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thumb up or thumb down for slap? how do you do it?


thebuckets
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Just wondering what the concencus is?

I'm no great slapper myself but am working on improving my technique. Made myself play thumb up a la Marlowe dk, Victor Wooten Marcus Miller etc to allow me to move to doublethumbing as my technique improves, I see a lot of players playing thumb down a la Flea, Scott Devine, Marta Altea etc.

Thumb up seems more usefull, thumb down looks much cooler IMHO.

How do you play and what are the advantages/disadvantages you've found?

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It just depends on what sort of sound you want really..

The through-thumbing stuff like Larry Graham gets you a nice THONK sound and like you say can help you move on to the double-thumbing technique used by Marcus Miller and Wooten..

The style guys like flea use is the style I started out with and I think is a bit more accessible but by no means better or worse.. I think it can sound a bit thinner at times but you get more of a 'bouncing' action.

Learn both and you'll be unstoppable!

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I think if your looking to get a nice, well known slap sound then slapping like Marcus is great (without double thumbing). Hitting the string with your thumb and bouncing it back off near the end of the fretboard gets you a nice sound and its the sound that everyone knows. Double thumbing and other techniques of slap I kind of put into the 'Solo'istic' bass player bag. They're nice to have in your own bag of tricks but you can't really use them all the time in grooves and what not. :)

This is coming from someone who idolises Marcus Miller to the bone :D

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I changed from thumb down to thumb up years ago...but that was in the days of Louis Johnson et all
and the only guy doing thumb down really well was the guy from Shakatak.

The oddballs were Laboriel and Larry G (who has never had THE conventional take on slapping that
his reputation now gets, IMO..as great as he sounds )

Now, there is a zillion takes on slapping and some are very outdated, LJ, and some very modern, A Carol,
which stuff inbetween like Bona..

It really is a study in itself, so as long as you get down what you are looking for, then neither is right or wrong.
I would just say that the convetional and most able, style and also, most popular, is thumb up... but that might just be
because most guys you rip from play the same way.

As an aside... dated slapping sounds, IMO, are Flea and LJ who at one time, were huge. MK has such good technique and feel
he comes through that, and Larry G is just so damn funky he is still a reference... :lol:

IMHO.

Edited by JTUK
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[quote name='AL-the-Bassman' timestamp='1395669270' post='2404839']
A great way to start expanding on your slap technique, is to learn how to slap then pop on one string.
this gets your right hand in a good position to start coming up with your thumb.
Also this technique is great if you just want to emulate double thumbing..
[/quote]
Bit hard to visualise any examples?

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[quote name='thebuckets' timestamp='1395678656' post='2404976']
Bit hard to visualise any examples?
[/quote]

an easy exercise to begin with would be play 8th notes alternating between slap and pop, starting on your lowest string.
this will get you slapping in a more closed position and in a smaller area , then when your fluid enough try adding in the up thumb,

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[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1395679699' post='2405006']
Have a look at this from 15:30.
[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7jFLg3hrmAM[/media]

Not a fan of his sound or feel, tbh... but the technique is there and well explained/demonstrated.
[/quote]
I've had a quick look at this. Nice one, cheers
His technique is awesome and the exercises are worth doing for improving but Like you I'm not a big fan of just speed slapping, its got to have a groove.

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[quote name='AL-the-Bassman' timestamp='1395679186' post='2404986'] an easy exercise to begin with would be play 8th notes alternating between slap and pop, starting on your lowest string. this will get you slapping in a more closed position and in a smaller area , then when your fluid enough try adding in the up thumb, [/quote]
Not really noticed anyone slapping then popping on the same string as its often octaves or hammer on/offs. Any vids ?

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[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1395680029' post='2405017'] Definitely thumbs down for slap. [/quote] [quote name='JuliusGroove' timestamp='1395682177' post='2405045'] Thumbs up for thumbs down.... ;) [/quote]
Cheers guys just trying to get a feel of what people prefer. What makes thumbs down your preferred method? Or have you just felf more comfortable that way and stuck with it?

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  • 2 weeks later...

I started out playing slap with my thumb down until someone told me I'd get a better sound and better accuracy if I played with my thumb parallel ot the strings. Having switched to playing this way I appreciate that it is a far better way to play. It won't only help for learning double thumb etc., you can move up and down the strings more fluidly this way and you get a more powerful slap. Don't worry if it feels strange at first, it took six months for me to become accomodated to playing that way but I'm glad I did it.

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[quote name='adam-1992' timestamp='1397666302' post='2426272']
I started out playing slap with my thumb down until someone told me I'd get a better sound and better accuracy if I played with my thumb parallel ot the strings. Having switched to playing this way I appreciate that it is a far better way to play. It won't only help for learning double thumb etc., you can move up and down the strings more fluidly this way and you get a more powerful slap. Don't worry if it feels strange at first, it took six months for me to become accomodated to playing that way but I'm glad I did it.
[/quote]
Cheers that's what I'm wanting to hear. Been playing my slap pieces like that for a while now and thumb down just feels odd now. If its good enough in for Marlowedk, LG etc,etc.....

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[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1397760934' post='2427218']
I just did what felt most natural & comfortable for me, which is sort of halfway between thumb up & thumb down..
[/quote]

Dead on sideways? I'm a thumb up guy myself but down works for many people. Never heard of a dead on parallel technique before!

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I think it also depends to some degree on the shape of your thumb too.
If you have a 'golfers thumb' ie one that curls backwards towards the tip, then you will have to strike the string slightly differently to someone who doesn't.
Basically, you are trying to get the hard boney part of the knuckle on the side of the thumb, in contact with the string.
I have been struggling with this problem myself, on and off, for a while now!
My own personal conclusion, is that you probably need to keep your thumb [i]reasonably[/i] parallel to the string you're intending to hit.
Thumb up or thumb down tends to increase the likelihood of catching an adjacent string, in my experience.

Japhet is right too, how you 'wear' you bass will also have a significant effect on the angle of your thumb.

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