I've been playing for 50 years and slowly and painfully learned most of this pick slanting and economy picking by accident (no internet or RU-vid back then and I certainly had no vocabulary for it - it was just how I learned to move). Initially I thought I just always did alternate picking and it bugged me that descending runs were way faster and easier than ascending runs. It took a long time to figure out that my descending 3 note per string runs were based on 3 key things: Start with an upstroke, use upwards pick slanting (so my string escape move was the downstroke) and do the economy move/switch strings on the upstroke. After that eureka moment I realized I was just doing alternate picking on ascending runs but using this completely different technique on descending runs (that somehow just magically evolved into my playing - no conscious thing or lessons). So then I tried to figure out how I could apply this for ascending 3 note per string runs, and it seemed to need the complete opposite: Start with a downstroke, use downward pick slanting, and make my economy/switch strings move on the downstroke (which is basically what your whole tutorial today was about). What just came naturally for descending runs took ages to apply to ascending runs - it did not feel natural at all. But eventually I felt comfortable just switching depending on which direction I was going. And, BTW, the whole economy thing seems only to be relevant for odd numbers of notes per string. If you play even numbers of notes per string, pick slant seems to work fine either way, and there never seems to be a need or opportunity for economy picking - good old alternate picking fills the bill.
I still remember my dad counting, stacking, and tying with rubber bands those Marlboro cutouts. He had piles of the stuff because he was and still is a heavy smoker. My first guitar was an acoustic purchased from the Marlboro catalogue.
I haven’t tried practicing this exercise yet, but I would say that the rest in the exercise will also help show your weakness in string muting. I struggle with random strings escaping my palm sometimes. Great video as always Uncle!!
Down, rest, up-down-up repeatedly up and down the fretboard is hard enough to do during my wankshop practice without you bringing up my mum and putting me off my stroke.
I worked at a grocery store in high school (1998 - 1992) and we had a big "single pack" display that we'd stock by opening cartons (10 packs). I think it was Camel that would commonly have a t-shirt in the cartons, so I had tons of Camel t-shirts!! They also had "Camel Cash" in the cartons, but I never mailed away for anything... just wanted the t-shirts! Now... even though my dad was a heavy smoker just like my Uncle Ben's dad was - I've never smoked a single cigarette in my life!
Dude you amaze me at how easily you perform these licks at such speed. I’m gonna watch all your stuff and see if I can get better by copying. Thanks man!
Its funny I just discussed economy picking during my lesson this past week. I have worked on alternate picking for 30 years its hard to break away from it
@isuckatguitar6252 Sometimes, I will default to economy picking if it's like a 2 string arpeggio. Otherwise it's alternative. I'm trying to force myself to use economy more but I will have to break my habit
I've been using economy picking since I saw Frank Gambale's instructional video (ages ago). I tried your exercise, and naturally, I pick the lower string with an upstroke.
Love your lessons man, as always you are my go to for lessons, tabs and Good’ol shtick 😂, your patreon page kicks chunks of ass , also do you have any lessons on how to become a better rhythm player?
I'm primarily a singer who's picked up rhythm guitar in the last year or so and I was shocked to learn that my picking hand is what gives me the most trouble. These exercises help me with right hand accuracy. There's a ton of RU-vid guitar content and I keep coming back to yours. Thanks brother! I mean uncle! Uncle brother!
Once you understand the picking hand is the most important, big improvements are on the way. Probably the reason why it's the strong hand that does the picking ;)
This is great thanks. I pledge to do this for 160 hours. Thats how long it took me to learn a rosana shuffle on the drums. Ill report back in a month. Edit it took me 1 hour just to get the pick pattern to feel normal. It's like learning how to use a pen all over again. Wowzers.
Great instructional content as always, and your gear is something to be envied lol… however I feel this isn’t really much of an economy picking etude, because the first note of each group of notes is twice as long as the rest, so it would already create the exact pattern you’re describing. If there was an extra note in between the first and rest of the notes, then it would be an up stroke, and essentially just an alternate picking passage. For a real economy picking passage, wouldn’t there be two successive down or upstrokes with notes of the same length?
Hey Uncle Ben, can you do a vid focusing on economy picking for DESCENDING stuff, i.e. Moving from a thinner to a thicker string using EP or "reverse rest stroke"?????
Dear Uncle Ben: I don't know how else I would contact you except to comment on your most recent video, to make such a bizarre request, BUT.... I want to make you and everybody else here thoroughly aware of one of MY favorite guitarists of all time, Mike (the Slammer) Slamer...just be aware that this guy EXISTS, OK?!...is all I ask of anyone reading this comment. Mike has been shredding in his own unique style since the days when Eddie Van Halen was first being heard. He recorded seven albums with the (British, totally unheard-of) band City Boy in the mid-'70s and early '80s. Later in the decade of hard rock he teamed up with Steve Walsh from (the band) Kansas to create (the band) Streets. Their big hit song "If Love Should Go" is a guitar lesson in itself. My favorite by Streets is "Blue Town," which every rock guitarist should hear...again, just to KNOW it exists. City Boy...they were incredible...seven albums and no two songs sound even remotely similar, and the Slammer shredding unique in every single one. WARRANT FANS TAKE NOTE: Special thanks were given to Mike Slamer on Warrant's first album; there are rumors....
Uncle Ben, love your content and you should get value-for-value. I had to leave Patreon due to their leach platform billing screw-up. I hope you will switch platforms or offer another way for us to support you. Thanks
Ben I watched a very interesting video on your channel not to long ago about muting technique and how using your sisters hair tie or a fret wrap is cheating. I can't help but notice the tiny little black band by your nut there.... Jokes aside love your content and will put this lesson to work here soon.
Never knew my step-dad was younger than me. Great stuff man. Wished I could have figured this out back in the 80's. It's something those shitty tab magazines nor those expensive artist videos never went in depth on.
Here's a good one for exposing the weak upstroke. Take a m7 arpeggio, for example purposes Em7. 15th fret top e string, start on downstroke, then 12th fret e note with an upstroke. Then with an upstroke move to the b string 15th fret D note, then 12th fret B note on the b string with a downstroke. Then repeat from the top going from the b string to the e string with a downstroke
I stop watching at the preview pic when I saw a downstroke on 3rd string coming from 2nd. No way. If you call this economy picking I call a cat "table".
