Keanu Reeves is left-handed, but plays bass guitar with his right hand.

[ruztiwarren]

Just stumbled across this 'interesting trivia..." Scary thing is, I'm a leftie who plays right-handed! I can only pray Reeves' playing is less wooden and stiff than his acting, I expect he couldn't swing if he was hanging from a lamp-post (he might have speed though). LOL! Anyone else left-handed and plays right, and are there any other bass playing 'celebs' out there?

[Merton]

[quote name='ruztiwarren' post='274458' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:17 PM']Anyone else left-handed and plays right[/quote]
Yup, me.

And Mark King. He's quite a good player, you may have heard of him (Only came to light last week he's a leftie tho, see pics of him signing the Retroglide protos on the Status website...)

[joe_bass]

I think he was pretty useless tbh lol. His band didn't do too good & then he announced that he was leaving the music side for ever.


The only 1 I can think of off the top of my head right now is John Kerry.

[Buzz]

Loads of leftie's playing right handed basses.

It's true though, we're geniuses, that's why we decided to learn to do it the opposite way to what we're comfortable to, just to prove we can (and we realised that 95% of manufactured basses are righties).

[franzbassist]

I believe the guitarist Gary Moore is naturally lefty but plays guitar righty.

[Alastair]

Two of my friends, one a bassist and one a guitarist are both lefties who play righty. The bassist says playing lefty felt too weird () and the guitarist fella said he probably couldnt afford a lefty rickenbacker!

[alexclaber]

I don't know why left-handed basses and guitars exist. I've never seen a left-handed violin, saxophone, piano, trumpet, etc etc, etc.

Alex

[Merton]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='274470' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:28 PM']I don't know why left-handed basses and guitars exist. I've never seen a left-handed violin, saxophone, piano, trumpet, etc etc, etc.

Alex[/quote]
I know someone who is convinced she has seen a left-handed piano. If anyone would care to enlighten me and show the world she was right, feel free. But yes, load of old tosh for all the "classical" instruments, innit?

[stingrayfan]

I'm a lefty who does righty too.

I also know a lefty guitard who plays a LH guitar but strung right-handed (i.e. upside down). How weird's that?

[alexclaber]

[quote name='Merton' post='274472' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:30 PM']I know someone who is convinced she has seen a left-handed piano. If anyone would care to enlighten me and show the world she was right, feel free.[/quote]

I've seen something about a left-handed piano a long time ago, not quite sure what the point was though!

I'm right handed and after years of playing bass there is no doubt that my left hand is now stronger and more independant than my right because it does a harder job!

Alex

[ruztiwarren]

I suppose Hendrix is the most famous example, his father disliked him being a leftie (not unlike my mother - she made me write with my right hand (West Indian thing)) so he practised guitar left-handed and flipped it right when his dad got back, reason he choose right handed Strat and played left. Might have improved my chops, who knows, but too late to change now. LOL.

[WILD FROG SHOT]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='274478' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:34 PM']I've seen something about a left-handed piano a long time ago, not quite sure what the point was though!

I'm right handed and after years of playing bass there is no doubt that my left hand is now stronger and more independant than my right because it does a harder job!

Alex[/quote]

...any chance you always play with a pick?

[ruztiwarren]

[quote name='alexclaber' post='274470' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:28 PM']I don't know why left-handed basses and guitars exist. I've never seen a left-handed violin, saxophone, piano, trumpet, etc etc, etc.

Alex[/quote]

When I was at school I had to play hockey with a right-handed stick (i.e., the curve end faced me 'cos I play sports left (I write with my right hand though - how f** is that, it's a wonder I'm sane (I think!)) 'cos a) the school had no left-handed hockey sticks, and the sports teacher told me there's no such thing as a left-handed hockey stick!

[waynepunkdude]

[url="http://www.lefthandedpiano.co.uk/"]http://www.lefthandedpiano.co.uk/[/url]

[SteveK]

Edit: beaten to it

Incidentally, Joe Zawinul used an inverted keyboard (synth) on Black Market.

Steve

Edited September 1, 2008 by SteveK

[Merton]

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='274510' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:50 PM'][url="http://www.lefthandedpiano.co.uk/"]http://www.lefthandedpiano.co.uk/[/url][/quote]


[quote name='SteveK' post='274516' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:56 PM'][url="http://www.lefthandedpiano.co.uk/"]Left-handed piano[/url]

Incidentally, Joe Zawinul used an inverted keyboard (synth) on Black Market.

Steve[/quote]
B*gger.

[OldGit]

Been round this one before
One of the guys in my band and several I've played with before were sinister characters playing right handed guitars strung in a trad stylee.

It's just a convention that the picking hand is your writing hand .. no other reason for it.

[alexclaber]

[quote name='WILD FROG SHOT' post='274498' date='Sep 1 2008, 01:43 PM']...any chance you always play with a pick?[/quote]

Good question but no I don't, quite the opposite in fact. Normal fingerstyle, thumb plucking, slapping, muffling, strumming and so on, all without a pick and changing constantly as the sound requires. My right hand is fast but it doesn't have the grip strength or stretch of my left - I do like quite heavy strings and quite high action though.

Alex

P.S. I think I'm palm muting and thumb plucking in my avatar pic.

[Wil]

Once saw a left handed bassist who played a right handed bass, flipped over left handed, but strung normally (IE not flipped to compensate). No idea why, his technique was as a result very bizarre. Quite a good player though.

[Kev]

flea can play both left handed and right handed, during the californication tour at one point he was playing a left handed modulus due to one of his hands f***ing up, id imagine the left

afaik he is right handed

[Rodders]

Im left handed but play righty aswell cause ive got more mobility in my left hand

[Cantdosleepy]

Lefty-playing-a-righty here. Learned on my brother's right-handed strat.

[OldGit]

[quote name='Wil' post='274536' date='Sep 1 2008, 02:09 PM']Once saw a left handed bassist who played a right handed bass, flipped over left handed, but strung normally (IE not flipped to compensate). No idea why, his technique was as a result very bizarre. Quite a good player though.[/quote]


Bay City Rollers guy played like that ..
I guess they shared basses around his house and only had a right handed one ......

I used to share a house with leftie and both p basses would be on stands plugged in in the lounge/music room. We used to swap over now and then so I've had a go that way round .. Not too hard for basic blues

[6stringbassist]

Steve Lawson is left handed but plays right handed.

[stingrayfan]

[quote name='OldGit' post='274587' date='Sep 1 2008, 03:03 PM']Bay City Rollers guy played like that ..[/quote]
Frontman of Manc band 'Doves' does too I think.