frontlinebass Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 A gig I have coming up soon required an 8 hour rehearsal which was for the presentation aspect of the performance. Our advisor had us doing many things so as to have a very electrifying stage presence. At the rate the practice was going I could feel my finger calluses wearing down. Keep in mind I do play bass quite a lot and have... had very good callouses.I taped them using athletic tape to prevent my fingers from being usless at the up coming gig. Long story short at the end of the practice my index finger was bleeding and my middle finger had a blood blister on it that was about 3/4 of an inch across and 1/2 an inch the other direction. My index has healed nicely and will be okay for the gig this weekend but my middle finger now has a crater in it. I know I will be able to play the gig and be okay with my fingers, I know about the super glue remedie but I am looking for others. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
getz out Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Ouch. I have nothing to offer but sympathy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Sorry to hear hear that. Try playing with a pick. Unless you are playing upright, then you are hosed. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mound Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 try using that liquid band-aid stuff. you can probably get it in any drug-store.. you paint it on for waterproof bandaging of areas like fingers, joints etc that a bandaid won't stick to very well. not sure how well it will hold up against the strings, but it dries very quickly.. keep it on your music stand :-) "You look hopefully for an idea and then you're humble when you find it and you wish your skills were better. To have even a half-baked touch of creativity is an honor." -- Ernie Stires, composer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bottomend Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Ahhhh.. reminds me of the first time I played upright... I had bought a cheepy Kay a couple of days before. Got a call for a gig. " You play acoustic, right?" "Uh..huh." " Good... bring a real book". It was a four hour jazz gig playing Bop. Blood everywhere.I was hooked. I have two things to add. One- join the club. Two- you're gonna have some amazeing callous's after this! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bubba upright Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 mound is on the right track--it's called 'Nu skin' and is available OTC. The thing to be prepared for, though, is it will hurt like hell to apply, because it is an antiseptic. wrap your finger with electrical tape (as little as possible.) Electrical tape will not slough off as you play, but since plucking will tend to pull it off your finger, lube it with hemp oil--it's a natural moisturizer that will allow your bandaged finger to slide off strings without pulling the tape off. It might get a little messy, but your finger won't lose any more meat. "Study, study, study...or BONK BONK bad kids!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BenLoy Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 Nu-Skin is nice for bandaging up a cut on your finger so you don't have to use a band-aid when you play, but it doesn't really work for blisters. The coating usually gets torn to shreds by the steel strings halfway through the first song (if you're playing upright, the first bar!!). If you have a giant crater in your finger I only have one solution: Play through the pain. It'll hurt like hell, but sooner or later calluses will develop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicklab Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 There's always the thumb approach. No, not slapping, but rather using your thumb like a pick. Sting has been doing this for years. It's a good technique to have at your disposal. Obligatory Social Media Link "My concern is, and I have to, uh, check with my accountant, that this might bump me into a higher, uh, tax..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mound Posted January 15, 2004 Share Posted January 15, 2004 yes, I like that option, play through the pain! I also do TaeKwonDo, silly me once went to class the same night as a gig, jammed my left index finger real good during sparring, class ended a few hours before the gig started.. my finger got bigger and bluer as the night went on, forced me to probably cut in half the number of notes I played.. actually a good performance when I listened back to it but holy sh*t it hurt!.. totally black and purple and the next morning. "You look hopefully for an idea and then you're humble when you find it and you wish your skills were better. To have even a half-baked touch of creativity is an honor." -- Ernie Stires, composer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prophetgtree Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Did you see that BP article on blisters? It might be to late, but they have some good avoidance tips and advice and such. I think it's the december issue (not positive). However, it's just something that happens. Nuskin sounds like a good idea... or cry... I remember when I first started playing with my first band, we would practice almost (literally) all day and by the night the blisters made me want to huddle in a corner and cry. We've all been there. www.geocities.com/nk_bass/enter.html Still working on it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassplayer5217 Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 I keep a little bottle of Eucerin cream in my bag of stuff I take to gigs. You can put some on ur fingers, rub, wait 5 minutes, and wipe clean and then you're set to play for another half hour free of pain. The only problem is that this further irritates your skin, lessening the effect of the cream. Oh well. A man's gotta do what a man's gotta do. peaceOUT, David Germain .~. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Phil Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Originally posted by jeremyc: Sorry to hear hear that. Try playing with a pick. Unless you are playing upright, then you are hosed.or you can try getting a unique tone and play upright with a pick. http://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/blue.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/black.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/fuscia.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/grey.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/orange.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/purple.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/red.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/yellow.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aussie bass dude Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 ouch.... I can relate, I played URB on new years eve at a friends house. It hurt after about an hour or so, but I had a few drinks so it did not bother me... The next day I woke up with a hangover and two huge blisters on my index and middle fingers. After a few days I picked at one and left the other alone and guess which healed first? The one I left alone! However the one I picked now has the best callus....who would have thought Now back to your pain, Be a man and play through it no beer until July 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicklab Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Pain sucks, but sometimes you just need to suck it up. I've got one way I used to deal with this. In college, I used to play gigs that would start at 9 PM, and end at 1 AM. We'd get a couple of short breaks, and that was it. By the middle to the end of the second set, my index finger and middle finger on my right hand would be killing me. What did I do? I'd get a pint glass filled with ice water (mainly ice), and dip my fingers into it at every opportunity. It helped kill the pain somewhat. You just have to make sure to dry your fingers off. Dab them on a towel or something before you start playing again. Obligatory Social Media Link "My concern is, and I have to, uh, check with my accountant, that this might bump me into a higher, uh, tax..." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
... Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 Super glue trick always works... unless it's a really big wound, then you really don't want to be pouring all the super glue in there; 'cause that'll hurt like hell. My backup to super glue is always electrical tape. The strings won't eat it up in 4.2 seconds and it's slick so it doesn't create drag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred TBP Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 "A gig I have coming up soon required an 8 hour rehearsal which was for the presentation aspect of the performance." Hindsight's a wonderful thing, so here's a dumb thought. If the rehearsal was for "presentation", you could've played along with an audio track of the material and faked it as if you were playing for a TV show. Second dumb idea: play with thin work gloves. Takes practice, but it can be done, and it improves your technique by forcing you to concentrate on overcoming the gloves. I'm not sure why your "advisor" wanted you to play for 8 hours, aren't there union rules prohibiting this kind of forced labor? Was this advisor "paid" to break the musicians? Even drill seargents don't work the recruits that hard anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Phil Posted January 16, 2004 Share Posted January 16, 2004 you know, you guys just ASSUMED he played URB, but I bet he doesn't.... (at least some of you assumed) http://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/blue.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/black.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/fuscia.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/grey.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/orange.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/purple.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/red.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/yellow.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J.A. Posted January 17, 2004 Share Posted January 17, 2004 i always thought blood complemented a white jazz bass pickguard quite well. maybe thats just me Insert inaccurate quote here Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frontlinebass Posted January 17, 2004 Author Share Posted January 17, 2004 Thanks for all the replies. Just a few things. I can play through the pain and thank you for all of the encouragement to do so. My middle finger is no longer a blister but it still has a hole in the middle of it, I will end up putting some tape on it for the practeces before the preformance to keep it from healing quickely. Becuase the show that the band is playing is a showcase I will play without anything on for the 3 song set the people want to hear. Also it answer quetions about the 8 hour rehersal, it was that long because of the replacement to the guitarists for various resaons... They needed to be comfortable playing the songs and rocking out at the same time. Also, what does URB stand for could quite figure that one out, thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cup Posted January 17, 2004 Share Posted January 17, 2004 URB = Up Right Bass. Best of luck with the gig! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. Phil Posted January 17, 2004 Share Posted January 17, 2004 Told you he didnt play URB http://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/blue.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/black.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/fuscia.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/grey.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/orange.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/purple.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/red.JPGhttp://www.briantimpe.com/images/LDL/dots/yellow.JPG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zumbido Posted January 17, 2004 Share Posted January 17, 2004 400 and 600 grit sandpaper is your friend! It won't help you now, but after the blisters heal it is the best way to prevent future blisters. If you keep your callusses smooth, the strings don't pull un-evenly. Th un-even pull causes blisters. I got the idea from a Stanley Clarke article ages ago. Smooth out your fingers before you play (in a circular motion - every time. If you don't have sandpaper handy, find a nice brick wall. No joke. Zum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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