In this video
There's a lot of rhythm in lead guitar that people often miss. There aren't many core rhythms to master - just eighths (one-and-two-and), sixteenths (one-e-and-a), and triplets (one-and-a).
Advanced players make use of all of these any play around with them.
The Charleston rhythm is one of the simplest patterns with just two pulses per bar, starting on beat one with a syncopated groove on the end of two. The Beatles' "Can't Buy Me Love" uses this pattern, borrowed from Django Reinhardt's gypsy jazz classic "Minor Swing." The melody plays triads (where melodies live), often embellished with hammer-ons and pull-offs. This rhythm came from 1920s-40s swing music and inspired countless pop songs.
Displacement in action: The Cardigans' "My Favourite Game" takes the exact same Charleston rhythm but moves both hits one beat later - strong beat on two and the end of three instead of one and the end of two. Same rhythm, different placement. This demonstrates how displacement creates variation without learning entirely new patterns. The song also features pre-bends - bending up the seventh fret before picking, then releasing it down.
The clave/Bo Diddley rhythm (also called the 3-2 rhythm) is fundamental to countless songs: long-long-long-short-short. This pattern appears everywhere from "I Want Candy" to George Michael's "Faith," Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away," U2's "Desire," and The Smiths' "How Soon Is Now." The technique with bar chords is keeping your strumming hand constant while your fretting hand creates the rhythm by relaxing to mute.
Polyrhythms layer the clave pattern over sixteenth-note grooves, creating sophisticated rhythmic interplay like in Coldplay's "A Sky Full of Stars." Playing these patterns over strict on-the-beat backing versus the actual displaced rhythm shows how displacement creates musical interest without adding complexity.
The essential principle: Don't just practice rhythm with chords - chords are limiting because they take up all your fingers and concentration. Practice rhythm with lead lines, riffs, and single notes to really internalize these patterns. Arctic Monkeys songs are excellent for this because of their syncopated single-note riffs.
Final tip: Learn to play the melody of every song, not just the solo. Whether it's The Beatles' "I Should Have Known Better" or AC/DC's "It's a Long Way to the Top," finding and playing melodies will improve your rhythm and overall playing more than just drilling strumming patterns. If you struggle with strumming rhythm, it's probably your overall rhythm understanding that needs work, which develops better through varied applications like lead playing rather than just practicing downs and ups.