I am looking at some sheet music for Jet Airliner by Steve Miller.
They have you tuning up all strings 1/2 step and then putting a Capo on the second fret.
Wouldn't I achieve the same effect just leaving the guitar in standard tuning and putting a Capo on the third fret?
Hum... The only reason I can think of for doing such a thing would be to "save a fret': by doing that you can go one fret further on the fretboard than you would with a capo3. However, I don't know this tune so I don't know if this is the right explaination.
Another reason could be if other songs of Steve Miller's repertoire use a guitar tuned up a half step, then he does not need to retune each time he wants to play...
Well, at least I tried :?
MoonChild
So they say to tune the guitar to F Bb Eb Ab C F (or F A# D# G# C F) and then capo it on 2?
Yes, you could get the same notes and the same key if you left it in standard (E A D G B E), and put the capo on the 3rd fret, but it would sound different. I didn't think anybody up-tuned a guitar these days, because though you'd get the same notes using standard tuning and capo3, the 'effect' would be that the strings would be tighter and sound 'tighter' and more brilliant. It's really an interesting concept really. Steve has a high voice to begin with but I think, if the tab is correct, that he likes having the rhythm guitar sounding really taut and tight and bright sounding, and that would be one way of doing it.
Interesting. I wonder if that's how he gets that really silvery, glassy sounding rhythm in his recordings?
I hadn't thought of that.
HMMM. Tuning up would make the strings tighter and even though I would be playing the same thing it would probably add more zing.
Now I have a mission. I will just have to try it both ways and record it to see if there is any real difference.
Thanks MoonChild and DemoEtc for the input.
