Tickling The Strings discussion (King Nawahi)

Mike Neer · From: NJ

I know it has often been proclaimed that the C6 tuning was the first 6th tuning ever used, but I firmly believe the earliest appearance (that I'm aware of--there may be an even earlier recording) is by King Bennie Nawahi (Tickling The Strings, 1929).

I have listened very carefully to this tune and have ascertained that it would be nearly impossible to play with the kind of fluidity that Bennie exhibited without tuning his 4th string up one whole step to F# (I'm assuming here that Bennie used a high bass A tuning and capoed at the 3rd fret). Even playing the main head (the first 4 bars) would be extremely difficult, if not impossible, without it, and upon close examination there is no audible slide there.

There is a unison high G that appears approximately 0:39 into the song (on the linked YouTube video)--an open string and a bar sliding up to the unison note on the adjacent string. That note is G. Unless Bennie had his first string tuned up to G (which I find doubtful), he must have used something as a capo. This is also very apparent with the rolls he plays at 2:40 and on.

The high bass A tuning, high to low (E C# A E C# A) then becomes C (G E C G E C); however, as I have mentioned, Bennie tuned string 4 up a whole step to F#, now making the tuning E C# A F# C# A. I might technically call this an F#mi7 tuning, rather than A6, but the principle still applies.

I have not transcribed this tune on paper as of yet, but I may, as I believe it is pretty significant in the history of steel guitar. I have spent many, many hours listening to and learning this tune.

Give a listen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rCUvuz3Qr-k

I know that King Bennie and Sol were running buddies and rivals, too, and I wouldn't doubt for a moment that Bennie may have influenced Sol's C#min7 tuning, although that is purely unfounded speculation.

Thoughts?
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David Matzenik · From: Cairns, on the Coral Sea

Very thorough analysis. Thanks Mike. Now I am waiting to see Basil say "I told you so!" Laughing

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Guy Cundell · From: More idle ramblings from South Australia

You could be right, Mike but Stacy Phillips has a pretty convincing transcription of the head in high A. Stacey has it in high G for practical reasons. Benny's key is E and Stacey's transcription works if Benny was tuned to high Ab which doesn't seem all unlikely. Quite a few of Sam Ku West's recordings were tuned that way.

As for the chord at .40, it certainly is strummed. I thought I had a picked solution but that is out of the question. I think it is a partial B6 chord in 1st inversion, D#, G# and B. It very fast but I think the slightly dodgy intonation suggests that it was formed with a fudge. I reckon that it may be a reverse slant on strings 2, 3 and 4 on frets 11, 12 and 12 giving B, G# and D# respectively with the G# out of tune.

As for the rest of the tune, I just sit back in wonder!

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Thanks for your response, Guy. I haven't seen Stacy's transcription, but I know he has always done fine work. Not having seen it, the only thing I can say is that, if I'm understanding you correctly, he is not taking into account the fact that the 1st string is actually higher than the tonic, rather than below it.

Rather than dissect someone else's transcription, I will just present my own as "evidence". The one thing I am certain of is that, regardless of the key we choose to acknowledge is the key of the recording, the open strings should reflect the V chord. If the key is E, then the open strings should spell out a B triad with the 5th (F#) on string one, 3rd (D#) on string 2 and root (B) on string 3. As I mentioned earlier, he does this by capo'ing in some manner--I'm not exactly sure how. The tonic is played at the 1st fret of string 2 quite often

One more thing I want to note, I believe the band is playing the song in the key of F--if you listen to the chords that the guitarist is playing, you can clearly hear that he is playing the fretted F chord (1st fret) and then changing to a C chord (cowboy chord). I'm not sure if somehow the transcription from the acetate process changed the tonality of the recording or if they tuned down a 1/2 step, but I've never really investigated the whole record-making process.

So, if you are tuned to high bass G and you are playing the tune in E, you would capo at fret 4. If in high bass A, you'd capo at fret 2.

If you listen very carefully, you can hear the open strings. I've become quite adept at this (if I do say so myself! Laughing

) from a lot of study of Sol Hoopii. Here is an example that demonstrates the use of open strings 1 and 2 (this occurs at 0:23):

Nate Hofer · From: Overland Park, Kansas

I love this discussion. Music theory archeology. Super interesting.

Andy Volk · From: Boston, MA

I'm not really musically qualified to jump in here but heck, that rarely stops me. The one thing to my ear that belies the 6th tuning theory is that when a guitar is tuned to any tuning containing the interval of a 6th as an open string, you tend to hear that 6th vibrating sympathetically at times, even when not being played. I don't hear that happening here. It could be it's there but very well blocked by Bennie when not needed to sound but overall, it doesn't have that characteristic.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

The usually present adjacent 5th in a 6th tuning is not present here; this tuning is E C# A F# C# A. The F# is taking the place of the E. In one sense you can call it F#min7 tuning.

There are instances of the open 4th string (although capoed) here, but you will not hear any sympathetic ringing--that could be due to the nature of the single cone Triolian or the use of the left hand to block (I presume he is using a flat bar).

The first four bars of chorus 2 show the use of open string 4 in a very common ascending pattern using alternating open and barred strings (again, something that Sol used a ton):

Guy Cundell · From: More idle ramblings from South Australia

This is fascinating, Mike. At the core of your argument is that the V chord is reflected on the open strings which is at odds with Tracy's interpretation. I gotta say that his work looks pretty good but if the V is on the open strings of the original then Tracy's work is another great way to play the head with the root chord on the eighth fret.

I guess it doesn't matter whether the key is E of F as the tuning could be high Ab or high A or that which you propose.

As for the unison, I have got it now. It seems out of character with the cleanliness of the picking in the rest of the track, which is not to say that it isn't a clam. Might it be not some artifact that occurred in the recording process?

Anyway, this is a great question, well worth investigation. It would be an amazing discovery.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

If I understand correctly, Stacy's work is more of an arrangement for G tuning rather than a transcription. I'm really interested in trying to decipher exactly how these guys played.

I used to play this in Sol's C#min7 tuning. Wasn't easy, and it didn't sound nearly as cool!

Maybe I will use my new iPad to shoot a little video once I transcribe the whole tune....

Guy, also, I don't know if you listened to the banjo rolls he plays toward the end, but clearly the open 1st string is pitched higher, either at F# or G.
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Bob Stone · From: Gainesville, FL, USA

Hi,

I'm a big fan of King Benny, and really enjoying this thread.

A couple of comments:

In the "old days" absolute pitch was often changed--usually a semitone sharper--somewhere in the recording process.

With regard to a sixth tuning being revealed by sympathetic vibration, just listen to sacred steeler Darick Campbell. He usually plays an 8-string E6, with the C# on the second string, but you never hear the characteristic 6th chord color. Yes, he is playing electric and doing a lot of blocking (almost entirely left hand), but he also plays from the open E position a lot, and still you never hear the 6th chord color.

Food for thought...

Good work Mike!

Michael Kienhofer · From: Goulais River,Ontario,Canada

Love to see you do this one Mike!

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Here is the lick I posted above slowed down. You can hear the open first string ringing out--the note is an F# or a G--as the other notes are being played. The open string is the 4th note played:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/u2xour5z1hfegzn/Tickling%20Lick.wav
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Mike Neer · From: NJ

On a tangent here: In trying to unlock Bennie's tunings, I remember thinking about this tune a few years ago, as it also contains some curious elements. I am not saying that it has the same 6th tuning, but if you listen at 0:54, Bennie is playing the melody on the first string and underneath he strums a C major chord (G C E)--so I can only surmise that either he has his Triolian tuned up to C Major, or is using a capo. You can also hear him strum under the melody at 1:33.

I'm A Dreamer Aren't We All
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ia8TidGQNI
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David Matzenik · From: Cairns, on the Coral Sea

chris ivey · From: california (deceased)

what does jerry byrd say about the origins of the c6 tuning?

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Andy Volk · From: Boston, MA

Mike, this kind of musical archeology is fascinating and has to be powered by true curiosity and passion for the subject. How many thousands have listened to this recording and not given it a 2nd thought or perhaps wondered but didn't have the skills or the determination to do anything about it?

It reminds me a bit of Rick Aiello's wonderful, mad-in-a-good-way exploration of vibrato signatures on waveforms.

http://steelguitarforum.com/Forum2/HTML/006634.html

Note to new Forumites, having been here since about 1997, I can assure you there's all kinds of way cool stuff lurking in the forum archives!

Rick Aiello · From: Berryville, VA USA

Mike, I'd bet Jerry Byrd was familiar with King Benny ... His first exposure to steel guitar was as a boy at one of those tent shows featuring an " un-identified" Hawaiian triconist .. Wink

He learned by listening to the radio and transcribing popular songs of the day ... And as we all know, Hawaiian music was all the craze ... Even made enough $$$ doing it to get his first B6 ...

Anyway, I bet you are on to something ... Sol's C#m7 tuning ... I think of as an "E6" tuning anyway ...

Andy, those were fun times ... The links don't work ... But it's all still active on my website ... http://www.horseshoemagnets.com/_sgg/m9_1.htm

Mr. Green

Mike Neer · From: NJ

OK, I am doing a preliminary transcription which involves a very in-depth listening, picking out all the little details such as open strings, etc. I do this by slowing things down as much as possible in spots, sometimes to 1/4 speed and isolating 2 and 3 three notes so I can hear where he switches strings and in which direction the bar is traveling--often only a 1/2 step in either direction (this helps me determine the interval between the 2 strings so I can know exactly where it is being played--it's complicated, but it works).

All I can say at this time is WOW!! More to come....
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Guy Cundell · From: More idle ramblings from South Australia

There is another solution, that of neck hopping. It was not unheard of. Jack Penewell had his four neck instrument. Sam Ku West was known to use more than one guitar in performance. This has only occurred to me after checking Stacy's work. Below are the first 52 bars, the form of which is A, A1, and B. Tracy's tabs are used for the A and B and I have transcribed A1 myself. I added the dots for clarity and more detail of articulation.

The tune pans out pretty well in high Ab tuning with the open notes from the recording falling where they ought to. But when I checked the rolls towards the end, there is no doubt that you are right, Mike. That open G is unmistakable. It can't be done in the high Ab tuning. I went back to the head to check but no open G there, at all. However the first instance that I can detect occurs right after the head, at 1.03, on another B section. Why couldn't Bennie have jumped necks?

What do you reckon?

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Guy, thanks for posting that. I'm going to say that I most certain that he is using an A tuning--I think low bass A, not confirmed--capoed (if not tuned straight up to B, which would be tough especially with the strings of the day and the round neck National Triolian). If you will indulge me, I will try to post a few little clips to demonstrate where open strings can be heard--however I am having some difficulty doing this on my iPad.

Where you are seeing the Eb as your first string, I am seeing the D# as my 2nd string. The F# is pretty prominent in several spots (I started documenting all instances of open strings that I could hear). The open 1st string F# occurs at approx. 0:23 and 0:38 of my mp3. There is also an open B at 2 points between 0:28 and 0:30. This documenting also led me to my next point.

I may be conceding that the tuning is not a 6th-based tuning--not just yet, but I am having difficulty confirming the existence of an open 4th string tuned up. I have confirmed the existence of an open F# (4th string) and that occurs at approx. 2:38 (loud and clear). I will keep hunting and I will tab it all out.
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Michael Kienhofer · From: Goulais River,Ontario,Canada

Outstanding Mike!!

Guy Cundell · From: More idle ramblings from South Australia

Another thought is that it might be another 7th variant. Two inescapable facts are the F# top string and an Ab bottom note (@ 2.10) The only thing I can think of, outside of the remote possibility of neck hopping and an even more remote possibility of a 7 string instrument, is a low Ab 7 tuning with the 7th (Gb) on top. The F#/Gb makes sense in this context.

The tuning could be Gb Eb C Ab Eb Ab.

This assumes a non-standard set of strings, I think. I wouldn't want to be trying to get a standard set to these pitches. If so, that in itself might be historic, paving the way for JB to conceptualize C6.

Mike Neer · From: NJ

Guy, I am about half way through tabbing this out. I may not have it done by this evening. The open strings that I hear settle the tuning puzzle for me.

My apologies to all because I believe I was mistaken with my initial premise of there being a 6th in the tuning. Now that I've really rolled up my sleeves, things have become a lot clearer to me now and this is not the case. I will say that my initial thoughts about the opening measure of the head have changed--I do not play it the way you have it tabbed out, Guy--I don't believe he ascends 2 frets to play the 6th. I think he goes down the neck and plays it like this (keep in mind that there is a capo being used, so the fret number is not the actual fret):

Guy Cundell · From: More idle ramblings from South Australia

I am going to have another go with my proposed tuning. Mike. It is really a variant of regular E tuning with the top string down to the b7 but up a fourth. I can't retune my acoustics to this by restringing but I can lower the track by a major third using Transcribe (thanks for the recommendation) and use a modified E tuning. I post the result.

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