Thanks! Pinky huh? Eh…I have extremely small hands (and feet) for a man. I am 5’10" and wear a size 9 mens shoe. My longest (middle) finger measures 3.5" from tip to the center of my punching knuckle. My index finger is 3" and my pinky is 2.5" tip to knuckle. I just measured. I’ve been having trouble. Its impossible for me to find gloves that fit. Makes my little finger damn near useless, but I will try! Trying to not use that as an excuse, hah. You might actually need a tape measure to see how small that really is though, my 4’10" wife has fingers the same length as me.
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You’ll be fine.
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Hi Matt
Welcome to the forum. I reckon this is one of the best learning resources I’ve come across, really friendly, educational and most importantly to me motivational.
I also have a younger brother guitar wizard who I’m learning a lot from. I realised an ambition by joining him for the first time on stage last year. We are just waiting for the lockdown to lift so we can get out planned blues band up and running
I learnt 7 Nation Army, and love playing it, some other songs I enjoyed that I kinda figured out for myself were Teenage Kicks by the Undertones and Cocaine by Eric Clapton…I had already leant them in guitar first though.
Anyway, welcome again, the B2B course is brilliant, I’d tried a couple of other sites, books and YouTube stuff which helped get started bit B2B really consolidates everything. Once I’ve completed it I’m planning on doing some face 2 face lessons.
Welcome again
Cheers
Matthew
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I just measured my hands and they are smaller than yours. I have to rely on what’s called micro-shifts, more than someone with large hands as my fingers can only get so far apart, but I manage alright. I’ve never been unable to play a song because of the size of my hands. Don’t worry about your hands, you’ll be fine!
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Welcome Matt and good luck on your journey. I would say get signed up for B2B as soon as possible. It will give structure to how you develop, you will be playing songs suitable to your skills, Josh is a great bass teacher (big difference to learning from a player. No offence to your friend but you may be learning his bad habits from him) It’s fun and you get access to 50 songs to play along to including Cloud and Queen.
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Nice to see that skill at that size, even if he’s using a un-ergonomic position. His wrist shouldn’t be bent like that, but for his size and on a 5-string, it’s expected. What’s also shocking is that he’s using a Sadowsky bass. Even if my kids were crazy good, I wouldn’t be buying them a Sadowsky. 
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Hi Matt!
You are in the right place for all things bass.
Like others above I’d say give the B2B course a bash ,it is great at keeping you motivated and you’ll be surprised how much you can progress.
There’s a sub forum on here- 50 songs challenge- the songs are varied in genre and skills-wise,but build nicely from simple to more challenging .
Have a look and maybe join us there too? We can work on songs together!
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It’s worth it, as JT said micro-shifts will be your friend and down the road you could look at getting a short-scale bass.
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Yeah, that boy can Whale that Bass. What gets me is he never thumb rests higher than the E string. Wow!
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I wouldn’t let your hand size get into your head. One thing I have picked up from being a fan of Japanese rock is size isn’t a factor.
Welcome from another small handed guy
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Feel Good Inc by Gorillaz
Low Rider by War
Let’s Dance by David Bowie
Stand By Me by Ben E King
Folsom Prison Blues by Johnny Cash
Here are some common songs for starting out. I think 7 Nation Army and Stand By Me were my first two.
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Just to add a few more that I started with –
The Pixies - Where Is My Mind
Booker T & MGs - Green Onions
Blues Brothers - Peter Gunn Theme
Gorillaz - On Melancholy Hill
Outkast - So Fresh, So Clean
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Mike_NL, That is pretty darned impressive for sure. That kid is awesome! His fingers actually look about the same size as mine though…lol
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JT Regular, really? That’s pretty small! How tall are you? Are you a small guy, or perhaps a young guy still growing? I’m just weird because I’m a fairly decent sized dude at 5’10", and I also go 275 lbs. Therefor my fingers are super thick (fat) too. I wear like a size 15 ring on my ring finger, but my digits are super short.
Do you care to explain what you mean by micro shifts? I’d be interesting in hearing advice from someone with small hands!
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I’m not short. I’m also 5’10".
All micro-shifting is is sliding your hand a bit up and down the neck when you can’t reach the notes just by stretching your hand without moving it on the neck.
Say for example we are trying to play the 1st fret and 5th fret on the A string, back and forth. People with very large hands might be able to do that just by using their index finger and pinky, without moving their hand position. For me, I have to be slightly moving my hand back and forth while I play the notes, because my hand won’t stretch that far apart.
Hope that makes sense. If not, I can dig out a YouTube video or something that explains it.
As I said though, the most important thing is that I’ve been able to play every single riff or song that I’ve tried to play. So, small hands are not a blocker to playing the bass. In fact, small hands can be a blessing when your are doing more nimble exercises. Forget the bass a second and think of something like an obstacle course. Someone that is short and nimble, may be able to deal with agility obstacles better than someone that is tall. The same concept can apply to the bass. People with large hands probably struggle more when the frets get close together (bridge end of the bass) than people with smaller hands. So there are pros and cons to small hands versus large hands.
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Well spoken, @JT . . . agree with everything you said.
(I’m also 5’10" btw . . . 
)
Seriously though, I micro-shift all the time and I don’t see that as a problem.
Cheers
Joe
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Hey. Congrats. Stick with it! I started guitar at 40 and switched to bass this past year. It’s rewarding! You will learn a lot fast and then you may feel you level off. Stick with it! The bass buzz course is great! I would also recommend spending some money on one on one lessons as well, it holds you accountable and pushes you! Also don’t get in the trap of thinking more and more gear will make you better - spend the money on a good teacher.
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Hi Matt. Great to hear you decided to try bass. I too just started 9 months ago & at age 60 with zero instrument experience at all.
You’ll find it both challenging & very rewarding & it will be a lifetime endeavour to constantly improve. The B2B course is an excellent way to start. I just lost my father & he never got to hear what I can already play. My kids & wife have started making requests for certain songs. No pressure or anything. 
Have fun & enjoy your journey.
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Sorry for your loss! I know the feeling, my Grandfather was the man who mostly raised me and he passed before getting to really hear my stuff.
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