Common E Tunings for Lap Steel?

Jim Williams · From: Meridian, Mississippi, USA - Home of Peavey!

This is my first post in a long time here, been very busy and kind of drifted away from the steel for a while, but I'm trying to get back on it. I've mainly tried to learn in C6, but I was curious about something. My Dad, who has been deceased for many years played a 6 string Gibson lap steel and I believe he played in some type of E tuning, but I don't think it was open E. Anyone have any idea what might be the most likely tuning this might have been? He played mostly country and Hawaiian style music. Unfortunately there is nobody left around that can tell me for sure what tuning he used.
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GFI SM10 3/4, 1937 Gibson EH-150, 2 - Rondo SX Lap Steels and a Guyatone 6 String C6. Peavey 400 and a Roland 40 Amps. Behringer Reverb Pedal.

Bob Russell · From: Virginia, USA

Maybe E7? That was a common old-school tuning. I still like it for some things.

Ron Whitfield · From: Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA

Probably E major.
Here's my glorified 8 str. version, high to low.
G# E B C# G# E B E

Morgan Scoggins · From: Georgia, USA

I have my six string Melbert lap steel tuned E B G# E D B hi to low, which is an E7 tuning and I can play a lot of country, Western swing and some Hawaiian. My second string can be raised to a C# which gives me a C#mi7 tuning for a lot of Hawaiian songs.
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"Shoot low boys, the're ridin' Shetlands"

Jim Williams · From: Meridian, Mississippi, USA - Home of Peavey!

Thanks for the replies...it may have been E7. I don't think it was E Maj. because I remember that it was a 7th or 9th or 11th or something, not sure it was E but I think it was. Was it ever common for anybody to use E9 on a lap steel? E7 is one of the tunings on my list to try. I just downloaded a lesson from a guy on getting pedal steel sounds from a lap steel in E7.

Morgan, a lot of the stuff my Dad played was Hank Williams and other old country artists... things like Harbor Lights, Steel Guitar Rag, (which he wound up hating to play because everybody always asked to hear it so much lol), so E7 could have been it. I don't think it was C6 because I seem to remember it being in the key of E. Of the tunings I've tried so far, I like C6 the best on the six string, thanks a lot to Doug's excellent tab and cd's. I'd give anything if my Dad was still around to help me with this thing and answer some questions.
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GFI SM10 3/4, 1937 Gibson EH-150, 2 - Rondo SX Lap Steels and a Guyatone 6 String C6. Peavey 400 and a Roland 40 Amps. Behringer Reverb Pedal.

Kekoa Blanchet · From: Kaua'i

If your Dad played a lot of Hank Williams tunes, perhaps he was using the Don Helms E6 tuning. Don played an 8 string guitar, and there are differing accounts of the pitch of the low strings, but the top six strings (which is all you hear on the Hank Williams recordings) were (L-H) E G# B C# E G#. These six strings have the same intervals as the C6 you're already using, but 4 frets higher, giving it that signature "high lonesome" sound.

Karl Fehrenbach · From: Pennsylvania, USA

Jim, I have settled into the traditional E7 after having tried them all, but have done so for strictly practical if not musical reasons. I trade off among 5 string banjo, guitar and steel in a band and in the heat of battle, I feel comfortable in the E7 tuning, knowing where I am and where I need to go next. I use the old Low to Hi: B, D, E, G#, B, E. I like to lower the D to C# for some songs. "Sleepwalk" in particular in C falls nicely under the bar. Mel Bay still sells the old school course of E7 Steel Guitar by Roger Filberto. It is a very academic approach to learning the tuning note by note, string by string.

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