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You're welcome. I think perhaps Ricky was using the treble strings as if they were part of another instrument, At least for songs like "Lava" Which does sound as if there are two guitars being played! I'm working on a tab for that song too and I'll post a link to it here when I'm finished. It's quite amazing to me how he was able to get so much sound out of fewer strings and sometimes with a tuning that consisted of only two different notes!

I found that "There's A Moon In The Sky (Called The Moon) Is also in Ricky's standard tuning. "52 Girls" Seems to be in EADxBB, I'm working on a tab for it too, And Planet Claire might also be in that tuning. I know Rock Lobster is CFxFF and I think "Dance This Mess Around" and "Runnin' Around" Are also in CFxxFF.

Austin

I read that the tuning for Big Bird is D#AC#xBD# but I haven't tried it.

Austin

Well , Im amazed to see this guy (Wilson) finally get the credit he deserves. Thankyou fellas for sounding out these tunings for us tone deaf players. These songs are a blast to play live if you can find willing acomplices.Just watch the ladies get up and shake it too. Gee, dont these tunings look like some other songs that are now called "southern rock" . Where were the B52s from again??????????????

I've been working on a tab for "Lava" And though I haven't finished it I learned that Ricky played at least thirteen different chords in it, Not counting variations I've counted which would bring it up to nineteen. I don't think he was counting chords but rather, Perhaps he'd imagine the lower strings as a rhythm part and the higher strings as a "Lead"? If I complete and post the tab, You may further see just how innovative his playing is; He made it sound as if a lead was coming in to accommodate a rhythm and he also made it sound as if a rhythm was coming in to accommodate a lead.

Austin

I read that the tuning for "Nip it In The Bud" is D# G# D# x G# G#. (Thanks for posting it on Facebook, Vince Farin.)

So, We have:

C F x x F F - Rock Lobster, Dance This Mess Around
D A D x B B - Many early B-52s songs (Lava, There's A Moon In The Sky Called The Moon, 6060-842, Dirty Back Road if with capo on third fret, More?)
E A D x B B - Planet Claire, 52 Girls
B A D x G# C# - Party Out Of Bounds
D# A C#xB D# - Big Bird
D# G# D# x G# G# - Nip it In The Bud

Austin

Thank you very much for these insights. Recently I was messing around on the '65 Mk1 in DADGAD and found that I was getting close to Lava. About three years ago CCxxFF seemed to work OK for me on a really old Gibson ES-295, I think I had .054 .044 on the bass side, it was a rather slack but OK.

I remember going with all my friends to see the B52s at London's Hammersmith Palais in 1980 and it seemed that a roadie brought Ricky a different guitar for each song. Beforehand, we always asked ourselves if he really only had only four strings on the guitar, like on the first album images - or were the strings just always broken like on all our guitars?
Well, we were all too busy dancing to take a good look! It was a phenomenal show and the B52's taught London how to dance that night.

Ricky Wilson is one of the main reasons why I took up guitar and I even tried to build my own Mosrite back in 1980. I stalled but still have the mess. My Grandmother was a music teacher and we had great fun back in 1979/80 trying to figure out what on earth Ricky was up to with all the syncopation going on!

That guitar they flash on is that a Guild Thunderbird

Same body shape as the Guild Thunderbird, but it's probably a Veillette Citron "shark" baritone guitar.

inspace wrote:Thank you very much for these insights. Recently I was messing around on the '65 Mk1 in DADGAD and found that I was getting close to Lava. About three years ago CCxxFF seemed to work OK for me on a really old Gibson ES-295, I think I had .054 .044 on the bass side, it was a rather slack but OK.

I remember going with all my friends to see the B52s at London's Hammersmith Palais in 1980 and it seemed that a roadie brought Ricky a different guitar for each song. Beforehand, we always asked ourselves if he really only had only four strings on the guitar, like on the first album images - or were the strings just always broken like on all our guitars?
Well, we were all too busy dancing to take a good look! It was a phenomenal show and the B52's taught London how to dance that night.

Ricky Wilson is one of the main reasons why I took up guitar and I even tried to build my own Mosrite back in 1980. I stalled but still have the mess. My Grandmother was a music teacher and we had great fun back in 1979/80 trying to figure out what on earth Ricky was up to with all the syncopation going on!

You're welcome. I think Ricky used a set of .13s for the album recording of Dance This Mess Around so they're not far off in CFxxFF for that song. I did hear they were selling out shows early on in their career, after 1978 at least. Have you restarted building that Mosrite?

VincentW wrote:

That guitar they flash on is that a Guild Thunderbird

Same body shape as the Guild Thunderbird, but it's probably a Veillette Citron "shark" baritone guitar.

I think it is a Veilette, given the length of the neck.

...

As a note, there are guitar tabs to a number of early B-52s songs now; not all of them (accurate ones, anyhow - 52 Girls has a tab but it's missing parts) but tabs for most songs are available (I wrote these except one of Lava and also the tab for Runnin' Around, both which Mad Mike wrote)

BADxG#C#:

Quiche Lorraine: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2427755

CFxxFF:

Dance This Mess Around: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2337143
Runnin' Around: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_1849946 (Mad Mike's tab)
Rock Lobster: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2321243

DADxBB:

53 Miles West of Venus: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2360071
6060-842: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2327763
Downtown: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2428857

(Note: I've heard of 6060-842 being in DADxGA too, but I thought it sounded alright in DADxBB. Maybe I didn't pay enough attention.)

Lava:

https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_1916925 (Mad Mike's tab)
https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2316889 (Mine)

There's A Moon in the Sky (Called The Moon: ) https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... bs_2368419

EBDxBB:

Private Idaho: https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/th ... abs_848343

- Austin