"Don't put your pick in your mouth!"

Claude_Ruelle

"Don't put this in your mouth!" my mom would always say. I always listened to mom, so when I started playing the guitar, the idea of holding my pick in my mouth to play fingerstyle never occurred to me. Instead, I practised holding my pick between my index and middle finger.

I've seen many guitarists using different techniques for holding their picks and I find that quite fascinating because everybody does it their own way.

Here's a video in which I discuss this topic. Had some beer before recording this episode, hope you won't mind my sloppy playing and speech:

BillDL

I'm glad you mentioned Chris Buck.  Only a few hours ago I was watching a close up video of him playing in a guitar store and he has an interesting way of "palming" his pick to switch between fingers and pick, but it disables his index finger.  I am quite clumsy.  I can tuck the pick away quite quickly and keep it out the way while changing to fingerstyle, but retrieving it quickly is where i fumble.  I usually just stick it in my mouth where I can't drop it, but I would be stuck if I had to sing also.  I hate the taste that pearloid picks leave on my lips though.  I am probably poisoning myself slowly, which makes me wonder whether there was any scientific basis for Eddie van Halen's suspicion that his metal picks could have caused his tongue cancer.

axisus

On the rare occasions that I'm using a plec at all, and want it out of the way, yes I just stick it in my mouth. It's not worth me working out some fancy pants way to keep it in my hand. I am rather impressed with some people's technique to keep it in their hand though.

Claude_Ruelle

At the end of the day, I don't think it's bad to hold your pick in your mouth. If Van Halen did it, who are we to judge haha. But I think it can definitely be worth learning keeping it in our hand.

If you do it quickly it can even look like a little magic trick.

Winny_Pooh

Claude_Ruelle said:

At the end of the day, I don't think it's bad to hold your pick in your mouth. If Van Halen did it, who are we to judge haha. But I think it can definitely be worth learning keeping it in our hand.

If you do it quickly it can even look like a little magic trick.

Ediie Van Halen palmed the pick most of the time 
or are you referring to Alex Van Halen?

digitalkettle

Claude_Ruelle said:

At the end of the day, I don't think it's bad to hold your pick in your mouth...

The germs, man...the germs!

Claude_Ruelle

Winny_Pooh said:

Claude_Ruelle said:

At the end of the day, I don't think it's bad to hold your pick in your mouth. If Van Halen did it, who are we to judge haha. But I think it can definitely be worth learning keeping it in our hand.

If you do it quickly it can even look like a little magic trick.

Ediie Van Halen palmed the pick most of the time 
or are you referring to Alex Van Halen?

I thought I saw Eddie put it in his mouth a couple of times when tapping. But if he palmed it, it's even better

Claude_Ruelle

digitalkettle said:

Claude_Ruelle said:

At the end of the day, I don't think it's bad to hold your pick in your mouth...

The germs, man...the germs!

Haha true... Especially when playing at a dirty pub. You don't know what those hands have touched 

darthed1981

I've got a pick on my desk at work I sometimes chew to concentrate!

TheMarlin

Brian Setzer palms the pick using his index finger. 

BillDL

Winny_Pooh said:

Ediie Van Halen palmed the pick most of the time 
or are you referring to Alex Van Halen?

No, I was referring to Eddie.  Alex would have been more likely to put a drumstick in his mouth than a guitar pick.  Eddie used to frequently put it into the corner of his mouth when he fingertapped.  That was why, after he had cancer on his tongue and had to have about a third of it removed, he wondered whether it was this habit and frequent contact of a metal pick on his tongue that may have caused the cancer.  He was only posing a theory.  Of course the press jumped onto this and made out as though he was criticising doctors that suggested the excessive alcohol and cigarettes were the most likely contributing factor and blaming the picks.  All he did was wonder about the correlation because the affected side of his tongue was where he put the pick.  Oddly enough that's also the side of his mouth that he usually had a fag hanging out of.

euan

I hold the pick against my palm with my pinky and ringer finger, then when I want to switch back I lower my hand and sort of drop the pick onto my index finger and catch it with my thumb.

Means I have my thumb, index and middle fingers available for playing.

Claude_Ruelle

euan said:

I hold the pick against my palm with my pinky and ringer finger, then when I want to switch back I lower my hand and sort of drop the pick onto my index finger and catch it with my thumb.

Means I have my thumb, index and middle fingers available for playing.

Nice one! sounds tricky, I don't think I could pull that off

Dominic

I come from a small village so it's not a problem for me 
I quickly slip it between the 6th and 7th fingers which keeps it right out of the way

viz

I swallowed a plectrum once - I had it between my lips and I breathed in and it just shot straight down like a frisbee and got stuck. My mum rang the doctor and he said “tell him to eat bread - brown bread”. So I did, and it came out a few days later. Now I wear it round my neck, rather than in it. 

BillDL

Have you ever wondered what to do with the cigarette you nonchalantly lit and had a few drags from during the slide guitar, piano and fiddle solos?  No, don't stick it under the 6th string at the tuner.  That's so "Eric Claptonish".  Instead, slip it down to your other fingers and do your own guitar solo as Merle Haggard deftly demonstrates at the 3:14 marker in this video.

Claude_Ruelle

viz said:

I swallowed a plectrum once - I had it between my lips and I breathed in and it just shot straight down like a frisbee and got stuck. My mum rang the doctor and he said “tell him to eat bread - brown bread”. So I did, and it came out a few days later. Now I wear it round my neck, rather than in it. 

Oh my word!

Rocker

Don’t do something simply because your favourite guitar player does it. Find out what is easiest and most reliable for YOU and do it that way. 

Danny1969

Eddie used to use his first finger for tapping and held the pick with his thumb and middle finger as far as I know .. I did the same once I figured that out. 

https://blog.evhgear.com/2015/07/ask-eddie-how-to-hold-a-pick/

LastMantra

I wish I could get it in my mouth.

Ahh pick...

hollywoodrox

viz said:

I swallowed a plectrum once - I had it between my lips and I breathed in and it just shot straight down like a frisbee and got stuck. My mum rang the doctor and he said “tell him to eat bread - brown bread”. So I did, and it came out a few days later. Now I wear it round my neck, rather than in it. 

That’s brilliant