Original chords are: E C#m B A
But they have it tabbed as: G Em D C
What do I tune my guitar to instead of standard?
Capo 9 is a bit difficult...
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4Just curious - why do you want to do this?– StrawberryDec 5, 2020 at 16:37
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Gillian Welch / David Rawlings do this a surprising amount, and point it out by saying, "look at all this guitar I'm not using!"– brnlmrryDec 6, 2020 at 6:43
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I found an example - youtu.be/WR1BUVFToSE?t=1027 - in this video you can see that Dave is playing with capo 9 (G shapes), while Gillian is using capo 4 (C shapes, as described in @Tim's answer below).– brnlmrryDec 6, 2020 at 6:55
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For Future reference, click the link to find a very useful chart that allows you to determine where to put a capo to play any key using any set of Chord Shapes. music.stackexchange.com/a/30935/16897– Rockin CowboyDec 6, 2020 at 8:10
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Would you consider buying a 7-string guitar? Capo 3 works there. Otherwise, you're buying big strings or playing up high.– J...Dec 6, 2020 at 18:49
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2 Answers
John's is the only answer - if you need to stick to G. I guess for the shape(s).
Other options are available. With capo on fret 4, there's C Am G F.
Capo on fret 2, there's D Bm A G.
Both of which coincidentally contain the 'G shape'. You ask about 'using G shapes', which will be practically impossible in any key - after all, there's a minor shape in there! But I'm sure that's not exactly what you meant. But with the last two options, at least you get to play a 'G shape' chord !
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1Good point, I thought of other options too but decided not to mention them. I figured it was either a TAB chart he wants to play or no barre chords allowed. It could even be played in E for that matter. Dec 5, 2020 at 17:25
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@JohnBelzaguy - yes, you could get away with E, E6 (open), B7 and A, although E6 is not a perfect sub for C#m.– TimDec 5, 2020 at 17:33
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1For that matter, as mentioned in a recent question about a B chord with no barre, both chords can be played without a barre, B as x2444x and C#m as x4665x, fingered 1234 and 1243 respectively. My money is on the OP wanting to play a specific TAB arrangement. Dec 5, 2020 at 17:47
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Yes, there are a couple of voicings/fingerings for those chords. B as xx4442, C#m as x466x0, although there are those out there who must have root positions!– TimDec 5, 2020 at 18:13
The only other option I can think of if you want to play the song in E with G shapes is to tune down 3 semitones to C#, F#, B, E, G#, C# from low to high. That is a pretty large interval to detune so unless you use heavy strings the strings would probably be too loose and floppy.
answered Dec 5, 2020 at 8:27
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Yes. Not only will the strings be very floppy, the chords themselves will sound a bit questionable – Specifically the low E-G♯ in the G-shape E-chord is dangerously close to the lower interval limit. For a piece with only acoustic guitar and vocals it's probably ok, but for anything else I'd have my doubts. Dec 5, 2020 at 14:52
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@leftaroundabout I thought of the low interval limit myself so I lowered my nylon string to hear what it would sound like and it actually sounded ok, pretty beefy. The low 3rd interval is a potential problem with the G shape though. Dec 5, 2020 at 17:16
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1@leftaroundabout - there's always the option of using heavier strings, but that won't work for just this one song. Time to buy another guitar! Or - learn to play barre chords, maybe?– TimDec 5, 2020 at 19:19
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I know of an artist who tunes a Strat-style guitar BEADF#B, and with careful attention to string tension and_much_ larger nut slots, it plays like any other guitar. It's the setup and having another guitar that make it an issue; I want a guitar like that but don't have a spare ATM. But yeah, much much much easier to just learn barre chords. Dec 5, 2020 at 23:31
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@DaveJacoby so he turned it into a baritone guitar, interesting, wonder how it plays. Dec 6, 2020 at 1:21