Digital memory for morons

The most common alternate tuning that is used these days is probably drop D tuning. Dropping the heavy E string to a D gives you two more notes (i.e. a D and a D#). It's the easiest tuning to to learn as there is only one note to change. The other five strings stay the same so most of the chords you know remain the same. All you have to remember is that you play notes on the lowest string two frets higher that you used to. So for example the low G is now fretted at the fifth fret. See the diagram for the most common chords - the others are all easy to figure out.

Have a go with Drop D and see what you think. The Beatles' "Let it Be" works really well in drop D and is probably as good a place to start as any. They played Dear Prudence with a drop D so try that too.

Some of my favourite singer songwriters use drop - D tuning e.g James Taylor and Steve Earle, though Steve often sings a song in E rather than D and will put a capo over the lower five strings, leaving the lower E open. This means he can play the D chord shape in the diagram sliding it up a whole step to E at the fifth and he still has an open E on the bottom. Effectively drop E without retuning the guitar! Check out Steve playing Copperhead road on guitar using this technique: