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Play Like Keef, the Rolling Stones & more: Bob Wurster's 3-string cigar box guitar lesson

Bob Wurster of Berkeley Strings Instruments has created a great tutorial on using "High G Major" tuning for 3-string cigar box guitar.

Strings to use on guitar: DGB strings from a normal pack of guitar strings.

Tuning: DGB (this is the same as a G major chord).

As Wurster shows in the video, this tuning enables you to get some Appalachian old timey sounds and also a convincing Rolling Stones sound using the "Keef Chord Secret:"

Wurster also goes on to show you how to re-tune the guitar into an open D power chord for some fun ZZ Top boogie.

Visit Bob Wurster's profile on Cigar Box Nation.

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Permalink Reply by Paul Craig on August 29, 2017 at 8:48am

Cool stuff.

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Permalink Reply by MadGomer on August 29, 2017 at 1:14pm

Love it!

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Permalink Reply by Blues Frog on August 30, 2017 at 1:32am

Good Stuff. I like the Keef chord.

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Permalink Reply by Uncle John on August 30, 2017 at 3:43am

Yes, sir. I like DGB. Loved your old timey stuff and I am surprised to hear it sound so good on Stones. You play great, but much of that good sound is the amp and settings. Good stuff.

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Permalink Reply by JL on August 30, 2017 at 4:37am

for you theory fans...

Open tuning DGB is the second inversion of the G major chord GBD which is still G major

Playing the high string 1 fret higher and the low string 2 frets higher, EGC is the first inversion of the C major chord CEG which is still C major. How about that, going G major up to C major without moving.

And you can play minor chords by playing both the high and low strings 1 fret up from the middle string.

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Permalink Reply by Bob Johnston on August 30, 2017 at 6:05am

Thank you Bob. This is great, especially for a beginner like me.

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Permalink Reply by Cause the Blue rat on August 30, 2017 at 6:15pm

Shhhhhhh, don't tell anyone......... this is standard tuning...... and there's no secret about the chords.......those are standard too. : )

other supper secret chords you could play....

.....5.............

..........6........

..................7

.........................8

....................7

.........5

........5

....................7

.........5

....................7

..............6

OK, so don't tell anyone. : )

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Permalink Reply by PEGGY TRAMBLE on February 24, 2018 at 3:31pm

this is great, thanks for posting, I never tried the tuning you are using but it sounds good. Just wondering what guage your strings are??

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Permalink Reply by Richard Dean on February 24, 2018 at 4:56pm

Funny you should post "Play like Keef", I'm soon to build a left hand version of his Macawber 5 string Tele tuned to open G, only it will only have 5 strings, not a cut 6th.

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Permalink Reply by PEGGY TRAMBLE on February 25, 2018 at 9:48am

Great lesson. What guage strings are you using?

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Permalink Reply by Don Randolph on February 27, 2018 at 5:58am

Love it! Anytime great sound can be made easier to achieve, I'm for it. Thanks Bob!

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Permalink Reply by Vicki Gibson on February 27, 2018 at 7:26am

Nice work buddy...happy to have someone teach a few chords..and now I want to make a 3 string instrument!!LOL I so enjoy making them, but would rather hear someone good play them!:) cheers from Canada.