Tag: USA

Hannah Montana (Miley Cyrus) | The Other Side of Me

If someone asked you to name artists whose repertoire features ingenious modulations, chances are Hannah Montana would not rank high on the list. But the writers of Miley Cyrus’ sensational Disney Channel show’s soundtrack (2006) created some intriguing compositions, especially in the sense of music theory and modulation. Matthew Gerrard and Robbie Nevil formed a partnership around 2006 working for Disney and wrote often for Hannah Montana as well as some other hit Disney Channel productions, including High School Musical. 

These two writers used modulations often in their tunes to create that intense burst of energy we all know and love. However, one tune in particular modulates in an extremely strategic and unique way — something not often done in commercial music, let alone youth television soundtracks. “The Other Side Of Me” is part of Hannah Montana’s first season soundtrack. The song has an extremely uplifting energy, constantly shifting and continuously engaging the listener. This engaging quality is driven by the harmonic contour of the song, which includes four keys in total! Rather than using the classic one-time key change at the end of the song, Gerard and Nevil employ a series of modulations to keep the tune moving forward and evolving harmonically, creating sectional contrast and an elevated sense of passion as Miley Cyrus moves through the song. 

The tune starts out in the key of A major with a rockin’ V – iv – IV – I progression in the intro and first verse. The pre-chorus progression shuffles these chords but maintains a clear tonic of A major. Suddenly, a transition into the chorus brings the tune up a whole step to B major (0:38), where we remain for the chorus until moving back to A major for the second verse and pre-chorus (1:05). From here, the song modulates back to B major and then moves into the bridge, which includes a modulation to G major for the first half (1:54) and E major (2:02) for the second half. The final chorus brings listeners back to the third chorus in B once again, going out with a bang as the hook, “the other side of me,” plays in the chorus’s home key of B major. 

The tune is absolutely genius and well thought out; the transitions among keys are seamless. Miley Cyrus handles the shifting tonality in her stride.

What’s Wrong With Me (from “The Kissing Bandit”)

According to the American Film Institute, 1949’s The Kissing Bandit was a film whose production hit more than a few bumps in the road: The film went through many iterations of casting before the leads Kathryn Grayson and Frank Sinatra were finalized. “The film is set in the early nineteenth century. Ricardo (Frank Sinatra) is the son of a robber known as the Kissing Bandit. He however is a shy, Boston-bred young man who does not know how to sit on a horse … the film became jokingly known as one of MGM’s biggest ‘flops’ and an acknowledged low point in the careers of Sinatra and Grayson.”

The Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television reported that the film was a financial disaster, earning $969,000 in the US and Canada and $412,000 overseas, resulting in a loss to MGM of $2,643,000. This made it one of the least successful musicals in MGM history.

But given its lovely melody, “What’s Wrong With Me” survived as a standout from the production. With music by Nacio Herb Brown and lyrics by Earl K. Brent, the tune provided a good showcase for Grayson and Sinatra. A downward half-step modulation kicks in at 2:22 in the transition between Grayson’s and Sinatra’s respective solo sections.

Many thanks to Jamie A. for this contribution — hopefully the first of many!

Paciencia y Fe (from “In The Heights”)

Before Hamilton, composer/lyricist/actor Lin-Manuel Miranda wrote In The Heights, a musical focused on a group of Hispanic immigrants living in Washington Heights, looking to create a sense of home and belonging while also maintaining a connection to their roots. Miranda began writing the show during his sophomore year at Wesleyan College in 1999, and it opened on Broadway in 2008, winning four of the thirteen Tony Awards it was nominated for. Like Hamilton, the score incorporates rap and hip-hop, and Miranda starred as the lead in the original cast. A film adaptation of In The Heights opened last week.

“Paciencia Y Fe” features two key changes — from D down to C minor at 2:00, and up to C major for the final 8 measures at 4:19.

Childish Gambino | Sober

“Donald Glover doesn’t need your approval. He has always had plenty of admirers, be it through his standup, TV work, or his music, which he makes as Childish Gambino,” Consequence declares in its review of his 2014 EP Kauai. “Fans of his comedy routines and 30 Rock and Community episodes followed him to the mixtape circuit, a world which rewards humor but not necessarily Gambino’s particular brand of pop culture-dissecting kind. In turn, depending on who you ask, he’s one of hip-hop’s smartest MCs or a short-shorts-wearing outsider who’s unable to see why he’s unwelcome.”

Glover’s come a long distance since 2014. As Childish Gambino, he’s been extremely prolific, releasing multiple albums, EPs, and “mixtapes,” growing in prominence as he goes. His track “This is America” (2018), which went to #1 in the US and many other countries, was released with a single-take music video which Time described as “laden with metaphors about race and gun violence in America.”

After starting in a F major, 2014’s “Sober” drops a break (2:50) comprised of only scant background vocals, the buzz of heavily distorted electronic bass, and percussion, which somewhat obscures the whole-step modulation to G major at 3:09. The break’s contorted landscape continues until 3:29, when there’s a return of Glover’s clear, seemingly effortless falsetto over pulsing eighth-note synths and major 7th voicings at just about every opportunity.

Many thanks to Mark L. for this submission — his first!

Sia | Free Me

Australian singer/songwriter Sia released “Free Me” as a single and music video in July 2017. The video, narrated by Julianne Moore, depicts an expecting mother (played by Zoe Saldana) who is told she is HIV-positive after going in for a routine check-up. The mother’s emotional journey is communicated through choreography, set by Ryan Heffington. “The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one that can affect anyone, particularly child-bearing women around the globe,” Sia said upon the song’s release.

“I’ve proudly joined forces with the Abzyme Research Foundation and the #endHIV Campaign for the release of my song, ‘Free Me,’ to help raise funds and awareness for a potential breakthrough cure of the epidemic.” All proceeds of the song support efforts to eliminate HIV/AIDS. A half-step modulation from Eb to E occurs at 4:02.

B.J. Thomas | What’s Forever For

“B.J. Thomas (born Billy Joe Thomas) straddled the line between pop/rock and country, achieving success in both genres in the late ’60s and ’70s,” according to AllMusic’s bio. “At the beginning of his career, he leaned more heavily on rock & roll, but by the mid-’70s, he had turned to country music, becoming one of the most successful country-pop stars of the decade.”

In 1968, his career blossomed with “Hooked on a Feeling” and then Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head” from the film Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid. NewsOpener.com adds: ” … no cover versions of ‘Raindrops’ have ever appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 — probably because Thomas’ version was so definitive … the 1998 box set The Look of Love: The Burt Bacharach Collection noted that Raindrops ‘was never really of its time. Mainly everything else was Flower Power, the protest songs, people were taking acid … but that song was a monster.’”

After his signature hit, Thomas then had a string of other soft rock hits in the next two years, including Bacharach’s “Everybody’s Out of Town” (1970). In 2013, the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences inducted ‘Raindrops’ into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Thomas died last week at the age of 78.

“What’s Forever For,” written by Rafe Van Hoy, was a late-career cover by Thomas (2000); the tune received its debut in 1980 by Ann Murray and other covers by Johnny Mathis, John Conlee, and several others. Pushed gently into country/pop category by a few expert touches of pedal steel, the understated track modulates up a whole step at 3:03.

Ronny + The Daytonas | Little G.T.O.

“Nashville’s greatest contribution to the hot rod and surfing craze of the early ’60s came in the form of Ronny + the Daytonas,” AllMusic reports. The band was “centered around singer-guitarist-songwriter John ‘Bucky’ Wilkin … After writing (“GTO”) in physics class as a senior in high school, Wilkin’s mom pulled a few strings, landed him a publishing deal, and had a session set up with (a) Nashville producer … The record sprang to number four on the national charts.” Nashville session musicians backed Wilkins up on the recording of the track, and he quickly came up with a name for the “band,” which initially was anything but a stable list of personnel.

The band’s accelerated breakthrough story might have been very much of its era. But ClassicCarHistory.com categorizes the 1964 track as timeless, placing the tune on its Top Ten Car Songs list. “The song reached #4 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart and sold over one million copies.”

1:46 brings a half-step key change to this classic three-chord surf rocker. Many thanks to regular contributor Rob Penttinen for this submission!

For Forever (from “Dear Evan Hansen”)

Pasek & Paul’s 6-time Tony Award-winning, blockbuster 2016 musical Dear Evan Hansen opened in London in November 2019 before closing the following March due to the COVID-19 pandemic; it is scheduled to re-open this October. English actor Sam Tutty plays the title character in the production, and is featured here singing “For Forever” with three other Evans: Andrew Barth Feldman from Broadway, Robert Markus from Toronto, and Stephen Christopher Anthony from the national tour. The show’s music supervisor Alex Lacamoire produced and arranged the vocals, Dillon Kondor wrote the guitar arrangement, and Tim Basom and Ethan Pakchar accompanied for this performance.

A film adaptation of the musical, starring Ben Platt who originated the role of Evan, will be released this September. Key changes at 2:47 and 3:49.

Ella Fitzgerald | Body and Soul

JazzStandards.com describes “Body and Soul” as an all-time great: ” … In Easy to Remember: The Great American Songwriters and Their Songs, William Zinnser describes ‘a bridge unlike any other. The first four bars are in the key that’s a half-tone above the home key… the next four bars are a half-tone below the home key.’”

Many covers of the tune have been recorded, but trumpeter Louis Armstrong and saxophonist Coleman Hawkins’ signature versions are perhaps the most widely known. But the addition of lyrics — particularly as delivered with Ella Fitzgerald’s unforgettable style and vocal timbre — surrounds the listener with an additional layer of beautiful storytelling.

The tune, written by pianist/music director/composer Johnny Green, was first performed in 1930. The bridge is first heard from 1:18 – 1:55.