Tag: pop

Redwood | Time to Get Alone

Although also recorded by the Beach Boys, the band Redwood (later to become Three Dog Night) recorded Brian Wilson’s tune “Time to Get Alone” in 1967. Danny Hutton, one of Three Dog Night’s vocalists, recalls the recording session in the book Smile: The Story of Brian Wilson’s Lost Masterpiece:

“‘ … there’s something that sounds like this big, distorted, smooth guitar sound, and it’s just a little piano played through a blown speaker that I had at my house. Then I remember Brian calling in the string section. [Brian’s sister-in-law] Diane Rovell called them in at the last minute, and some of them still had their tuxedos on. Brian was thoroughly in control of those guys … he was sitting there, talking to me, while they were doing a take, and he stops and says, Hold it, Danny. Hey, viola! The second chair … you’re flat on that C. He not only heard a bad note; he knew which guy did it.’”

Redwood’s version and the Beach Boys’ subsequent 1968 version have some similarities and some differences, but anyone who’s heard Three Dog Night will recognize the overall textures of that band immediately. Wilson’s compositional sense, however, is so strong that it remains paramount throughout. At 1:31, there’s a shift from D major to C major.

More detail about the collaboration between Wilson and Redwood/Three Dog Night, directly from Hutton’s recollections:

The Sylvers | Boogie Fever

“Among the more popular family acts on the ’70s R&B circuit, Memphis’ Sylvers (featured) no less than nine of the ten brothers and sisters in the family … the group was viewed as a Southern version of the Jackson 5,” (AllMusic). “Bassist James Jamerson came up with the ‘Boogie Fever’ bassline, and he clearly based it on the riff from the Beatles’ ‘Day Tripper,'” (StereoGum). “If it was anyone else biting ‘Day Tripper,’ the various ex-Beatles might’ve had some reason to get annoyed. But all through the ’60s, Jamerson was the bassist for the Funk Brothers, the legendary Motown session band. For years, Jamerson did fascinating, inventive things with his instrument. And Paul McCartney paid close attention; McCartney’s bass work on the Beatles’ mid-’60s music carries a clear and pronounced Jamerson influence. So if James Jamerson wanted to use the ‘Day Tripper’ riff for a bubblegum disco jam about a boogieing pandemic, nobody was going to stop him.

And ‘Boogie Fever’ (1976) really is top-shelf bubblegum disco. (Songwriter and producer Freddie) Perren manages to capture a whole lot of the magic he had with the early Jackson 5 … But Perren also updates that sound, adding in a relentless disco pulse that fits it nicely … but the real joy is in hearing all those different siblings layering up intricate, joyous harmony lines all over that beat. Because there are so many of them, they become a whole massed choir, breaking into little subgroups and then coming back together to yelp out the song’s title … “

This performance from 1970s/1980s late-night TV staple The Midnight Special seems to feature energy-to-burn live vocals (not lip synching) as well as a live band(?) After a start in F major, a bridge shifts up to G major at 1:32 – 1:46 and again from 2:26 – 2:39.

Aaron Carter | I’m All About You

“I’m All About You” is featured on American singer Aaron Carter’s third studio album, Oh Aaron, released in 2001. The track was the third and final single released for the record, which reached the #7 spot on the Billboard 20o and was certified Platinum. Carter, who was a contestant on Dancing With The Stars and appeared on Broadway in Seussical, passed away last week at age 34.

The track begins in C major and modulates up to D following the bridge at 2:37.

Petula Clark | Geh in die Stadt (Downtown)

“Downtown,” Petula Clark’s signature song, reached the #1 slot on the Billboard charts in January 1965. In that era, it was common for singers to create cover versions of their own English-language songs in other European languages, often using the same backing track.

Famously, the Beatles recorded German-language versions of “She Loves You” (“Sie Liebt Dich”) and “I Want to Hold Your Hand” (“Komm gib mir deine Hand“).  Other German covers of that time include the Honeycombs’ “Have I The Right” (“Hab Ich das Recht“) and Dionne Warwick’s “Walk On By” (“Geh’ vorbe“). This German-cover thing, it was a thing.

Besides the version heard here, Clark (a UK native) also recorded French (“Dans le temp”) and Italian (“Ciao ciao”) versions of “Downtown”. She also recorded songs in French, Italian, German, and Spanish that were not covers of her own hits, though some were covers of hits for other artists.

The familiar half-step upward modulation appears at 1:53.

Bunny Sigler | Follow Your Heart

“A veteran singer and composer during the classic period of Philly soul, Bunny Sigler was always capable of making striking, memorable soul/R&B material,”(AllMusic). “Debuting in the ’50s with his own group and as a solo performer, he reached the higher end of the R&B charts several times … Sigler actually earned much more acclaim for his work as a staff writer and producer. One of the major creative forces behind Philadelphia International’s dominance of ’70s soul, Sigler produced and wrote for dozens of major acts, including Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes, Lou Rawls, Patti LaBelle, the Whispers, Stephanie Mills, Billy Paul, Curtis Mayfield, and Carl Carlton.”

“Follow Your Heart” (1967) starts in G major, but with almost no emphasis on chord color — instead, a distinctive I major / flat-II major (sub V) vamp rings out beneath the verse’s melody. At 0:39, the chorus shifts to Bb major; the less exotic chord progression in this section brings the sound closer to a textbook 1960s pop/soul hit. The pattern continues from there.

Jonas Brothers | Poison Ivy

“Poison Ivy” is featured on the Jonas Brothers’ 2009 album Lines, Vines and Trying Times. The track, which features a horn section, was partially inspired by the English indie rock band The Zutons. “We were really inspired by the Zutons,” Joe Jonas said in an interview with Rolling Stone. “We heard their new record, You Can Do Anything, when we were in Europe last year and got everyone around us hooked on it.”

The song begins in G and modulates down to Eb at 3:06.

The Hollies | Bus Stop

“Bus Stop,” The Hollies’ 1966 hit, “was written by Graham Gouldman, who went on to form the band 10cc, best known for their hit ‘I’m Not In Love,’ (Songfacts). Gouldman was just 19 when he wrote ‘Bus Stop,” but he had already written three Yardbirds songs: ‘For Your Love,’ ‘Heart Full of Soul‘ and ‘Evil Hearted You.’

According to Gouldman, this song’s middle eight was one of the few instances in his songwriting career when he had a sudden inspiration rather than having to resort to hard toil. He explained to Mojo magazine in a 2011 interview: ‘You have to be working to make something happen. Occasionally you can wait for some magic, like McCartney waking up with ‘Yesterday’ already written in his mind, which does happen — it’s like a gift from your own subconscious. Or sometimes, it’s like a tap’s turned on.’ The middle eight section ‘all came to me in one gush, and I couldn’t wait to get home to try it. When that sort of thing happens, it’s really amazing. But that’s rare. Mostly, you have to do the slog.'” The tune reached #5 on the UK Singles chart and was also the band’s first US top ten hit, peaking at #5 on the Billboard charts in September 1966.

After a start in A minor, that lucky middle eight (0:35) shifts to E minor before reverting back to the A minor at 1:03. During that section, the melody shifts from a lower, smaller range to a more emphatic, higher one, while the melody’s compelling syncopation continues throughout. From 1:31 – 1:45, there’s an instrumental interlude which ends in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it piccardy third before the transition into another middle eight.

Donna Summer | I Don’t Wanna Get Hurt

“Donna Summer’s title as the ‘Queen of Disco’ wasn’t mere hype,” (AllMusic). “Like many of her contemporaries, she was a talented vocalist trained as a powerful gospel belter, but she set herself apart with her songwriting ability, magnetic stage presence, and shrewd choice of studio collaborators, all of which resulted in sustained success. During the ’70s alone, she topped the Billboard club chart 11 times … After (the disco) subgenre was declared dead, Summer was very much part of the evolution of dance music. Through the feminist anthem ‘She Works Hard for the Money’ (1983), she became an MTV star, and she continued to top the club chart with disco-rooted house singles through 2010, 35 years after her breakthrough. Summer died from cancer in 2012 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame the next year.”

“I Don’t Wanna Get Hurt” was a track from the 1989 album Another Place and Time; Summer hired the UK production team of Stock, Aitken & Waterman for the project. The album produced her last major pop hit with the 1989 Top Ten single “This Time I Know It’s for Real.”

After an intro in C minor, the verse kicks in at 0:17 in A minor. The chorus 0:49 reverts to C minor. The pattern continues from there.

Sanna Nielsen | Undo

“Undo,” written by Fredrik Kempe, David Kreuger, and Hamed “K-One” Pirouzpanah, was recorded by Swedish singer Sanna Nielsen and selected as Sweden’s entry in the 2014 Eurovision Song Contest. Nielsen later included the track on an EP, also released in 2014.

The song begins in Eb minor and shifts up a half step at 2:21.

Mary Hopkin | Those Were the Days

“Who could possibly predict that a five-minute recording of a Russian romance song composed in the early 1900s with English lyrics written in the early ’60s, recorded in July 1968 by a green 17-year-old Welsh folk artist, produced by a Beatle, and arranged by a jazz nerd with unlikely instrumentation would result in a Number 2 on the Billboard charts? (MixOnline) Engineer Geoff Emerick says ‘Those Were the Days,’ produced by Paul McCartney and sung by artist Mary Hopkin, appealed to the public because of those unique qualities. ‘It was so different for the time,’ Emerick says. ‘Everyone loved it … Who knows about these things? We were always looking for something different, something spectacular every time we worked.’

(Arranger) Richard Hewson and McCartney spoke about what the producer had in mind for the arrangement, which only amounted to an instrument called the cymbalum. Interestingly, the percussion teacher with whom Hewson had been studying had a cymbalum. ‘It’s a Hungarian instrument that is like a piano without the lid on, hit with hammers,’ Hewson explains … As Emerick recalls, ‘I think we took a day out of the Beatles’ schedule so Paul could do this. We did it in Studio Number 3, Abbey Road.'”

The klezmer-style clarinet and rubato feel of the verse lend the tune its antique feel right off the bat, although the chorus picks up a consistent groove. At 3:12, Hopkin is joined by a children’s choir for a wordless trip through the chorus, followed by a brass-driven mixed-meter interlude which unexpectedly pushes us into the new key at 3:42.