What Are You Working On Right Now?

[TSJMajesty]

Can someone tell me how YOU play this? I've heard this lick used a billion times, but never added it to my repertoire. I'm embarrassed to say that I can't seem to figure out the most efficient fingering (the bendy part):

What SONG is it?

 

[norminal]

What SONG is it?

Rooster by Andy Wood. It’s ALL over his new album. But it’s just your run of the mill blues lick.

 

[norminal]

Sounds like he’s bending up a full-step on the 17th fret of the B string then bending down from a full-step on the 16the fret of the G string.

 

[Sascha Franck]

But it’s just your run of the mill blues lick.

Nah, it's quite tricky IMO. 7th bent to octave while prebending the 4th to the 5th and then doing a release bend from 5th to 4th, the tricky thing being that these are on adjacent strings (say G and B), so the bent upper string is getting in the way of the prebend on the lower string. Performing this with all notes coming out clean is quite something. Maybe I'll get into it a bit tomorrow.

 

[Sascha Franck]

Sounds like he’s bending up a full-step on the 17th fret of the B string then bending down from a full-step on the 16the fret of the G string.

Precisely. And doing the prebend while actually performing the bend is incredibly tough. You could possibly do them one after another, but I doubt it would ever be as seamless as on the recording.

 

[norminal]

Nah, it's quite tricky IMO. 7th bent to octave while prebending the 4th to the 5th and then doing a release bend from 5th to 4th, the tricky thing being that these are on adjacent strings (say G and B), so the bent upper string is getting in the way of the prebend on the lower string. Performing this with all notes coming out clean is quite something. Maybe I'll get into it a bit tomorrow.

That’s my issue. I can pull it off. Just not successfully every time. Maybe I just need to shed it a little bit.

 

[Sascha Franck]

Any chances he's playing it with a slide on the B and E strings?

 

[norminal]

Any chances he's playing it with a slide on the B and E strings?

Actually, playing it on the E and pre-bending the B is a little easier. You can fret/bend both strings with your ring finger.

I’ll practice it in both positions.

 

[norminal]

Definitely easier in the 3rd position!

 

[TSJMajesty]

That’s my issue. I can pull it off. Just not successfully every time. Maybe I just need to shed it a little bit.

If it's what you described, bend the B string with your ring finger while at the same time bending the G with your 2nd.
I use 10's on 25.5" scale, but if I used 9's, it's not that hard.

 

[Sascha Franck]

Actually, playing it on the E and pre-bending the B is a little easier. You can fret/bend both strings with your ring finger.

I know, but there's lotsa noise happening when the strings "clash" with each other (which they do all the time when I try it).
Unfortunately I lost my last slide some days ago, could only try with some stupid lighter (so no fingering after the sliding action) and at least for a start it's sounding a lot more convincing (and cleaner).

 

[Sascha Franck]

I think the hardest part is getting the pre-bend right. It's pretty amazingly clean on the recording...
Add to this that the note following the release-bend is an F#, so that's a 4th down, same fret on the D string - yet another issue.

 

[likitlikeyoulikeit]

Are we talking about this?

 

[norminal]

If it's what you described, bend the B string with your ring finger while at the same time bending the G with your 2nd.
I use 10's on 25.5" scale, but if I used 9's, it's not that hard.

Yeah, it’s not difficult. Just wondered how others play it. I’ve got it nailed on the 3rd position. The 5th is just weird, mainly because I use my pinky a lot up in the upper register, so I’m trying to use my pinky and ring (for the pre-bend).

 

[FuzzyAce]

@norminal . It's certainly an often used lick. Seems a lot of players have adopted it more over the last 5 or so years -- I know Pete Thorn pretty much used some form of it in every demo song it seemed for a while.
It's semi-tricky at first but once you get it - you get it. I like to do other variations where it's not so similar, but still has the voodoo.

 

[Ed DeGenaro]

Can someone tell me how YOU play this? I've heard this lick used a billion times, but never added it to my repertoire. I'm embarrassed to say that I can't seem to figure out the most efficient fingering (the bendy part):

 

[Ed DeGenaro]

And then there's the Jerry Donahue version where the starting notes fall on the same frets you grab them with one finger

 

[norminal]

And then there's the Jerry Donahue version where the starting notes fall on the same frets you grab them with one finger

That’s how I’m doing it in the 3rd position, using my ring finger. The 5th position is a little trickier because I’m using my ring and pinky.

Did a little shedding last night and I’ve got it down.

Digging that Sälen BTW!

 

[Sascha Franck]

I'd really like to see that lick being performed properly and as cleanly as Andy Wood does it. Ed's version isn't too shabby, but the pre-bent C# is quite noticeably sharp (almost trending towards D), exactly the same issue I keep running into when doing it on the B and G strings - and also sometimes when trying on the E and B strings, using the same finger (ringfinger), but I'm getting pretty mixed results out of that version anyway, B string slipping away, E string slipping away, one of them dying away, both of them ringing at the same time, etc.
All that very likely has a lot to do with me not being used to this lick, but I'd still like to see a clean version of the actual working thing.

 

[FuzzyAce]

That’s how I’m doing it in the 3rd position, using my ring finger. The 5th position is a little trickier because I’m using my ring and pinky.

Did a little shedding last night and I’ve got it down.

Digging that Sälen BTW!

Btw, you misquoted me -- that should be from Ed.