Jimmy Herring's picking technique

bingefeller

This is some of the best footage of his picking hand I've seen.  It looks like he uses a door knob turning sort of technique with a three finger grip like Steve Morse.  Amazing to watch:

axisus

Pretty unusual. Unusually active wrist action.

groovie

That lick he plays at 24 seconds is quite beautiful.

sweepy

Vastly underrated guitarist, well worth checking out on YouTube , Aquarium Rescue etc etc

axisus

sweepy said:

Vastly underrated guitarist, well worth checking out on YouTube , Aquarium Rescue etc etc

Probably more 'unknown' than underrated. Everyone I've found online who had heard of him thinks that he's an incredible guitarist.

bingefeller

groovie said:

That lick he plays at 24 seconds is quite beautiful.

That sounds like a Derek Trucks lick.  There is another vid where Jimmy demonstrates some Trucks type stuff without slide.  

ElectroDan

It doesn't seem like an economical technique, but it's obviously working for him. He has a great tone and plays pretty fluidly.

bingefeller

ElectroDan said:

It doesn't seem like an economical technique, but it's obviously working for him. He has a great tone and plays pretty fluidly.

Yeah he is using a lot of movement, although he combines it with legato for speed.  He can still rip through some amazing and complex lines at fast tempo though so he can.  

carlos

You wouldn't want to learn this way or teach somebody to play this way as it's not optimal but Jimmy has made it his own.

bingefeller

carlos said:

You wouldn't want to learn this way or teach somebody to play this way as it's not optimal but Jimmy has made it his own.

I dunno, I think the best way is to experiment and find whatever way works for you.  I don't hold the pick the "standard" way (I hold it backwards) and find it works better for me when playing fast.  I'm not a teacher but, if I was, I would certainly encourage students to experiment with their picking techniques and copy other players techniques until they find what works best.  

carlos

@bingefeller ;
I hold the pick like that too, except I use only index and thumb as I need the middle finger to do my hybrid picking shenanigans. We're all built differently, but there are better and worse ways to do things from a biomechanical perspective. Herring has too much movement for it to be a recommended technique for most people. It works for him!