Four finger picking techniques for bass guitar

A brief look at the different way of using thumb, index, middle and ring fingers to create fast percussive lines on the bass. This style was developed first by Matt Garrison – first used in his early days with Joe Zawinul and then with John McLaughlin – but now fully developed through his solo work.

Duration : 0:3:41


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25 Responses to Four finger picking techniques for bass guitar

  1. ChronicFunk223 says:

    ijazzunki,

    Thanks …
    ijazzunki,

    Thanks for the quick reply. Yeah, liked it alot. Fell in love with the Envelope Filter the first time I heard Martino’s Joyous Lake LP. Sounds like you and I both enjoy the same genre (FUSION). A sax player turned me onto Weather Report when I first started Music School, still love his compositions AND his awesome playing.
    I wish you much success with your LP project!!!

    Best,
    CF

  2. ijazzmunki says:

    It’s a tune I have …
    It’s a tune I have recorded for a solo EP/album that I am going to release soon for download, I’ll be adding a link to my youtube channell when it’s ready, this an old version the new one sounds really kick ass, I’m glad you like this one though… it’s called ‘Flip Out The Funk’.

  3. guglio1290 says:

    it sounds to me …
    it sounds to me like a variation on “The Chicken”, Jaco Pastorius.

  4. ChronicFunk223 says:

    Please tell me what …
    Please tell me what the tune is at the very beginning, and who the band is? It was great!

    TIA

  5. unoriginalson says:

    Wasn’t this …
    Wasn’t this technique first made by Gary Willis?

  6. duffmasterofpuppets says:

    wow u make it look …
    wow u make it look so easy… i’ve got to try that, you get a real creepy kind of sound with that

  7. armygreen314 says:

    @holaadios12345 No, …
    @holaadios12345 No, but similar in many ways.

  8. Prof3ssrBrando says:

    Heck yeah it can. I …
    Heck yeah it can. I mean, I’ve never tried, but why couldn’t you apply to metal or any other genre?

  9. holaadios12345 says:

    is this the same as …
    is this the same as the technnique used in classical guitar?

  10. Yontar says:

    in a month or so i …
    in a month or so i might post a video with some other excersises i feel are necessary to practice when learning this technique.

  11. Yontar says:

    you could …
    you could theoretically use this technique for anything. i play everything i can think of and it works for all of it, metal and punk included. if you can get a good even sound while doing it then it is far easier to use than 3 finger technique ala digiorgio or sheehan and it’s just flat out more ergonomic. i would suggest either buying or building a ramp if you are interested in this technique though. i practiced on my back pickup for a while and then built a ramp and now it feels very natural.

  12. Jonsawesome says:

    is this for mostly …
    is this for mostly jazz? can it be used for metal?

  13. WolfLikeLamb says:

    nobody ever uses …
    nobody ever uses the pinky?

  14. ijazzmunki says:

    Yes it is – made in …
    Yes it is – made in 1990 one of the lovely original Warwick Thumbs – I sold it about a year ago… a great bass but it was sooooo heavy it was killing my back!

  15. idosports24 says:

    is this a 26 fret …
    is this a 26 fret bass?

  16. neonbl says:

    nice one idea
    and …

    nice one idea
    and nive thamb bass)))))))

  17. cyanideandhappiness7 says:

    cool, thnx.
    cool, thnx.

  18. Warlord313 says:

    Hmmm…well most …
    Hmmm…well most metalcore bands use picks, same with metal.

    Some REALLY good bassist use fingers like Alex Webster from Cannibal Corpse.

    It really depends on your sound. It doesn’t really matter, but meh.

  19. cyanideandhappiness7 says:

    Do you use this …
    Do you use this technique for metal? like BFMV,ATR, Trivium etc?

  20. 03Dmartin says:

    how long did it …
    how long did it take you to get your thumb into that plucking style? It seems really hard to do with no base for your hand :S

  21. Bartholomule01 says:

    Matt Garrison!!!
    Matt Garrison!!!

  22. erix0699 says:

    Seems to me this …
    Seems to me this technique has been first developped by Dominique Di Piazza. Then Matthew Garrison and others (Hadrien Feraud) started to use it.

  23. luxmita says:

    man how long did …
    man how long did you spend to dominate that technique?

  24. jvmc08 says:

    so if you play one …
    so if you play one a five string bass you can use you pinky too huh

  25. polishcomedy says:

    yo, what’s the …
    yo, what’s the music that’s playing between segments? sounds awesome.

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