Posted by Jon W. on May 10, 2002, 11:09 pm --Previous Message--
Hi John! As a completely obsessed Patton freak, let me first say that I empathize with your amazement at Patton's technique. I was actually playing Down the Dirt Road Blues earler today, on my metal-bodied National; using the technique on that guitar produces some interesting results. As far as actual technique, I tend to do whatever I think will produce the kind of sound I want at the moment, i.e., slapping the strings, hitting the face above the strings with my thumb, even hitting the face of the guitar with my palm (above the strings) as I pluck the string, sometimes just snapping the string itself. I can't really hit the face under the strings very well, because my fingers are in the strings all the time, which forces my palm, and of course my thumb, to stay with them. I'm curious as to whether Patton ever hits the face under the strings, and how. If I'm snapping with my thumb, sometimes I can produce a satisfactory sound with my fingers under the strings, on the face, but even then my nails get in the way most of the time. I wonder if Charlie is hitting the face under the strings, especially on High Water. What do you think?
: First, apologies that my topic isn't strictly
: limited to acoustic blues.
: It's impossible to listen to Charley Patton
: without being amazed at the supplemental
: percussion he plays by rapping on his
: guitar. In imitating him, I found that it
: can really spice up a solo guitar
: performance.
: My question: do any other guitarists (of any
: style, not just blues) who do this come to
: mind? I would also welcome any thoughts
: or pointers from people who use this
: technique. TIA.
: John
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