playing funk? I might be asking
a dumb question but I have
a strat and i'm considering buying a
tele because i've been playing a lot
of funk lately.

smellmyfunk said:

I don't think they're necessarily better for funk than a strat, though many here would play one just because Prince does (though his is a Hohner copy). But both guitars have cleaner sounds than, say a Gibson, and clean can be better for funk. They're both great instruments. But Bruce Springsteen also plays a tele, and I wouldn't say he's exactly funk...

Personally I think you can play any style music on any instrument.
[Edited 1/19/05 10:18am]

IMO, the Tele lends itself to midtones a lot more than a Strat. I've had a few different guitars and I agree that the guitar doesn't make you funky, funk makes you funky.

Go to the music store and play some funk on both thru a few different amps and you be the judge. Tone, effects and feel are what guitars are all about and each person is individual. Ask Otan about the Variax, it digitally reproduces ANY guitar and he loves it.

Some of the greatest funk players play strats (Nile Rogers en Bruno Speight from Maceo's band/SOSband come to mind, but also Eddie Hazel), so don't feel you HAVE to play a tele if you're happy with the strat. As said above, any guitar is good for funk. JamesBrown's current band play Gibson Les Pauls and PRS guitars! What I like about a tele for funk is that it's basically a slab of wood with some strings, nothing precious. That puts me in the right mindset to just strum away with a lot of strenght like I wouldn't on my Les Paul. Also, the bridge pickup has a very unique sound for rhythm playing that really cuts through the mix if you play in a large group (it may sound a little thin in a smaller group, though Andy Summers never had any problem making the Police sound like an orchestra by himself on his tele. Be sure to compare rosewood and maple fingerboard teles by the way, as they sound and feel very different!

One word: Sustain. (or lack of it).

The telecaster has a much smaller headstock and thinner neck than the strat or the les paul. This then causes the guitar to have less mass. Less mass means less sustain. When there's more weight attached to the guitar, the guitar vibrates less, so it doesn't absorb the vibration of the string as quickly. That's why Les Paul's have such great sustain - they weigh a ton.

So, what does this have to do with funk rhythm guitar?

Playing choppy chords (chicken scratch) on a Les Paul sounds more bell-tone-ish. A Strat gets you closer, but still, the notes come through too full. A Telecaster, playing chords, can be more percussive - choppy.

That's how I see it, at least. There's much more to it than that, but, to me, the core of the tele kicking that funk ass is the low sustain. Add to that the middle-pickup sound which has a distinctive aural range - just enough low to put some omph in it, but mostly high-ended so it'll cut over the drums and horns, and there you go.

Like I said, that's how I see it. That's why I use the tele on the funk.

Slave2daGroove said:

TA Da!!!!!