The benefits of starting off in open tunings, developing a light touch, and more
Johnny Stachela is a modern slide guitar virtuoso. His lyrical, electrifying approach to bottleneck slide has lit up stages and studios with The Allman Betts Band and Duane Betts & Palmetto Motel, not to mention raising the roof during his many guest appearances with a veritable who’s who of Americana.
January 2025 even saw Stachela drop a new solo single, All Because Of You—a barnstorming homage to Texas blues that you can find on all major streaming services. It’s also the first taste of Stachela’s forthcoming EP, “The Stroll,” recorded live in the studio last year in Nashville with his friend, blues guitar maestro J.D. Simo, and set for a May 30th release.
We caught up with Johnny recently and, among other topics, quizzed him about his tips for guitarists looking to improve their slide playing. It’s something with which many of us have dabbled, but very few have mastered to Stachela’s level—an Angeleno who must feel like an honorary member of the Southern rock royal family by now. “Slide’s a tricky thing,” he admits. “I think when everybody starts out it sounds like a couple of cats fighting! It’s not very pleasant!”
That said, Johnny has sage advice for fledgling bottleneck players struggling to get over the hump. “I play slide mostly in standard tuning but I almost don’t recommend that for a beginner,” he says. “I didn’t start that way either; I started with open tunings—Open G, Open E. I think it just kind of spells things out a little bit easier. All the overtones, extra notes, and strings that you might hit sound pleasant, they sound good. So my tip would be to start with an open tuning.”
Playing slide primarily in standard tuning like Stachela tends to present challenges—until it becomes instinctive. “There’s a lot more that’s happening with the right hand,” he says. “The muting and just kind of getting in and out of the notes can be a little tricky for a beginner, I think. I’m not setting up my guitar any differently for slide; some people like heavier strings or a higher action, but what I think it really comes down to, is developing a light touch. Slide may sound really ferocious when it’s through a cranked amp, but you are really just gently touching the strings. It’s a very light touch.”
In addition to those slide guitar fundamentals, Stachela recommends going back to the originators for inspiration. “If you go back to the blues—for example Elmore James, where it’s all lined up for you on the 12th fret—that’s a great starting place. From there it’s really a lot of developing your ear.
“Slide’s kind of like tuning your guitar while you’re playing it! I learned in open tuning but to be totally honest, I didn’t like bringing two or three guitars to a gig. It was really out of laziness! Over the years I would slowly adapt what I learned in Open G and Open E to a standard-tuned guitar. It didn’t happen overnight; it was a long process, but starting there makes a lot of sense.”
No pedals required
When creating his signature slide tone, Stachela favors either a Gibson Les Paul™ with early Patent Number pickups (originally a Gibson Custom Lee Roy Parnell Goldtop he purchased secondhand following a Burst conversion by Historic Makeovers) or a modified Gibson SG™. He tends to crank up a vintage black-panel amplifier and lean on his guitar’s onboard controls to create a palette of sounds, rather than using an array of stompbox effects.
“I love humbuckers and Gibson guitars, that’s the tone to me,” Stachela says. “Sometimes I use a little bit of a boost but if it’s an opportunity where I can really open up the amp, I don’t need it. It’s all right there. You turn the amp all the way up, then you can turn the guitar way down and play clean, you can play funk, you can play country music, and then you can turn it all the way up and it really roars, with a lot of feedback, sustain, gain, and harmonics—all that stuff.”
For someone like Johnny who sits in with so many bands, a versatile, simple setup is a must, and perhaps the key takeaway from his experience is first and foremost to listen to what’s going on around you, and consider how your playing fits into the wider picture. “Part of the approach for playing with other people is being able to dial in your tone while you are performing and find your place in the mix” he affirms. “There are times when you want to lay back and support the song and just kind of push it forward, and there’s other times when it’s like, ‘Okay, we’re gonna swing for the fences now!’”
Visit Johnny Stachela’s official website for the latest on upcoming live shows and new music.
