How To Play Small Funk Chords On Guitar

A quick lesson on breaking down chords when playing funk guitar

[@aloisraich9326]

This is gold, very warm and groovy, strange that Google Algo only suggested this now

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Thanks for watching

[@moose6676]

Rob, Jamiroquai is one lucky guy having you as his guitarist bud. Thanks for your tutorial and your great playing 🙏🏻

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Thanks dude.

[@rotemshoshani424]

Btw, Jamiroquai is the name of the band 😊 Rob IS part of it, been a fan since I was a kid ❤

[@Foghat1961]

Bang on Rob as usual. The guitar really opens up once you stop looking at a chord as a 'shape' that you can more around and more like a cluster of intervals.

[@nucleusmedicalmedia]

Thanks for this! So simple in concept, but the interplay between muting, strumming, squeezing, and touch is the tough part.

[@pantsetoo]

To me full chords sounds pretty damn good , played by you

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Hah. Well , thank you.

[@Tedmaul99]

One thing that helped me move toward this way of playing was initially to put my fretting hand in the familiar full barre chord position but just target the strumming hand on the higher strings. I found that was a good starting point. Eventually you learn to see these new little shapes inside your familiar chord shapes, but it's a good stepping stone and safety net if you forget them!

[@strummercash5601]

@Tedmaul99 Thank you. That sounds like a good tip which I will employ immediately. Just commented, I’m diving into electric guitar playing after decades on an acoustic and immediately realizing, my playing style on a Martin while singing-full chord, percussive, and meant to balance the vocal, does NOT necessarily elegantly transfer to a Tele. These small-but-powerful chords will really help! Peace.

[@RomainG6409]

great lesson, seems simple but that's one of the hardest technique to acquire, funk groove, loose right hand (or left if you are a lefty), fighting against a rigid wrist, muting strings and not others, all this is challenging, even more when you have small hands. I love funk but hate the work it requires 🙂

[@jerotaelpr2285]

Let’s Groove tonight 🎵🎸. Many thanks rob

[@markkindermannart4028]

Great stuff! After 40 odd years of playing, I find that I am playing less and less and getting more and more out of the guitar. I almost always use two note harmony chords when playing with a group for all the reasons you have discussed.

[@alcirdc]

Thank you Rob... you can transform the simple into something extraordinary

[@borjar.6373]

This is gold !!! Keep on the good work

[@miguelfitzsimmy5610]

This is brilliant. Great advice. I'll be putting it to good funky use. 👍🏻

[@lightfoot413]

great Lesson and agree the guitar cuts through the rest very nicely and stands out...Thanks...

[@frannyp46]

Loved this Rob. Saw a Carl Verhuyen video doing something similar where he used same intervals of b3 and b7 and inverted them through the track. He said same as you to cut through the mix and put your stamp on it. Thanks.

[@ShredTraining]

Great playing, very smooth.

[@OriginalDemos-yk8bj]

Thanks Rob for your great videos and for the music you created with Jamiroquai. Gave me a lot of joy through the years!

[@jonmatthews4254]

Top Tut, cheers Rob, makes a lot of sense concentrating on the higher registers to cut through and not muddy the sound.

[@jameswardii5375]

Thank you for the breakdown!❤

[@thandodot]

I needed this! Thanks Rob!

[@AndersRomin]

Awesome! I’ve been looking for a tutorial like this for years! I’ve always loved that sound. Looking forward to more content from you! 🤩

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Awesome, thank you!

[@grantrobertdavies]

Great lesson Rob :) Love this approach :) I've always struggled with breaking down the Maj7 chords, but this really helped :)

[@luciano_valadao]

The best lesson man!! Thanks 🙏🏽🙏🏽

[@ThaddeusSilva]

Great video! Incredibly insightful, concerning listening to what's happening musically and knowing your place in the mix, that 2 note technique is just brilliant and makes so much sense. To me, your playing is like, THE sound of Jamiroquai albums in the 2000s (even the demo track here totally sounds like a jamiroquai record!) Hope to hear more music from you soon!

[@AlexTapisevic]

I love your strumming in Get lucky.

[@cristhianrueda3636]

This material is wonderful, thank you very much, I hope one day to be able to enjoy your music live. I send you a big hug from Argentina

[@Roman8883]

Good to see you Rob

[@-Atmos1]

Great explanation of minimizing chord structure . Thanks 🎸

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Glad it was helpful!

[@-Atmos1]

@@RobHarrisGuitar Absolutely , it opens up a new way of looking at playing rhythm guitar 😃

[@Phadddy]

Thanks Rob, taught which such patience and detail...hope to see you one day at boom&twang or the elite music camps

[@marcd1981]

Thank you for the video, Rob, this was what I am looking for on the guitar. I started playing a Cigar Box Guitar (3-string guitar) last year, and playing three strings is obviously less complicated than playing six. After realizing the sounds you can still get only using three strings, I figured there must be a way to do this on a regular six string guitar. And your video pops up with two and three note chords! Perfect!

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Glad it’s useful for you

[@badbrad]

Great feel!

[@kingcal53]

Great lesson!

[@strummercash5601]

Instant like and subscribe if only as your voice is soothing to hear itself, haha. Great lesson. The subject, your breakdown, and playing examples, coupled with clarity, humility, and humor makes for excellent viewing. I’ve strummed acoustic guitars for decades, along the way collecting electrics, effects, and a few amps I’ve been intimidated or lazy to explore much. Now, having care-given both folks to dignified and peaceful final exits, I’ve declared these years I have left to be mine, and learn to plug-in without fear, haha. This is very valuable information and technique for me as I make the transition from playing chunky percussive acoustic guitar meant to call-and-respond to my singing to hopefully one day sweep picking and pinching harmonics. 🙏🏽✌🏽💙 from Minnesota, USA

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Hah. Soothing ?? I’ll take that :)

[@presto111man]

You are an awesome player.

[@OverdriveMusic]

Love this! Legend!

[@efrainalejandrocastillocha2463]

Thanks for the wisdom, Master.

[@reverendleerussell]

What a great lesson!

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@outermarker5801]

Pretty much in the finest tradition of all the great session Funk/RnB and Pop players of the past. Just been watching videos of the great clean tones of the 80's a la Paul Jackson Jr, Dan Huff et al. Often very simple lines and phrases tastefully layered up top and clear as crystal in the mix. Now I just have to learn how to selectively mute while chucking as effortlessly as you do 😁

[@bennekop]

Hi Rob, I've spent the last 20 years trying to figure out how you mute in Love Foolosophy. It's a thrill to see it explained by the man himself. Many thanks!

[@rockolav]

Brilliant ...thanx

[@harrybee3093]

I totally agree Rob !

[@Adlou]

Magic 👌

[@user-kk4kn1ue8u]

I have been following your educational activities a lot since 2017. Because I was amazed by the guitar on Automaton LP - then I rediscovered Jamiroquay for myself. In many masterclasses you've said that you're sort of trying to cut through a very busy mix. And everything you say here is not news, and at first it seemed to me like it is for very beginners. However, this is a wrong line of thinking! Basics are very important! And besides, a specific example, the hands of a master, a train of thought are very important. It develops better musical taste! And in the end, this is what creates that funky buzz that we all love! Thanks a lot!

[@joepaganguitar]

Love it… you know it bro🙏🏻

[@Sonar37]

Brilliant!

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Thanks

[@michaelhumphreys7882]

Thanks Rob, I get the chord theory, cant for the life of me replicate that funky sound. Still It gives me s great steer, thanks again👍

[@patrickpowell5430]

I agree.

[@TimGuitarcouk]

Useful tips. Thanks Rob

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

You’re most welcome

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Thanks Tim. Glad you found it useful

[@barryshaw6354]

Great lesson Rob. 👍

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Glad you enjoyed it

[@ehsaannoorani]

Good one Rob !!

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Cheers Eshaan.

[@arifq123]

cool ideas

[@maxsalasr]

Yes! This is the same thing Nile Rodgers says,2-3 notes in a chord

[@aminahmed2220]

What a fantastic video have a wonderful weekend ❤❤❤❤❤❤😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Thank you! You too!

[@FurkatVakhabov]

This is great tutorial! Thank you, Rob! Btw I have one question about how much input gain did you use on Quad cortex with Silver sky? I put input gain on mine to +8. I also use your Divided by 13 capture and it sounds amazing!

[@Harrysound]

I grew up on a diet of Metallica so for the first 30 years I never played a 7 chord. Now of course I am into literally anything on guitar and last couple of weeks I’ve been doing a lot of this stuff but I do have a habit of making everything sound as you say “full” I always kinda thought making chord smaller were kinda cheating but your absolutely right. Nice to see a Divided by 13 amp too. Very pretty things

[@daviewhatley3665]

Make it look so easy😊

[@leoparis83]

Thanks for the lesson Rob your groove is awesome. What splice sample pack are you using on the backing track? It sounds great for practicing it's so hard to find good backing tracks where just rytthm guitar is missing.

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Hey Leo. I just found a drum Loop , a keyboard loop and then I played a quick bass part. Loads of great stuff on Splice.

[@vicesquadpunk]

Hey Rob, very interesting stuff 🙂 I guess funk style is similar to playing rhythm in the old big band ensembles it’s about finding space and letting bass/piano fill in the low end… Have you done a vid of your studio equipment, amps and set up yet bro? I note the OX box and Fryette Power Station…

[@nickfitchguitarist]

Yeah Rob 👍

[@JolyonPetch]

When you say it sounds too full. its got more of a nile type of feel. so not a bad thing.. except his sound is a bit more twangy

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Indeed. I guess it’s just a matter of taste.

[@cobravinci]

Great video! Any chance to get that backing track? Cheers!

[@juliobernal4489]

Hello Sir, Can you make a breakdown of you do you get the Tone in your daw? Your guitar sounds absolutelly beautiful (Great playing too :D)

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Coming soon!

[@sagandalya108]

Something I've done that seems to work is to think in terms of a chord progression even on a one chord jam.

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Absolutely.

[@Joseandresyanes]

Im just wondering, if there were no keyboards (only bass and drums) would you consider the same approach or would you play more complete chords?, asking for a friend. Cheers

[@matthieusandjivy7925]

Nice video ! Do you mind sharing your signal chain, or at least your effects ? I am curious about the compressor actually. I feel like it is part of that sharp and clear sound.

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Hi Matthieu. The signal chain is just the guitar into a Princeton Reverb going through an Ox Box. No compression at all. I added a tiny bit of reverb in the box.

[@MDSON205]

TONIGHT, GONNA MAKE THIS A NIGHT 2 REMEMBER 🎶🎶😎🎸 ....LOL... it's just me probably , my mind be everywhere 😅 sounds good tho

[@jurre83]

Do you also do this for the chorus of Time wont wait?

[@farrellsgaf]

Are you sometimes starting the slides on an up strum for syncopation? I cant figure it out

[@DrUmSensitive]

Love the video, great stuff! But, may I ask something, please? Why is whole of youtube calling two notes a chord? Not just you, everybody. A chord is, by definition, 3 notes or more, while two notes make an interval. Is it a matter of simplification, or what's the deal, here? I feel like I'm nitpicking in people's eyes, but as I know I'm 100% right, I find it incomprehensible that no one cares about nomenclature and language in general. It seems sad, because if we continue down this road, one day we won't understand each other at all because "it doesn't matter." What do you think? Cheers!

[@matthewedwards1089]

May I ask what is the amp, pedal, and settings. Thanks

[@aloisraich9326]

Another question, do you accept bookings for Collaborations, br alois

[@aloisraich9326]

Can I ask which guitar and amp you are using, thank you

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

It’s a Fender Princeton Reverb

[@markjohnson9485]

Do you use Minor 9 chords in place of min7ths??

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Sometimes , yes

[@totalmink]

Ledge

[@fusionistaaaa]

Did i miss something or you didnt show the higher position for the Bb7M?

[@andreas5606]

Yeah, seems like he plays the 5th and the 2nd of the chord. Any thoughts?

[@markjohnson9485]

You sound like you have been influenced by Nile Roger's and his style of playing.

[@RobHarrisGuitar]

Absolutely, I’m a huge fan of Nile.

[@markjohnson9485]

@@RobHarrisGuitar meeeee tooo!

[@pleasedie1979]

I saw the thumbnail and thought, "I didn't know Bas Rutten played guitar" 😎

[@waxhead63]

Very Maroon 5 👍👍 I'm a great user of shell voicings and Van Eps style chords