FCFG#GC Guitar Tuner

FCFG#GC | FCFA♭GC Friday Nights With - Guitar tuning, chords & scales

Description - Friday Nights With

The tuning used by Glenn Jones on Friday Nights With.

Verbal Analysis:

The 'Friday Nights With' tuning, famously utilized by Glenn Jones in his music, offers a wonderfully resonant and somewhat enigmatic soundscape. At its core, it establishes a strong F tonality, creating a rich, open drone that feels both grounded and expansive. The low F-C-F power chord provides a solid, grounding foundation that rings out beautifully, making it excellent for open string arpeggios and rhythmic accompaniment. What makes this tuning truly unique and evocative is the interplay between the G3 and G#4 (effectively A♭4) on the middle strings. This creates a distinctive, almost bluesy, jazzy, or melancholic tension that can be explored for intricate fingerstyle melodies, atmospheric textures, or expressive chord voicings. It feels expansive and open, inviting improvisation within its unique harmonic palette, moving beyond typical major or minor conventions to a more nuanced, expressive territory. Players can easily achieve F minor sounds, Fsus chords, and drone-based compositions with this setup.

Technical Analysis:

This tuning is configured as F2 C3 F3 G#4 G3 C4. When ordered by pitch, the open strings primarily yield the notes F, C, G, and A♭. This unique configuration effectively provides the components for an F minor chord (F, A♭, C) with an added major 9th (G). The specific voicing from lowest to highest string is:

String 6: F2 (Root)
String 5: C3 (Perfect 5th above F2)
String 4: F3 (Octave above F2, Perfect 4th above C3)
String 3: G#4 (Minor 3rd/Minor 10th above F2, creating a strong melodic and harmonic interval with G3)
String 2: G3 (Major 9th/Major 2nd above F2, Perfect 4th above C3)
String 1: C4 (Perfect 12th/Perfect 5th above F2, Octave above C3)

The low F-C-F provides a strong fundamental and fifth. The most distinctive feature is the harmonic clash and potential resolution offered by the simultaneous presence of G3 and G#4 (A♭) in different octaves. This creates a rich, complex harmonic texture that allows for unique voicings not easily achieved in standard tunings. Open chords like F minor (F A♭ C), F minor add9 (F A♭ C G), or Fsus chords can be readily formed, with the unique G/A♭ tension available to color these harmonies, ideal for fingerstyle and droning techniques.

Open Tuning Notes:

String 6 (lowest): F2
String 5: C3
String 4: F3
String 3: G#4
String 2: G3
String 1 (highest): C4

How to Tune:

To achieve the 'Friday Nights With' tuning from standard EADGBe, follow these specific string movements. It is recommended to tune slowly and carefully to avoid string breakage.

String 6 (Low E String): Tune up 1 semitone to F2.
String 5 (A String): Tune up 3 semitones to C3.
String 4 (D String): Tune up 3 semitones to F3.
String 3 (G String): Tune up 1 semitone to G#4.
String 2 (B String): Tune down 4 semitones to G3. *Caution: For movements of 4 semitones or more (up or down), a different string gauge may be advised for optimal performance and to prevent string damage.*
String 1 (High E String): Tune down 4 semitones to C4. *Caution: For movements of 4 semitones or more (up or down), a different string gauge may be advised for optimal performance and to prevent string damage.*