📰 Right Royal Rhythm – Guitar Techniques: Apr. 1998

Guitar Techniques — April 1998

Cover feature

An April 1998 Guitar Techniques cover spotlighting Prince’s rhythmic genius, framed under the headline:

“PRINCE! Right royal rhythm”

The issue positions Prince not as a pop icon but as a musician’s musician — a guitarist whose rhythmic sensibility, harmonic daring, and stylistic fluidity demand serious study.

📰 Excerpt

Cover text includes:

• “Learn to play your guitar like the experts”

• “PRINCE! Right royal rhythm”

• “GTCD 43 — April 98”

• “Workshops in blues, jazz, pop, country & classical”

The accompanying CD features Prince’s symbol on the label, underscoring the issue’s focus on technique, tone, and stylistic analysis.

📰 Overview

This issue of Guitar Techniques treats Prince as a rhythmic architect, exploring:

• his percussive right‑hand attack

• chord voicings rooted in funk, jazz, and R&B

• the interplay between rhythm guitar and groove

• the subtle harmonic colours that define his late‑’90s sound

The feature situates Prince alongside other technical deep‑dives in the issue — The Verve, Peter Gabriel/David Rhodes, Gary Moore — but his section stands out for its emphasis on feel, precision, and musical personality.

📰 Source Details

Publication: Guitar Techniques

Issue Date: April 1998

Price: £4.25

Format: Cover feature + instructional CD

Provenance Notes: UK guitar‑specialist magazine; part of the late‑’90s musician‑focused coverage of Prince’s technique.

📰 The Story

The feature breaks down Prince’s approach to rhythm guitar:

• syncopation as signature — tight, clipped, percussive

• hybrid voicings — jazz‑leaning shapes embedded in funk frameworks

• economy of movement — minimalism used as expressive force

• tone choices — clean, bright, and articulate, favouring clarity over distortion

The article emphasises that Prince’s guitar work is often overshadowed by his persona — yet his rhythmic instincts are foundational to his entire catalogue.

The inclusion of a CD with symbol‑branded content reinforces the magazine’s commitment to treating Prince as a serious technical study.

📰 Key Highlights

• Cover feature on Prince’s rhythm‑guitar technique

• Instructional CD with symbol‑branded content

• Analysis of funk, jazz, and pop rhythmic structures

• Positioned alongside major guitar‑centric features of the era

• A rare late‑’90s UK deep‑dive into Prince’s musicianship

📰

Guitar Techniques — Cover feature, April 1998.

📰 Related Material

• Explore the tags below for connected eras and themes.

📰 Closing Notes

This Guitar Techniques cover stands as one of the clearest acknowledgements of Prince’s stature among guitarists — a reminder that behind the myth, the symbol, and the spectacle lies a musician of extraordinary rhythmic intelligence.

📰 Tags

#GlamSlamChronicles #MusicEphemera #Prince #GuitarTechniques #1998Prince #RightRoyalRhythm #GlamSlamEscape