No More Complaining!

[marnold]

I will not longer consider my severed three fingertips on my right hand to be any kind of impediment to my guitar playing. This video will forever end the "my hands are too . . ." complaints. I present you Django Reinhardt. I didn't realize until yesterday that he only had two good fingers on his left hand. The tendons for the other two were permanently damaged in a fire. He could use his ring and pinkie for some chords, but all of his solos were with his index and middle finger alone. Ah . . . may . . . zing.

 

[ted s]

MArnold, did I miss something ? what happened ?

 

[Spudman]

Amazing isn't it?
Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath is also minus his fingertips. We also have a thread around here of a guy with no arms playing the heck out of his guitar with his feet!

The human spirit is an amazing thing. Go ahead and complain all you want...but just keep playing. That's what really matters.

 

[Danzego]

Yeah, I remember hearing about this years and years ago when I was a teenager, by my buddy's guitar playing dad. Admittedly, I've never actually listened to any of his stuff, but that's probably for the better. I'd hate to hear what someone can do with two good fingers that I can't do with four.

 

[Big_Rob]

Tony Iommi has prosthetic finger tips that he uses to play. and of couse we all know about Jerry

 

[marnold]

MArnold, did I miss something ? what happened ?

I think I mentioned this on the forum some time ago. In January of 2001 I lost the fingertips on my index, middle, and ring fingers on my right hand. OK, I didn't "lose" them, they were severed because I wasn't careful enough with a snow thrower. Since I'm right-handed, I had to relearn a lot of things (writing, typing, tying shoes, picking my nose, etc.), but the guitar transition wasn't that hard. I just had to relearn how to hold a pick. Obviously fingerpicking became much harder I can still use my pinky for tapping and for hybrid picking.

For those of you who are interested, I've attached a picture of what my hand looks like now. This was before I had a digital camera so I stuck my hand in my flatbed scanner and held it very still. The picture was taken about a month and a half after the accident. My fingers, especially my ring finger, were still a little bit swollen.

 

[sunvalleylaw]

Youch! My dad stuck his hand in a reel type lawn mower to brush grass back in the catcher when I was a kid. He lost the tip of his index finger, but picked it up, held it on the finger with his other fingers, and drove down to the hospital where they sewed it back on. He has no feeling in that fingertip, but it works. I use a big snowblower here, and am real wary of the front of that thing. Sorry to hear of your encounter with yours, but glad to hear about your recovery.

 

[Tone2TheBone]

I think I mentioned this on the forum some time ago. In January of 2001 I lost the fingertips on my index, middle, and ring fingers on my right hand. OK, I didn't "lose" them, they were severed because I wasn't careful enough with a snow thrower. Since I'm right-handed, I had to relearn a lot of things (writing, typing, tying shoes, picking my nose, etc.), but the guitar transition wasn't that hard. I just had to relearn how to hold a pick. Obviously fingerpicking became much harder I can still use my pinky for tapping and for hybrid picking.

For those of you who are interested, I've attached a picture of what my hand looks like now. This was before I had a digital camera so I stuck my hand in my flatbed scanner and held it very still. The picture was taken about a month and a half after the accident. My fingers, especially my ring finger, were still a little bit swollen.

OMG MAN!!! Would you say that you have a light touch to your playing style now? I don't mean that as a joke either!! Seriously. Or can you still sorta grip the strings off the fretboard minus the fleshy tip of your fingers?

 

[Jimi75]

Hey Marnold,

I have lost the finger tip of my right hand middle finger years ago in an accident. Lucky me, the doctors could save it and sew it on again. I still suffer from pain when the hand gets to cold, especially in the winter outside and from time to time I have a loss of feeling in the tip.

To get back to your topic:
Django was a phenomenon. I think he developped his own signature sound only after the accident.

 

[6STRINGS 9LIVES]

Marnold , i must have missed that post ..kudos to you brother for sticking with it and persevering , you can be on my team anytime ..I'm in awe .. you are right no complaining from this guy ... 6s9l

 

[marnold]

OMG MAN!!! Would you say that you have a light touch to your playing style now? I don't mean that as a joke either!! Seriously. Or can you still sorta grip the strings off the fretboard minus the fleshy tip of your fingers?

It's my right hand and I'm right handed, so the fretboard isn't involved. I tried using banjo picks to play fingerstyle, but I can't get them to stay on my middle or ring fingers. The funny thing is that I almost never drop my pick anymore. Before the accident I used to drop my pick all of the time. Go figure. I tend to play with a pretty strong pick attack too.

While my hand was healing I bought a thumb pick so I could strum that way. Unfortunately, I could only play for a couple of minutes. My hand would start throbbing like you would not believe. Today, other than when it's cold, I don't really even notice it anymore.

WRT this thread, I think Django is my new hero along with Tony Iommi. Let's hear it for self-inflicted injuries!

 

[carp3nt3r]

I am impressed with your ability to overcome adversity and continue to play despite the challenge. your determination is admired and respected here.

However do not try to play the room with django there or you will die immediately from smoke inhalation !! (cough-cough)

respectfully yours, carp3nt3r.

 

[ted s]

Holy cow Marnold, I didn't know what to think at first but Carp nails it nicely.

 

[marnold]

I am impressed with your ability to overcome adversity and continue to play despite the challenge. your determination is admired and respected here.

Thanks, but I think "the ability to overcome my own stupidity" would be more accurate. The thing is that I had just gotten back into playing guitar the previous summer. I had visions of never playing again. I liked it too much to quit. I figured I needed to teach myself to do a bunch of stuff over, so why not guitar too? Obviously had I hurt my left hand the transition would have been significantly harder.

When something tragic (whether self-inflicted or not) happens you can either crawl into a shell of self-loathing and self-pity, or you can look in the mirror and say, "I'm an idiot, but the only thing more idiotic would be quitting." Plus now maybe I actually have the right to play the blues

 

[Spudman]

Watching the Black Sabbath concert at 40 minutes in you can clearly see something on the end of Tony's fretting fingers. Just an FYI.

And I do admire you guys that keep on playing after the accidents and whatnot. I'm sure I would too, but I hope I never have to find out.