Guns N' Roses · 2008 · Studio album
Chinese Democracy tuning.
E♭ Standard at concert pitch (A 440). 6 of 14 songs are tuned differently.
Not measured yet
TuneLit has not measured this record. The tuning comes from community sources, at concert pitch unless they say otherwise.
Recorded over about a decade with a changing line-up: Robin Finck, Buckethead, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Richard Fortus and Paul Tobias on guitars, Tommy Stinson on bass. It is the band's most varied album for tuning: E♭ Standard for most songs, Drop D for the title track and Sorry, Drop C♯ for Better, Drop B for Shackler's Revenge and plain E Standard for If the World and Madagascar. The album is not in TuneLit's library, so these come from tabs only.
14 songs · 6 tuned differently
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
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1. Chinese Democracy
Different tuning
Drop DCommunity
Notes
How to get there from E Standard: String 6 down a whole step (E → D); the other strings stay.
Transcribed in Drop D at standard pitch (D A D G B E), a half step above the band's usual E♭, on Songsterr and Ultimate Guitar alike.
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2. Shackler's Revenge
Different tuning
Drop BDisputed
Notes
How to get there from the album's E♭ Standard: String 6 down 4 half steps (E♭ → B), String 5 down a whole step (A♭ → F♯), String 4 down a whole step (D♭ → B), String 3 down a whole step (G♭ → E), String 2 down a whole step (B♭ → G♯), String 1 down a whole step (E♭ → C♯).
String 6 sits 5 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 55 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .061 string, or a baritone guitar.
Guitars by Buckethead, Robin Finck and Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal; the song first came out in Rock Band 2.
Songsterr and the best-rated Guitar Pro tab on Ultimate Guitar use Drop B (B F♯ B E G♯ C♯); other tabs use Drop C♯ and one uses Drop B♭. Check the low riff by ear.
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3. Better
Different tuning
Drop C♯Community
Notes
How to get there from the album's E♭ Standard: String 6 down a whole step (E♭ → C♯); the other strings stay.
Co-written by Robin Finck. The live version with Slash and Duff McKagan since 2016 is also tabbed in Drop C♯.
Mostly transcribed in Drop D a half step down (C♯ G♯ C♯ F♯ A♯ D♯), so the top five strings match the band's usual E♭; one newer Songsterr version uses Drop D at standard pitch.
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4. Street of Dreams
E♭ StandardCommunity
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5. If the World
Different tuning
E StandardDisputed
Notes
How to get there from the album's E♭ Standard: Every string up a half step.
The song plays over the end credits of the film Body of Lies.
Songsterr transcribes it in E Standard; the main Guitar Pro tab on Ultimate Guitar uses E♭ Standard.
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6. There Was a Time
E♭ StandardCommunity
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7. Catcher in the Rye
E♭ StandardCommunity
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8. Scraped
E♭ StandardCommunity
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9. Riad N' the Bedouins
E♭ StandardCommunity
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10. Sorry
Different tuning
Drop DDisputed
Notes
How to get there from E Standard: String 6 down a whole step (E → D); the other strings stay.
A slow power ballad written by Buckethead and drummer Brain with Axl Rose.
Both Songsterr tabs use Drop D at standard pitch; the best-rated Guitar Pro tab on Ultimate Guitar uses E♭ Standard.
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11. I.R.S.
E♭ StandardCommunity
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12. Madagascar
Different tuning
E StandardDisputed
Notes
How to get there from the album's E♭ Standard: Every string up a half step.
Slash has said his live parts have drifted far from the original.
Both Songsterr versions use E Standard; several Guitar Pro tabs on Ultimate Guitar use E♭, one of them only because it is the band's usual tuning.
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13. This I Love
E♭ StandardCommunity
Notes
A piano ballad Axl Rose wrote in 1992. The guitars are in E♭ Standard; the dropped bass string is the only difference.
The guitars are in E♭ Standard on every tab.
Bass: Bass Drop C♯ Tune bass
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14. Prostitute
E♭ StandardCommunity
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 Chinese Democracy in?
Guns N' Roses recorded Chinese Democracy (2008) in E♭ Standard at concert pitch (A 440), from community sources. 6 songs use other tunings or pitches, listed song by song on this page.