half step down for songs do you?

[neastguy]

bring two guitars or use a pedal to go down a 1/2? thanks... your thoughts

 

[PatrickE_FenderADV]

We now play all our songs half a step down... Makes it easier on the singers.

 

[buddastrat]

They have pedals to mimic tuning down? Crazy. I always brought one guitar to a gig, I like to load out fast. Usually could just work around it. Play it as is, or change the key by a half step. It's okay to play in flat or sharp keys. Guitar players like to avoid those, but it's good thing to practice.

If there was certain tuning requirements like when you need those open strings, we might make the set list open with those, so we aren't tuning so much during a set. Sometimes, the whole set, so then I could just retune for next set.

But you could bring two guitars of course.

 

[prsnstrat]

Tried two guitars, changing the key and playing the songs differently. In the end none of them worked out practically at the gig so we now just tune everything down a half step and if the song requires standard tuning for some reason I will just capo up or play it differently. For some reason it always ended up easier to go up if need be. mmv.

 

[neastguy]

a song like " life in the fast lane" would be a pain to do 1/2 step down.. I always bring two guitars.. its only a couple songs that require 1/2 step.. hmm...

Ive tried half step down on everything and I remember the guitar being funky.. but I never did a true setup for 1/2 step.. but its been a long time....

 

[buddastrat]

a song like " life in the fast lane" would be a pain to do 1/2 step down.. I always bring two guitars.. its only a couple songs that require 1/2 step.. hmm...

Ive tried half step down on everything and I remember the guitar being funky.. but I never did a true setup for 1/2 step.. but its been a long time....

Isn't that tune in standard tuning? Yeah that's one of those open string tunes you kinda want, that I spoke of.

It's been awhile, but the slide might be in open E tune. Better bring 3 guitars!

 

[27sauce]

Dedicated guitar.

Speaking of open tunings, I have a dedicated open E guitar if its a song I can't fake in standard tuning. I fake slide parts sometimes too (gotten pretty good over the years), such as doing Life in the Fast Lane in a one guitar band.

 

[neastguy]

we do it now in standard tuning ( life in the fast lane ) with one guitar.. but I don't even use a slide and works out find.. I kinda just slide around on the solo but he is complaining its just a bit high to sing.. I'm thinking just tune down for the whole night or just do a set with 1/2 songs...

 

[27sauce]

Same here, no slide.

Is that the only song thats too high? In your situation I would just play everything on a half step down guitar. Sucks, but hey…

Could you possibly just tell him you tuned down?

 

[neastguy]

nah.. there are some other songs that would probably help him if we tuned down on too... we do "what is and what should never be" " summer of 69" " maniac" "dont bring me down" that get up there a bit...

 

[Jason_77]

This thread is a perfect example for why the Tronical min-e tune is useful. But anyway...

We each use a 2nd guitar for 1/2 step down an usually group a number of those songs together so we're doing a block of 5 or 6.

 

[ixnay]

Every band I've been in played everything a 1/2 step down.

 

[Analog Kid]

I usually dedicate one guitar for gigs where we 1/2 step down. However, sometimes the guitar I want to use changes. This is why it helps to be able to do your own setups. I usually just step up a gauge (10s to 11s) and make whatever minor saddle adjustments might needed. Has worked great for over the last 5-6 years.

 

[djy8131]

I keep my backup guitar tuned half a step down for songs that require it.

 

[Joeld]

Didn't know they had pedals that can do that....I always brought another guitar tuned correctly.

 

[serial]

For the life of me, I don't get why people can't play any song 1/2 step down. Play the same notes, people-it's to help the singer hit the now lower high notes. Nothing changes for the guitar player other than the tuning. Most bands I've played in since my thirties play everything in Eflat. For some reason, I've worked with some guys who can't adjust-even though some of these guys are great players otherwise.

You'll be playing Kiss, Van Halen and Poison like they are on the record

 

[ixnay]

For the life of me, I don't get why people can't play any song 1/2 step down. Play the same notes, people-it's to help the singer hit the now lower high notes. Nothing changes for the guitar player other than the tuning. Most bands I've played in since my thirties play everything in Eflat. For some reason, I've worked with some guys who can't adjust-even though some of these guys are great players otherwise.

You'll be playing Kiss, Van Halen and Poison like they are on the record

I was thinking the same thing reading some of these responses. I can't imagine switching guitars for songs that are standard vs 1/2 step down.

Every band I've played in, and just about every local band I know of, tune down a 1/2 step. If the song was originally in standard, it gets played a 1/2 step lower. If the song was originally a 1/2 step down, it gets played like the recording. There was even a song we did that was recorded a 1/2 step above standard (Gone Away - Offspring), so when we did it it was a whole step lower than the recording.

I doubt anyone ever noticed, and if they did, they never complained.

 

[27sauce]

We play in record keys, it's easier that way. We play with a few different singers and its so simple to say its in record key than have to remember which are a step down, half step up, half step down…just play them like the record, no details to remember

We dropped a couple of songs for a singer recently and its been biting me in the ass lately.

 

[robmarch]

I don't see the issue with just playing everything down, as long as there are no keyboards in the band. seems like keyboard would be the easiest instrument to transpose down a half step, though...

 

[djy8131]

I don't see the issue with just playing everything down, as long as there are no keyboards in the band. seems like keyboard would be the easiest instrument to transpose down a half step, though...

Our keyboard player can just hit a button to play down a half step if she doesn't want to transpose it on the fly