Article by Jim Banes
It just about goes with out saying that elementary finger picking is really straightforward - you strike one string with the thumb and the next one with a finger, or pluck two or three strings in unison with thumb and finger(s)! OK? Of course, it's how we apply our thumb and fingers that can generate an interesting sound. Acoustic Blues Pickin' is something else. It's very hard to play blues finger picking smoothly so that it flows.
I've seen that quite a few,old school guitar masters simply applied one finger on their right hand- Doc Watson, Reverend Gary Davis, Scrapper Blackwell, Blind Boy Fuller, Floyd Council, Big Bill Broonzy, and the number goes on and on. We are very lucky to have old film clips of blues men like Broonzy and we can get some idea how they produced those wonderful sounds.
The right hand thumb can move across to the higher strings to help out, which adds to the syncopation. We start to see that the right thumb is the driving power behind the very best acoustic blues. It can double up on the beat to mimic the heartbeat, strike out of the rhythm, hit two or several strings at once and create individual string runs when used together with one of the fingers (normally the fore finger.) The Reverend was a main exponent of that way of playing.
Davis may perform with picks or bare fingers, but favored a large plastic thumb pick and one fore finger. It generates a strong, penetrating effect which allowed his blues music to rise above traffic noise in Harlem when he sang and played on the streets. His stunningly fast individual string runs plucked with thumb and finger are very tough to duplicate properly. Davis was broadly revered as a good blues guitar instructor. For the student motivated to learn the blues, the Reverend was a gift from above.
Modern players similar to Doc Watson and Chet Atkins, had a clipped, economical way of finger picking, but Doc employs a plastic thumb and finger pick, while Chet used a plastic thumb-pick and bare finger nails. Doc utilizes one finger of his right hand, and Chet used three (at least).
At the end of the 50s and earlier sixties, youthful guitarists scoured the land for the old blues men and many of the old players picked up their guitars again, either as performers or teachers. As the years pass, these folks are now few and far between, so it becomes increasingly tough to locate a real original expert who can play in the old way.
In the last five years, the sources offered for the student guitarist engaged in finger picking the blues are myriad. Sadly, that can also slow us up a little.
How to begin? Exactly where to discover a guitarist of the old style? What technique to learn, blues from the delta or ragtime? Modern acoustic blues can seem a little overly complex and it seems that the mantra "A Lot More Complex = Greater" still holds good in most quarters. Luckily, many guitarists are seeking a lot more in the direction of the roots once again in current times and many fans are looking for the real sound of acoustic blues guitar. Starting from the roots is the best way to learn how to play the blues.
That is not to imply some of these these original blues guys couldn't make some incredibly complex sounds, but the sensation behind the fingers is what it's all about really. A Texan blues legend, Lightnin' (Sam) Hopkins usually played a easy pattern in E, for example, with a sturdy monotonic bass stroke. Sometimes he might double the count and the bass note became a powerful heart beat.
In contrast, he might travel up the neck of the guitar fast like 'lightnin' and bend the higher strings, producing hypnotic notes. The overall impact was a sound that spoke to your soul and it spoke the truth - that's the blues.
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