5 Amazing Acoustic Instrumentals in Open D Tuning
Open D tuning has a long, rich history, and is a wonderful tuning for composing in any genre. Below are five wonderful instrumental guitar songs composed in open D by five of the all-time greatest guitarists.
1. Blind Willie Johnson, "Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground"
Recorded in 1927, this is one of the 27 songs that is currently hurling through interstellar space on the Voyager spacecraft.
Johnson achieved his unforgettable, haunting playing style with the help of a penknife that he used as a slide. The song is without a doubt one of the most moving pieces of music I’ve ever heard.
2. Duane Allman, "Little Martha"
A duet played by Duane Allman and Dickey Betts, recorded in 1971. Leo Kottke has called this song “the most perfect guitar song ever written”. It’s an absolutely stunning duet that somehow manages to be uplifting and melancholic at the same time.
The guitars in this song are actually tuned somewhere between open E and F, so if you want to play along to the song, you’ll have to tune your guitar to the record. For those of you who normally tune to open D, you can just slap a capo on the second fret so that you’re in E, and then fine-tune to the recording.
3. Ry Cooder, "Cherry Ball Blues"
Released on the 1972 album “Boomer’s Story”. This song is an instrumental arrangement of Skip James’ song “Cherry Ball Blues”, originally released in 1931, and re-recorded by Skip re-recorded it in 1966.
Ry’s version has a band behind it, but it’s all held together by the acoustic guitar in Open D. This song has a great groove and melody. No one’s trying to play a million notes a second—everyone’s in it together, for the sake of the song.
4. John Fahey, "Orinda-Moraga"
Another guitarist who owes a debt to Skip James, Fahey developed the genre known as “American primitive”. The open tuning of the guitar allows for wonderful droning sounds that are great for self-accompaniment.
This song was released in 1965 as part of the album “The Transfiguration of Blind Joe Death”. As with all the other guitarists in this list, it’s worth checking out Fahey’s entire catalogue.
5. Leo Kottke, "Watermelon"
Leo Kottke has one of the most distinct, joyful playing styles I’ve heard. In this song his huge 12-string sound barrels forward, propelled by his wonderfully rhythmic fingerpicking. And when he adds a guitar slide into the mix, he sounds like an orchestra all by himself.
His 1981 album Guitar Music might be my favorite instrumental guitar album of all time.
What are some of your favorite songs in Open D? Let us know in the comments. If you’re interested in improving your playing in open tuning, check out our three hour video course, music theory book, and private lesson opportunities. And stay tuned, more articles about Open D songs and artists are on the way!
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I play lapstyle dobro and play around with open D. Leo Kottke and John Fahey had an fluence since my coffeehouse days.
Although not in the tuning of DADGAD, like these tunes, an interesting song in the tuning of DADAAD is Save It For Later by The (English) Beat.
Sweet tune, thanks for sharing Samuel!
Great! They’re a wonderful influence on anyone’s playing. I wish they were even more widely known.
Another great instrumental piece I open D is Swamp Dog Blues by Mike Dowling… Among the very first songs I learned by myself in this tuning.
That’s a great one, thanks for sharing!
Feeling bad blues by Ry Cooder is a great song in open D.
Great song, thanks Danny!
Leo Kottke’s “Burnt Lips” from the album of the same name is worth a listen (as is the entire album).
Excellent album, thanks Geoff!