Who was using Chicago tuning in early Jazz and Western Swing?

Premier Sponsors

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue, we will assume that you agree to our privacy policy which includes details of cookie usage. Hide this notice

Chicago tuning DGBE

Join This Group

I've decided to start this group as a place to share resources about guitar tuned banjo.

35 Members, Created 3/11/2017 -

Administrators: cb56 (owner)

< Back to Home

From shedstomp on 10/12/2020 6:46:35 AM

Hey everyone -- I'm interested in the history of Chicago tuning but I can't seem to find much information about it. I'm trying to compile a list of players who used DGBE on banjos (or tenor guitars) back in the day. Does anyone have any information about this?

I'm pretty sure these guys were using DGBE on their tenor guitars. Take a look/listen -- what do you think?

Ken Trietsch from Hoosier Hot Shots (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRjcdagNKPY)
John Mills Jr. from the Mills Brothers (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtqpyMvI3D4)

6 Comments
	john bange says: 10/12/2020 7:34:49 AM hope you get some comments...pretty quiet group I'm DGBE on everything...baritone uke, banjo, tenor guitar and even dDGGBBEE on a bouzouki
	bassfiddlesteve says: 10/12/2020 9:26:20 AM Based on the chord voicing and fingerings, I'm pretty sure that both Ken Trietsch and John Mills Jr. used CGDA tuning on their tenor guitars. Tiny Grimes used Chicago tuning on his tenor guitar: youtube.com/watch?v=DzVRc_ObYwk I don't know of any early jazz banjoists who used Chicago tuning. Eddie Condon used plectrum tuning on both tenor and plectrum guitars.
	shedstomp says: 10/12/2020 10:32:05 AM john bange -- yes me too! Tommy Tedesco did the same thing. My guess is that there are many of us out there. I guess we will see as the thread develops. bassfiddlesteve - Tiny Grimes, thank you! I'll have to sit down with a few more Hoosier Hot Shots and Mills Brothers videos with my banjo or uke in hand. I went through a big Mills Brothers kick a year or so ago and I convinced myself that he's using DGBE. Could be wrong though...
	bassfiddlesteve says: 10/12/2020 11:21:28 AM I play guitar and uke so when I started playing banjo in the trad jazz band I play with I chose Chicago tuning. I used the recent down to re-learn the instrument using plectrum tuning. When I was playing gigs every month I didn't have the time to re-learn all new chord shapes.
	shedstomp says: 10/13/2020 6:43:32 AM bassfiddlesteve - awesome! I hope you have time to help analyze some videos because someone with your skill set will be really helpful for this! Found another Mills Brothers video that shows John a little more clearly, then tried to learn some of it and play along: loom.com/share/fd40637ef0e34b0...cc5bc015c
	shedstomp says: 10/13/2020 6:56:08 AM In the video, I'm playing a baritone uke (DGBE) on just the top 3 strings. The song is in E, and I'm starting with a "D-shaped" chord (think D but moved up by 2 frets). John uses some different fingers than me to make some of the chords -- I notice this on the A7. I think he's using his ring and middle finger, whereas I use my index and middle. It looks and sounds to me like we are playing the same chords, except that he is down 2 frets from me. So, I think he is using Chicago tuning, but raised up by a full step. Mills Brothers are a singing group, so I would guess that they tuned however they felt they needed to in order to get the right feel in the vocals. They didn't need to worry about playing/tuning in keys that matched piano, horns, or anything else. What do ya'll think? And bassfiddlesteve -- as someone with plectrum and chicago tuning experience, do you think this adds up?
Post a Comment
You must be logged in and a member of this group to post a comment.

Tablature: CAGED Major moveable Linked by cb56 8 years ago
Tablature: Maj. Min. Dom7 moveable Chords Linked by cb56 9 years ago
Tablature: Chicago Tuning Jazz Chord Chart with Inversions Linked by cb56 9 years ago
Tablature: Banks of the Ohio Linked by cb56 9 years ago
Tablature: Sidewalks of New York Linked by cb56 9 years ago
Tablature: Boubon Street Parade Linked by cb56 9 years ago: Old Dixieland Standard