A GREAT APPROACH for all rhythm guitar players is this: think like a drummer! Granted, the drummer is the one who is driving the song’s momentum, but rhythm guitar can similarly contribute.
Let’s begin with some simple things we guitarists can do that are derived from a standard drumbeat, the primary elements of which are the patterns played on the kick drum, snare and hi-hats. If we think of just the kick alternating with the snare, we’ve got, “Boom, kahh, boom-boom, kahh.” Add the hi-hat, and it’s, “Tss, tss, kahh, boom, boom-boom, kah, tss, boom, kahh” etc.
We can emulate these different elements on the guitar. Starting with the hi-hat,
FIGURE 1 shows a series of fret-hand-muted strings sounded as straight eighth notes. We also have low and high notes.…
