Jump to content

List of musicians who play left-handed

Add links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Budtard (talk | contribs) at 00:08, 19 October 2009 (omar rodriguez lopez plays strings correctly, and zacky vengeance was listed twice). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

This is a list of notable musicians who play guitar, bass or drums left-handed. This does not include people who play right-handed, despite being left-handed.

Guitarists

Paul McCartney playing a true left-handed guitar (a Gibson Les Paul).

Left-handed people play guitar or electric bass in one of four ways: (1) play a right-handed guitar right-handed, (2) play a true left-handed instrument, (3) play a right-handed instrument that has been altered to play left-handed, i.e. with the bass strings on top), or (4) turn a right-handed guitar upside down, pick with the left hand, but leave the strings as they were – which makes them reversed from the normal order for a left-handed player. (The fingering is the same for methods 2 and 3.) Any style of picking with the left hand (flatpicking or fingerstyle guitar) is considered playing left-handed.

Left-handed with strings correct

File:JimiHendrix2.jpg
Jimi Hendrix playing a right-handed guitar altered for left-handed playing (a Fender Stratocaster).

Guitarists in this category pick with their left hand and have the strings in the correct order for a left-handed player (i.e. the low string on the top). They either have true left-handed guitars or have right-handed guitars altered so the strings are correct for a left-handed player. Some guitarists in this category (e.g. Paul McCartney) play both genuine left-handed instruments and right-handed instruments altered for left-handed playing.

Changing the strings on a right-handed guitar involves several things. The nut of the guitar has to be changed to accommodate the string widths. The bridge needs to be changed to make the lower strings longer than the top strings for correct intonation. On almost all acoustic guitars the bracing is non-symmetrical. On electric guitars altered this way, the controls will be backwards.

Toni Iommi playing a true left-handed guitar (a Jaydee Custom S.G.).

Left-handed with strings backwards

Dick Dale playing a customized left-handed guitar with the strings backwards.
Bob Geldof playing a right-handed guitar upside down (a Gibson).

These are players who play left-handed, but with the strings as on an unaltered right-handed guitar, thus the strings are backwards for a left-handed player (e.g. Bob Geldof). Some players in this category (e.g. Dick Dale and Albert King) had custom instruments that were basically a left-handed guitar with the strings as on a right-handed guitar, since they had learned to play that way.

Unclassified left-handed players

A left-handed Martin D-28. The internal and external construction is the mirror image of a right-handed guitar.

Bass guitarists

Drummers

Note on Ringo Starr. Starr is naturally left-handed but he was forced to write right-handed. He has his drums set up for right-handed playing and basically plays right-handed. He does start fills with his left hand.

Violinists

Ukulele

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Steve Hewitt

References

  • Babiuk, Andy (2001), Beatles Gear, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-662-9
  • Ferguson, Jim, ed. (1979), The Guitar Player Book, GPI Publications, ISBN 0-394-17169-1
  • Stetin, Troy (2001), Left-Handed Guitar: The Complete Method, Hal Leonard, ISBN 978-0793587889

Further reading

Left-handed guitar books

  • The left-handed guitarists manual: How a left-handed guitar player "sees" the guitar : a guide to left-handed guitar chords, by Charles F Mahl, 1994
  • Mel Bay Left-Handed Guitar Chords, by William Bay, 2005
  • Left Handed Guitar Chord Chart, by Robert Tarchara, 1996
  • Guitar Case Guide to Left-Handed Chords, by Rikky Rooksby, 2001
  • Guitar Case Guide to Left-handed Scales, by Rikky Rooksby, 2006
  • Left Handed Guitarists A website completely dedicated to musicians and other famous figures who are left-handed.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_musicians_who_play_left-handed&oldid=320700208"