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Jeff is gunna lose his shit hahahaha
He'll be in a padded room with a kazoo mumbling to himself in a corner "quarter notes...i just wanted quarter notes" *buzz buzz*
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07-01-2026 07:53 AM
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Ah, well, that's the thing. I don't think Jeff entirely ruled it out even though it's not what he's been doing in his videos.
Originally Posted by GuyBoden
When I got here there was some confusion because, having said it should be 4 to the bar like Freddie Green, etc, Jeff also said he didn't want to impose too many rules and restrictions so some people did different things.
Now it's fairly clear that 'rhythm guitar' means what I call thumping, steady 4 quarters to the bar, and 'comping' means what many accompanying players do which is put in tasty chordal sounds that embellish the music but not to any strict rhythm pattern. But that scenario usually implies the presence of bass and/or drums as a steady supporting rhythm. And I don't think there's any doubt that that sort of comping is NOT what we're supposed to be doing.
So it seems to me that leaves an accompaniment that is steady, not broken up. I did a non-stop bossa backing with fingers and I think I was told that was comping so I lost my cool :-)
Personally, I think you're probably safe with your bass and chord finger style because it's a steady backing but don't listen to me, I've been wrong before
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Rhythm guitar with fingers vs pick is the difference between thumping and thucking.
I don't think it would be loud enough for a band situation but as rag mentioned, I don't want to put too many parameters on it, even though in my head it's a pretty specific thing.
Probably be a good time to mention why I like this type of playing so much, and what I think the benefits of it are...
Why i like/what i get out of it:
1. Its the ultimate supportive role. I love how kind of the hardest swinging thing you can do is NOT try to swing. Provide the pulse, let the soloist swing his or her ass off.
2. Really opens your eyes to subs and synonyms chordally
3. Outstanding for understanding how the inner voices in chords work and connect through a tune
4. Focus on time. I try to do my little videos here without backing to sort of test my time feel, but when im messing around in my living room im playing with tracks or records.
5. The curatorial aspect...its an old style...if people don't keep playing it, it will go away. And that would be sad.
6. Its fun. Like really, if you haven't done it for real, just try it. Its not as easy as it looks and its a blast because it allows the acoustic guitar to do something it's really good at. Its like playing drums but you only need to coordinate two limbs.
7. And last but not least, its a great excuse to have a guitar around just for this style.
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I like the challenge of getting a "dry" sound. You can make the chords as staccato as you want, but it can still lack percussion. I think it should be about half percussion to sound best.
You can hear it exaggerated in mine (i'm not referring to the accents, maybe look past that and see the percussive vs chord sound ratio)
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Jeff -
Thanks. Absolutely, it's not as easy as it looks at all.
So thucking's a real word? I thought you were being, um, humorous :-)
I tried it with a pick but although it's clearer it's also a bit hard and sharp for me on this equipment.
It's okay, I understand the attraction. Quite right too.
How many posts did you go back? Guy wants to know if you mind his bass & chord stuff.
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The sound you're getting with a pick is hard and sharp? Is the pick thin? Originally Posted by ragman1
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Thuck is definitely a made up word, but James Chirillo uses it, and i like onomatopoeia.
Again, the thumb bass thing is not my definition, but it's certainly navigating the fretboard in the same way.
As for rhythm guitar picks, I like a .96 dunlop -dark blue, with an alligator on it. And I use the round side.
Most importantly I'm not bothered by anybody posting their playing instead of just typing about it. More the merrier.
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Mine's 2mm and my attack is about half pick half back of my nail
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Actually, it's cardboard. I made it myself. Plastic really would be piercing.
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Jeff, do you rotate your right forearm like screwing in a light bulb (well, unscrewing I guess)?
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Hmm yeah I dunno why you wouldn't get a good sound Originally Posted by ragman1
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I do, but not on this recorder otherwise I'd use it. Thumb's nicer.
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Bet you haven't got one of these. It's solid metal
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i bought a coconut one on ebay in highschool
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Ill try to do a video to show it... Originally Posted by joe2758
The wrist is quite loose. There's a little rotation, but not pronounced or intentional. The elbow lifts and falls, the wrist sort of does this "shake out a match" thing. There's downforce. I don't want to use the word "punching," as it's not that I'm picking hard at all, im more or less letting the arm/hand weight do the work. But it's focused on the 4th string..."punching" down on that, hitting the 6th and 3rd but not really trying to.
Its definitely not a "strum"
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I'm impressed. Originally Posted by joe2758
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Great thread and a somewhat neglected topic.
My Ranger Doug book should be arriving today prompted by Jeff’s suggestion.
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Here's a nice thumpy one, rock steady all the way through, no mechanical aids involved, and a reasonable melody. Can't complain really :-)
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This sounds 100x better than your other style of comping in my opinion Originally Posted by ragman1
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But it doesn't always suit the tune. It suits this one. Originally Posted by joe2758
I've only got a handful of rhythms. One is this one, straight 4-to-the-bar beats although sometimes it can include an upstroke here and there. Not many tunes fit that sort of rigid pattern.
Then there's a swing pattern done with thumb and fingers. That's pretty useful in most tunes and the one I use most often. Then there are the bossa rhythms ranging from very sparse to more complex, which is really samba rather than bossa.
That's about the extent of the repertoire although the quality is affected by the recording. Videos are usually muddier than sound clips.
By the way, what I'm doing is rhythm, not comping. All of the above, whether strumming or thumb/fingers, are steady patterns to provide a rhythm backing. Comping is not that, it's the sporadic playing of chordal sounds over an already present rhythm probably provided by bass, drums, piano, organ etc.
All this has been explained here already in detail. You've been having too much fun, Joe, and not following the thread!
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true, I'm taking a break from learning. I do still practice though! Originally Posted by ragman1
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Check out Wes at 3:13 (rhythm guitar)
at 10:00 (Wes and Pim as bored as everyone else during the bass solo)
at 29:30 (Wes seems like a happy guy in all the footage, and throughout he seems to really get a kick out of when the other soloists do playful type things)
Takeaways:
1. I might start smokingLast edited by joe2758; 07-03-2026 at 08:39 AM.
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Note: do not show children old jazz videos when giving the "smoking doesn't make you look cool" speech.
Back to ragman's "Out of Nowhere," I also agree, really works for your two guitar approach, much more solid rhythmically in the melody playing than with your usual freer comping...
Does this style work for everything? Nah. Nothing does.
Well, playing in time always does
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Yes, that "Rhythm guitar" is much better. Originally Posted by ragman1
Are you plucking the strings with your thumb and fingers? I've done a similar style in the past, I will have to practice that style again, sounds good. I'm not a pick player.
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Just the thumb, nothing more, and releasing the tension with the left hand to make it more percussive. Originally Posted by GuyBoden
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