Are there very many (if any) really experienced players who use just their thumb to strum and pick? I am assuming that there are many players who do use just their thumb and index finger. Just curious.
Not to highjack your thread, but in keeping with the question about the use of the thumb....
Is it cheating to fret the strings using your thumb? I've seen it done, and to me it just looks wrong. Whatever works for you, I guess, but I don't think I'd ever do it....
Jimi had HUGE hands. He would barre all the way across the strings with his thumb while fingering above it. Instant capo! Of course he could also play right handed and left, so... And Django Reinhardt played his solos with two fingers after losing the use of his ring & little fingers in a fire at the age of 18. You do what you have to do when the spirit is calling.Hendrix used his thumb to fret the 6th string on his guitar sometimes, especially on D chords. If it's good enough for Jimi, I figure it's good enough for the rest of us. If he had played the ukulele, the mind boggles at what we would now consider "the rules".
Yeh, Jimi used to fret entire bass note runs with his thumb, and more.Hendrix used his thumb to fret the 6th string on his guitar sometimes, especially on D chords. If it's good enough for Jimi, I figure it's good enough for the rest of us. If he had played the ukulele, the mind boggles at what we would now consider "the rules".
Sorry to go off topic, but DJANGO! Oh man. That is where rules fall apart.[...]And Django Reinhardt played his solos with two fingers after losing the use of his ring & little fingers in a fire at the age of 18. You do what you have to do when the spirit is calling.
Watch the YouTube videos of Ohta San (senior) and Bill Tapia. Both play their ukuleles using their thumbs!