Day 3 - Start Me Up - In Open G
In this video
Welcome to open G tuning – the secret weapon behind countless Rolling Stones classics. Start Me Up is the perfect introduction, teaching you the essential Keith Richards chord shape you'll use throughout this course.
What You Will Learn:
• How to tune your guitar to open G (D-G-D-G-B-D)
• The signature Keith Richards chord shapes (including just 1 finger!)
• The iconic opening riff and how to play on the offbeat
• Verse and chorus chord positions
• The thumb-over technique for muting string 6
• Introduction to guitar weaving with a looper pedal!
Open G Tuning Setup
To get into open G, tune string 1 down to D (a whole step from E), and string 5 down to G (a whole step from A). When you strum from string 5 down, you're playing a G major chord. You can optionally tune string 6 to D as well, though it's often muted with the thumb.
The Signature Chord Shape
An iconic chord shape (The Keith Richard signature!), in open G tuning uses your middle and ring fingers on adjacent strings while the index finger barres all other strings. Another perk of Open G tuning is 1 finger major chords – All open strings is a G, at fret 5 this creates a C chord and move it to fret 7 for D. These shapes appear in Start Me Up, Brown Sugar, Honky Tonk Women, and virtually every open G Stones song.
The Riff Breakdown
The opening riff starts on the offbeat – count "1-2-3-4-and" and come in on the "and." One strum with a flat first finger bar at fret 5, then two strums of the Keith Richards chord shape is going to get you that sound of the riff which everyone will recognise! This early beat one creates that urgent, driving rock and roll feel.
Guitar Weaving Introduction
Using a looper pedal, you essentially get to jam and experiment with 2 guitar parts – just like Ronnie and Keith. Here you can learn to vary your rhythm while keeping the groove – sometimes playing the full riff, other times trying new and contrasting or complimentary ideas. This concept of not doubling exactly what another guitarist plays is the foundation of the Stones' signature weaving style.