The Rolling Stones · Let It Bleed · song 1
Gimme Shelter tuning.
Gimme Shelter (The Rolling Stones, 1969) is in Open E at concert pitch (A 440), measured by TuneLit from the record.
Measured by TuneLit
At concert pitch
Measured on this song itself.
The Rolling Stones · Let It Bleed · 1969
About Gimme Shelter
The opening track of Let It Bleed (1969). Keith Richards recorded the shimmering intro and the rhythm part in open E (E B E G♯ B E) on an Australian-made Maton, whose neck, he said, came off on the last note of the take. The intro moves between three positions high on the neck over a C♯ minor feel, and the tremolo on the guitar is as much part of the sound as the tuning. The lead lines are tabbed in standard tuning.
Let It Bleed sits at concert pitch on TuneLit's measurement of the CD, and Gimme Shelter's own reading, about 6 ¢ sharp, is close enough that the song uses the album value: open E at A 440. TuneLit's check of the record's low notes agrees that the lowest string is an E.
Open E raises three strings (String 5 to B, String 4 to E, String 3 to G♯), which puts extra tension on the neck; if your guitar is light-gauged, open D tuned a whole step lower with a capo at the 2nd fret gives the same notes. Do not play the lead lines in open E unless you have learned them that way: the tab puts them in standard tuning on a second guitar.
Tip: Raise Strings 5, 4 and 3 slowly and recheck all six, since the extra tension pulls the others flat.
Step by step
Tune your guitar like the record
- Tap Tune like this: the tuner switches to Open E, the notes Gimme Shelter was recorded in.
- From the album's E Standard: String 5 up a whole step (A → B), String 4 up a whole step (D → E), String 3 up a half step (G → G♯); the other strings stay.
- Turn String 6 to String 1 until each shows ✓ in tune. Gimme Shelter sits at concert pitch on the record, so the tuner stays at A 440.
- Then play Gimme Shelter 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 Gimme Shelter instead. Add your own copy, for example from your CD (it never leaves your device); the link already says the song is in Open E. Choose Open E at A 440 and Gimme Shelter moves up 1 cent, 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 Gimme Shelter in?
Open E: E B E G♯ B E, low to high, at the pitch TuneLit measured on the record.