Description
In this week’s guitar lesson, you’ll learn both the percussive strum pattern, and various chord voicings over a funk jam track with just 1 chord. You can easily apply these rhythm concepts to any song in any style.
Part 1 - Free Guitar Lesson
Part 2 - For Premium Members
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Slow Walkthrough
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Video Tablature Breakdown
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I need this lesson and I love Funk! Thanks Brian. You always come up with something great!
I’ve been needing this “funky lesson!” Easy enough to practice/understand. Looking forward to gaining speed as it sinks in.
Super Funky Chord ideas Brian. Especially like the last E9 (Blues Breaker’s Hideaway E9). Great chord. Super Funky Strat too. It looks well loved.
Can you tell us about that Strat?
Thanks Brian,
Ralph P.
Funky Friday
Groovy
Time to get down!
Nice piece of music Brian, really enjoy these funky pieces as I enjoy all the music you put out. You have brought a lot of joy to so many guitarists with all these genres of music. Thank you.
The chord at 14:36 is a DAdd9.
Ian – you beat me to it. Though I was thinking of it as E9sus4. Same notes I believe.
You can absolutely call it that, IMHO. Technically, yours is a better choice as it’s a passing chord between two E9 chords – you’re essentially suspending the E9 chord – and a better context in terms of the song’s key. Your naming has a flat 7 (D) and the 9 (F#), as well as a 4th (A) with no 3rd (G#). So, yes, that’s an E9sus4.
I tend to ignore the key itself and name a chord based on a root note that contains the full triad: D (root), F# (3rd), A (5th), E (9th) because the E chord is missing it’s 5th (B). Since there’s no 7th in the D chord, it’s a Dadd9.
Hope that isn’t confusing. lol
Not confusing at all.
Good one Brian!
Very Nice Brian, one of those light bulb lessons for sure for me anyways. Nice way to simplify all the extensions in one place.
Tony
Hallo Brian,
bitte den Ausdruck aktivieren. Danke
m.m.G. Herbert
I would also call that E9 Hideaway variation chord an E9sus4. That little bassline riff is different but reminiscent of the Meters, “Cissy Strut”.
John
Hi Brian,
Can you set Soundslice so I can print the music version of this lesson?
Thanks
Ray P
done – sorry about that.
Thanks Brian, the notation always helps me understand the chord construction better.
Ray P
I can only get the first page when I try to print.
Hi Brian,
This looks to be a really good rhythm lesson and very useful practice and understanding.
Thanks JohnStrat
I LOVED getting the chords diagram on the screen ! ! ! Please do this on all future lessons !
Can’t get enough of these little chord fill ideas.
Great rhythm lesson Brian showing the different variations. The drum track and the bass line are the same as EP324, one of my many favorites.
Earlier this week I listened to James Brown, Like a Sex Machine, and pulled my guitar out to play along with The Godfather. 9th and 13th chords. Now I know what I was doing. Awesome lesson Brian!
Bad A$$ lesson. Seems like a your posting just what I’m looking for. Thanks again. Happy Member!
It’s reminding me of the Ry Cooder / Chaka Khan classic “Down In Hollywood”, which I like to play on guitar and bass.
I tend to not focus enough on rhythm, this has inspired me to fix that. Incorporating these ideas into my playing will be a significant upgrade.
That was funking awesome !!
Keep bringing the grooves !
Can you play this with an acoustic? Thanks 🙏
Great lesson, Brian. I’m a visual chord shape user based on CAGED and you help so much by pointing out different voicings tied to anchor points and then relating back to other chords from another CAGED shape. Awesome how you intertwine the pentatonic scale patterns too.
Brian,
You always talk about your ability to visualize the fretboard to tie shapes and chords and triads, etc. together for the pieces of music you put together. What suggestion do you have for those like me that don’t seem to have the ability to visualize? I memorize your pieces but I am never able to use them to create my own improvisation. Very frustrating.
Scott
Hi Brian,
What model guitar did you use on EP389? I have a 1939 Gibson LO and I want to make one like it. I like the sound and tone of your Martin.
Any info will be appreciated.
City Bob
The demonstration at the end where you apply these to the country tune is a mind blowing epiphany for me. It looks like a good and easy way to accompany others. I’d love to see more of these lessons.
Brian. Thanks for the premium percussion lesson. I particularly watched how you used your pick. What pick are you using and what thickness? It seems you pretty much use the flat side as opposed to the edge, and are angled up (~45* or so) even on the up strokes. Is that right?
Question Brian — What is the difference in sound quality or tone between the maple fretboard and rosewood? I’ve never had or played a maple so I don’t know.
…my maples seem a little faster. Strats.
Completely random question here for anyone – Brian does that little slide thing, slide from a fret lower or higher and then into the chord. Sorry for my hillbilly description but did that originate with Lonnie Johnson or can someone point out for my studies where that came from? I know Lonnie is a favorite of Brian and he has mentioned him in a few different lessons so I have definitely studied that dude and I hear him do it (and a lot of other super cool stuff) Sorry for the question here. Maybe I should post in forum but so many good lessons and this one is yet another. Thank you Brian.
Floating Dad, in the blues tradition you could probably trace that flat slide up- and sharp slide down back to the a capella vocals of the work songs. You probably already know but check out the LoC recordings, particularly the Texas stuff.
The chord graphics at the top of the lesson was a very helpful learning tool for me! Hopefully more use of those kind of graphics especially where comparisons of different chord versions are part of the lesson! Very Nice!
can someone help me layout the misses in first part.. sixteenth note count 1 e + a 2……….Where does the last down stum fall?
Nice lesson, but there is something with the up and down strokes I can’t get right. I would play: Down, down, up down, up…….down, up,down……..up,down……..down. That feels more natural for me.
Hi Brian, love the funk lessons! More please 🙂 Sorry to be a bit technical, but in my interest in reading the notation correctly, in measure 8, I count the E7 (4-3-4) as the 8th sixteen note, i.e. 2-e-&-a , and therefore have it as an up stroke?? Please advise.
I get that once you have the timing and feel, you have more latitude with up and down strokes, and playing with the timing.