[AZJim]

Apologies to those who go to the Slowhand Blues Guitar site, where I also posted this.

Okay here's a really DUMB question, especially for someone who's played bass professionally and has a degree in classical guitar...after many years of never really playing any steel string guitars seriously, I've now decided in my ripe old age to do just that.

My issue is something that never bothered me on classical guitars and obviously never on bass: I am having trouble with getting clean first position chords, that is getting all the notes to sound cleanly especially when fingerpicking. Even on EASY chords, garden variety C and A7 for example, I can't seem to keep the flesh of my fingers off the adjacent srings.

I don't have large hands or terribly fat fingers. In fact, they are more on the small side.

I've tried turning my hand/fingers all different ways, not much luck.

I know it's "practice practice practice" but any suggestions on how to slightly angle my fingers or do something else? Even when I try to come more straight down rather than "flat fingered" I have the same issue.

Thanks, Jim