The ULTIMATE Wild Horses Guitar Lesson (Standard Tuning Plus Secret Keith Richards Tuning)

While the Rolling Stones may be known for their hard rock songs…

If you’re gonna go “acoustic” this is how you do it.

Below I’m going to share a beautiful song featuring raspy vocals from Mick Jagger, and a soulful groove from the rest of the band. Including a beautiful 12-string guitar part I believe to be played in a mysterious open tuning with a partial capo. 

Fear not though, if you want to stay in standard tuning, I am going to cover both.

So grab your guitar and let’s dive into this “Wild Horses” guitar lesson! 

Who wrote Wild Horses?

"Wild Horses" was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, the two principal songwriters in the English rock band The Rolling Stones.

The inspirations for "Wild Horses" have been somewhat debated. Mick Jagger has said the song is about his relationship with Marianne Faithfull, a singer and actress he was romantically involved with in the late 1960s. Faithfull herself has claimed that the phrase "wild horses couldn't drag me away" was something she said to Jagger when she was recovering from a coma after a drug overdose.

From the guitarist’s perspective, Keith Richards has mentioned the song also reflects his feelings about having to leave his newborn son, Marlon, to go on tour. 

So between these tensions in the band's career and their personal lives. “Wild Horses” came about. It was recorded at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama in December 1969. The studio is known for its unique sound and has been the recording site for many famous musicians. 

Band Members:

• Mick Jagger: Vocals
• Keith Richards: Acoustic guitar, electric guitar, and backing vocals
• Mick Taylor: Electric guitar
• Bill Wyman: Bass
• Charlie Watts: Drums
• Additional Musicians:
• Jim Dickinson: Piano (though sometimes credited to Ian Stewart, the band's unofficial member and road manager)

"Wild Horses" was later released on the legendary Stones album Sticky Fingers in 1971. The song was released as a single in the US and peaked at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

The song has a strong country vibe to it. This is attributed to the band's friendship with Gram Parsons, a pioneering country rock musician. Parsons was close to Richards and even performed "Wild Horses" with his band, The Flying Burrito Brothers, before The Rolling Stones released it.

What guitar tuning is Wild Horses in?

The main 12-string guitar in “Wild Horses” panned to the right in the mix is tuned to an open E7 tuning. Keith Richards is known for doing strange tunings on songs. This was part of the secret to how he came up with so many iconic guitar parts. He would also often remove the 6th string. However, on this one you can clearly hear a low bass string not capoed.

Here’s how you tune each string from standard tuning (E A D G B E) to this unusual open E7 variant (D B E G# B E):

• 6th string (E) → D: Lower the 6th string two whole steps from E down to D.
  5th string (A) → B: Raise the 5th string one whole step from A up to B.
  4th string (D) → E: Raise the 4th string one whole step from D up to E.
  3rd string (G) → G#: Raise the 3rd string one half step from G up to G#.
  2nd string (B) → B: The 2nd string remains the same.
  1st string (E) → E: The 1st string remains the same.

When strumming all the open strings in Open E7 tuning, you will get an E7 chord.

Additional Tips: 

• Try Using A Tuner: 12 strings can be tricky to tune, especially going to an alternate tuning. An electronic tuner can help you get the right pitch for each string.
• Adjust Slowly: When tuning down, especially on the 6th and 5th strings, adjust slowly to avoid any string snaps.
• Re-check Tuning: After all strings are adjusted, re-check each string as tuning one string can affect the others.

It will take a few circles through until your guitar “acclimates” to this new tuning.

Wild Horses chords

If you don’t want to be bothered with tuning down. Below I share common ways you could play the “Wild Horses” chords in standard tuning. This is great for late beginners starting to transition to learning bar chords.  

To play “Wild Horses” you only need to know 6 chords G, Am, Bm, C, D, and F.

Most of these chords can be played in open position. Let’s take a look at a few ways to do that next.

G I play in a folk style only using my ring and pinkie fingers like this:

The next chord in the song is Am, I play this from the 5th string down like this:

Bm is next, and this chord is a bar chord in 2nd position played from the 5th string down like this:

To get to C, from Am, you only have to move one note (your ringer finger) like this:

D is a common (campfire) chord played in the open position like this:

Finally, we have one more bar chord. F is played using all 6 strings in 1st position like this:

Note: if F is too hard, try bring your index finger down and just play strings 5 to 1 like this:

This chord is called F/C and sounds great in the bridge of “Wild Horses” as well.

What key is Wild Horses in?

“Wild Horses” as recorded by The Rolling Stones is in the key of G major. The chords used in the song G, Bm, Am, C, D, and F all relate to each other based on the notes found within the G major scale. Except for F, that is the one chord that breaks the rules. But this is a very common move in classic rock, and blues music as well.

The G major scale has the notes: G (1st), A (2nd), B (3rd), C (4th), D (5th), E (6th), F# (7th), G (8th).

If we look at these chords in the key of G major we have:

• G Major (I): Built on the 1st degree of the scale (G B D).
• B minor (iii): Built on the 3rd degree of the scale (B D F#).
• A minor (ii): Built on the 2nd degree of the scale (A C E).
• C Major (IV): Built on the 4th degree of the scale (C E G).
• D Major (V): Built on the 5th degree of the scale (D F# A).
• F Major (bVII): This is the one exception chord that is outside the key of G major. F major is built on the bVIIth degree of the scale (F A C).

To better understand how these chords all relate on the guitar, grab my free fretboard guitar here:

Wild Horses Open Tuning

If you want to play “Wild Horses” just like the main strumming guitar panned right in the mix. You'll need to use an unusual tuning with a partial capo. The chords essentially stay the same. But the shapes you play on guitar change. This is because the tuning has changed. As mentioned above, when you tune your guitar to an open chord you can get all kinds of fresh and interesting sounds. These sounds can make simple chord progressions take on a whole new life.

(VIDEO COMING SOON)

Conclusion:

To wrap it up, "Wild Horses" is a powerful and emotional song that has connected with listeners all over the world. It’s simple heartfelt sentiment, and soothing guitars have made it a staple of The Rolling Stones catalogue and will continue to delight listeners for decades.

Whether you are playing it in standard tuning or open E7 tuning it will still sound great. To really master it, learn both.

Keep practicing, and if you want to learn songs way faster, better understand the fretboard, and not waste years spinning your wheels with guitar, grab my free fretboard guide here right now: 

Jon MacLennan