I don't understand "why" to use a capo

[Charmed Life Picks]

Originally Posted by LiveMusic

I am not 100% sure but I think James Burton looks down on capo use. But he plays electric 99% of time. I've never seen him play acoustic. Point is, he isn't a singer-songwriter type, he plays electric and mostly a lead player. Different animal.

Most of the electric players I know shy away from using a capo. Maybe it's more of an acoustic thing.

sm

[AndrewG]

Ian Anderson (of Jethro Tull), frequently uses a capo for his more acoustic-flavoured songs which, along with his strumming and picking notes within chords technique, gives them a unique signature tonality. The chap in the attached video makes a pretty good fist of a Tull tune that could easily be transposed but crucially wouldn't sound the same, despite the transposed chords being made up of the same notes, albeit in a different shape:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKnEZ9qotUg
And the man himself:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HlE2DjOX2FE

[Martie]

Some tunes just sound better higher. Or, as Ed Gerhard explains around 8 mins into this video, they sound better with a capo AFTER tuning down a semitone (just to really confuse you!).

https://youtu.be/eYxdTh25bEg

[Standicz]

Originally Posted by Charmed Life Picks

Most of the electric players I know shy away from using a capo. Maybe it's more of an acoustic thing.

sm

yes it is, electric guitars have lighter strings = lower tension = bar chords easier and also people rarely want open string sound from electric guitars when playing soloes or strumming, because the tone can't be well controled. Some people don't play open strings at all on electric guitar and bass.

While some acoustic guitarists are trying real hard to a avoid bar chords because bar chords tend to mute the tone, sustain suffers, and the open note generally just rings so nicely. So more often than not, it is a matter of tone preference.

If you don't know why to use a capo, you probably don't know how to use it.

[Nymuso]

Originally Posted by Standicz

If you don't know why to use a capo, you probably don't know how to use it.

I believe this ends the debate.

[jaymarsch]

Originally Posted by reeve21

I'm veering off topic here....but does anyone else just not like the sound of their guitar as much when it is capo'd (is that a word?). Once I get above the 3rd fret the high e string sounds very tinny too my ear. And not as full a sound overall as when it is played with the capo.

We spend a lot of time and money chasing what sounds good to our ears, and to me a capo really works against that.

What are your thoughts?

I had that issue until I purchased a better capo. To my ears, with the Elliott yoke style capo, there is no difference in sound than if I do not have a capo on the guitar. Even harmonics ring as true. They are not cheap and there are some other alternatives out there like the G7th Heritage and the Shubb F series capos. If you don't mind investing some money you might find that you like these style of capos better. It is one of those things though that you can't know for sure until you try it.

As far as why I use a capo, many of these fine posts already answer that question.

Best,
Jayne

[mikehartigan]

Originally Posted by Standicz

If you don't know why to use a capo, you probably don't know how to use it.

Amen to that!

[Rosewood99]

Always curious why old threads get resurrected. Seems like the topic has been beaten to death.

[reeve21]

Originally Posted by paulzoom

Always curious why old threads get resurrected. Seems like the topic has been beaten to death.

Someone does a google search that leads them here. The fellow who unearthed this one is a newer member, as is often the case. It may have been beaten to death, but he hasn't gotten in his licks yet

Join Date: Nov 2018
Posts: 7

[Mycroft]

Originally Posted by paulzoom

Always curious why old threads get resurrected. Seems like the topic has been beaten to death.

Me too. I always look at the "resurrection"post to see why. Sometimes it is because the original thread sparked a question about something in the thread. (like in this thread; a question about a photo of Neil Young) Sometimes is is an almost unrelated question, but rather than start a new thread someone just tacks on a new question. Or it is someone answering a question or making a point about a subject that the OP had answered years ago.

Ya pays yer money and ya takes yer chances...

[Davis Webb]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

I think if you use a capo only to change key, it's kinda like having a swiss army knife and only using the toothpick.

Yep, good contribution as usual Mr. B.

You can move like lightning with all kinds of nuance if you capo up high. It sounds like a mandolin with bass.

[bufflehead]

Originally Posted by Riverwolf

Yes it does.
I play mostly at home and often the "singing" is only in my head to help track the song.
Or my singing is at a low enough volume that I had never really thought about how my voice is really sounding as far as the key of the song.
I have never thought of a capo as something needed.
To me it was only used when the lesson or video showed it.
In those cases I would think the song sounded better and correct that way but only because that was how it was taught.
I ask a lot of questions here that may seem simple but I am learning all the time.

If I was only playing alone, and only singing in my head, I would not need a capo. But the more I jam with others, the more valuable a capo becomes. For instance, we both know a song, but I play it in G while you play it in E. This is no problem if you capo 3--we can both play the song the way we've learned it.

There's always some stinker at a jam session who didn't bring a capo. No problem, I carry two capos in most of my cases, and am happy to loan one out to the dude who insists that Les Paul never had to use a capo. My way of reminding him that he's no Les Paul.

[kathyson]

Originally Posted by Riverwolf

I understand the "how" and I own several nice ones.
I know that some song lessons call for a capo and some of those songs do sound better with a capo.
But I have never understood why else to use one.
I do not understand how ones voice can be in a specific key.
I watch everyone from Johnny Cash to Neil Young playing open position chords with no capo.
I have been playing 4+ years and just don't get this part at all.

So enlighten me you guitar music wizards.

It's about chord voicing and utilizing open strings for chord voicing not just for changing the key. Another example would be two guitarists playing together in the same key but using different capo positions. For instance in the key of C, one player plays a regular C while the the other capo's on the 5th fret and play's a virtual G. Both are in the same key but the chords are voiced differently. This provides a much fatter chordal structure. There are also various songs that will not accommodate or would be difficult or even impossible to play using closed,(bar) chords.

[psychojohn]

I can't spell or play bar chords !

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by Riverwolf

I understand the "how" and I own several nice ones.

I know that some song lessons call for a capo and some of those songs do sound better with a capo.

But I have never understood why else to use one.

I do not understand how ones voice can be in a specific key.

I watch everyone from Johnny Cash to Neil Young playing open position chords with no capo.

I have been playing 4+ years and just don't get this part at all.



So enlighten me you guitar music wizards.

Easy [emoji16] and tone changes. I learned bar chords first and than open, not hard but the capo opens another door in the tone dept. For me and i can use the easy open chords for all tunings. Like Wicked World. Bm A E put a capo on it and becomes Am G D. Am is easier than Bm when your singing also.