Resonators and alternate tunings

[CarolinaGetaway]

Played slide so long ago I don't even remember what tunings I used. Gotten back to it recently but don't know what tuning is most useful. Play mostly acoustic blues. I have found I really like the sound of my resonator in standard tuning. Derek Trucks says play in open E. Warren Haynes plays in standard. Open D. Open G. Etc etc Any thoughts?

[Monty Christo]

For blues, I think open G is the way to go, but I prefer having the root on the 6th string instead of the 5th, so my Mule is pretty much permanently in open D. I don't play a ton of blues, and D seems more versatile and sounds more musical to my ears. Sometimes I channel my inner Skip James and play in open Dm. It's quite haunting.

[Bob Womack]

Duane Allman played in Concert, Open D and Open E. Joe Walsh plays mostly in Open E though "The Bomber" is in Concert. Derek Trucks, yes in Open E. I play those three. I had a song with a band that started out with slide fills, went to fretted lead, back to slide fills, then a slide lead, back to a fretted lead, and finally slide fills. In some cases the transitions were two measures. I play with Duane's ring finger slide position so it was on and off and on and off and on. Busy!

Bob

[Mycroft]

There are pros and cons to them all.To me, Open D (and other 151351 derivatives) somehow sounds a little bit "swampier" than Open G (515135), although I like Open G too. When playing a lot of slide, 151351 give you more inversion variations, and since it is what I use on my Weissenborns, I tend to keep at least one guitar in Open D, but not always the reso.

I did recently pick up a second standard Weissenborn, and rationalized that I could keep it in low-bass Open G. Having a lot of fun with "In My Time of Dying." Going to have to find some other slide-heavy Open G tunes.

I like my round-neck reso in standard a lot to, as it brings a completely different tonality to a song. Particularly when fingerpicked. Standard is good for slide as well; not only doing single-string lines. If inversions don't scare you, you get a triad off the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th strings with a bar or slide. And, unlike in the Open tunings where you can't get a minor triad unless you are Sonny Landreth, in standard, you can get a minor inversion baring the first three strings something like three frets up from their major inversion. I gather that Mick Taylor used this a lot in many of the Stones tunes that he played slide on.

I've been thinking of a little experimenting with that, tuning to Open G 515135, but leaving the first string tuned to E so I can get that minor chord. So 515136?

[CarolinaGetaway]

Yes. In open E, barring either 123 or 234, you can get
everything in a major scale except the dim on the 7.

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by CarolinaGetaway

Yes. In open E, barring either 123 or 234, you can get
everything in a major scale except the dim on the 7.

Except for a minor chord.

[Howard Emerson]

Originally Posted by CarolinaGetaway

Played slide so long ago I don't even remember what tunings I used. Gotten back to it recently but don't know what tuning is most useful. Play mostly acoustic blues. I have found I really like the sound of my resonator in standard tuning. Derek Trucks says play in open E. Warren Haynes plays in standard. Open D. Open G. Etc etc Any thoughts?

I'm not playing slide here, but I am in C'Vestapol, which is my term for open D down a whole step.

This was when I was working out an arrangement to 'Fever', prior to recording it, so it's a little crude. I did use the same guitar on the basic track, and the bottleneck overdub. It's my heavily modified National Resolectric with a rare Columbia magnetic pickup and a condenser mic.



HE

[Guitars44me]

Originally Posted by Monty Christo

For blues, I think open G is the way to go, but I prefer having the root on the 6th string instead of the 5th, so my Mule is pretty much permanently in open D. I don't play a ton of blues, and D seems more versatile and sounds more musical to my ears. Sometimes I channel my inner Skip James and play in open Dm. It's quite haunting.

Howard, that sounds BOSS! Now I want to get busy in C. Haha

Even though I dig open G I find playing much easier in open D. I also do a few in open Dm.

Beware tuning to open E on acoustic as it is a LOT of added tension and may well cause damage.

Obviously, the intervals are the same in open D as E. Just down a whole step.

Much easier for most men to sing in D. Derek Trucks lets Susan do the singing.
And he is famous for sliding on his SG.

Experiment and have fun! But, again, I would NOT leave an acoustic in open E for long at all…

Paul

[nbs2005]

I’ve been focusing on playing slide in standard thus taking advantage of the major and minor triads mentioned. I will drop the 5th string to G for certain songs. And occasionally I use open G with the 6th still tuned to E.

[Charlie Bernstein]

Hey, CG —

We've chatted at ResoHangout.com. Sounds like you're making progress. Congrats!

There's no right answer, of course. Try different tunings to see what you like.

I stick with open G because it let's me go up or down to the fifth-string tonic G. I can boogy-woogy the day away.

One friend, a terrific slide player, uses both open G and open D, because with a capo it gives him easy access to all the CAGED keys. You can have separate guitars for each, of course, but it's just a few quick twists to go from one to the other.

[CarolinaGetaway]

Progress is a relative term. From zero to 1 is progress, but brings lots of confusion as well. One step forward, two steps to the left, do the fandango . . .

.

[catt]

I like them all too. If I had two resos I'd keep one in D, but the one I have i keep in G. I like to bang out a Keith Richards song and try to sing like Mick when I've had an evening libation.

I keep a tele in D though..