If You Feel Stuck With Rhythm, THIS Will Fix It

If You Feel Stuck With Rhythm, THIS Will Fix It

Hey guys, Brad Litton from SimpleGuitar.com. This blog post transcribes my YouTube lesson on a series of exercises — inspired by drum rudiments — that build rhythm confidence so you're not leaning on memorized strum patterns as a crutch.

You know the drill: you memorize a pattern, then the song changes or you jam with people and it falls apart. This is how we fix that.

This came up in a coaching session. When I used to teach drums, a warmup I used a lot was a full measure of 16th notes, then remove one stroke at a time. We took that idea and did it with eighth notes on guitar.

The Rule for Today

Always a downstroke on the beat. Always an upstroke on the and. (16th notes change that a little. Not today.)

A full measure of eighth notes is: 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and. Down up down up down up down up. A lot of people get used to that, then struggle with other patterns. Here's why: we spend way more time as guitar players on the downstrokes (on the beat) than on the upstrokes. We need to get you used to those.

We're going to start removing things. Make them rests. Count the rests out loud so they stay the right length.

Pause the video and loop each version before you move on.

Remove One Downbeat at a Time

Start with a full measure of eighth notes, then:

1. Remove beat 1. Keep the and of 1, and everything else.

2. Put beat 1 back. Remove beat 2. So you have 1 and (rest) and 3 and 4 and.

3. Put beat 2 back. Remove beat 3. Leave the and of 3 in. 1 and 2 and (rest) and 4 and.

4. Put beat 3 back. Remove beat 4. 1 and 2 and 3 and (rest) and.

I'm not removing the offbeats yet, because other strum patterns already do that. Playing just 1 2 3 4 is already "remove all the ands." A pattern like 1 2 3 and 4 and already removed the upstrokes on 1 and 2.

Remove Two Downbeats at a Time

1 and 2 out. You're starting on the and of 1, basically sitting on upstrokes early in the bar.

1 and 3 out.

1 and 4 out.

2 and 4 out. This one's pretty common. You'll hear that rhythm in songs a lot.

2 and 3 out.

3 and 4 out.

If it's hard, slow it down and count out loud, including the rests.

Last One: Remove All Four Downstrokes (Only Ups)

Just play the upstrokes. That's the fundamental rhythm for reggae / ska.

When I mute for the rests, I'm just placing my palm on the strings. I'm not doing a muted strum where I also strike with the pick as I mute. Just mute for the rest.

Why This Works

If you never practice upstrokes without the downs — and never sit in these "holes" in the measure — the second a song uses a rhythm like this, it feels foreign. Doing these makes those rhythms familiar. Some of them will remind you of songs you already know. Go learn those songs.

This is the kind of thing we drill in coaching so your rhythm actually holds up when the pattern isn't the one you memorized.

If you want a simple place to start, grab my free Top 10 Things to Learn on Guitar First at http://simpleguitar.com/top10.

And hang out with other adult guitar players in the Simple Guitar Facebook group: http://facebook.com/groups/simpleguitar.

About the Author
Brad from Simple Guitar helps adult learners play the songs they love without the frustration. Visit simpleguitar.com for more free resources and lessons.