Queens of the Stone Age · ...Like Clockwork · song 2
I Sat by the Ocean tuning.
I Sat by the Ocean (Queens of the Stone Age, 2013) is in E Standard at concert pitch (A 440), measured by TuneLit from the record.
Measured by TuneLit
At concert pitch
The album's value, measured on the CD.
Queens of the Stone Age · ...Like Clockwork · 2013
About I Sat by the Ocean
I Sat by the Ocean, a single from …Like Clockwork (2013), is in E Standard on every Songsterr and UG tab, like nearly all of the album. Homme's lead part (credited to a MotorAve BelAire) and Troy Van Leeuwen's rhythm guitar (a Fender Jazzmaster) are both tabbed in plain tuning, and Michael Shuman's bass part walks around G♯, E and F♯ rather than resting on one note, so there is no single open string to tune against.
TuneLit measured the album at concert pitch (about 2 cents sharp) and this song about 2 cents flat, so Tune opens E Standard at A 440 with nothing to correct. Any accurate tuner set to A 440 matches the record.
The tabs agree on the tuning, so the work is in the parts: Songsterr's transcription separates Homme's lead line from Van Leeuwen's chords and adds a 12-string part played by Dean Fertita. If you just played Keep Your Eyes Peeled, the album's one C Standard song, every string has to come back up two whole steps before this track.
Tip: Bring every string back up to E Standard if you came from the C-tuned opener, then check String 3 against the record's lead line.
Step by step
Tune your guitar like the record
- Tap Tune like this: the tuner switches to E Standard, the notes I Sat by the Ocean was recorded in.
- Turn String 6 to String 1 until each shows ✓ in tune. I Sat by the Ocean sits at concert pitch on the record, so the tuner stays at A 440.
- Then play I Sat by the Ocean along with the record: its lowest open note and your String 6 should ring together without a wobble.
Or the other way round
Move the record into your tuning
Rather keep your guitar as it is? Let Play along move I Sat by the Ocean instead. Add your own copy, for example from your CD (it never leaves your device); the link already says the song is in E Standard. Choose E Standard at A 440 and I Sat by the Ocean moves down 2 cents, at its own speed. Slow it down or loop a few bars to learn it, and save the result as a WAV file.
Questions
What tuning is I Sat by the Ocean in?
E Standard: E A D G B E, low to high, at the pitch TuneLit measured on the record.