Lead or rhythm guitar, where do you live?

What's your musical core?

  • Solos & Improv, I like to make the guitar talk.

    Votes: 4 11.8%
  • Rhythm, it's got to have a beat and some structure

    Votes: 6 17.6%
  • 50/50, I like to be a balanced player and give equal attention to both.

    Votes: 18 52.9%
  • I don't know, I was just trying to meet some chicks.

    Votes: 6 17.6%

  • Total voters
    34
  • Poll closed .

Huggy Love

Vintage member
Joined
Mar 10, 2015
Messages
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When you play, practice, noodle, compose, or perform, where do you come from?

What's the root, the core of your musical being? Are you based out of chord progressions or a lead guitar melody? When you first pick up your axe at home do you start out slapping some rhythm out or noodling around with some improv? Do you learn a song from it's melody or the chord arrangement first? Do you just learn the solos?

Songwriters do you fit the lyrics or instrumental melody into a chord progression or do you come up with a melody and put chords around it?

This thread is not to debate the merits of enough or too many notes, or even about shredders at all, just getting a barometer of the PRS fam and what's their musical framework.




*NO SHREDDER HATE OR RHYTHM PLAYER DISRESPECT ALLOWED ON THIS THREAD!!!*
(If you violate this policy the PRS police will go to your house, confiscate all your gear.........and donate it to me;))
 
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Lead, because I can only get my head around one note at a time. I wish I could play more rhythm, but whereas being taught pentatonics opened up guitar to me in a near instant, I've learnt nothing on rhythm that has done the same for me.
 
If I had to choose between the two...I tend to favor the lead stuff. However, I believe; if I want to be a really well rounded player; both are absolutely necessary. For me one compliments the other...sort of a yin/yang thing I suppose.

I break down my daily practice into fifteen minute increments. I normally do that for an hour (minimum) or so. Timing those increments and following a schedule has helped my lead and rhythm tremendously!

Sure, I wanna make it talk, scream, cry...who doesn't? But, add some chunky but funky rhythm to the mix... well, I love to get me some of that too!o_O

Ultimately, my goal is to be proficient at whatever style/genre/song/mood, I'm into at the moment...I know it's an ambitious (Delusional) goal....but hey...that's how I roll.:confused:

Great topic BTW @Huggy B !
 
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I am 50/50. I have always been in one guitar player bands, so I have had to develop good rhythm skills - but I also do the leads/fills/solos, obviously. As a song writer, I tend to write around the melody that a vocalist comes up with. Very rarely do I write the music first, then have the singer try to work with what I developed. However, I have my "progressive" moments where I write these really complex guitar pieces that aren't intended for a singer. It's all fun, and that's what matters!
 
Lead is natural to me so that is where I started. Eventually I realized that I couldn’t just do that all day every day so I set out to learn rhythm guitar. I spent a few years at it before I felt I had found a rhythm voice.

Now I practice about 50/50, though if I’m honest, I have to make myself keep working on rhythm.
 
there will be a little switch on your guitar, like this:

Epiphone-Les-Paul-Tribute-Gibson-2010-rhythm-treble-switch.jpg


what you have it on is what you are.

To me personally, the "Lead Guitar" and "Rhythm Guitar" thing is outdated and a thing of the past. I do believe that you should be able to do both as called upon. Just because you can dweedle, doesn't mean you have a groove, and you really need the groove. In many ways it takes more discipline to play Rhythm. Just me.
 
To me personally, the "Lead Guitar" and "Rhythm Guitar" thing is outdated and a thing of the past. I do believe that you should be able to do both as called upon. Just because you can dweedle, doesn't mean you have a groove, and you really need the groove. In many ways it takes more discipline to play Rhythm. Just me.

I like your concept, as already a few have stated versatility is the preferred status of guitar playing, and although my core is from lead, solos, & improv, I've played in a lot of bands with vocals and always have been a well rounded player on rhythm.

But I don't think the lead/rhythm thing will ever be "outdated and a thing of the past" as long as some like to make it talk, and some like to hold down the groove.

Unless somebody plays solo melody/lead/rhythm all at the same time, I don't see it (lead/rhythm) changing.
 
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