acoustic music lessons Archives

November 30, 2021November 30, 2021

Pickin’ in Open D and DADGAD Guitar Tuning

Spice it up a notch

Sometimes, my guitar pickin’ all sounds the same, and sooo… “predictable.” At least it sounds that way to me, and that ain’t no fun. A quick way to spice it up is with a new tuning. I often turn to the open D tuning and DADGAD to add the flavors I have been missing.

Open D Tuning

Drop your first string to D, second string down to A, third down to F#, leave the fourth as D, the fifth stays at A, and the sixth string tunes down to D. At first, it’s fussy with all the button turning on your tuning machines, but it’s worth it. And since you are taking tension off the strings and the neck it is a very stable tuning. I use open D to add something fresh-sounding to my repertoire without having to learn something new. For instance, I can take a song that I play in open G and directly translate that to open D by moving my fingering up a course of strings. (A melody line played on the third string in open G is played on the fourth string of open D tuning) With very minor modifications, I have a great old familiar song, in a new key, and in a fresh-sounding timbre.

DADGAD Tuning

DADGAD – named for the notes of the open strings, is only different from open D by how you tune the third string… An open G note versus an F# is open D. This makes the open strum a D sus 3^rd. This change in timbre and tuning ‘plays’ more radical than the simplicity of the tuning would lead you to believe. This is a great tuning for composition and experimentation.

Below is a diagram of how the simple 1 – 4 – 5 chord progression compares between the open G, open D, and DADGAD tunings.

Below is a link to my video where I am demonstrating my approach to the Open D and DADGAD tunings.

Can I gitcha some FREE stuff?

I would like to invite you to subscribe to my blog. That way you won’t miss any of my acoustic and traditional music ramblings. When you subscribe to the NekkidMusic.com blog, you get FREE get-started e-guides to learning the 5-string banjo AND the ukulele! You will learn the basic blocking and tackling to get you started playing chords, rolls, strums, and fun old tunes. Please subscribe!

Also – take a leisurely look at my general store where I keep some links to important things that you can buy to help your pickin’. >>> Link to NekkidMusic.com general store <<<

Thanks for stoppin’ by today! Ya’ll come back and we’ll do some pickin’.

March 9, 2020May 17, 2020

Two Fun Banjo Songs I Learned To Play WRONG

Not how J.D. played it

Being an individual is a beautiful thing. Yet it seems that being a banjo picker has one overriding motto. “Always be yourself, unless you can be J.D.*, then always be J.D.” *Actually, you can insert any icon’s name for ‘J.D.’ – Earl, Ralph, Sonny, Bela, or Allison, so on. It always hurts a bit to hear “that ain’t how J.D. played it” as a commentary to your carefully crafted, totally unique, jazz fusion solo to ‘Old Home Place.’ In this post, I am actually headed somewhere else, though. I learned these songs “wrong” because I picked them up on the wrong instrument, but then ended up loving to play them.

I’ve looked at bluegrass from both sides now

I picked up an LP copy of ‘The Earl Scruggs Review, Live at Kansas State’ and heard Randy Scruggs play a wonderful version of the Joni Mitchell classic ‘Both Sides Now.’ I had to learn it… Like ‘right now!’ I didn’t have a guitar available, but there sat my trusty old banjo. An hour later, I had a fun little version worked out. Inspired by, or better an homage, to a foundational folk/pop songwriter and a late great guitarist. Both true favorites of mine. Hats off Joni, and Randy. It was all wrong but really felt right. That was years ago and I have never forgotten a lick.

But what does it all mean?

OK, I am a huge fan of the viral video from Yosemitebear. For the Harold Arlen and Yip Harburg classic, ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow,’ I immediately knew the answer to the question, ‘but what does it all mean?’ It meant that I needed to learn it on the banjo. In fact, I learned it as an instrumental version of a standard crooning ballad, and breakdown style. My friends would ask me, “Have you heard Tuck Andress? Have you played it on your ES335?” The answers, yes of course, and no – I don’t wanna. I wanna play it as I learnt it… “WRONG.”

Being musically unique

I do enjoy learning the note-by-note versions of banjo solos from the masters. In fact when a friend shared the TAB for a note-by-note transcription of Allison Brown’s mind-blowing ‘Leaving Cottondale,’ I thought I would wet myself with joy. (I didn’t, thank goodness, but it was close, very close.) But I have to say, I find the better angels of my instrumental covers to be found dwelling in the versions that are more uniquely… ‘me.’

How to catch a one-of-a-kind rabbit… Unique up on him.

So be yourself. Pick up your banjo, and figure out that swing-chord version of Sally Goodin. I swear Earl will smile down on ya, and J.D. will at least give ya an approving wink. And – ‘I’ WANT TO HEAR IT! Sally Goodin is doggone hard to play, and western swing fiddle versions are my favorite.

Listen up

Below is my video so you can give witness to nekkidly true confessions about my song learnin’ wrong-doin’.

Also, do yourself a favor and crane an ear to these great albums that influenced me, and so many of our contemporaries. These are really different genres, but as my old Dad used to say… “it will stretch your ears out somethin’ fierce, but it’s good for ya, we call it growth.”

Amazon links to:

Live At Kansas State / Earl Scruggs Revue / Rockin Cross The Country

Tuck Andress… Over The Rainbow / If I Only Had A Brain

FREE stuff!

I would like to invite you to subscribe to my blog. That way you won’t miss any of my acoustic and traditional music ramblings. When you subscribe to the NekkidMusic.com blog, you get a FREE get started e-guide to learn the 5-string banjo! You will learn the basic blocking and tackling to get you started playing chords, rolls, and fun old tunes on the instrument that launched the ship that Earl sailed upon. (I hear angels singing.) Please subscribe!

Also please take a look at my general store when I keep some links to important things that you can buy to help your pickin’. >>> Link to NekkidMusic.com general store <<<

As always, ya’ll come back and we’ll pick a spell.

February 24, 2020May 17, 2020

Two weird banjo mutes to get your mellow on

The banjo can be a drunkin, loud-talker.

Banjo playing is a blast! That hard-driving, joyous sound is great fun and quite addictive. Everyone should try it. There will come a time however, that a song requires subtlety and finesse. Suddenly having a banjo hung on ya is like trying to have a subdued conversation with a hard-of-hearing, loud-talking, kinda drunkin’, friend. Y’all have one of those friends don’t ya? Anything but subtle. Not to worry, maybe your banjo just needs a voice with a tad more diverse inflection and dimension available for your pickin’. I have a little trick with a hole in it, that I have used for years, and I am more than happy to share it with ya.

Discovering the internal banjo mute

I was in my dad’s workshop studying a beautiful Bacon and Day plectrum banjo with a knee mute, mentioning how, with modification, that is something a bluegrass player might really be able to use to control any harsh overtones and helping the instrument play and record with a sweeter voice. My dad told me about Bobby Thompson’s muting technique of wedging and taping a towel to the underside of his banjo head. I immediately began experimenting.

Mellow-Yellow-Muting-Method

Over the years, I have settled on cutting a thick grout sponge to the basic silhouette of my tailpiece and wedging it under between the head and top coordinator rod (see below). If I place it in the “Y” position, up close to the neck, as Thompson did with his towel mute, it took away too many overtones and with them some of the personality of my instrument (at least to my taste). Placing the mute under the tailpiece, it trims some overtones from the trailing end of any sustain and also hides the strange, industrial yellow color of the sponge under the profile of the tailpiece.

Muting the tailpiece (didn’t see that one coming didja?)

I had just received my custom Greenbrier banjo from Sullivan, and it was by a full pound and a half the heaviest banjo I had ever owned. My wife bought me a Gold Tone cradle strap as a gift to help hoist the beast across my belly a bit better. With the strap, she included a great Gold Tone “ultimate” banjo mute. It just pinches onto the bridge. It works great as a bridge mute, but I discovered a little surprise… When I slid it over the tailpiece just to hold on to it while gigging, it really helped to control tailpiece overtones, with similar impact of putting little gromets between the strings of a mandolin twixt the bridge and tailpiece. It worked on the Fultz, Presto, and even the two-hump clamshell tailpieces I had on my banjos. What a cool thing to discover!

The Gold Tone Ultimate Banjo Mute as a tailpiece mute

If you would like to take a closer look at the Gold Tone Ultimate Banjo Mute that I use, and maybe pick one up for yourself, just click here > Gold Tone Ultimate Banjo Mute < and you will be taken to the Amazon sales page for the mute. I love these things, take a look.

Voice Coach

I found that applying these two weird muting approaches leaves me with the full personality of my banjo, without the harsher overtones. Other “Sulli” banjo owners know how much crack, volume, and projection these expertly constructed instruments have. A little “strategic muting” has really given me a more diversely voiced instrument, that can slow dance like my daughter’s weddin’ on the beach, then shift down and drive like the Dales at Darlington.

Give it a spin

If you give these weird mutes a try please share how they worked out for you.

Peek-a-boograss

Please take a look at my video where I give y’all a peek and my weird, yet effective, mellow muting method for the banjo.

FREE stuff!

I would like to invite you to subscribe to my blog. That way you won’t miss any of my acoustic and traditional music ramblings. When you subscribe to the NekkidMusic.com blog, you get a FREE get started e-guide to learn the 5-string banjo! You will learn the basic blocking and tackling to get you started playing chords, rolls, and fun old tunes on the instrument that launched the ship that Earl sailed upon. (I hear angels singing.) Please subscribe!

Also please take a look at my general store when I keep some links to important things that you can buy to help your pickin’. >>> Link to NekkidMusic.com general store <<<

As always, ya’ll come back and pick a spell.