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I was taught this technique by several guitarists / singers who played on the London folk scene in the 1960s (Bunjies club, Les Cousins Club, etc.). My stage name was Mark McCann. “Pick and Flick” is a technique used by acoustic guitarists who want to add rhythm to their music by adding a simulated “drum beat”. I may even have coined this term myself. I think I remember I did it, but it was a long time ago … I certainly didn’t invent the technique. It is achieved by striking the strings close to the bridge forcefully, usually with the nail of the second finger of the right hand. The first time I saw the technique as a child was when it was used by Bert Jansch, John Renbourn, Davy Graham, and others. They used it intermittently for effect, but the wonderful Nic Jones perfected it later. His album “Penguin Eggs” with songs like canadee-io and goodbye to gold are supreme examples of the mastery of the technique. Nic maintained a constant “box beat” throughout the songs and developed a completely unique style.
I’ve used it on my folk albums and I have a great friend (and wonderful musician) Andy Wahlberg who uses his own version using a variety of fingers. He often appears to use three fingers of his right hand to produce rhythm, striking with all three fingers simultaneously. Andy plays primarily in the Naples, Florida area in the US, but he also plays many venues across the states. I also do concerts now in the Naples area and give guitar lessons.
To produce the sound it is necessary to bounce the fingers off the selected strings near the bridge so that the rhythm plays for a while and is not muffled by the finger or fingers resting on the strings. I have found it helpful to embed the second finger into the meatball under the thumb before moving the finger. This produces slight drag and gives the film a sharper, more explosive character.
After Googling the term Pick and Flick, I now see that there are one or two more techniques that have come out later that have been given this name. They are not what this article is about, so if you are interested in this article, I suggest you check out the Nic Jones album I mentioned earlier. Without a doubt, it is the best and the first to perfect Pick and Flick.
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