ATTN: Rhythm Guitarists

JakeDobner

Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 12159
Seattle
5 News Pins

Posted on Sep 04 2008 09:00 PM

Richard
Not to mention that whole Bruce Welch thing I'm constantly trying to live up to.

Pretty damn hard to try to live up to that.

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wooza

Joined: Apr 24, 2006
Posts: 1618
Ithaca, NY
1 Download Pin

Posted on Sep 04 2008 10:06 PM

I play rhythm for a number of reasons I guess. I came into our band after all the guys had already been playing and so just fill in the empty rhythm slot. Also--and way more importantly--Zanti is a much better guitarist than I am, so I have no problem handing all lead responsibilities to him for the sake of performance quality. Turns out I'm no stellar rhythm guitarist either, but people pay less attention to me on rhythm.
I've been trying to write originals for our band and we finally started working on one last weekend (as an aside, it sounded f'ing badass ) and again, I didn't mind having Zanti take lead because I think he plays it with greater clarity than I do. I guess I find lead to be more fun at home, but less fun when it sounds crappy in public, so I don't mind taking rhythm for the greater good of the band.

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Ron-Rhoades

Joined: Aug 19, 2006
Posts: 958
Kekaha, Kauai, Hawaii
United States

Posted on Sep 04 2008 11:06 PM

Richard wrote "I make an effort to play the rhythm parts as he writes them" now that's what i'd like our guitar player to do too but he doesn't even listen to my stuff and just shows up at rehearsal without a clue even though I GAVE HIM A DEMO CD AND A CHORD CHART!! He's like "what song is this?" I'm like "what did you do with the demo and chord chart i gave you last week?" "oh, i don't know where i put that!!" The song is dead and the rehearsal is over for me, mentally, at that point. Don't get me wrong, he's a MUCH BETTER guitar player than me but when it comes to my tunes, he tunes out!! He told me he really liked Blue Avalanche but doesn't play it like i did on the demo. He's kinda ho hum with my originals. I have a hard time understanding that. That's a big reason why i record my songs by myself. I don't have to deal with that kind of attitude....hey, i'm a "sensitive musician" which i try not to be but...i am.

—

The TakeOffs
"Kauai's Only All-Instrumental Surf Band"
http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-TakeOffs/312866840587

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Ruhar

Joined: Jun 21, 2007
Posts: 3909
San Diego, CA
United States

Posted on Sep 04 2008 11:19 PM

What is rhythm guitar?

Being in a trio makes it sort of challenging to produce a full sound with only one guitar. Its made me evolve my style to play a mix of rhythm with the lead, sort of like self-comping. I was always in awe of how Kenny Burrell was able to play like that, so I guess that's where it comes from.

When recording I like to do more in the way of rhythm playing whether it be an acoustic or electric rhythm backing tracks.

—

Ryan
The Secret Samurai Website
The Secret Samurai on Facebook

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P2gee

Joined: Jul 05, 2006
Posts: 264
Waco Texas

Posted on Sep 05 2008 08:23 AM

I dont play out but if I did, I would probably be a better rhythm player than lead. I can do ok at leads if I sit down with the rhythm track about 3 hours ahead of time and work a part out. But if I'm required to improvise a lead on the spot, my guns start jammin about mid way thru the solo. Of course, I think all great lead players went thru a stage like this in their development.

—

2012-2013: FILTHY POLAROIDS

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LHR

Joined: Aug 23, 2006
Posts: 2123
The jungle
Costa Rica

Posted on Sep 05 2008 08:49 AM

I love playing rhythm guitar. I started off as a bassist in other bands, so maybe that is why I dig it so much. We do switch off a bit in my band, but I mainly handle rhythm duties. I happen to think I am better at rhythm than the other guitarist is. And, in fairness, he plays his lead parts better than I could. Everyone winds up happy.

—

SSIV

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synchro

Joined: Feb 02, 2008
Posts: 4417
Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.
United States

Posted on Sep 16 2008 10:27 PM

Good rhythm playing is truly an art IMO. In Surf music rhythm guitar can be extremely important. Most of the playing situations I find myself in I'm may well end up playing rhythm, lead, bass or whatever at one point or another but I always enjoy the raw power that rhythm guitar gives you.

—

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

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surfaca

Joined: Sep 01, 2008
Posts: 113
Bariloche, Patagonia, Argentina

Posted on Sep 16 2008 11:29 PM

Ruhar
Being in a trio makes it sort of challenging to produce a full sound with only one guitar. Its made me evolve my style to play a mix of rhythm with the lead, sort of like self-comping.

totally agree! i'm the guitar player of a surf trio too, and sometimes it's very difficult to do it without a rythm guitar. i have to do some chords every often or the sound gets very empty.

—

Guitar Player in Nahuelaizers
http://nahuelaizers.bandcamp.com

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dexaroni

Joined: Sep 17, 2008
Posts: 2

Posted on Sep 17 2008 03:54 PM

For me, I cannot really sing very well when I am playing lead... In addition to this, I am not the best guitarist, so it is much easier for me to play rythym bits and sing. I have been playing for 5 years, and my friend for 16, so its only natural that he would be the better guitarist.

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dp

Joined: Feb 26, 2006
Posts: 3546
mojave desert, california
United States

Posted on Sep 17 2008 04:18 PM

i play rhythm guitar because chords are the coolest!

also, i like playing rhythm guitar because of influences like these:

image

..please forgive me, I grew up during the late 1970s-early 1980s...

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Richard

Joined: Mar 02, 2006
Posts: 1683
Georgia
United States

Posted on Sep 17 2008 06:56 PM

Ron, I think it's important to play the rhythm guitar part as written by the songwriter because often that's a big part of how the entire thing comes together. Eddie's better at it than me and probably and even better rhythm then lead guitar player, but I ain't steppin' into first chair so he gets to stay put. Trying to do it as another person writes it can be surprisingly hard, especially for a guy that spends a lot of his time trying to replicate sounds as opposed to creating new ones. There's always that last little bit...that part that's not quite "there" that I mentioned in my last post. It's frustrating, but I keep working at it. I bitch a lot about it being hard, but it's usually a lot of fun. It just takes more work than some people realize, myself included at one time.

—

The Mystery Men?
El Capitan and The Reluctant Sadists
SSS Agent #31

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kilometers

Joined: Jul 14, 2006
Posts: 36
San Francisco

Posted on Sep 17 2008 07:23 PM

DannySnyder
I enjoy playing rhythm guitar, and a well arranged, nuanced 2nd guitar part can make a huge difference to a song. All you rhythm guitarists out there - you're driving a lot of the dynamics of the song, be sure to pay attentiont to that and flex your own creativity.

I got into rhythm through celtic music where I saw some really awesome rhythm players, John Doyle and Donough Hennessy to name two my favorites. And when I joined the TomorrowMen my lead skills were no where close to performance ready (they've drastically improved since then). I thought rhythm guitar in surf rock was usually very easy and ahem boring, until Danny Snyder handed me chord charts for some of the songs he wrote.

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Richard

Joined: Mar 02, 2006
Posts: 1683
Georgia
United States

Posted on Sep 17 2008 07:43 PM

The Tomorrowmen own all.

—

The Mystery Men?
El Capitan and The Reluctant Sadists
SSS Agent #31

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JakeDobner Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 12159 Seattle	Posted on Sep 04 2008 09:00 PM Richard Not to mention that whole Bruce Welch thing I'm constantly trying to live up to. Pretty damn hard to try to live up to that. Top
wooza Joined: Apr 24, 2006 Posts: 1618 Ithaca, NY	Posted on Sep 04 2008 10:06 PM I play rhythm for a number of reasons I guess. I came into our band after all the guys had already been playing and so just fill in the empty rhythm slot. Also--and way more importantly--Zanti is a much better guitarist than I am, so I have no problem handing all lead responsibilities to him for the sake of performance quality. Turns out I'm no stellar rhythm guitarist either, but people pay less attention to me on rhythm. I've been trying to write originals for our band and we finally started working on one last weekend (as an aside, it sounded f'ing badass ) and again, I didn't mind having Zanti take lead because I think he plays it with greater clarity than I do. I guess I find lead to be more fun at home, but less fun when it sounds crappy in public, so I don't mind taking rhythm for the greater good of the band. Top
Ron-Rhoades Joined: Aug 19, 2006 Posts: 958 Kekaha, Kauai, Hawaii	Posted on Sep 04 2008 11:06 PM Richard wrote "I make an effort to play the rhythm parts as he writes them" now that's what i'd like our guitar player to do too but he doesn't even listen to my stuff and just shows up at rehearsal without a clue even though I GAVE HIM A DEMO CD AND A CHORD CHART!! He's like "what song is this?" I'm like "what did you do with the demo and chord chart i gave you last week?" "oh, i don't know where i put that!!" The song is dead and the rehearsal is over for me, mentally, at that point. Don't get me wrong, he's a MUCH BETTER guitar player than me but when it comes to my tunes, he tunes out!! He told me he really liked Blue Avalanche but doesn't play it like i did on the demo. He's kinda ho hum with my originals. I have a hard time understanding that. That's a big reason why i record my songs by myself. I don't have to deal with that kind of attitude....hey, i'm a "sensitive musician" which i try not to be but...i am. — The TakeOffs "Kauai's Only All-Instrumental Surf Band" http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-TakeOffs/312866840587 Top
Ruhar Joined: Jun 21, 2007 Posts: 3909 San Diego, CA	Posted on Sep 04 2008 11:19 PM What is rhythm guitar? Being in a trio makes it sort of challenging to produce a full sound with only one guitar. Its made me evolve my style to play a mix of rhythm with the lead, sort of like self-comping. I was always in awe of how Kenny Burrell was able to play like that, so I guess that's where it comes from. When recording I like to do more in the way of rhythm playing whether it be an acoustic or electric rhythm backing tracks. — Ryan The Secret Samurai Website The Secret Samurai on Facebook Top
P2gee Joined: Jul 05, 2006 Posts: 264 Waco Texas	Posted on Sep 05 2008 08:23 AM I dont play out but if I did, I would probably be a better rhythm player than lead. I can do ok at leads if I sit down with the rhythm track about 3 hours ahead of time and work a part out. But if I'm required to improvise a lead on the spot, my guns start jammin about mid way thru the solo. Of course, I think all great lead players went thru a stage like this in their development. — 2012-2013: FILTHY POLAROIDS Top
LHR Joined: Aug 23, 2006 Posts: 2123 The jungle	Posted on Sep 05 2008 08:49 AM I love playing rhythm guitar. I started off as a bassist in other bands, so maybe that is why I dig it so much. We do switch off a bit in my band, but I mainly handle rhythm duties. I happen to think I am better at rhythm than the other guitarist is. And, in fairness, he plays his lead parts better than I could. Everyone winds up happy. — SSIV Top
synchro Joined: Feb 02, 2008 Posts: 4417 Not One-Sawn, but Two-Sawn . . . AZ.	Posted on Sep 16 2008 10:27 PM Good rhythm playing is truly an art IMO. In Surf music rhythm guitar can be extremely important. Most of the playing situations I find myself in I'm may well end up playing rhythm, lead, bass or whatever at one point or another but I always enjoy the raw power that rhythm guitar gives you. — The artist formerly known as: Synchro When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar. Top
surfaca Joined: Sep 01, 2008 Posts: 113 Bariloche, Patagonia, Argentina	Posted on Sep 16 2008 11:29 PM Ruhar Being in a trio makes it sort of challenging to produce a full sound with only one guitar. Its made me evolve my style to play a mix of rhythm with the lead, sort of like self-comping. totally agree! i'm the guitar player of a surf trio too, and sometimes it's very difficult to do it without a rythm guitar. i have to do some chords every often or the sound gets very empty. — Guitar Player in Nahuelaizers http://nahuelaizers.bandcamp.com Top
dexaroni Joined: Sep 17, 2008 Posts: 2	Posted on Sep 17 2008 03:54 PM For me, I cannot really sing very well when I am playing lead... In addition to this, I am not the best guitarist, so it is much easier for me to play rythym bits and sing. I have been playing for 5 years, and my friend for 16, so its only natural that he would be the better guitarist. Top
dp Joined: Feb 26, 2006 Posts: 3546 mojave desert, california	Posted on Sep 17 2008 04:18 PM i play rhythm guitar because chords are the coolest! also, i like playing rhythm guitar because of influences like these: image image image ..please forgive me, I grew up during the late 1970s-early 1980s... Top
Richard Joined: Mar 02, 2006 Posts: 1683 Georgia	Posted on Sep 17 2008 06:56 PM Ron, I think it's important to play the rhythm guitar part as written by the songwriter because often that's a big part of how the entire thing comes together. Eddie's better at it than me and probably and even better rhythm then lead guitar player, but I ain't steppin' into first chair so he gets to stay put. Trying to do it as another person writes it can be surprisingly hard, especially for a guy that spends a lot of his time trying to replicate sounds as opposed to creating new ones. There's always that last little bit...that part that's not quite "there" that I mentioned in my last post. It's frustrating, but I keep working at it. I bitch a lot about it being hard, but it's usually a lot of fun. It just takes more work than some people realize, myself included at one time. — The Mystery Men? El Capitan and The Reluctant Sadists SSS Agent #31 Top
kilometers Joined: Jul 14, 2006 Posts: 36 San Francisco	Posted on Sep 17 2008 07:23 PM DannySnyder I enjoy playing rhythm guitar, and a well arranged, nuanced 2nd guitar part can make a huge difference to a song. All you rhythm guitarists out there - you're driving a lot of the dynamics of the song, be sure to pay attentiont to that and flex your own creativity. I got into rhythm through celtic music where I saw some really awesome rhythm players, John Doyle and Donough Hennessy to name two my favorites. And when I joined the TomorrowMen my lead skills were no where close to performance ready (they've drastically improved since then). I thought rhythm guitar in surf rock was usually very easy and ahem boring, until Danny Snyder handed me chord charts for some of the songs he wrote. Top
Richard Joined: Mar 02, 2006 Posts: 1683 Georgia	Posted on Sep 17 2008 07:43 PM The Tomorrowmen own all. — The Mystery Men? El Capitan and The Reluctant Sadists SSS Agent #31 Top

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ATTN: Rhythm Guitarists