A classic rock muted guitar rhythm today. This progression alternates between two chord shapes and uses muting and hammer ons to add color to the rhythm. Try expanding on this to create your own progressions. This style of rhythm guitar playing originated with Curtis Mayfield and was perfected by Jimi Hendrix. Today it is employed by John Frusciante from the Chili Peppers on a lot of songs from 'Dani California' to 'Under the Bridge' and many more.
The rhythm style is rooted in soul and rhythm and blues that was played in the 60's on the 'Chitlin Circuit'. Jimi Hendrix in fact played this group of clubs and bars when he started his career during and just after his brief stint as a paratrooper.
This guitar lick is a pretty basic example. You can experiment with the amount of distortion and ornamentation to alter the effect of this rhythm technique and use this in anything from rock or funk to soul or blues playing.
