So what's with all this neck shaking business?

stephen.wood125

It's to activate the tone wood. *runs off*

prowla

Pete Townsend might be the one who invented it; it works with an SG.

LastMantra

Choking the chicken.

rivercider

I'd be worried it wasn't safe on a Gibson. 
*hides*

merciful-evans

Meanwhile, the all-pervading influence of YT means that what monkey sees, monkey copies. 

So true. Like the tying a bandana to the headstock thing.

I'm thinking of inventing a pointless meme too. I'm going to whip out a chord dictionary just prior to hitting that final end chord.

Sesh

You've got to churn the butter, ain't you?

stratman3142

It puzzles me but I've noticed that Matt Schofield sometimes does it. If it would make me sound only half as good as him, I'm up for giving it a go.

Philly_Q

danishbacon said:

Well bassplayers do it too.

I think that's more brandishing than shaking.

JohnPerry

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYsnB3tN_hM

kswilson89

Is it possible that while shaking the neck your fingers are actually moving very, very minimally on the strings? Creating an extremely subtle vibrato that goes almost unnoticed by the viewer but is apparent to the player? I could be talking utter nonsense here...

mrkb

thermionic said:

Two of the worst offenders - Chris Buck, and the Australian bloke in those boring videos that go on for about an hour with just two blokes giggling at each other.

That’s who I saw doing it at the weekend, with his eyes closed. As he wasn’t constraining the guitar body, then it’s not producing any neck flex/subtle vibrato. Just looks weird/pretentious, maybe they’re trying to make the strings vibrate more - like circling the guitar round like a skipping rope?! Perhaps that’s what they think they’re doing...

Strat54

Think I just wet myself at this. Wasn't even looking for an example, but here you goes....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vRnAqRojtQ

gringopig

.

mrkb

Strat54 said:

Think I just wet myself at this. Wasn't even looking for an example, but here you goes....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vRnAqRojtQ

Yep, classic example of a neck waggler!!

mudslide73

mrkb said:

Strat54 said:

Think I just wet myself at this. Wasn't even looking for an example, but here you goes....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vRnAqRojtQ

Yep, classic example of a neck waggler!!

Harry Potter's let himself go..

Grumpyrocker

Strat54 said:

Think I just wet myself at this. Wasn't even looking for an example, but here you goes....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vRnAqRojtQ

So so earnest. It has it all. Classic neck waggler. 

CeeJay

That looks scary. Definitely not for me 

DB1

kswilson89 said:

Is it possible that while shaking the neck your fingers are actually moving very, very minimally on the strings? Creating an extremely subtle vibrato that goes almost unnoticed by the viewer but is apparent to the player? I could be talking utter nonsense here...

To be honest, I do it quite a bit, although hopefully subtly. I thought about it earlier and did it a few times, and if I'm holding down a chord and moving the neck, the lighter the pressure of my fingers on the board, the more they 'slip' slightly and give a faint vibrato effect. I'll also 'vibrato' a chord, and moving the neck about seems to aid that as well. 

PC1971

Colin Cripps. Wonderful guitarist. Partial to a wiggle.  ;-)

darius

I think its the 'all the bloody time' element of the waggling that irks me so. 
There's only really one time it should be used. And that is if you are playing the last note of Sweet Child of Mine and you are Slash. One massive bend. No waggle.