In Cory Wong's own words, he shares the essential trick he learned from Nile Rodgers concerning barre-chord voicings, stating that opting for a less 'chunky' approach delivers better results.

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In the world of guitar playing, maintaining a steady rhythm is crucial, especially when it comes to strumming. One such method that has gained popularity is the steady motor method. This technique involves keeping the strumming hand in continuous, steady motion, creating a precise rhythmic pulse that drives the groove and timing.

The hand acts like a motor running constantly, maintaining a 16th-note subdivision, regardless of whether every strum hits the strings. This means the player’s strumming hand never stops moving, even during rests or muted strokes, ensuring consistent rhythmic momentum. Notes, accents, and mutes are interspersed within this steady flow, allowing for dynamic expression while preserving the fundamental timekeeping role of the strumming hand.

This method has found its application in various musical contexts. In pop and rhythm guitar, as exemplified by Nile Rodgers' style, a clean, percussive tone and tight chord voicings are frequently employed, with muted and ghosted notes within the steady 16th-note strumming pattern creating a rhythmic, danceable groove. The continuous hand motion keeps the groove alive even when certain notes are not struck, making the rhythm feel constant and fluid.

In funk, the steady motor method suits the syncopated, interlocking rhythms perfectly. By striking chord voicings like G9 and layering in muted-string accents without stopping the hand’s 16th-note "motor," funk guitarists weave intricate grooves. The method allows for dynamic shifts (eighth-note accents, rests) while the right hand remains in perpetual motion, contributing to the tightness and bounce characteristic of funk.

Rhythm guitar styles pioneered by artists like Prince often emphasize a similar perpetual motion in strumming or picking, blending funk, pop, and R&B grooves. The steady motor concept translates well to these styles by providing a continuous rhythmic foundation that facilitates syncopation, staccato chord hits, and dynamic accents without losing the underlying pulse, critical for groove-based music.

Figure 5 shows a chord progression played in Rodgers' rhythm style, specifically Em11 - Cmaj7 - A7 - F#m7b5 - B7#5. The author prefers not to use full barre-chord voicings, instead favoring a technique where only parts of the chord are sounded at certain times for clarity and definition. Nile Rodgers and Prince have significantly influenced the author's understanding of rhythm guitar.

The strumming pattern is typically in a 16th-note rhythm, even when not hitting every 16th note. Downstrokes are used for notes that fall on a downbeat or eighth-note upbeat, while upstrokes are used for notes that fall on the second or fourth 16th note of the beat. The right hand moves down-up-down-up in 16th notes, which can be counted as "1-ee-and-uh, 2-ee-and-uh, 3-ee-and-uh, 4-ee-and-uh".

In funk-style music, rhythm parts can combine notes, chords, and muted-string accents with silence. Figure 1 demonstrates steady 16ths being strummed in an alternating pattern while dampening all strings with the fret hand. Figure 2 applies the strumming technique to a chord progression, with a delay in strumming the G5 chord on beat 2 for the equivalent of three 16th notes. Figure 3 showcases the strumming technique in a funk context, repeatedly strumming a G9 voicing with muted-string accents.

The continuous motion of the right hand makes decisions about strokes for the guitarist. There are three sounds that can be produced: a chord (or note), a muted-string accent ("x"), or silence. The author learned from Nile Rodgers about rhythm guitar techniques, and Good Times and Le Freak are examples of this technique by Nile Rodgers.

In summary, the steady motor method is a fundamental strumming approach that provides a continuous rhythmic foundation, enabling groove, timing, and dynamics to flourish within a continuous strumming motion. Whether it's in pop, funk, or rhythm guitar styles, the steady motor method has proven to be an invaluable tool for guitarists looking to create dynamic and groove-based music.

In Cory Wong's own words, he shares the essential trick he learned from Nile Rodgers concerning barre-chord voicings, stating that opting for a less 'chunky' approach delivers better results.