Here in South Texas this tuning is pretty popular. A lot of Texas Blues-Rock bands that want that chunky Stevie Ray Vaughn or Los Lonely Boys sound, for example, use strings that are around .013 in. (1st) to .056 (6th) or so for great Fender blues tones. Lowering the string tension helps with bends etc. (remember the guitar neck can have anywhere from 170 to 220 lbs of pressure on it) and as we get older, at lest for me, it's a little easier to sing. I remember not long ago, about 40 years ago, recording engineers would record the music a half step down for the singers and then (sometimes) bring it back up to speed at the final cut.
Regards,
G1619T
