School Me On Playing Slide

[colchar]

So I'm thinking I want to start messing around with learning how to play slide and need some pointers from the experts.

Are there any specific benefits to using a slide on either the ring or pinky finger or is it really as simple as personal choice and comfort? Duane Allman used his ring finger and Robert Johnson used his pinky so it seems that there isn't a consensus even amongst the legends.

How snug should the slide fit? I have heard everything from loose enough to be taken off quickly and easily to snug enough that it will not fall off if your hands and arms are just hanging at your side.

If playing slide on an acoustic (at least to start out with) am I right in assuming that a glass slide would be best (I just know I'm gonna drop and shatter glass slides regularly!)?

I suck when it comes to finger picking so is it alright to use a pick when learning slide or should I force myself to learn proper, or somewhat proper, finger picking while I am learning slide?

I don't know squat about slide other than that I absolutely love the sound of slide guitar so I want to start experimenting and, at this point, would welcome any and all advice from everyone here.

[Donelson]

Just buy some slides & try it out. No rules. Whatever works will be the thing for you. Forget about copying others.

For a usable sound the strings have to be fairly off the fretboard.

You can try even a bottle or any object that will get it done.

This is a crude "science", not a conservatory thing. None of the "experts" read a book on the topic, I would guess.

[rodman]

Raise your strings a little if possible , use heavier strings at least a 12 on your little e . Tune to open G , DGDGBG from top down. I use my little finger for slide and rest for chords and damping .Listen to some Muddy Waters ,have fun .

[Mister B]

I agree with Donelson, there are no rules. I sometimes use my pinky, sometimes my ring finger and have different size slides for each (just got a Derek Trucks slide, which is perfect for my ring finger). I haven't really decided which I prefer.

The slide should be quite snug, so it won't fall off if you turn your hand up side down but again, you may prefer it to feel loose. It's up to you.

I would recommend fingerpicking though, you'll need to use the spare fingers on your picking hand to damp the unwanted strings. You can do it pick and fingers style but I find it much easier with bare fingers. You don't have to damp, some players don't but you will get more noise. I prefer the clean, pure tone that you get with damping (remember to damp with the slide hand too, just behind the slide).

I've been learning a lot from a Warren Haynes book on slide. It's cheap and a good intro to slide in standard tuning.

[Open G Tele]

Lots of folks may disagree but here are some of my personal opinions about slide:

1. Acoustic or electric, glass is easier but metal is cleaner.
2. When playing solo, finger picking is almost a necessity.
3. Open tunings are great for playing solo but standard is more versatile when playing with a band. You have a minor chord (strings 1, 2, 3) and a major chord (strings 2, 3, 4) available.

[Donelson]

Originally Posted by Open G Tele

Lots of folks may disagree but here are some of my personal opinions about slide:

1. Acoustic or electric, glass is easier but metal is cleaner.
2. When playing solo, finger picking is almost a necessity.
3. Open tunings are great for playing solo but standard is more versatile when playing with a band. You have a minor chord (strings 1, 2, 3) and a major chord (strings 2, 3, 4) available.

That is a great, simple lesson on slide!

[telewacked]

Open G -
I'm curious, what do you mean by "...glass is easier but metal is cleaner." ?

[Mjark]

I prefer glass for electric and metal for acoustic.

[ottocat]

IMHO glass has a more dull sound than metal . I had a chrome plated metal slide for 25 years I loved...did a gig and lost it somehow....sniff...now I'm using a half inch deep well socket .The tone is great but it's a little heavy . I use a sparkplug socket in the house for acoustic .
Don't be afraid to lay the guitar on your lap (dobro style) so you can see all the fretboard . In standard or open tunings figure out the chord tones ,play on them......
Then play a bunch , damp with all the fingers you can muster behind the slide toward the nut . It just kinda came naturally to me . Make it sound like slide ....no rules

[Larry F]

When I play single note solos, I like to play vibrato by sliding up to pitch, then down a mite, back up to pitch, down a, back up to pitch, etc. For my ears, I prefer not to overshoot the pitch and use a vibrato that goes above and below a central note. Most of the bend vibratos that I hear are done this way. Slide players, though, are all over the place sometimes.

[colchar]

Thanks folks.

I will head out to the store later this afternoon to grab a slide. I plan to use my acoustic for this at first and the action is already a bit high on that. I will try both brass and glass slides at the store on both the ring and pinky to see which I like the most.

And that Warren Haynes books sounds like something I should search out.

I was messing around for a few minutes last night and used my cigarette lighter to try slide out a bit and, although it was only for a couple of minutes, I loved it so I think I am really going to enjoy learning this!

[Phat-o-Caster]

I have one guitar that just seems to be perfect for slidin'-others need a little help and a nut extender can make a low action set up into a slider & back again easy-Brian

http://www.amazon.com/Micro-Musical-.../dp/B000EHUYR8

[Del Pickup]

And don't confine yourself to only using open tunings. Try it in standard tuning as well. You'll definitely need to practice damping the strings to avoid unwanted notes coming through but I find I play more melodic lines in standard tuning rather than slashing open chords as I would in an open tuning. Also keeps the notes on the fretboard in the positions you are already familiar with.

Just another option for you to try.

[colchar]

I grabbed a couple of glass slides at the shop today so I will sit down with my acoustic when I settle in to watch the hockey game tonight and will start messing around then. I find it far more comfortable to use my ring finger but I grabbed a slide for my pinky as well so I will try both out.

[String Tree]

This one is my fave-rave.
It is made by Rockslide.
It is very comfortable.

[Omiewise65]

Get an Gibson SG guitar and tune it up to open E and you're done

[Gareth John]

I always tuned to open E however be careful because tuning up adds some more tension on the neck.

My Squier bullet seems to warp a little in E tuning. You can set your guitar up in this tuning permenantly however it may not always be practicle. another suggestion is to tune your guitar to open D, so like an E chord a step down. Then you can either play higher up, or add a capo at the 2nd fret for open E.

Another good tuning which I only discovered today is open G, as tuning the A string down to G and the E string down to D doesn't add any tension to the neck.

As far as which finger to use the slide on it's up to you. Pinky is good for playing "regular" as well as slide, but ring is probably more comfortable (for me any way).
I find ring finger easier to control.

Glass, metal or other? I 've tried glass and metal and I'm not really a fan of the glass, they seem to sound a little thin to me (thin pyrex I think). Though I love to use the medicine bottle shape for cool factor overall I find a smaller diameter steel slide more comfortable and also sounds better. It really is up to you though.

Hope this in someway helps. This is my experience anyway and other's advice may be better than mine on this subject.

[colchar]

Originally Posted by Omiewise65

Get an Gibson SG guitar and tune it up to open E and you're done

Way ahead of you. If I become semi-decent at slide and stick to it I plan to grab a SG just for slide! Being a huge Allman Brothers fan may have had something to do with that decision...

[' burn 08]

A lot of it is personal preference, regarding slides and fingers. I use a glass tapered slide for both my tele and my acoustic. It fits snug on my ring finger one way and snug on my pinky when I flip it around. I mostly play on my ring finger but use my pinky some just depending on what I feel like doing. I started out on my middle finger with a larger slide. Like others have mentioned, you want to make sure your strings are high enough that you aren't knocking frets. If you use heavy enough strings you may not have to raise them, depending on your slide weight. That is something you may have to play with. When playing a note or chords you will need to place the slide over the fret instead of in between like when you are fretting with your fingers. You will figure it out when you play with it some. I use both a pick and my fingers when playing. Using a pick can be more noisy though.

[Breen]

Higher action, a great to incredible right hand technique, relearn fretboard, a good left hand vibrato & awareness. Your done!