Dylan. You're Gonna Make me Lonesome When you Go

Hello again.

Now that we have an alternative tuning forum, this song seems a pretty good thing to post. Its off the fantastic Dylan Album "Blood on the Tracks" which is almost entirely recorded in Open E tuning (well actually its open D with a capo stuck on the 2nd fret).

BEGINNERS NOTE
Don't be put off by the tuning or the weird chord names. Much like David's recent lesson from Coldplay (God Put A Smile on my Face) its easy to tune to this and the chord shapes are dead easy - honestly. If you are lucky enough to have a 2nd guitar to play around in, put it in this tuning and see how many songs off Blood on the Tracks you can play - I would be really surprised if it was less than 3. Certainly Shelter From the Storm and a Simple Twist of Fate are not that difficult to master at all. But for now, back to the subject matter!

TUNING
You are looking to tune (from low to high) to D A D F# A D. Here's how - and note, there is less stress on the guitar than in "standard" tuning so no need to worry about breaking strings (or worse your guitar....!!!)

STANDARD------OPEN D
LOW E --------- TUNE DOWN TO D
A STRING------ LEAVE IT ALONE!
D STRING------ LEAVE IT ALONE!
G STRING------ TUNE DOWN TO F# (you'll need a chromatic tuner)
B STRING------ TUNE DOWN TO A
HIGH E -------- TUNE DOWN TO D

EASY!!!! If you strum all six strings without fretting anything ("open") you should get a nice D registering on your tuner. If not, check each string again carefully. Its usually the F# that's the issue.

ok nearly there. Now get your trusty capo and stick it on the 2nd fret. You now have Open E tuning.

CHORD SHAPES
E - 054000 (think of this as a Cmaj shape)
Emaj7 - 004340 (think of this as a D7 shape)
A - 020120
B11 - x02120 (another D7 shape)
F# - 222222 (barre 2nd fret with index finger or 2 fingers if needed!)
A' - 020100 (like an E7 shape)
B' - 002100

Play around with these shapes and get them "into" your fingers, it really is easy once you get used to it, I promise you.

Strum Pattern
Its quite quick but a nice simple Down / down up / up down pattern will work fine - note that on the first beat on the Downstroke, you really want to try and emphasise the bass note on the A string in particular, this is what gives the song its flavour. I usually play the 3 lower strings on the first beat and then the treble strings on the other strums, but it doesn't really matter, just do your own thing.

How long to hold the chord?
Most chords are held for a count of four - if you see (E') it means you need to play that chord for twice as long. For instance -
A (A)
When somethin's not right it's wrong


...then you need to hold the A for two bars of four, not one. Note that on the F# sections you are holding it for 4 counts of 4.

Ok here's the song, if you don't know it, go and buy yourself Blood on the Tracks - even if you HATE Dylan I guarantee you you will be surprised just how good this album is.

OK LAST TIP !!! AN IMPORTANT ONE. Don't forget - every single time you see E, if you're in a mess and your fingers are lost, just strum the OPEN strings, don't fret anything. This might rescue you in places!!!!
E Emaj7
I've seen love go by my door
A (A)
It's never been this close before
E Emaj7 B11 (B11)
Never been so easy or so slow.
E Emaj7
Been shooting in the dark too long
A (A)
When somethin's not right it's wrong
E B11 E (E)
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go.

E Emaj7
I'll look for you in old Honolulu,
A (A)
San Francisco, Ashtabula,
E Emaj7 B11 (B11)
Yer gonna have to leave me now, I know.
E Emaj7
But I'll see you in the sky above,
A (A)
In the tall grass, in the ones I love,
E B11 E (E)
You're gonna make me lonesome when you go.


All the best

Matt