In case any dB's are reading this: Did you use an altered guitar tuning for "Nothing Is Wrong"? I've had a lot of trouble getting it to sound right in standard tuning.

Which is annoying, because it's one of the greatest ballads ever written.

Thanks!

J

Was it originally recorded in the key of G? I don't have a copy here at hand, and I didn't play the rhythm guitar part on it at the session. When Peter and I play it now, however, we often play it in E, and keep the high strings open and ringing during the partially-fretted barre chords on the V (7th fret) and the IV (5th fret), etc. Which makes me suspect that it was capo'ed at 3 and the same high(er) strings rang out. However, Peter is really the right guy for the right answer here.

Wow, thank you Chris for the quick answer. Yes, it's recorded in G -- I'll try capo-ing it and chording as you suggested.

And thanks for all the wonderful songs, both in and out of dB's. I love "Travels in the South."

Best,

J

Standard tuning for "Nothing Is Wrong", it's a movable G chord form: you play the third fret of the second string, a D, leaving the D and G strings open, not messing with the open E string. And you slide that chord up seven frets to play the D chord, and five frets to play the C.

As Chris says, time having taken its toll on my higher vocal register, it gets cheated down now. But the original (which is the version on Ride The Wild Tom Tom) is that moving G chord.

Hope that helps, glad you enjoyed the song, and now go rent the movie it's in, "Margot at the Wedding"!

Thank you, Peter -- I can't tell you how cool it is to hear from both you and Chris.

And a big "Ahah!" on your explanation of the chord form -- I *thought* I was hearing an open chord of some kind (no 3rd) plus an added note on the IV chord, and what you described accounts for both. (If I'm understanding you correctly, the unfretted D string becomes part of the IV chord, so it's actually spelled C-D-G instead of C-E-G. And both the I and the V chords have no 3rds.) I was guessing that an altered tuning might account for it, but this is even easier. As I play it, I find myself next going to a "normal" barred II chord on the 5th fret, and a "normal" barred V on the same fret before starting the pattern over -- is that how you do it?

I did see "Margot at the Wedding" and was psyched to hear NIW -- but not nearly enough of it! Guess that's the way it is in movies these days.

Thanks again . . . if you're playing anywhere around D.C., I'll be there.

Best,

J

Here's the construction: (G chord)
6th string - G (third fret)
5th string - B (second fret)
4th string - open
3rd string - open
2nd string - D (third fret)
1st string - unplayed (mostly)

Now move that same assembly up so the 6th string is fretted on the 8th fret (C) and all the other strings are fretted comparably to the above construction. That's your IV (C) chord.

Two more frets up (10th fret 6th string D), same construction and that's your V (D) chord.

I'm trying to write this with half a cup of coffee starting to work, with Raggs blaring on tv and active children flying from sofa to sofa, so I'm not guaranteeing its complete accuracy....