Sep 09
6

Todd Johnson Bass Guitar : Floating thumb technique

25 Comments

Here’s a clip from my “Technique Builders” DVD explaining the “floating thumb technique”.

Duration : 0:2:40

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Posted in bass guitar by admin 25 Comments

25 Responses to "Todd Johnson Bass Guitar : Floating thumb technique"

  • TAYGUNOV says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    not only is the …
    not only is the floating thumb technique more ideal for muting, but it is also much more comfortable (for me at least). I’m glad I learned this way instead of the other way

  • Winterfogel says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    I had been …
    I had been experimenting with all different sorts of ways to mute unwanted noise, using the left or right hand. The floating thumb method feels the most natural to me and didn’t take long to beccome second nature. Great work, thanks mr. Johnson.

  • toddjohnsonmusic says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    All of my videos …
    All of my videos show this….Click on my channel and watch some videos. Gary Willis is another one….Just look around at a bunch of the top players….You’ll see it…Do what works for you and have fun! :)

  • lexus2k3 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    i knew it! that …
    i knew it! that kind of position was very uncomfortable (the old one)…i knew i was doing it the right way :D (and here i thought i was wrong)…thanks a lot! :D

  • twrestler says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Do you have any …
    Do you have any videos when someone is playing whit this technique?

  • toddjohnsonmusic says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Yes, the wrist does …
    Yes, the wrist does rest against the body…it’s in constant contact with the body of the bass…..Have fun!! TJ

  • TOM2741 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Do you rest your …
    Do you rest your wrist on the body when u play the E string?

  • ACMalloch says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    by that i mean im …
    by that i mean im playing the e string and thumb is floating unsupported

  • ACMalloch says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    thanks for the …
    thanks for the reply, getting the hang of it now, tryed it in some gigs last night ( baptism of fire or what :p ) only thing im finding odd is floating above the E string when im playing it, do you harden your thumb muscles or keep them relaxed?

  • toddjohnsonmusic says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    The “Disco Octave …
    The “Disco Octave thing” hmmm…Several funny answers come to mind…Ha!!! Anyway…It can be done …it just takes some practice and MUCH more time than a “few minutes”. Focus on NOT moving the mechanism any her than you have to. It takes some time, but you’ll get it!! You might also consider playing Octave with your thumb and first finger. Works Great!! Have fun…happy to help!! – TJ

  • ACMalloch says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    hmmm todd for a …
    hmmm todd for a start thanks for sharing this, however iv been practising it for a few minutes and i see something that could be awkward, how do you play say double octave disco style bass lines with floating thumb? Just dropping the thumb up and down on the E and A string, or jumping back and forth really quickly with my shoulder?

  • ForTheMoon says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    This came …
    This came surprisingly quickly to me. Took about 20 mins to get it down. I had always thought of the floating thumb as re-anchoring your thumb on the next string whenever you move up, which would be way too bersome. This is such a great technique.

  • neothomist1275 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Floating thumb is …
    Floating thumb is worth it.

    Makes you improve your LH technique too just like you said.

    2 years for me to master it too.

  • bassntings says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    i just rest my …
    i just rest my thumb on the string above

  • scarred2112 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    My technique is * …
    My technique is *mostly* Todd’s/Willis style of floating my thumb but lightly resting it on the string above where I’m playing as opposed to *locking* it at the top of my pickup and pivoting from there. It took me a good 1 1/2-2 years of solid practice to completely ingrain floating my RH into my technique and muscle memory, but once I did I realized it not only did all that Todd mentions in the video but also improved my LH technique and generally “cleaned up” my playing in general.

  • 6y298 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Excellent method I …
    Excellent method I first learned years ago. Weird at first but oh so liberating for the right hand in many ways.

  • melocotonbass says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Excellent and …
    Excellent and straightforward instruction.. Thanks Todd- after 30 years playing the anchor technique this has shown me the way to alleviate my wrist problem.. ofcourse its taking a bit of time to incorporate into everyday gigging but already my wrist feels healthier.

  • Lovecannon says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    this is sooo much …
    this is sooo much easier than anchoring, I now use this style when playing with my fingers, and i use palm muting when I play with my thumb, or when im tapping

  • pinkcrayon5 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Your funny. And …
    Your funny. And thanks for the cool technique. it allows me to play this one riff my guitarist showed me the other day that I was having trouble with.

  • Vleeschje says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Cool, thanx for …
    Cool, thanx for showing.

  • Bodhissattva says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Hmmm… I can’t …
    Hmmm… I can’t play without bending my wrist, when I try to I feel I get no power at all from my fingers.

  • jonmil1 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    Great video! i was …
    Great video! i was having wrist problems with the old technique so i switched to the floating thumb and my wrist is fine.Still think its personal choice though some people don’t get pains playing the standard way.

  • nunoa007 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    great!!
    great!!

  • nunoa007 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    I´m trying to place …
    I´m trying to place a link here to that awesome clinic but I think the sistem doesn’t allow me. Somebody knows why?

  • nunoa007 says:
    September 6, 2009 at 8:46 pm
    Reply

    By the way, I …
    By the way, I isted to a clinic from Igor Saavedra, and even though there are some differences between the techniques, he explained exactly the same about the elbow, the shoulder and the wrist and makes a lot of sense to me. I think both bass players are absolutely right about that!!!

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