Gibson's Article on Open and Alternate Tunings

Nice find Ricochet! I've only dove into open G head first, but have fiddled a bit with some others. Mostly for open g stuff for the Stones on my keefo-caster. Good timing too. I was just looking for my Hooker song book to check some of his stuff out finally.

To newbies, don't let these alternative tunings scare you. First, if you do not have one already, get a tuner that has, at a minimum, a chromatic setting. Set it there and adjust any string to any note. It's pretty simple. Just in open-g, I can easily play many Stones tunes. Honky Tonk Woman is probably the most famous of them, and it should be. Real catchy and real easy.

I've tried the open e thing for a counting crows song. I was afraid of the tension and stopped. Maybe I'll get an old junker and resume that practice.

I've got one guitar, a cheap-to-me used one off the wall missing the power hookup. A 5 cent nut and a pair of pliers made it playable. It's an ESP LTD model with duncan designed pickups. I've got that one dropped 3 semi-tones (or 1-1/2 stops). Gives me some really heavy stuff....especially with a palm mute going on. I digress.

My favorite odd tuning is the Gsus4. Unfortunately, I know of only one song for it. The Rain Song by Led Zep. I might get an el-cheapo and leave it there. It's a great song to play and hauntingly beautiful. Normally the cheapos have crappy pickups in them, but sound nice clean. Hmmmmmm

So, as it goes, my electrics are going to be aligned like so.
EPI LP - Standard
EPI SG - Standard for now. I might do a 1/2 step drop on it for some kick. Not sure yet. It's got some hot SD p/ups in it.
Fender Tele - Open G (plus a hot rail in the neck. Nice kick.)
Fender Strat - Standard, No plans to adjust
ESP LTD 250 - dropped 3 1/2 steps. Big Deep Sound!!!
Ibanez GAX70 - Standard....for now. This has some hot GFS Humbuckers in it now. Might raise the action and do a G slide.
Floyd Rose DST2 - Dropped D (probably do tomorrow)

nice link. muchas gracias. 8)

Thanks for the link Rico.

I'm amazed they didn't include Michael Hedges in that list. I don't know if he recorded any song in standand tuning.

As a lap steeler, I have used a lot of open tunings; I almost never use standard, just when I am playing someone else's guitar. I use open D on 6 string steels, A6 on 8 stringers and when I play a standard guitar I use open E or D; C6 is a viable tuning for 6 string lap though it is a little too country for my taste and there are some great 13th tunings (Don Helms with Hank Williams). Standard tuning, though the most common, is also the clunkiest tuning to learn. Teaching guitar in an open tuning is far easier. It makes understanding intervals quite a bit easier and makes note theory a simpler proposition for a beginner.

Nice find Ric, bookmarked for the time when I finally get time to overcome my fear of non-standard tunings :)

I have to admit that I'm bemused by the classification of dropping 1/2 step as an alternative tuning - if the strings are all the same relation to each other as standard tuning, it ain't that alternative. Technically sure, but in the real world it's missing the point, IMHO ;)

One of my favorite tunings. I don't know what this is called.

1: D#
2: A#
3: F#
4: C#
5: G#
6: C#

This gives you a big chunky crunch for things like Linkin Park, etc. Power chords with just 1 finger. I leave my ESP in this tuning. Of course, I could be doing something wrong, but I like it. :)

One of my favorite tunings. I don't know what this is called.

1: D#
2: A#
3: F#
4: C#
5: G#
6: C#

That would be a "Dropped-D" tuned down a half step to C#. Cool tuning that's been used for everything from metal power chords to folksy stuff.

If the same tuning pattern's just moved up or down in overall pitch, I think it's the same tuning in a different key. No different than using a capo. As long as everybody's playing stringed instruments or drums, nobody even has to think of it as a different key, they just need to all be tuned together. (Maybe not the drummer.)