Category: JB

Warren Zevon | Accidentally Like a Martyr

From AllMusic’s review of Warren Zevon‘s tune “Accidentally Like a Martyr” comes this effusive praise for the often paradoxical singer-songwriter: “…a hard-bitten tough guy and writer of the noir wave classics ‘Werewolves of London’ and ‘Excitable Boy’ turned out to have a soft underbelly: ‘Accidentally Like a Martyr,’ taken from his 1978 breakthrough album, Excitable Boy, is a starkly realistic song about a screwed up love relationship…”

IMDB reports that Zevon, “the son of a gangster who was a Russian Jewish immigrant and a Mormon Midwestern mother of English descent,” had a difficult childhood and a false start in the music business as a folk/rock singer during the 1960s. IMDB continues: Zevon “establish(ed) himself as one of the most offbeat and intelligent singer-songwriters in the mid-1970s” before his death of lung cancer at the age of 56 in 2003.

Starting in F major, there are modulations to Ab major instrumental sections at 1:30 and 3:04; the latter has been used as bumper music between segments of NPR’s news programming for years. Both of the Ab sections have an off-kilter meter (alternating bars of 4/4 and 3/4) which only adds to the tune’s anthemic sound. Many thanks to veteran mod scout JB for this contribution!

The Raspberries | Go All the Way

AllMusic’s bio of The Raspberries describes the Cleveland, OH-based band as running counter to the “epic pretensions and pomposity of ’70s-era rock to proudly reclaim the spirit and simplicity of classic pop, recalling the heyday of the British Invasion with their exquisitely crafted melodies and achingly gorgeous harmonies.” The vocalist and songwriter, Eric Carmen, also pursued a prominent solo career.

The 1972 single “Go All the Way” has a rich harmonic vocabulary from top to bottom. The first modulation hits after the guitar-driven intro as the verse starts (0:29), shifting from A major to C major. Many thanks to inveterate contributor JB for this submission.

Jamiroquai | Time Won’t Wait

An overdue MotD debut today for British “acid” funk band Jamiroquai, submitted by frequent contributor JB. According to AllMusic.com, the band has “amassed a steady stream of hits in the U.K. and experienced chart success in just about every other area of the world, with an irresistible blend of house rhythms and ’70s-era soul/funk…” The band explores themes of “rising technology and the deterioration of human interaction,” perhaps best demonstrated in its initial 1996 worldwide hit, “Virtual Insanity.”

Released on the album Dynamite in 2005, “Time Won’t Wait” is a dynamic dance blowout — reminiscent of some of the best 70s disco/funk jams, but with better chords! After an intro in D minor and a jump to F minor at 0:36, the tune alternates between these two keys. After the chorus starts with a familiar Fmin/Cmin/Bbmin/Gbmaj progression from 1:21 – 1:28, we’re treated to a cascade of new syncopated chords hitting every two beats, starting with a very prominent F major. At 1:51, the cycle starts again.

Smokey Robinson + The Miracles | Baby Baby Don’t Cry

Via our frequent contributor JB:

“This 1969 tune is a classic. There’s only one big mod (at 3:15), but the bridge that builds to it begins at 2:40, generating a huge amount of tension. When the mod finally comes, it’s as cathartic as a dam bursting. A great example of how an artful mod can infuse an otherwise-sleepy melody with a lot of dramatic tension.”

Guster | Overexcited

According to Boston.com, the NYC-based/Boston-made band Guster is “a buoyant pop act formed by Tufts University students (which) has used its word-of-mouth popularity to hit the big time.” Apparently the “intelligently playful pop band” gives a bit of extra thought to its Boston appearances: “When the band last played the Pavilion, it arrived in a rubber dinghy. And once, at the Orpheum Theatre, band members came in from the ceiling.” Guster has cranked out college radio anthems for years, but none more quirky than 2019’s “Overexcited.” The video, an earnest homage(?) to modern dating, adds a few more smiles and cringeworthy moments to the simplicity of the lyrics and the earworming melody.

Modulation at 2:04. Many thanks to chronic contributor JB for this submission!!!

The Beach Boys | Fun, Fun, Fun

Wrapping up Beach Boys week is “Fun, Fun, Fun,” a 1964 single by The Beach Boys which features a guitar riff during the opening inspired by Chuck Berry’s iconic “Johnny B. Goode”. The track hit #5 in the US, #5 in Australia, and #8 in New Zealand.

The tune modulates at 1:51. Many thanks to frequent contributor JB for this submission and so many others!

The Beach Boys | Don’t Worry Baby

#3 of 5 of our Beach Boys Week posts: 1964’s “Don’t Worry Baby” was the B-side of one of The Beach Boys’ all-time biggest hits, “I Get Around.” It’s part of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list, ranked #178 on The 500 Rolling Stone Magazine greatest songs, and #14 on Pitchfork‘s “200 Greatest Songs of the 1960s”.

Starting in E major, there’s a transition to F# major at the start of the chorus (0:41), then a return to E major at the start of the next verse (0:58); the other verses follow suit. Continued thanks to our guest contributor JB for this week’s tunes!

The Beach Boys | That’s Not Me

Continuing with Beach Boys week: AllMusic refers to The Beach Boys‘ “That’s Not Me” as “the closest thing to a conventional rocker” on the experimental Pet Sounds album (1966). According to Jim DeRogatis, author of “Turn on Your Mind,” it’s a work “influenced by psychedelic drugs that inspired Brian Wilson to turn his attention inward and probe his deep-seated self-doubts.”

Starting in A major, the tune has multiple modulations, starting at 0:34. Plenty of compound chords and inversions add to the overall harmonic richness. Thanks again to frequent contributor JB for submitting this tune!

The Beach Boys | When I Grow Up (To Be a Man)

Because frequent contributor JB has sent in over a dozen tunes by this classic American band over the past few weeks — and because it’s now the depths of January AND the material is a harmonic feast — we bring you a week devoted entirely to The Beach Boys!

“When I Grow Up (To Be a Man),” written and composed by Brian Wilson and Mike Love (1965), reached #9 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song has a lyric written from an adolescent’s POV. According to the book “Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson’s Lost Masterpiece,” Wilson had a “fervent desire to reinvent himself as an individual, not as a boy.” The single, which is only two minutes long, modulates at 1:32.

The Tubes | What Do You Want From Life

Here’s one of the singles from The Tubes self-titled 1975 debut album, “What Do You Want From Life?” The track received sustained airplay, likely due to what AllMusic calls the band’s “offbeat pop splendor.” Frequent contributor JB describes the track’s iconic spoken-word outro as a “tour-de-force gameshow voice-over … one of the most scathing bits of social satire in all of pop music.”

Starting in C minor, an early bridge (1:03 – 1:39) takes us through several pivots and pushes up briefly into D minor before falling back into Db minor for the balance of the tune.