# Guitarists, Bassists: The Best Fretting Hand in the Business **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 15, 2011, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485 "2011-04-15T14:33:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2011, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/41 "2011-04-16T18:03:52Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Totally. And Jimi was not a particularly tall guy… This is a whoosh, right? ---
**Author:** ![sleestak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/919ad9/32.png) [@sleestak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleestak)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2011, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/42 "2011-04-16T18:29:58Z")
Dave LaRue. [Demo](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AzHNC9-t-eo). [Cruise Missle](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juHYDJmGO5Y&feature=related). Starting at about 3:30. I’ve seen him live numerous times and the guy is a monster. Always on and perfect technique. Slee ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2011, 6:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/43 "2011-04-16T18:34:58Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > This is a whoosh, right? He was about 5’11" - okay, tallish. But still, disproportionately huge hands… ---
**Author:** ![Contrapuntal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e274bd/32.png) [@Contrapuntal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Contrapuntal)\ **Post date:** [April 16, 2011, 6:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/44 "2011-04-16T18:41:28Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > He was about 5’11" - okay, tallish. But still, disproportionately huge hands… Man, my memory is really shot. I thought he was much taller. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/45 "2011-04-17T03:20:56Z")
Amazing left-hand technique, out of necessity: I present [Bill Clements](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eskvyuzF1-Y). ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/46 "2011-04-17T03:40:05Z")
> [@Contrapuntal](#): > > This is a whoosh, right? Jimi was only about 5’11’. That’s not short, but somehow he does _seem_ to have a more towering height in the footage you see from his stage performances. I don’t know why. He did have huge hands. From the testimony of the Plaster Casters, it’s also true what they say about guys with huge hands. ---
**Author:** ![Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/le_ministre_de_l_au-dela/32/12181_2.png) [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Le_Ministre_de_l_au-dela)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/47 "2011-04-17T03:45:51Z")
Oh, fine. Astonishing left hand technique out of necessity coming right up. [Django Reinhardt](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iJ7bs4mTUY). Played better with two fingers that 99% of guitarists can play with four. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/48 "2011-04-17T04:01:18Z")
> [@Le\_Ministre\_de\_l\_au-dela](#): > > Oh, fine. Astonishing left hand technique out of necessity coming right up. [Django Reinhardt](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iJ7bs4mTUY). Played better with two fingers that 99% of guitarists can play with four. I’m relating to Django a lot the last few years because my psoriatic arthritis has rendered me incabable of bending a couple of finger anymore, and I’ve had to learn to configure a lot of fingerings, and I just plain can’t do some things anymore. Back in the day, I used pride myself on being a neo-classicist shredder, but I just can’t do that anymore and It forces me to really thing about how to play with economy. Coincidentally to the thread topic, I’m watch _That Metal Show_ on VH1 right now, and Billy Sheehan is standing in as the guest musician, basically just standing in as a solo bassist, and he’'s kicking ass. Hasn’t lost a step, that guy. It’s hard to keep an audience interested with just a bass, but he’s doing it. I don’t know that I’ve seen a better tapper on the bass. ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [April 17, 2011, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/49 "2011-04-17T04:08:36Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > Back to the OP, one of the Big Damn Band’s first gigs out of their home state of Indiana was [opening for Derek Trucks and Susan Tedeschi](http://www.bigdamnband.com/axl-rose-blog) You know, I feel REALLY bad for not being familiar with Big Damn Band, despite living about 45 minutes away from Brown County. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/50 "2011-04-25T16:02:31Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Coincidentally to the thread topic, I’m watch _That Metal Show_ on VH1 right now, and Billy Sheehan is standing in as the guest musician, basically just standing in as a solo bassist, and he’'s kicking ass. Hasn’t lost a step, that guy. It’s hard to keep an audience interested with just a bass, but he’s doing it. I don’t know that I’ve seen a better tapper on the bass. I’m back from a week away with the family. Any links to Sheehan’s performance on That Metal Show? ---
**Author:** ![E-Sabbath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e19adc/32.png) [@E-Sabbath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-Sabbath)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/51 "2011-04-25T16:20:01Z")
Welp, you can feel confident in knowing we missed you, Wordman. Squeegee’s got some problems with P90s that I think are part of the nature of the beast, but hey, whadda I know? ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2011, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485/52 "2011-04-25T18:17:26Z")
> [@E-Sabbath](#): > > Welp, you can feel confident in knowing we missed you, Wordman. Squeegee’s got some problems with P90s that I think are part of the nature of the beast, but hey, whadda I know? Oh - cool and thanks!; I will head over to the Great Ongoing Guitar Thread and see what’s up… [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/guitarists-bassists-the-best-fretting-hand-in-the-business/578485.md?page=2)