Help: instrumentation and tuning in this video

[Barb Friedland]

I want to work up Does My Ring Burn Your Finger and love the sound of the way LeeAnn Womack does it. Question- check out this video clip (if it works) and tell me what instrument does the intro and what tuning it's in. I want to work this out on mandola.

Thanks!
Here's the video (http://www.leeannwomack.com/video_detail.asp?pkMedia=1385)

[allenhopkins]

Looks like a Sobell OM or bouzouki capoed nearly halfway up the neck. I leave the experts to ID the tuning.

[Barb Friedland]

Thanks Allen. That's pretty much what it looked like to me. Now if some cafe Zouk wizard can tell me what tuning they think it's in...

[Uncle Choppy]

This probably doesn't help too much but...

I think it's a Moon Bouzouki (http://www.moonguitars.co.uk/mandolines5.html), given this from the Moon website:



At the recent CMA Awards in Nashville -Lee Ann Womack picked up the 'Best Female Vocalist' award. Guitar player Joe Manuel from her band 911, played his Moon bouzouki at the live performance.


(Although the link you posted labels the video as "Wally and Lee Ann performing..." etc.)

There's a further mention of the Moon in this article (http://onstagemag.com/ar/performance_lee_ann_womack/index.htm)

As for the tuning, the basic key seems to be Bm. Jamming along with my Oakwood Bouzouki tuned GDAD with the capo at the 4th fret seems to give a similar toneality and sound when using Gm shapes.

If you mess about with runs/drones using the notes on the open strings, third and fifth frets, it should get you going in the right direction.

Of course, I'm no expert - #hopefully one of the Cafe's "Alpha Zoukers" will chip in with something more accurate/specific.

Cheers
Brendan

Edit: I forgot to mention that he must be quite a musician to keep the rhythm despite some of the most dreadfully out-of-time clapping I've ever heard!

[groveland]

There's a further mention of the Moon in this article (http://onstagemag.com/ar/performance_lee_ann_womack/index.htm)
A rounded-back Moon? #Didn't know there was such a thing...


Manual's... Moon bouzouki might seem a bit out of place. “To me, it's just a tenor mandolin,” Cowart says of the rounded-back instrument.


My guess is GDAG tuning and a capo at the 4th fret.

[Uncle Choppy]

A rounded-back Moon? #Didn't know there was such a thing...
I read that too and just assumed that it was a mistake.
I've seen quite a few Moon mandolin-family instruments and they've all had flat backs.
I only included that link as a bit of support that it was probably a Moon zouk.

(Actually "Moonzouk" sounds like a good name for a band!)

[zoukboy]

My guess is that he's in octave mandolin tuning. I can't hear any open strings that are an octave apart (like GDAD).

[Barb Friedland]

My guess is that he's in octave mandolin tuning. I can't hear any open strings that are an octave apart (like GDAD).
Can I replicate the octave mandolin tuning on a mandola?

[groveland]

Manual's... Moon bouzouki might seem a bit out of place. “To me, it's just a tenor mandolin,” Cowart says of the rounded-back instrument.


My guess is GDAG tuning and a capo at the 4th fret.
My guess is GDA<span style='color:red'>E</span> tuning and a capo at the 4th fret.

[Uncle Choppy]

Can I replicate the octave mandolin tuning on a mandola?
If you're using regular mandola tuning (C G D A)
...and if the song is done on an OM/Zouk tuned GDAE with a capo at the 4th fret
...then I think you should just be able to drop all the mandola strings by a semitone which would give you the same notes on the open strings (i.e. B F# C# G#) as the OM tuning with a capo on the 4th fret.

[Barb Friedland]

Thanks for all the help. I love the sound of this tune and the band want me to do it so I have to figure everything out. The next reality to deal with is that I need to do it in a different key than LeeAnn does... It looks like A minor is the better approach for my voice.

[Eddie Sheehy]

I'd go with G D A E . If you play it on a mandola - C G D A - you could use the same fingering he does and you would be just playing it in a different key. Then all you gotta do is be able to sing it in that key..... If I play a song in G on a mandolin, when I pick up a Mandola or a Tenor guitar I play the same fingering - except now of course it's in C.

[Uncle Choppy]

I was messing about with this earlier this evening. I've never heard of Lee Ann Womack and, although this sort of music is not my kind of thing, the bouzouki part sounded great so I thought I'd try and figure out a basic version (just the song backing - not the fancy intro).

I stuck with GDAD as it seemed to fit OK. I listened to the studio version on LastFM as you can hear the instruments more clearly.

Here's what I came up with. It's a "bare bones" version and not particularly well played but it's got the basic feel and I'm sure it would be OK behind the vocal:

Did my zouk burn your ears? (http://www.brendanashbrook.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk/did-my-zouk-burn-your-ears.mp3)

I would like to stress that this is just what sounds right to me - the other posters have all guessed that it's in GDAE tuning and so I would definitely defer to their ears/technique over mine!

The beauty of the bouzouki with the capo at the 4th fret approach is that you could just drop the capo to the 2nd fret and play the same thing for Am.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure about the best thing for the mandola. Maybe it's just the excuse you need to shell out on a Zouk #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Cheers
Brendan

[Barb Friedland]

Very cool Brendan! That's definitely the right sound.

I'll bet if I experiment, as you have done, I'll figure out a dola-ish approach that works for my vocal range.

Thanks!

[Eddie Sheehy]

Very nice Brendan. Care to put a tab on that?

[Uncle Choppy]

Very nice Brendan. #Care to put a tab on that?
Thanks - it's only a rough version.

I'd gladly tab it out but I'm not sure if it would be legal to upload it here.

I'm not certain of the rules but as a recent song by a modern artist, I'm pretty sure that it's copyright protected material.

Does the fact that it's just a few bar guide/interpretation make it OK to post here?

As previous threads have been locked for copyright issues, unless anyone can definitively say otherwise, I'm assuming that it's not OK to put tab on the web.

(Besides, I don't fancy getting my fat, limey backside kicked by Lee Ann and the boys #http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/smile.gif )