Jake Eddy says you can't handle these bluegrass speed tips. 

Sorry about my camera quality here y’all. I wasn’t at my normal set-up. Go practice and get off RU-vid!

This was great to hear. I am working on a little practice project I’m calling ‘100 fiddle tunes at 100 BPM.’ It’s been super fun. Playing them on both mandolin and guitar. I also think learning tunes on both instruments is helping my ear a lot

Absolutely. Found out playing slow is super hard. Whatever stresses your hand for strength and stability needs that strength for twice as long. Discovered millions of flaws less noticeable (or understandable) at fast tempos. Also, I find super exaggerating your phrasing at slow tempo allows it to come out and be hear at faster tempo automatically without thinking.

Starting a new channel: Slow-ny Rice: Tony Rice Songs, But Just One Note A Day

I asked one of my favorite flatpickers if I could make a video of him playing a slowed down version of one of his intros so I could try to learn parts of the fingering that I couldn’t figure out on my on. No problem he said, and then couldn’t get through the slow version without stumbling. This would probably have been corrected in another three minutes of playing, but it does speak to Jake’s point that each tempo has its own challenges.

Another excellent video. (If I play really fast) "will I win at guitar?". Funny

Bob Minner is a great example of someone who plays beautifully and doesn’t shred at fast tempos

Excellent. Tunes are exercises. Steve Kaufman recommends taking dozens of tunes and working them through each of the 5 CAGED positions. The idea is that you learn to improvise by getting the sounds of the vocab in your head, so you hear the common sounds rather than working out of patterns. Makes sense. We don't teach babies grammar. We teach them Mama (more or less!). WIth apologies to E Scruggs.

I think the most important thing said in this vid is "140 is just fine." I think we sometimes forget that the idea of a break is to serve the song. Anything faster, unless the lines have an easily identifiable melody or are joltingly interesting, ends up sounding like the musical equivalent of gibberish. I can think of about three players who can do that consistently. But playing at 160 does impress other guitar players, that's for sure.

I agree 100% with fiddle tunes: unlike some other genres bluegrass fiddle tunes often act as etudes. The basic versions of the standard repertoire is almost the equivalent of Carcassi's etudes for classical guitar: grat for technique beautiful in their own right. Then they can be improvised on at more advanced levels.

Learns one fiddle tune goes straight to this video

Thanks Jake Eddy, thanks Marcel! Soon as I get off work I'll be home practicing!

Steps to being a fast guitar player: 1. Be named Jake

Starting at about 160 bpm, fluidity and rhythm start to appear while flat picking bluegrass tunes.

The secret is play every minute you have free

Nice interview. It would be nice if more players understood we need less gimmicks like speed for speeds sake and the guitar slapping…restraint can actually be refreshing!

You should do an interview with Jake Workman too

Talking about the best way to hold a pick. Now, a lot of electric players swear by "the George Benson method" but I've tried this but I don't it's suitable for bluegrass playing where quite a bit of force is needed to produce the required tone and volume.

I think what Jake was saying that the focus is the song-- it's all about the song, if it makes sense to play a little fast so be it, but much of the time its about being tasty and not speedy.

Marcel: I don't want to bash on beginners or anything... Jake: I do! 😲 😾

One teacher said: “Exercises, not EXORCIST!!”

there's a sessions player named Carl Miner who has great technique and is such a clean melodic player. i think Marcel would really dig his playing.

Thanks for these videos 🙏

Jake Eddy Rocks! Dave in WV (Parkersburg)

Great takes here gents

"...Of this group, Paul Desmond stayed truest to the ultra-cool aesthetic. He had little interest in adopting a flashier style, jokingly referring to himself as the “world’s slowest alto player.” On the surface, Desmond’s solos appeared to offer a lush romanticism, but only careful listeners were apt to catch their richer implications."

Marcel , this is a lot of fun I love Jake.... And by the way I love your shirt sir pretty nice Marcel.... Marcel's wagon dragons baby

“Playing fast is a marketing deal.” Jake Eddy.

Speed will mess up your fingers and you might get Carpal Tunnel if you're not careful! Just play as fast as you can play and be happy with where you are at. If I was judging someone who plays super fast, I would want to slow them down to half speed and then see how it sounds. Really good fiddle players sound really good at half speed but they still make mistakes if you listen super closely. Micro mistakes but they are there, Kenny Baker, Tater Tate, Paul Warren, they all have some notes that aren't quite perfect sometimes at half speed playback. One thing I got out of this video is that I need to listen to Jake Eddy on You Tube! Never heard of him until I watched this video, I am old school big time... Appreciate the discussion! People need to hit that gear button and listen to the tune at half speed over and over and over again... Get it in your brain... Then 3/4 speed and maybe play along... Don't even try full speed. Play it the way you hear it a .75 clean. Now get the metronome out... The guitar is not a fiddle or banjo, so my biggest challenge is figuring out how to play the guitar at banjo and fiddle speeds! I play banjo and fiddle most of the time, guitar is just a side deal... a lot of work and a huge challenge! Off to watch the Jake Eddy stuff, see what you're talking about.

I was hoping for my technique (like holding the pick @1:54) than talk, but you're a great interviewer and teacher so it was a good watch nonetheless.

I don't have speed. Every one says speed isn't everything. Maybe not, but if you want to join in on some bluegrass tunes, you'd better muster up some speed

Hey Jake, great pickin and thanks Marcel for your contribution once again. Was curious what pick are you playing Jake? It’s always a question I like to ask good pickers. And your definitely one of them. Thanks 🙏🏻

I tend to use my right hand pinky on the guitar for reference.

All beginers need to know about playing guitar, fast or slow, and when taste dictates the speed, is by watching Norman Blake. He is maybe the best picker in this era. The late Tony Rice and Doc Watson being right up there as well. Forget going 900 MPH or 195 bpm. It's in bad taste in many instances. Yes, some pros can do it, but too fast turns me off. Fire On the Mountain should be played fast as possible. The faster the better. Play a recording of it on RU-vid and speed it up to the max. That's what I'm talking about.

Normal metronome BPM or Bluegrass BPM where it is doubled?

Great video. Here’s the question: When we talk about 120 bpm being a good tempo to have as a bench mark, are we talking straight time or cut time?

My problem is playing slower ... I play so many songs with people who like to haul boogie .. then I get around another group and they play at 80-100 ... the same songs that I was doing at 140-160. . I feel the need to theow in more notes to fill the gaps .. even though I know simple is usually better...

Ive been playing guitar for 44 years and one thing that has never failed to be annoying is when FAST players go on and on about how speed is not important and how speed isnt everything. Fellow players- keep one thing in mind: they did not ‘get fast’ by constantly repeating in their minds “speed dont matter”. Speed is everything, and its everything to back away from and hold in reserve-->> once you can do it! So I say unto you fellow pickers: obsess on speed til you get it down, so that you too can then sit back smugly and say: “Hey kids, speed aint everything”.

A terrific conversation between two great players and teachers. "Playing fast is boring." Thanks for that Jake. It's also kinda boring to listen to because for me, too fast, and the beauty of the music gets lost.

dude i been playing 25yrs nobody told me how to old how to hold the pick.....guess i'm in the minority on that pick holding thing....2 fingers an a thumb...I tried the way you showed but its like learning how to play all over again.

Thanks for another great video. Where I'm struggling is going from a chicken picker using my fingers to only using the pick. I've slowed things down a bit but playing live i do have to cheat a little and throw on a compressor when the song is faster than my comfort zone. It's funny because i can play the song with ease using the pick and my fingers. Is it "cheating" to use your fingers when playing bluegrass or frowned upon. I do love the challenge. Oh, and Hello from Richmond County, NC!

He sure is fast almost like Aubrey king

Am i the only one who thinks that you guys look a little bit like brothers? xD. Nice Interview :)

So, I've always used those fender heavy style faux tortoise shell teardrop shape picks. Are the big triangular picks used a lot by bluegrass players? And do they help with speed? You definitely get a whole lot more pick to grip onto by the looks of things.

what camp is he referring to? Does anything have any favorite bluegrass flatpicking camps?

I have to disagree with the pick holding. Only because of Dan Crary

First to comment on a speed video. I've got the need... the need for

The faster I get the more I realise it’s entirely about what you play not how fast you play it, now when you get both that’s fire

I honestly don't like speed. It always sounds very tense to me. As for bracing the pinky, don't do it. After 30 years my pinky is starting to collapse and it hurts bad after a few minutes of playing.

I got nothing out of Jake's advice that would help my speed or playing for that matter. There is no place for teaching with his flippant attitude. Jake brushes over certain techniques that would be very helpful but you get the feeling from him that you are wasting his time. Every flat picker wants speed to some degree. There are reliable videos and techniques out there that will help you achieve your flat picking goals.

555 fiddle tunes!? I know Jake was half joking but how many fiddle tunes are there? As a bluegrass newbie I’m thinking that that’s a lot of ‘standards’ to learn and hoping that the actual amount of fiddle tunes that get called in jams is much smaller…

I love it when people who can play fast say that other people shouldn’t worry if they can’t play fast.

😀👍👍👍

His voice is higher with out his mic

Damn you guys didn’t play anything Yakety Yakety Yakety Yakety give us a quick rift to imitate anything sheesh

Who wants to play fast?

Step one - buy a guitar with some seriously good action

No emotion in fast music.