Double drop D tuning: DADGBD, also known simply as double drop D, is an alternative

guitar tuning Guitar tunings are the assignment of pitches to the open strings of guitars, including acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and classical guitars. Tunings are described by the particular pitches that are made by notes in Western music. By ...

: both E strings are tuned down ("dropped") one whole step (2 frets) to D rather than E as in

standard tuning In music, standard tuning refers to the typical Musical tuning, tuning of a string instrument. This notion is contrary to that of scordatura, i.e. an alternate tuning designated to modify either the timbre or technical capabilities of the desired i ...

(EADGBE).

Uses of double dropped D tuning

The main use for double dropped D is so that guitarists can play intervals of a fifth with one finger on the bass strings, and play the treble side of a barre chord. Some recordings that make effective use of this tuning are " Black Water" by

The Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in 1970 in San Jose, California, known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies. Active for five decades, with their greatest success in the 1970s, ...

, " The Loner," "

Cortez the Killer "Cortez the Killer" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young from his 1975 album, '' Zuma''. It was recorded with the band Crazy Horse. It has since been ranked No. 39 on '' Guitar World's'' 100 Greatest Guitar Solos and No. 329 on '' R ...

," "

Don't Let It Bring You Down "Don't Let It Bring You Down" is the seventh track on Neil Young's 1970 studio album ''After the Gold Rush''. Background The song was written by Young. It also appears on the 1971 Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young live album ''4 Way Street'' as well ...

," "

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

" and "

Cinnamon Girl "Cinnamon Girl" is a song by Neil Young. It debuted on the 1969 album ''Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere'', which was also Young's first album with backing band Crazy Horse. Songwriting Music Like two other songs from ''Everybody Knows This ...

" by

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Furay ...

, "

Choctaw Bingo "Choctaw Bingo" is a southern rock song written and performed by musician James McMurtry and appears on his album ''Saint Mary of the Woods'' and ''Live In Aught Three''. The song is an up beat, honky-tonk style narrative (ballad), having no chor ...

" and "We Can't Make It Here" by

James McMurtry James McMurtry (born March 18, 1962, in Fort Worth, Texas) is an American rock and folk rock/americana singer, songwriter, guitarist, bandleader, and occasional actor (''Daisy Miller'', ''Lonesome Dove'', and narrator of ''Ghost Town: 24 Hours i ...

, "

Find the Cost of Freedom Find, FIND or Finding may refer to: Computing * find (Unix), a command on UNIX platforms * find (Windows), a command on DOS/Windows platforms Books * ''The Find'' (2010), by Kathy Page * ''The Find'' (2014), by William Hope Hodgson Film and te ...

" by

Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN) were a folk rock supergroup made up of American singer-songwriters David Crosby and Stephen Stills and English singer-songwriter Graham Nash. When joined by Canadian singer-songwriter Neil Young as a fourth member, ...

, "

Going to California "Going to California" is a ballad recorded by the English rock band Led Zeppelin. It was released on their untitled fourth album in 1971. In 2012, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked "Going to California" number 11 on their list of the 40 greatest Led Zep ...

" by

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

, "

The End The End may refer to: Films * ''The End'' (1953 film), a film by Christopher Maclaine * ''The End'' (1978 film), a comedy by Burt Reynolds * ''The End'' (1997 film), a Canadian film of 1997 * ''The End'' (1998 film), a skateboarding document ...

" by

The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

, "

Devils & Dust ''Devils & Dust'' is the thirteenth studio album by American recording artist Bruce Springsteen, and his third acoustic album (after ''Nebraska'' and ''The Ghost of Tom Joad''). It was released on April 25, 2005, in Europe and the following day in ...

" by

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

, "Satellite" by

Elliott Smith Steven Paul Smith (August 6, 1969 – October 21, 2003), known professionally as Elliott Smith, was an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Smith was born in Omaha, Nebraska, raised primarily in Texas, and lived much of hi ...

, " Overkill" by

Men At Work Men at Work are an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne in 1978 and best known for breakthrough hits such as "Down Under", "Who Can It Be Now?", "Be Good Johnny", " Overkill", and " It's a Mistake". Its founding member and frontman is Coli ...

, "

Bryter Layter ''Bryter Layter'' is the second studio album by English folk singer-songwriter Nick Drake. Recorded in 1970 and released on 5 March 1971 by Island Records, it would be his last album to feature backing musicians, as his next and final studio ...

" by

Nick Drake Nicholas Rodney Drake (19 June 1948 – 25 November 1974) was an English singer-songwriter known for his acoustic guitar-based songs. He did not find a wide audience during his lifetime, but his work gradually achieved wider notice and recognit ...

and "

Nobody's Fault but My Own "Nobody's Fault but My Own" is a song by American musician Beck. The song was released in 1998 on his album ''Mutations'', and was released as a single in Japan only on April 21, 1999. The CD single came backed with the exclusive tracks "One of Th ...

" by

Beck Beck David Hansen (born Bek David Campbell; July 8, 1970) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He rose to fame in the early 1990s with his Experimental music, experimental and Lo-fi music, lo-fi style, and became ...

Examples of chords in dropped D tuning

Chords Chord may refer to: * Chord (music), an aggregate of musical pitches sounded simultaneously ** Guitar chord a chord played on a guitar, which has a particular tuning * Chord (geometry), a line segment joining two points on a curve * Chord (as ...

in double dropped D tuning are formed as they are in standard tuning, with the exception of the first and sixth strings, which are either omitted or fretted one whole step higher: Note that these chords are not the power chords commonly played in double drop D tuning. Power chords generally mute the higher notes rather than the lower notes: For purposes of making the table easier to read, spaces are provided between each number when the fret number becomes a double digit. Some examples of the simplified barre chords are shown below. Chords involving the minor third may be more difficult to fret.

References

{{Guitar tunings Guitar tunings