Open G tuning?

[jwhelan56]

Originally Posted by guitarxan

Love open G. Lots of stones, brown sugar as an example. Also a very pretty Doobie Brothers song South City Midnight Lady is played in open G.

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This ^^^^^

South City Midnight Lady is my only real complete song I know in the moment in Open G. I have been playing (and loving) this song for many years. The moveable chord shapes up and down the neck on this one are lush and gorgeous sounding.

I played this song for my then to be wife at our commitment ceremony in front of family and friends prior to us leaving for our wedding and honeymoon trip in 2005. A special memory for me (and her) for the rest of our lives.

Here is a great tutorial by ToneDr for this song:

https://youtu.be/u71eW-_26oI

[RodB]

Not my favourite tuning, but I play a couple of tunes in Open G (follow link in my sig to hear) :

Working on the New Railroad
Lullaby for Anna (by Stefan Grossman)

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Logdy

Does anyone use this? After trying it it seems much easier to form shapes quickly. Then again my chord library is small....

HI Lodgy

It's a tuning that's good for slide playing, and simple chords, and even some simple fingerstyle. Sometimes I'll change it to Open G min (D-G-D-G-Bb-D) because it's easier to make the barre into a major chord (one finger) as opposed to playing minor barre chords in open G.

That change can be made on the fly, and retuned for the next song easily.

I used to keep one of my guitars tuned to Open G or Open D, but in performances I've only ever used it for one or two songs a night. It's more limited than standard tuning.

I had a handicapped student who because of meds had no dexterity in his fingers (either hand) so I gave him a slide, and a capo and tuned his guitar to Open G or Open D depending on the range we were singing in.

I'll put a guitar in one of these two and hand it to curious children who visit our home and want to play a guitar. I hand them a slide and a pick and lay it flat in their lap with my smaller Voyage-Air, and turn them loose. If they want to hold it conventionally I put a strap on them.

[roylor4]

I keep my resonator in open G and one electric. I don't play as much slide as I used to, but it can be a great way to break up a set playing live as there aren't too many proficient slide players around these parts.

[Earl49]

I play in Open G a lot. It is the granddaddy of Hawaiian slack key tunings, of which there are literally dozens. Minor chords become a fingering challenge, but tuning to Gm means adding one finger to get back to a major chord voicing, which usually isn't too tough. In the slack-key world a common variation is G Wahine [which is DGDF#BD] technically a Gmaj7 tuning. This allows fingering the third string to get major chords, including some interesting hammer-on techniques.

There is a school of thought that beginners should be taught initially using Open G tuning. Most common chords are either two or three fingers, and any major chord is a simple barre across all six strings. Then they can advance to standard tuning shapes after having has some early success.

[jansch]

I have one acoustic and 1 resonator in open G. I find it very versatile, and love playing bottleneck and finger-style blues on the resonator.

On the acoustic I play finger-style folk, blues, new-agey stuff and Hawaiian folk influenced pieces (the Hawaiians call open G taro patch - what a lovely term!)

Have a look at Steffan Grossman/Tom Feldman discussing and playing in open G, on YT,

and

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=17BsIzQFrH8

where AGF member Fran Guidry plays with Led Kaapana.

[Silly Moustache]

Originally Posted by archerscreek

I use it on my resonator 50% of the time with open D getting the other 50%. Lots of acoustic blues played in those two open tunings.

... and that's egg-actly what Mando Bob does when he plays his resos. I only use DAF#AD on mine but on my Dobro the standard tuning from 6 to 1 is GBDgbd.

[Tahitijack]

ALOHA! As Earl said there is an outrigger full of Hawaiian slack key guitar songs in open G tuning. Its commonly called Taro Patch tuning. Learn a few and you'll become a slacker too.

[elmcmeen]

Originally Posted by Logdy

Does anyone use this? After trying it it seems much easier to form shapes quickly. Then again my chord library is small....

If you want to dive in to it, check out the brand new book by Sandy Shalk and myself called "New Directions in Open G Tuning" - or you can wait for the Mel Bay edition coming out some time in the next 6-9 months. Over 200 pages of tunes in open G, from marches to hymns.

El

[G-Money]

Love it but tuning up stresses me out a little. E to g on the low e string

Originally Posted by 5th Element

Honky Tonk Women sounds right at home on acoustic. Willin' by Lowell George (Little Feat) is relatively simple, although it's taking me some work to learn.

[Gcunplugged]

As a converted Slack Key Player, I love Open G. It is one of about 6 tunings I frequent now, and a lot of fun. Here is a recent open-mic I did with Slack Key legend, Ledward Kaapana. We are both playing Taropatch tuning, e.g. open G.

[jaymarsch]

Originally Posted by elmcmeen

If you want to dive in to it, check out the brand new book by Sandy Shalk and myself called "New Directions in Open G Tuning" - or you can wait for the Mel Bay edition coming out some time in the next 6-9 months. Over 200 pages of tunes in open G, from marches to hymns.

El

Thanks for the tip on this, El. I will check it out. I really like Open G tuning but haven't explored it a lot as of yet.

Best,
Jayne

[Earl49]

FWIW, songwriter Peter Case taught at a camp I attended years ago. He only plays in Open G tuning, which prompted me to explore further. I then arranged "Puff the Magic Dragon" in Open G / taropatch with a few Hawaiian twists, and added it to my slack-key repertoire. And I try to play other tunes in Open G, since my guitars are so often there already. It is easier than retuning back to standard. Knowing some Open G stuff also allows me to [gasp] pick up a banjo once in a while.

Originally Posted by Tahitijack

ALOHA! As Earl said there is an outrigger full of Hawaiian slack key guitar songs in open G tuning. Its commonly called Taro Patch tuning. Learn a few and you'll become a slacker too.

Thanks, Jack. Once I discovered ki ho'alu (slack-key) my instrumental studies in Piedmont country blues and ragtime were immediately derailed.

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by G-Money

Love it but tuning up stresses me out a little. E to g on the low e string

You are thinking of the oft used Dobro "high G" version of open G: GBDGBD. Most non-,dobro players tune down, to DGDGBD.

[maxtheaxe]

Lots of Stones classics in open G. I keep my Tele tuned to that when we play gigs, which includes about half-dozen Stones classics and a cool old Zep tune...'Dancing Days'. I keep my 6th string on though...

Also, "Tripe Face Boogie" by Little Feat...several other slide-centric Feat tunes.