Left Thumb ... to Hook or not to Hook

[NickA]

Whilst (supposed to be) working at home ... keep watching vides of people playing basses.  There is one chap who does Karaoki style play alongs to Rush tracks (not my thing but interesting to watch) and he plays with his thumb hooked around the fingerboard as if holding a tennis racket.  Well, I though that didn't look right so had a look at Geddy Lee playing the same tunes ... blow me, he also holds the neck like a bat a lot of the time.  So what about actually really good bass players:

• Tech Wizz and Tutor Scott Devine = never seems to move his thumb off the back of the neck and his lessons explain why
• Jaco Pastorious = very occasionally moved his thumb to the edge of the neck but didn't hook it over
• Victor Wooten = mostly plays with his thumb at the back but it does come around to the side now and then
• Stan Clarke = often grabs the neck bat style, especially when playing slap, puts it round the back when playing strings of notes - but his hands are so huge he's lost for somewhere to put them
• Marcus Miller = bassball bat, seriously, his thumb is hooked or up in the air and rarely goes round the back
• Lawrence Cottle = even Lawrence will put his thumb round the side, now and then (but mostly not)
• John Entwistle = hooked to the extent he's using his thumb to fret notes.
• Mark King = a hooker, definitely a hooker

Having strived to keep my left hand mobile and hence my thumb behind the neck (as I was taught when learning the 'cello and double bass) is this a good thing ... or does it really not matter?  Or is there some special occasion when it's a good thing?

... or am I spending too much time in front of a PC avoiding work ;¬)

Edited August 6, 2020 by NickA

[itu]

I have linked this video before, where Tom Kennedy keeps his right thumb on top of the pickup. His left seems to be most of the time behind the neck. How is it with Gary Willis?

Mine (right) floats and left wanders somewhere in the space, so obviously I am not able to do the same things as they do...

 

[ahpook]

Having just tried it out, I put my thumb over he top of the neck when I'm playing the thin strings down near the nut, the rest of the time it's behind.

But then I'm not an actually really good bass player, I'm like Geddy Lee

 

Edited August 5, 2020 by ahpook

[NickA]

Tom Kennedy and Gary Willis ... two superb bass players I'd never really heard of (shock!).  Got to say Gary Willis' technique is very neat indeed; hand position, position changes everything; thumb firmly behind the neck.  Likewise John Patitucci (though he's usually playing way up the nec with six strings so has no option).  Anthony Jackson too.

So far I conclude that technical Jazz bassists play like classical guitarists with the thumb at the back of the neck occasionally swiveling it round to the side of the neck when playing near the nut.

Rock players and funk players don't seem to care so much - but not sure what they gain from the bass ball bat grip.

14 hours ago, ahpook said:

I'm like Geddy Lee

You have 280 basses and made a fortune out of space rock??  Wow!!

NB:  not wishing to diss Mr Lee  I used to like Rush aged 17 or so (hemispheres / permanent waves etc), though an an ocassional play of Spirit of Radio is all I need these days. He wrote some good songs and he pumps out some good bass lines, in tune and in time .. I'd be happy to be able to do that.  But he might be even better if he kept his left hand in order :¬) :¬)

 

[ahpook]

1 hour ago, NickA said:

 

You have 280 basses and made a fortune out of space rock??  Wow!!

NB:  not wishing to diss Mr Lee  I used to like Rush aged 17 or so (hemispheres / permanent waves etc), though an an ocassional play of Spirit of Radio is all I need these days. He wrote some good songs and he pumps out some good bass lines, in tune and in time .. I'd be happy to be able to do that.  But he might be even better if he kept his left hand in order :¬) :¬)

 

:)

No, more having a squeeky singing voice and bad technique !

[chyc]

Personally I keep my thumb behind the neck, but by doing that I'm shutting myself out from the bow-and-arrow string bending that some bassists use. Looking at the list above, it looks like the big benders tend to have their thumb on display above the neck and the less bendy bassists don't.

Fretless bassists with no need for bending all seem to tuck the thumb away, so that may be the differentiator?

[NickA]

note bends ... hmm.  Don't do it myself; but it might need that extra leverage.

Edited September 10, 2020 by NickA

[PaulWarning]

I hook my thumb over the neck apart from when I'm playing the E string, deadens it when I accidentally hit it with my pick, which happens quite a lot 😄

[chyc]

3 minutes ago, PaulWarning said:

I hook my thumb over the neck apart from when I'm playing the E string, deadens it when I accidentally hit it with my pick, which happens quite a lot 😄

I use my right thumb for that duty, but I guess that'd be quite difficult to pull off while holding a pick

[PaulWarning]

15 minutes ago, chyc said:

I use my right thumb for that duty, but I guess that'd be quite difficult to pull off while holding a pick

yes I've noticed a lot of finger players rest their thumb on the E string

[Stub Mandrel]

Handy for muting the E-string but when playing with stretches/little finger the thumb goes round the back.

Mostly when chugging along straight eights

Edited September 10, 2020 by Stub Mandrel