks and gave myself 3 months.

I gave up on it yesterday after comparing some videos I do to track my progresses and not forget some "stuff" I had been working on in the past.

Playing without fingerpicks has certain advantages:
- No "foreign stuff" on your fingers, no "prosthetic" feel.
- More connection to the strings... feel-to-play. It's a BIG factor I feel, especially for somebody who doesn't use a volume pedal anymore.
- No picks to bend, shape or crawling expeditions under a maze of knee levers to try to pick up from the floor from under the pedal rack (which is where they ALWAY land if dropped! It's physics... called GRAVITATION!).
- better balanced EQ. Let me explain: One picks the lower notes with the thumb pick, so they are crisp and bright, the more treble string are picked with the bare fingers... which softens them. The added advantage is, that one can now push the trebles a bit and further give life to those C6th bottom strings without cutting thru glass with the top thin strings.

Issues:
- It takes good month of building up tougher skin... after going thru different stages of blisters, pealed off skin and vacuuming skin debris from under the strings on the pickup side every 3 days. That I did overcome. It's like grabbing standard guitar... it takes a solid month or two to get those left hand fingers built up to take the steel string sting.
- however, my string separation playing heavy chords is just not there, and it's been bothering me more than bowing my head and reaching out for them pesky metal things again before the 3 months are over.
I play a LOT in the wound strings, which would probably be less a factor would I play E9th... I found my chords to sound muddy and undefined, I don't seem to find it in myself get excited over that sound.

The exercise has however NOT been in vain. I feel my right hand technique got better, I play faster and more securely, with less misses. After 7 weeks pickless, it took me 3 hrs of playing to get used to my picks again and finding that I had made some measurable progress... mostly speed and dexterity. It may be that because I had Zero concern about picks and playing without them is so "up and personal", I became more in touch with my strings. My string group grips a more secure too.

So, this is just my experience with that... J-D.
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Was it JFK who said: Ask Not What TAB Can Do For You - Rather Ask Yourself "What Would B.B. King Do?"

A Little Mental Health Warning:

Tablature KILLS SKILLS.
The uses of Tablature is addictive and has been linked to reduced musical fertility.
Those who produce Tablature did never use it.

I say it humorously, but I mean it.

Bill McCloskey · Posted 28 Nov 2021 9:21 am

I go back and forth. but I can't get the speed I want for certain things without picks. I do like the sound of pickless for slower ballads, but you lose a lot on the lower end.

Lee Gauthier · From: Victoria, BC, Canada

I come from primarily a bass and finger style guitar background so without picks is the most natural for me. I've given a good stab at traditional style finger picks, but I think I've landed on those ProPiks that have a big cutout in the blade so your finger sticks through. Gives me the ability to feel the string which helps me mute the string confidently when finger blocking, but I'm still getting that pedal steel tone I love. Still feel like I have more expression and dynamics playing without picks... but that just comes down to needing more practise.

Larry Dering · From: Missouri, USA

Likewise I also came from a fingerstyle picker so it is natural to go without picks. But the tone and attack is better with the picks, so I continue to use them.

Dennis Montgomery · From: Western Washington

I came to pedal steel after 40+ years of playing guitars with a pick (mostly electric but a lot of bass and steel string acoustic). Never played fingerstyle on electric, though I did spend a couple years studying classical guitar so got some experience plucking string combinations with my right hand.

When I bought my Mullen and got serious about learning E9 I made the decision early on to skip the finger picks. I've developed a style and sound I really like, though it certainly isn't the "traditional" pedal steel sound and style. I think it would be pretty tough to get that kind of cutting sound without finger picks...though it can be done (I'm thinking of Kim Deschamps from Canadian band Blue Rodeo). Go to the 3:08 mark in this live vid of theirs to see a nice closeup while he plays a really sweet solo...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tws8YIGDyl0

Anyway, I have a couple solo pedal steel pieces played without fingerpicks on youtube if anyone's curious...links in my sig below Winking

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Hear my latest album, "Celestial" featuring a combination of Mullen SD12 and Synthesizers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhh6b_xXTx4&list=PLfXm8aXRTFz0x-Sxso0NWw493qAouK

Hear my album, "Armistice" featuring Fender 400 on every song:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2Pz_GXhvmjne7lPEtsplyW

Hear my Pedal Steel Only playlist featuring Mullen G2 SD12 on covers like Candyman, Wild Horses, Across the Universe & more...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfXm8aXRTFz2f0JOyiXpZyzNrvnJObliA

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