Queen · 1976 · Studio album
A Day at the Races tuning.
E Standard, about 21 cents flat (A ≈ 435), measured on the CD. 3 of 10 songs are tuned differently.
Album tuning
E Standard −21 ¢
About 21 cents flat (A ≈ 435), measured on the CD.
MeasuredWidely reported
Measured by TuneLit
21 ¢ flat
| Source | Offset | Equivalent A | Songs | Spread | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CD, Parlophone CDPCSD 131 (1993 Digital Master Series) | −20.6 ¢ | A 434.8 | 10 | −21.7 to −18.9 ¢ | High |
Before we measured, sources said: E Standard, with no pitch given (widely reported).
The flattest Queen album: E Standard about 21 ¢ flat (A ≈ 434.8) on EMI's 1993 CD. Long Away sits about 45 ¢ flat, White Man is in Drop D.
10 songs · 3 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. Tie Your Mother Down
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
May wrote it on a Spanish guitar in Tenerife in 1968 and plays the slide solo. The multi-tracked guitar introduction at the start reads close to concert pitch; the song after it sits with the album, about 21 ¢ flat, so tune to the main riff.
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2. You Take My Breath Away
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
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3. Long Away
Different pitch
E Standard −45 ¢Measured
Notes
May plays a Burns Double Six 12-string electric for the rhythm parts, in standard tuning. The record sits about 45 ¢ flat (A ≈ 428.7), steady through the song: almost halfway to E♭, and 24 ¢ below the album. The audio check hears E as the lowest string.
Tabbed in E Standard; the 12-string is in standard tuning.
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4. The Millionaire Waltz
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
Multi-key and multi-metre, with May's guitar choirs and Deacon's lead bass lines. It reads about 15 ¢ flat, close enough to share the album's value.
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5. You and I
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
Deacon's song in D major, with Deacon on acoustic guitar. Two parts of the Songsterr tab drop string 6 to D; the main ones stay in E Standard.
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6. Somebody to Love
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
In A♭ major on E Standard guitars, with the band's own voices as the choir. It sits with the album, about 21 ¢ flat (A ≈ 434.8).
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7. White Man
Different tuning
Drop D −21 ¢Measured
Notes
How to get there from the album's E Standard: String 6 down a whole step (E → D); the other strings stay.
Both guitar parts of the Songsterr tab are in Drop D, and the audio check hears D as the lowest string. The record sits at the album's pitch, about 21 ¢ flat.
Both guitar parts of the Songsterr tab are in Drop D, and an Ultimate Guitar transcriber says May plays it in Drop D too.
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8. Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
Mercury's piano song; May's guitar parts are in E Standard.
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9. Drowse
Different pitch
E Standard −10 ¢Measured
Notes
Taylor's song: he plays rhythm guitar and May the slide. It measures about 10 ¢ flat (A ≈ 437.6), 11 ¢ above the album.
Tabbed in E Standard.
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10. Teo Torriatte (Let Us Cling Together)
E Standard −21 ¢Measured
Notes
May's song, sung partly in Japanese; May plays piano and harmonium as well as guitar.
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.
- From tabs
- 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 A Day at the Races in?
Queen recorded A Day at the Races (1976) in E Standard, about 21 cents flat (A ≈ 435), measured by TuneLit on the CD. Long Away uses E Standard −45 ¢; White Man uses Drop D −21 ¢; Drowse uses E Standard −10 ¢.
Why does A Day at the Races sound out of tune with my guitar?
The record sits about 21 cents flat (A ≈ 435), so a guitar tuned to A 440 clashes with it. The Tune buttons on this page set the tuner's reference to match the record, song by song, so you only tune the strings.