If you're in a rut, fingers going to the same chords and licks they've been going to for decades, there's nothing like changing the tuning of your axe. Here are some alternate guitar tunings to try, as well as some examples from this site (many are bare improv tunes). Notation is low string to high string, ABCDEFG and 'b' and '#", e.g. Bb is "bee flat":
tuning |
examples |
DADGAC |
comes to mind (together), catch (live, 2019), Catch (capo 4, 1991), talking to cacti (2007), talking to cacti (1990), will be (capo 2, 1998), ice (capo 4, improv, 1997) |
DADGAD |
hot pursuit (improv, 2009) |
DADFAD |
back in the garden again (capo 4, video), outta town blues (2009), wanda (1995), Zoe said to Wanda (1995), Zoe said to Wanda (1992), we feel the beat (improv, 1995) |
CGCGCD |
|
CGCGBbD |
spider (1995), deep root vibration (1995), deep root vibration (1992), cars (improv, 1996), moon knight (1991), woods / junior (improv, 1994), saturday morning (improv, 1995) |
CGCGBbEb |
the big dream (2008), the big dream (1996, 2 of the 4 gits), earth (improv, 1994) |
CGCGBbE |
pen digital disc (acoustic gits, 1995), turkey sandwich (improv, 1994) |
CGCGCEb |
originality (improv, 1994), the big dream (1996, 2 of the 4 gits), take off (improv, 1996) |
DGDGBD |
what's that mountain doing? (2014) , sunsets (live, 2017), sunsets (2014), onward (mix 1 - base tracks, 2017), time after time jam (improv/cover, 2014), back to major noodling (improv, 2014), playroom rambler (improv, 2014), opener (improv, 2014) |
DGDGBbD |
electric city (1992), electric city jam (improv, 2014), bramble (walking in the rain) (improv, 1994), lovin' life (improv, 1995), obtuse (improv, 2014), electric mountain (improv, 2014), late December stillness (improv, 2014) |
FGDGBbD |
dumb & numb (capo 4, improv, 1994) |
DADF#AD |
country rain (1991) |
FADGAC |
ninenteenninetyfive (1995) |
EADGBbD |
meaningless (1999) |
CGCFAD |
wonderful (2013) |
DADGBE |
drop-D --too many to list |