Known throughout the guitar world for his infinitely tasty arrangements and rock solid 16th notes, Cory Wong is one of modern day funk's leading ambassadors and most prolific producers and songwriters.

Cory is a rare example of a guitarist who's established a distinct voice as a rhythm player, whether he's rocking the house with Vulfpeck, the Fearless Flyers, his solo band Cory & the Wong Notes or various collaborations with jazz and R&B greats, like Dave Koz.

Speaking to Q104.3 New York's QN'A about the process behind developing his new Fender Cory Wong Stratocaster, Cory addressed his early introduction to punk, rock, jazz and R&B and his guitar's eerie link to another prolific funk master: Nile Rodgers.

Before settling on the specifications for his signature model, Cory set out to learn as much about the Stratocaster as possible, playing as many examples as he could. He realized he had an affinity for the feel and sound of Strats with smaller bodies.

So Cory asked Fender to spend a few extra minutes sanding his signature model at the factory, keeping its load light and its tone tight. He learned just recently that he's not alone in terms of that preference.

"[Fender is] trying to remake the Hitmaker, the Nile Rodgers guitar," Cory explained to QN'A. "Every step of the way, Nile was saying the exact same sort of things I was saying, as far as the type of attack and the rhythm guitar thing."

He noted: "[Nile] is a legendary rhythm guitar player. I am a modern-day consummate rhythm guitar player. That’s my world that I live in. I feel like a lot of people bring different things to the table that are compelling. I think the thing that I bring to the table that’s most compelling is in the rhythm guitar world."

The new guitar is both an homage to a guitar Cory has played for years and the culmination of what he's learned about his playing throughout his professional life. Best of all, it makes perfect sense for the scores of players chasing Cory's crystal clear palette of sounds for their own projects.

Read Cory Wong's QN'A conversation below!

For more information on the Cory Wong Stratocaster, go here.

Keep up with Cory Wong by following him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Mark Blazor