STANDARD TUNING Lap Steel

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 28 Jun 2009 12:28 pm

I have a lap steel on hand tuned to E Major for
teaching purposes and today cranked it to standard
guitar set up --E--B--G--D--A--E High to low.

I was surprised at what lies within this tuning
but it took a lot of patience and practice.

Used a little six string National.

Link to Mac The Knife Solo
http://www.fileqube.com/file/EceRqCGWM203681

Visit my site for email lessons Courses etc.

Happy Sunday to all. roythomson at eastlink dot ca

RT

Steinar Gregertsen · Post by **Steinar Gregertsen** » 28 Jun 2009 3:21 pm

You get some great harmonies from the standard tuning Ron, that was very interesting to hear.

Sometimes, at freelance gigs, I find that a certain tune needs some lap steel(ish) stuff, and not having brought my Asher I just sit down and play my regular guitar lap style in standard tuning, using a bottleneck as a bar.
Funny thing is I automatically phrase different then I would have if I had played it bottleneck style, even in the same standard tuning.

But that's only fills and lead, mostly single notes, nothing as harmonically advanced as you drew from the standard tuning here. Very interesting stuff..

Mark Bracewell · Post by **Mark Bracewell** » 28 Jun 2009 8:02 pm

Fantastic cocktail lounge sound! And very well played. I'll have another, and make it a double. I will try this for sure, thanks!

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 29 Jun 2009 9:42 am

Thanks for listening and the comments.

The tuning is not "strum friendly" so it
takes some digging. I ClicTabed this "measure
by measure" as I arranged it ..otherwise I
would have forgotten it.

May do some more in the future.

All the best.

Roy

Twayn Williams · Post by **Twayn Williams** » 29 Jun 2009 10:43 am

Nicely done!

"Standard" guitar tuning is an extended open tuning:

If you drop the low A from consideration, you're left with a perfectly viable em7 tuning: E-D-G-B-E. With the addition of the low A you have the 4th of the chord, or if you prefer, the 11th. This makes the tuning Em11:

E - root
B - P5
G - m3
D - m7
A - P4 (P11)
E - root

The more I look at this, the more tempted I am to put one of my lap steel into this tuning and give it some serious work!

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 29 Jun 2009 11:06 am

If you really want to have some fun...
just drop string 4 (D) to (C#) for an
A9th tuning.
You can play the Blues all week.

Link to Birch Blues: A9 tuning
Standard Guitar Tuning ..Drop D to C#

http://www.fileqube.com/file/rucnml203921

Joel Bloom · Post by **Joel Bloom** » 1 Jul 2009 7:43 am

I like it!! I play standard guitar tuning on all my lap guitars and just tune the A to a G (giving a 'strum-able' major chord on the middle 4 strings among many others). On Weissenborn I take this tuning down a tone. I find it great for solo pieces as well as backup ideas. Please feel free to visit my myspace link to hear this.
cheers-Joel

Doug Beaumier · Post by **Doug Beaumier** » 1 Jul 2009 8:49 am

Nice sound, Roy! I think of standard guitar tuning as G6 add2. I've never tried this tuning on a lap steel, but a couple of thoughts come to mind... strings 2,3,4 would make a major chord. 1,2,3 would be a minor chord. 1,2,3,4 would be minor7.

Grant Cuthbert · Post by **Grant Cuthbert** » 2 Jul 2009 1:33 am

well done. best sounding lap in that tuning ive heard

Michael Papenburg · Post by **Michael Papenburg** » 4 Jul 2009 11:18 am

As a small variation, tuning the A string up to B can provide some really interesting inversions. I used that tuning on a session once and really liked it. BTW, Nels Cline uses Standard Tuning on one of his lap steels.

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 4 Jul 2009 11:33 am

Interesting and informative comments and my
thanks.
There is a lot to be explored on the standard
set up. One could spend a life time with it.

Roy