Let’s face it – 99% of a guitarist's life involves backing up a singer or playing a major part in being responsible for the groove. This skill often comes short compared to the weight which we lay upon being able to play a decent solo.
I just came across a few, kind of funky guitar parts I wrote down some time ago. So, I though I give you a 'Mouth full of Rhythm' and show you among others some quite technically challenging guitar parts.
The general idea here is to focus on the rhythmic feel / groove and on how these patterns are made up, so that you can incorporate them into your playing and make them part of your repertoire.
Well, it is not easy to feel the groove with just me demonstrating the examples without any drums. For a few examples I did play in a bit of bass to give you a better perspective of how bass and guitar can work together.
Bite 1: A Starter
Pretty straight forward 16th note rhythm over A7. Mixes minor pentatonic with some Blues scale ideas. Note that the a and e notes you hammer on double the bass line (1 octave higher). I added a spares version of tablature but I do recommend using mainly the notation part as a reference (in a real life situation you will never see any tabs ...). Tempo is 120. Pay special attention to the scratched / muted rhythmic patterns marked with an X in the notation.
Listen
Bite 2: Disco Queen
If you have ever played in a Top 40 band you for sure have come across such Disco style guitar parts, mainly involving a constant straight 16th rhythm (going on for ages :-). The chords in our example are Dm, C and Bb triads in root position, all played on the top three strings. Tempo is again set to 120.
Listen
The Chords
The Rhythm
Bite 3: Look-Ka Py Py
What sounds like an Indian dish is one of the many great tunes by 'The Meters', which is one of my favorite bands when it comes to groove. Below is the main theme of the song. It's a 16th note shuffle feel based around a G7 chord - again, mixing minor pentatonic with Blues ideas. Interesting is that this part utilizes all 6 strings. Also listen to how bass and guitar work together. Tempo is around 84 bpm.
Listen
Bite 4: Funky Gospel
During my time in Boston I played in a Gospel band. This rhythm guitar part is from one of their songs. Thanks to 'Clarence Thomas and the New Spirits' :-)
Basically it's a variation of what we have already heard in 'A Starter' above, except that this time we are in the key of C. Notice the 'turnaround like' part in messure 3 using octaves (F, F#, G, Bb, C), which leads to the ending.
Listen
Bite 5: Groovey Country
This last example is a good exercise for synchronising left and right hands and forces you to play very precisely in order to make it sound good (I sometimes use this piece for warming up). Based around simple root inversions of major triads I added little pentatonic fills which adds a country flavour to it. I do recommend starting off very slowly - examining what you are doing with you fingers. Then bring it up to speed. The recording is at 120 bpm.
Listen
Basic Chords
Here it goes:
Well, I do hope you enjoyed our little trip into the field of rhythm guitar and that these examples provide you with many ideas for the use in your own playing.
If you have any queries about this topic just post a message in the 'Play' forum and I'll get back to you asap.
More to come soon ...
Guni