Are you a Rhythm Guitarist?

[SJguitar]

Originally Posted by Scott S

Sure, in the sense that I suck worse at leads.

- Scott

Lol! That's me as well.

[Jakedog]

I consider myself a rhythm guitarist. I play alot of lead, but how depends on the gig. If there is keyboard player, and/or another guitarist, I approach things completely differently than I will with a three piece outfit. Or my acoustic solo or duo gigs. And even with additional "lead" instruments, I am pretty much in the pocket, even when I let 'er rip. I believe it to be throwback to being a touring and full time bass player for ten years. I learned so much from that that improved my guitar playing, I could write a book on the subject.

My advice to anybody who wants to play better rhythm guitar, has always been to learn to play bass. And I don't mean learn the notes in the song, I mean learn to PLAY BASS. It's not the same thing, and lots of great guitarists who move to bass, can play all of the right notes, and still suck horribly at it.

I have said for years that true rhythm guitar playing is getting to be a lost art. I look at it like pedal steel. Yeah, there are still lots of players out there doing it (although less and less all the time), but try finding one to be in your band. Then try finding a GOOD one. On the converse side, put an ad out for a lead guitarist. You'll get loads of applicants, and 40-50% them will be fairly good hands at it, with 10% 5-10% being damn hot.

The biggest reason for the fall of true rhythm guitar in my opinion-

The misconception that you just play root chords all the time in a strummy fashion. So false I don't know where to start. Yes, there are times when you do that, because it's appropriate. But being a true rhythm guitarist makes you part of the rhthym section, but on a very capable melody intstrument. Listen to the bass and drums, they interlock and work together, but they also compliment and counterpoint each other. A rhthym guitarists job is to lock in with what they doing, while also counterpointing and complimenting vocal melodies and harmonies, and other melodic instruments. You have all the room in the world to create parts and whole atmospheres. In some ways, the rhthym guitar part is more responsible for the final product (song) than anything else. The bass and rums determine the tempo and groove, but the rhthym guitarist has an opportunity to determine the overall feeling and emotional aspect of things. There are an almost infinite number of different feels, parts, and approaches you can take to a three chord song, without ever changing the beat or basic groove structure. And each one will make the song feel, and present it's melody in a totally new way.

The people that I find that understand this the best are folks who have done time in larger ensembles. People who spent their school years in orchestra or marching band, if they are good natural musicians, tend to do this stuff almost unintentionally. I wish more youngsters would take advantage of music in schools while it's still there. Playing in a school orchesrta and band ensemble made me a loads better guitarist than I would have been without it. And not even from a theory or reading perspective. I haven't had to read for a job in fifteen years. But I use things I learned in school about melody, harmony, counterpoint, and complimenting other instruments parts evertime I step out. That coupled with being a bass player for so long, has totally molded my approach to rhythm guitar.

But we forget sometimes, being in band or orchestra is just so damn un-cool.

[NealVossy]

Ortho nailed this thread on the very first page.

"I can think of few "lead guitarist" who have also consistently been a part of great and memorable songwriting. Is John Mayer one of the new ones? No."


Great point, and he also trashes John Mayer. Two birds, one stone.

[Michaell]

anyone ( player or listener ) who sees guitar playing as " rythm or lead " does not know much about music


A guitar is an instruments that can do many things

to simplify it into " lead or rythm " is just wrong

I play guitar

[emu!]

It seems pretty simple to me.

If you are NOT playing lead, you are playing rhythm. If you are NOT playing rhythm, you are playing lead.

Am I missing something?

[stephent2]

The fellow I play with starting introducing me on stage as the "Lead Guitar" and I asked him to stop.

Guitar is what I play.

[Michaell]

Originally Posted by stephent2

The fellow I play with starting introducing me on stage as the "Lead Guitar" and I asked him to stop.

Guitar is what I play.

amen