Tag: rock

Janis Joplin | Me and Bobby McGee

“Me and Bobby McGee,” written by Kris Kristofferson and Fred Foster, was a #1 hit, despite the fact that its singer, Janis Joplin, passed away from a drug overdose before its release. It was her only number one single and is ranked #148 Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The tune has been covered by a wide range of artists, including Kenny Rogers, Gordon Lightfoot, Jerry Lee Lewis, The Grateful Dead, Blind Melon, Melissa Etheridge, and Pink.

According to Rolling Stone, “Joplin recorded the song for inclusion on her album, Pearl, only a few days before her death in October 1970…Kristofferson did not know she had recorded it until after her death. The first time he heard her recording of it was the day after she died.”

After starting in G major, there’s an unusually early whole-step modulation to A major at 1:15.

Talking Heads | Psycho Killer

A contribution from our frequent mod flyer JB: “Psycho Killer,” a single from the debut album of the American art punk band Talking Heads, Talking Heads 77 (1977), reached #92 on the Billboard hot 100. The tune also earned a place in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

AllMusic calls the track a “deceptively funky ‘New Wave/No Wave song’ with an insistent rhythm, and one of the most memorable, driving bass lines in rock and roll.” From Robert Christgau’s review in The Village Voice: “…these are spoiled kids, but without the callowness or adolescent misogyny…in the end the record proves not only that the detachment of craft can coexist with a frightening intensity of feeling—something most artists know—but that the most inarticulate rage can be rationalized. Which means they’re punks after all.”

The tune overall is in A minor, with an intermittent overlay of A major in this live version; not surprising, given the absolute primacy of Tina Weymouth’s iconic bassline. The bridge (3:28 – 4:05) is an odd mix, but is built around A major. The modulation hits with zero warning and a complete lack of fuss at the bridge, which continues with a choppy energy, befitting the perpetual motion machine that the band has set in place. Unlike the studio version, this live performance features Adrian Belew, known for his work with King Crimson, on guitar; Belew’s solo could probably win the award for “Best Guitar in the role of a Theremin.”

Bruce Springsteen | Born to Run

Bruce Springsteen’s smash hit “Born to Run” (1975) is another submission from our frequent contributor JB. Addressing the grandiosity of the album’s wall-of-sound approach, AllMusic.com’s review states: “To call (it) overblown is to miss the point; Springsteen‘s precise intention is to blow things up, both in the sense of expanding them to gargantuan size and of exploding them…an intentional masterpiece, it declared its own greatness with songs and a sound that lived up to Springsteen‘s promise, and though some thought it took itself too seriously, many found that exalting.” While the track only hit #23 on the Billboard Hot 100, it’s ranked #21 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time and is enshrined in the Rock Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.

After establishing verses and choruses in E major, a chaotic multi-section bridge starts at 2:12, veering into several keys before touching back down into E major at 3:06 for a final verse, chorus, and an extended outro.

https://youtu.be/f3t9SfrfDZM

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!

Shishamo | Ashita Mo (明日も)

Guest contributor Alejandro Espinosa (@wolfman1405) has submitted a song called “Ashita Mo (明日も)” by the Japanese indie rock band Shishamo. The band’s members met during high school and made their debut in 2011.

Alejandro reports that the tune “begins in Db major. At 1:15, the chord progression goes V7/vi -> vi (also related ii) -> V7/V -> IV -> bVI -> V7). The V7 (Ab) resolves deceptively as a sub V into G major. The transition back happens at 2:09; it’s just kind of sudden and unprepared and it feels great. G into F, and now we’re on a Db again.”

The Eagles | New Kid In Town

Boston-based pianist and music professor Mark Shilansky has submitted “New Kid In Town,” a textbook example of The Eagles’ country-tinged rock sound. The lead single from the smash hit album Hotel California (1976), the track went to #1 in the US and #20 in the UK.

Rolling Stone‘s “Eagles: The Ultimate Guide” quotes vocalist/drummer Don Henley’s description of the tune: “It’s about the fleeting, fickle nature of love and romance. It’s also about the fleeting nature of fame, especially in the music business. We were basically saying, ‘Look, we know we’re red hot right now, but we also know that somebody’s going to come along and replace us — both in music and in love.'” The version featured here is from the band’s 2004 “Farewell” tour.

Mark reports: “The modulation is SO killer: From E major to G major during the bridge, then back down to E after the final chorus — but it feels like a lift! Amazing. I’m going to start using it in my Ear Training 4 class.”

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.

Nate Wood | Stand By Your Man

Nate Wood is perhaps best known as the drummer for the modern electric jazz quartet Kneebody, which the New York Times calls “a resolutely un-pindownable band” using “a common jazz instrumentation to make a somewhat less common amalgam of urban-signifying genres, from electro-pop to punk-rock to hip-hop.”

In addition to working with Kneebody since 2002, Wood has balanced sideman stints with the likes of George Harrison, Sting, Chaka Khan, guitarist Wayne Krantz (Steely Dan), Armenian pianist Tigran Hamasyan, and Taylor Hawkins (Foo Fighters). Wood’s several solo releases (starting with 2003’s Reliving) showcase his writing and vocal abilities; he played and recorded every instrument on the debut album.

“Stand By Your Man” has a plodding groove, but features a dense harmonic tapestry. Starting in C major, the track shifts about mysteriously, its cadences far from expected. Near the end of the track (3:04) the tonality shifts, obscured by the unconventional harmonies and frequent inversions. At 3:30, the fog clears: the harmonies simplify as the first phrase is repeated, now unmistakably in D major.

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 | Be True to Your School

Continuing with Beach Boys week: “Be True to Your School,” by Brian Wilson and Mike Love of The Beach Boys, was released in 1963. The melody of the University of Wisconsin fight song, “On, Wisconsin,” can be heard on the track. There was also single version, which was released with “In My Room”. The tune peaked at #6 on the Billboard charts, but also #3 in New Zealand, #6 in Sweden, and #10 Australia. However, the single performed best back home in Los Angeles: three weeks at #1, according to airplay on KFWB.

The key change is at 1:54, interspersed with cheerleader chants. Many thanks to Rob Penttinen for this submission!