Basics - Rhythm - Funk 2

Parliament Funkadelic. Some of the grooviest stuff in the world. Repetitive groove again. Drummer just keeps time and just keeps the backbeat going. That's the rhythm driving this band.

Notice this time that the drummer is on time, but the guitar and bass are actually laying back. They have a unison straight funk groove. Notice there's no more emphasis on the offbeats, and a lot more driving force straight down into the ears. Horns and vocalists all lay back quite a bit, and that's the sound of funk groove.

Suddenly the middle part comes at 3.30. Amazing stuff. Notice how the drummer suddenly pulls back and lays back, still hitting a strong back beat but suddenly it feels as if the music has slowed down. Suddenly the horns and bass and guitar sound
ahead of him. Some of the best examples of push pull in funk. Groovy rhythm starts from here.



One of the best, and most groovy bands of all time: Tower of Power. Forward pounding 16ths as bassline. Guitar is FAAAARRR behind the band, but the horns are ahead of the beat. At the same time the drums are laying back slightly behind the pulse. It's an amazing band dynamic that is hardly reproduced. Rocco Prestia is one of the few bassists that really amaze me with his ability to drive the bass with his 16th notes. Almost no one I've heard so far can do it anywhere nearly as good as him.

Vocalist comes behind the beat. And the soloist is always behind the beat as well. Phrasing tends to aim at the 1 or 3 on the on-beat for straight funk due to the nature of the groove. This leads to a groove which leads people to dance on the on beats.

Rhythm is the most important thing in funk. And actually in almost every music. As you can tell from these two videos funk can vary a lot.

More in 3. =)