Category: Clara

Mariah Carey | I Want To Know What Love Is

Named one of the 500 greatest songs of all time by Rolling Stone, “I Want to Know What Love Is” is British-American rock band Foreigner‘s most successful hit to date.

“I always worked late at night, when everybody left and the phone stopped ringing,” Mick Jones, who wrote the song, recalls. “’I Want to Know What Love Is’ came up at three in the morning sometime in 1984. I don’t know where it came from. I consider it a gift that was sent through me. I think there was something bigger than me behind it. I’d say it was probably written entirely by a higher force.”

The tune has been covered by many notable artists, including Tina Arena, Wynonna Judd, and Mariah Carey, who is featured here. “I think she’s actually retained the integrity of the song,” Jones said of Carey’s rendition. “You know, the arrangement is very similar to the original. They haven’t tampered with the song too much. She’s captured a certain emotional thing, a feeling.”

The track was featured on Carey’s 2009 album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, and the music video was filmed in Yankee Stadium with a gospel choir. A rare (but common for Carey) downward modulation from Gb to F occurs at 2:58.

Thanks to contributor Clara Jung for this submission!

Silk Sonic | Leave The Door Open

“Leave The Door Open” is the debut single from the new band Silk Sonic, comprised of Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. Describing the band’s genesis in an interview with Billboard, Mars said, “It was like, ‘Well, want to come back tomorrow? And we kept coming up with music. It felt like why you fall in love with music in the first place. And jamming with your buddy… There’s no plan, just working out the parts and trying to excite each other… that’s why this wouldn’t happen if it didn’t make sense and it didn’t feel natural and organic. This was a series of events that led us to ‘Man, why don’t we just do it?'”

“When you get in and you can jam with someone and other artists that could hold it down and you’re bouncing, that’s different,” .Paak said. “That’s the difference and you’re really creating a groove from scratch. You guys are trying to figure out what’s going to work. What’s the math behind this that’s going to get everybody feeling good? What is it? Is it too heavy? Is it not heavy enough? And especially with this song [Leave The Door Open], it’s a song that requires so much patience and delicate…” Mars jumps in: “Delicatessen,” with .Paak adding, “Delicatessens. A lot of meat went into this song.”

Released last week on March 5, the music video has already racked up over 22 million views on YouTube; the release date for the full album has not yet been announced.

The tune begins in A minor and pushes at its boundaries throughout. A definitive modulation to Gb occurs at 2:42. Thanks to contributor Clara Jung for this find!