USA

Guster | Barrel Of a Gun

“Guster are an inspiring band,” (Boston Herald). “They started as wet-behind-the-ears teenagers at Tufts University playing campus parties and busking in Harvard Square and have grown … into massively successful and influential performing and recording artists through talent, technological insight, and sheer hard work: gigging constantly, maintaining a direct relationship with their listeners that was nearly unheard of in the early internet days of the mid 90s, and writing, rewriting, recording, and re-recording their songs until they were hits.

In doing so they’ve become elder statesmen, able to use their influence to effect positive change in the music business through their green touring initiative Reverb and given early career breaks to superstar artists such as Maroon 5, John Mayer, and fun … the acoustic guitar and hand drum sound Guster stumbled upon out of necessity stood out as extremely fresh when heard alongside the distorted guitar rock that still dominated the pre-boyband airwaves in the mid to late ’90s … Eventually their self-generated following grew so large that the industry had to take notice. A Geffen Records A&R scout told me of finally breaking down and seeing them in 1997, ‘ … they are doing such numbers I had to go check them out. It blew my mind. Everyone in the place was singing every lyric.’

‘Barrel of a Gun’ … (its) originality is obvious: the key changes, the voices, the arrangement. It rocks, but listen close to the texture of the rhythms: tuned ricochets, typewriters in tempo, and a thump that that is familiar as a rock but isn’t … It had what a record needed to become a hit. Familiarity, ingenuity and unique musicality.”

Starting with an intro and verse in Bb minor, “Barrel of a Gun” (1999) makes an early scene change, via the combination of a suspended groove and a suspended chord, to a chorus in the relative Db major (0:37). At 1:03, the entire pattern repeats, although this time with just a little more instrumental runway before the next verse starts. 2:11 brings a relatively soft-spoken bridge in Bb mixolydian which delivers us back to another chorus at 2:37. The tune wraps up just past the 3:00 mark with an unresolved IV chord — although by then we’ve heard so many different stick-less percussion patterns and shifting textures that the runtime seems longer.

Restless Heart | I’ll Still Be Loving You

“‘I’ll Still Be Loving You’ is “a gentle classic country ballad that transcends genre,” (Wide Open Country). “The public thought so, too — not only did the song go to No. 1 on the Hot Country Songs chart, but it also was a top 40 single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Larry Stewart, John Dittrich, Paul Gregg, Dave Innis, and Greg Jennings (Restless Heart) ended up with one of the greatest hits of their careers.

‘I’ll Still Be Loving You’ was released in January 1987 as the second single from the Wheels … It went to No. 1 on Hot Country Songs for one week and spent 25 weeks on the chart … The single crossed over to the Adult Contemporary chart and won the band recognition on the pop charts. It would be the only country song to have crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100 for five years running until Billy Ray Cyrus’ ‘Achy Breaky Heart’ rolled around in 1989.”

Starting in Ab major, the tune shifts up to Bb major for the chorus at 0:48, where the band’s trademark vocal blend truly blooms. The second verse returns to Ab major with the same upward shift for the second chorus. An instrumental verse, climbing all the way to F major and featuring acoustic guitar, hits at 2:34. Another chorus, returning back to Bb major, is the focus at 2:59, gradually fading into an outro. Lest we think these guys were in any way studio creations, check out the second video of a very intimate, very recent acoustic performance of the tune — including a minor instrumental harmonic disagreement at 2:34!

Counting Crows | Butterfly in Reverse

Counting Crows’ “excellent debut album August and Everything After, and its two studio follow-ups, earned the band a huge following across the globe,” (Drowned in Sound). “Bolstered by their energetic, uptempo live shows. While the previous effort This Desert Life was rendered patchy by an untamed, widening musical palette, Hard Candy (2002) is focused experimentation, full of catchy hooks and a complete right angle to their previous Americana-tinged efforts, despite taking in all sorts of influences. And I’m sure we can thank producer Steve Lillywhite (U2, The La’s, the Crows’ favorites The Psychedelic Furs, etc.) for that.

Ryan Adams repays Adam’s guest spot on the Gold album with co-writing and backing vocals on ‘Butterfly In Reverse’. In parts it gets a bit Bacharach but the quaint, lilting chorus makes up for that. (The album is) varied and consistent, taking in everything from New Wave to twangy rock via all your dad’s old Small Faces LPs, and is quite easily their most approachable, solid album yet.”

Built in G major overall, “Butterfly in Reverse” is indeed Bachrachian in spots (never a bad thing!). Its relaxed psychedelic waltz seems like it might have been composed on a merry-go-round pipe organ. 0:28 sounds like a key change is in progress, but it’s a transient fake-out. From 1:19 to 1:44, the tune’s dizzy midsection takes us on a sampler tour of several keys. From 1:44 on, we’ve touched back down in G major, right down to the surprise unresolved ending on the dominant chord.

The Stylers | Pushing Up Daisies

Before it hit on its trademark R&B sound, the legendary Motown label apparently did some wandering (or was it reckless driving?) in the wilderness.

” … a finger-wagging sermon against dangerous driving, delivered by a dead narrator following a fatal car accident, complete with another knuckle-bitingly terrible spoken-word bit,” (Motown Junkies) ” … it’s inescapable that (“Pushing Up Daisies”) is destined to be a piece of short-lived novelty nonsense and not a useful parable about the importance of road safety, never mind a half-decent pop song … Manifestly silly despite the macabre subject matter, this is still very much below Motown Quality Control’s usual threshold; it’s a mystery how it managed to find its way into actual record shops. The Stylers weren’t invited back for a follow-up; this was their one and only Motown release.”

“Pushing Up Daisies” (1963) shifts up a half-step at 0:38 and 1:30 — that much is clear. But why does this video feature a 45 of Martha + the Vandellas’ “Heat Wave”?

The Foreign Exchange | Right After Midnight

“The Foreign Exchange — the vocalist/producer brainchild of Phonte (Coleman) and Nicolay (Matthijs Rook) — has always moved somewhat outside of its time.

Amid the radio eminence of early 2000s hip-hop, it was an online chat room where the North Carolina emcee and the Netherlands-based producer first linked on the then-budding hiphop superfan site Okayplayer,” (Super Empty). “Their transatlantic file sharing led to a cheekily named 2004 LP, Connected, before the two ever even met on the same continent — one of the first albums to be co-created remotely over the Internet.”

Released on the duo’s 2013 album Love in Flying Colors, “Right After Midnight” begins in Db mixolydian. At 0:58, the pre-chorus hits, alternating lines in Bb major and Bb minor. The chorus enters at 1:17 with a return to the original key; the pattern continues from there. Phonte alternates rapping with singing on many of the group’s tracks, but this track is 100% driven by melody, with a prominent support role by vocalist Sy Smith.

Earth, Wind + Fire | Got to Get You Into My Life

“‘Got to Get You Into My Life,’ from 1978’s soundtrack to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, (is) a stroke of genius; the horns are over the top, and the Fire slick up the original, playing it at a faster tempo and in general kicking the ass of the original,” (The Vinyl District). “Phillip Bailey (falsetto) and Maurice White (tenor) swap vocals, White plays the kalimba (or African thumb piano), and the guitarist wails, and what you’ve got is one perky slice of eminently likable funk, lightweight division.”

“The Los Angeles-based funk band were enjoying a run of hits when impresario Robert Stigwood invited them to appear in a movie based around Beatles songs (Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band),” (Financial Times). Their leader, Maurice White, smelled a turkey but, having sifted through The Beatles’ catalogue, thought ‘Got to Get You Into My Life’ had crossover potential. He signed EW&F up, recorded the song in an afternoon and insisted it be released prior to the film (in 1978).

It was a wise move, as the film and its double LP soundtrack tanked to such an extent that it hampered the careers of its stars (Peter Frampton, the Bee Gees) while EW&F scored a huge US hit — their version, with its bright horns, disco shimmy and loose, funky ebullience, remains a club classic today. In White’s autobiography he says word reached him that McCartney considers EW&F’s version his favorite ever Beatles cover.”

The track features a (relatively!) soft-spoken intro in G minor featuring a complex hook (first stated at the very top of the track and returning throughout). The tune gets started in earnest at 1:02 with a shift to a verse in G major and a jump into a different groove. There’s a return to minor at 2:14, then a return of that hook, followed by a visit back to major for an instrumental verse featuring a short guitar solo at 2:45. At 3:13, we return back to minor for the balance of the tune.

The Supremes | Everybody’s Got the Right to Love

” … The Supremes—all three members—all close together (on the album cover) and looking happy, instead of cheap artwork like on the last two LPs because Motown couldn’t bother to put the ladies together and waste Diana Ross’s time,” (Soulfinger). ” And not only did Mary Wilson, Cindy Birdsong, and new member Jean Terrell take a picture together, they also got to work together in the studio! No Supremes album since The Supremes Sing Holland-Dozier-Holland (released three years earlier) had the Supremes singing every song on a Supremes album.

As for the music itself, this album is by no means groundbreaking. The ‘new’ (Diana-free) Supremes would never be trendsetters. This LP is an excellent case of how a group, songwriters, and producers can exist in a moment, assess the situation, and produce some high quality music that simultaneously evokes a particular point in time without being trapped by the gimmicks of that point in time.

Simply put, Right On is an album that clearly sounds like it was made in 1970 but is not trapped by being made in 1970. It was also a solid seller reaching #4 on the R&B album chart and #25 on the pop register.” One of the singles from the album, ‘Everybody’s Got the Right to Love,'” is “obviously playing off the various social movements of the late 1960s demanding greater freedom and rights for marginalized Americans … “

Built around an easy 12/8 groove, the tune is initially built in F major. A whole-step shift upward to G major hits suddenly at 1:30. The tune certainly didn’t match the group’s previous single, “Up the Ladder to the Roof,” but it reached #11 on the US R&B charts and #25 on the Pop chart. Written by Lou Stallman, the tune was released by Motown in 1970.

Tanya Tucker | I Don’t Believe My Heart Can Stand Another You

“Tanya Tucker is a living country music legend,” (AllMusic). “She first engraved her name in the genre’s history books in 1972 when, at 13, she hit with the Top Ten single ‘Delta Dawn.’ Across the following decade, Tucker transitioned into adulthood and maintained her fan base (no mean feat). Since then, she has notched a remarkable streak of hits including the chart-topping ‘What’s Your Mama’s Name’ and ‘Would You Lay with Me (In a Field of Stone).’ She’s placed many titles on the Top Country Albums charts, nine singles in the general Hot 100, and more than a dozen on the Top Country Songs list.

Between 1988 and 1997, she charted a comeback that netted three gold albums. In the 21st century, she started her own label and was inducted into the Texas Music Hall of Fame, while continuing to tour. After an extended break from recording, she released the full-length While I’m Livin’ in 2019, co-produced by Brandi Carlile and Shooter Jennings. They reunited with the artist to helm the sessions for 2023’s Sweet Western Sound.”

“I Don’t Believe My Heart Can Stand Another You” (1975), an absolutely textbook mid-tempo country tune, shifts up a half-step at 1:23 during a short interlude. Written by Billy Ray Reynolds, the track reached #4 and #1 on the US and Canadian Country charts, respectively. Many thanks to regular MotD contributor Rob P. for submitting this tune!

Sam + Dave | Soul Man

“Sam + Dave electrified audiences with livewire performances, blending gospel-rooted vocal interplay and exhilarating stage presence,” (Stax Records). Their music pulsed with energy, driven by the call-and-response firepower of Sam Moore and Dave Prater. However, their voices alone weren’t enough to define their legacy — it took the songwriting brilliance of Stax’s Isaac Hayes and David Porter to tailor anthems that matched the duo’s intensity as performers.

… in 1967, ” … the United States was facing heightened racial tensions, culminating in the Detroit riots in July. As Isaac Hayes watched television coverage of the destruction, he noticed something: Black-owned businesses, marked with the word soul, were left untouched by looters. In a moment of strife, the word, to Black Detroiters in the know, was a covert symbol of solidarity, encouraging protection for Black businesses in the community. Hayes and Porter knew they had a pervasive concept to work with, shaping ‘Soul Man,’ deriving a personified embodiment of the phenomenon in Detroit. Porter built the lyrics around this idea, creating a protagonist who had endured hardship but emerged stronger through his connection to community and allegiance to soulfulness as a north star.

After recording the song, Sam + Dave released “Soul Man” in August 1967. The song quickly rose the charts. By October, it sat in the #1 seat on the R&B chart, remaining for seven weeks. On the pop charts, it soared to #2. Beyond its commercial success, “Soul Man” was an anthem—one that resonated deeply with audiences at a time when Black identity and empowerment were at the forefront of national conversations. In early 1968, ‘Soul Man’ won Sam + Dave a Grammy Award for Best Rhythm & Blues Group Performance, beating out competition from Otis Redding and Carla Thomas.

Built primarily in an alternating G major, “Soul Man” reaches a bridge at the 2:00 mark, providing a late transition to Ab major at 2:10. (“Late” is quite the relative term here, as the track’s entire runtime is only 2:38!).

Todd Rundgren | The Last Ride

“Todd Rundgren is, apparently by design, a bundle of contradictions,” (Trouser Press). “A facile composer of memorable hook-filled pop melodies, he has often chosen to make willfully difficult music. A one-man studio wiz proficient on any number of instruments … possessor of a highly original sound … (and) a tireless innovator at the boundaries of music technology, he has often performed with a lone acoustic guitar and piano. Rundgren’s gifts as a lyricist are impressive, yet he has also recorded a fair number of instrumentals. To some, he’s better known as a producer than an artist, although his commercial achievements in both realms are not inconsiderable. In short, the kid from Upper Darby, PA has fashioned a fascinating life out of following his muse wherever it goes.”

A few albums into his solo career and still in his 20s, Rundgren released Todd in 1974. The reviews were all over the map. “Todd sags under the weight of such indulgences as ‘In and Out the Chakras We Go (formerly ‘Shaft in Outer Space’),’ yet still contains ‘A Dream Goes on Forever,’ one of the most beautiful piano ballads ever recorded. ‘The Last Ride’ melds Todd’s pop sensibility with his Philly soul enthusiasm; ‘Izzat Love?’ could have been the album’s pop single, and the album ends with two triumphs. ‘Don’t You Ever Learn?’ runs over six minutes but wastes not a second with its washes of electric piano and strong melody, while the anthemic ‘Sons of 1984’ comes complete with backing vocals by concert-goers on two coasts. (Rundgren was one of the first rockers to truly understand and make creative use of the connections between artist and fans).”

The easy 6/8 groove of “The Last Ride” belies the tune’s rich harmonic textures and intense emotionality. Rundgren’s ballads frequently feature star-crossed relationships, lost horizons, and missed opportunities — and “The Last Ride” is no exception. I thought I knew just everything / I had it made and I could coast / But I turned away love when I needed it most. For this 2011 live version, the setting is Rundgren’s home in Hawaii, but the production credit (and the stellar band!) belong to fellow Philadelphia-area native Daryl Hall and his groundbreaking web series Live from Daryl’s House. Built primarily in G minor, the tune shifts to F minor at 2:36; the two keys alternate from there.