TUNELIT

Foo Fighters · 2014 · Studio album

Sonic Highways tuning.

E Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured on the CD. All 8 songs use it.

Sonic Highways album cover

Album tuning

E Standard

At concert pitch (A 440), measured on the CD.

MeasuredCommunity

Tune like thisPlay alongAll 8 songs

Measured by TuneLit

At concert pitch

SourceOffsetEquivalent ASongsSpreadConfidence
CD, RCA 88843-09008-2−0.6 ¢A 439.88−2.3 to +2.2 ¢High
 Offset from concert pitch (A 440). Spread: the middle half of the songs, when four or more share the album's pitch. Confidence: how well the notes agree with one grid.

Before we measured, sources said: E Standard, with no pitch given (community).

Eight songs, each recorded in a different American city with local guests. All are tabbed in E Standard; Rick Nielsen (Something from Nothing) and Pat Smear (Congregation) add baritone guitar.

8 songs

Every song, ready to tune

Tune opens the tuner in that song's tuning, pitch included. Play along opens the song player set to that tuning, so the track plays in yours. What the labels mean

  1. 1. Something from Nothing

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Rick Nielsen of Cheap Trick adds a baritone guitar.

  2. 2. The Feast and the Famine

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  3. 3. Congregation

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Zac Brown guests; Pat Smear plays a baritone guitar.

  4. 4. What Did I Do? / God as My Witness

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Gary Clark Jr. guests on guitar.

  5. 5. Outside

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along
    Notes

    Joe Walsh guests on guitar.

  6. 6. In the Clear

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  7. 7. Subterranean

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

  8. 8. I Am a River

    E StandardMeasured

    Tune Play along

What the labels mean

Measured
TuneLit measured the pitch on an original CD or LP. The tuning name still comes from the sources.
Official
The band, a member, their producer or their guitar tech said it.
Widely reported
Trusted outlets, guides and tabs agree, but the band did not say it directly.
Community
From community tabs, or from players who tune along with the record.
Disputed
Sources disagree. The likeliest setting is shown; the notes name the other one.

Each song shows one label, the strongest it has, in this order. How we measure recordings →

Questions

What tuning is Sonic Highways in?

Foo Fighters recorded Sonic Highways (2014) in E Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured by TuneLit on the CD. Every song uses it.