Top 5 Alternate Guitar Tunings: Songs to Sound Different
Because change is always good
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Top 5 Alternate Guitar Tunings: Songs to Sound Different · Source: Graham Prentice / Alamy Stock Photo
Alternate guitar tunings are great for mixing things up! Adding spice and sophistication to an otherwise boring riff. Here are our favourites.
Top 5 Examples:
Key Information About Alternate Guitar Tunings:
- Alternate tunings unlock new possibilities. From chords to riffs, they instantly provide fresh voicings, allowing songwriting to flourish.
- Huge hits prove that they work. Bands such as Led Zeppelin and The Rolling Stones have both had chart success by using alternate guitar tunings.
- Simple changes, massive impact. Even small tuning changes can shift your tone, making your playing stand out.
Alternate Guitar Tunings: What Do You Need to Know?
Sure, playing guitar is great. But do you ever feel like there’s more to life than E standard? That’s where our extra tunings come in. They play a vital part in shaping the sounds and tones of various genres.
What do you need to change your guitar tuning? Some tunings can be altered easily, but others are harder to place. Therefore, I’d recommend getting hold of a good quality guitar tuner. Be that a clip-on, pedal, or strobe. Whatever floats your boat. Personally, I avoid the mobile apps and always go physical.
Alternate tunings don’t always have to be heavy! Sometimes, they can create a beautiful composition. From folk to metal, I believe that every player should dabble in something different every once in a while.
Everlong – Foo Fighters
The best place for us to start is with the drop D tuning. Whereby, we lower the pitch of the low E string so that it is now the same pitch as a D string. Hence, drop D. The strings on your guitar should be: DADGBE. If you look up drop D in the dictionary, chances are that Everlong will be right at the top.
What’s so good about the drop D alternate guitar tuning? Because the first three notes are DAD, you can essentially play power chords across the fretboard with just one finger! How cool is that? Simply place your index finger across the D, A and D strings, and you’ve got an instant power chord.
Everlong has the perfect blend of riffs and chords, made possible by this alternate tuning. Sure, it’s heavy, but it’s not death metal. Believe it or not, Before I Knew It and Still Into You are both in the same tuning as Everlong. Therefore, proving just how versatile and easily accessible this tuning is.
If you’d like to get a little bit closer to Dave Grohl’s sound, there’s currently a healthy discount on his signature *Epiphone 335 over at Thomann! However, on the record, he used a *Gibson RD, which is also available from your favourite online guitar shop.
Kashmir – Led Zeppelin
From an easy alternate tuning to something a little more advanced. DADGAD involves changing half of your guitar’s strings! As a result, the rules and chord shapes all change. But stick with it, the results are well worth it.
Led Zeppelin’s Kashmir is arguably one of the most notable examples of the DADGAD guitar tuning in popular music. With its origins being in Moroccan folk music, it doesn’t get much airtime.
Instead of the regular EADGBE, we now need to tune both E strings to D notes, and we also have to change the B string to an A note. Overall, this allows for drone notes, making a much larger sound compared to standard tuning. Creating a perfect base for Kashmir.
Start Me Up – The Rolling Stones
Back on British soil again for our next look at alternate guitar tunings. Keith Richards’ opening lick in Start Me Up is a rock and pop masterpiece. Reviving the band’s status in the 1980s.
The distinctive sound not only comes from the twang of a *Telecaster, but also from the resonance of the open G guitar tuning. Likewise, we need to adjust a fair few of our strings to achieve the following: DGDGBD.
The tuning does what it says on the tin; the strings of the guitar are now tuned to a G major chord. Compared to the others in this list, this tuning is the brightest of them all. Keith Richards used this tuning more than once, but this is my favourite of them all.
Stay With Me – Faces
Before his time with The Rolling Stones, British guitarist Ronnie Wood wrote some killer songs with Rod Stewart in the band named Faces. Sticking with the alternate guitar tunings theme, this awesome blues is in open E.
Just like with open G, open E requires us to tune the strings of the guitar to an E major chord. Therefore, we’d now have; EBEG#BE. We don’t have to change much, but the results are sublime.
The 1971 hit, Stay With Me, is a high-energy rock and blues track straight from the depths of London and the sound of a humbucking pickup. I would argue that this one is the hardest to play in this look at alternate guitar tunings, but personally, I’m happy just to listen to it.
Nutshell – Alice In Chains
Concluding our look at alternate guitar tunings, we’re delving into one of the guitarists’ most cherished tunings. Simple but effective, it’s Eb standard.
Vibes. Pure vibes. Favoured mainly by blues players, the Eb (E flat) totally transforms how your guitar plays and handles. Unlike the others in this list, from standard we have to drop each string by one semitone. Making everything nice and low.
Nutshell has this beautiful compressed acoustic intro that doesn’t sound right in any other key. Furthermore, it highlights the overall vibe that only Eb can provide. Don’t get me wrong, an SRV solo in the same key is just as captivating, but there’s just something about Nutshell that hits different.
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