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OK. A thread for wee things that caught your attention and have maybe shown stuff from a different angle.
I was thinking mostly music (behind the scenes stuff, stories behind songs, how stuff was written, etc.), but it can be anything really.
The interweb is full of wee gems (as well as a lot of keech). It doesn't have to be mind-blowing, just interesting.
I'll start - Mike Barson from madness explaining the structure of the classic "My Girl".
https://youtu.be/dmSZ4gdv4KA
Layla by derek and the dominoes, is supposed to have been written by Clapton about his strong feelings for his friend George harrison’s then wife Patty.
there’s an urban legend that whilst Harrison wrote ‘while my guitar gently weeps’, he couldn’t quite get the solo right when the Beatles were recording it. McCartney and Lennon were apparently being a bit smartarsed about it, and eventually suggested ‘why don’t you ask your pal Eric (Clapton) to give it a try?’
After some time driving around looking for Clapton, he found him, fairly worse for wear and on cocaine. Arriving back at the studio, Clapton, with McCartney and Lennon watching on, nailed the solo first time, and it’s supposedly Clapton on the studio recording performing the solo.
Good thread, probably belongs in the holy ground though.
To me, Kurt Cobain was probably one of the most misunderstood artists I can think of. It's epitomised by the classic anthem for teenage rebellion "smells like teen spirit" where the "teen spirit" was actually a brand of deodorant.
He was bullied mercilessly at school and as a result, hung about with girls and gays. Seeing how the world oppressed these groups first hand, he held very stong feminist, anti-homophobic and anti-racist views.
Very angry, and not being able to do physically do anything about it, he found a scene he could relate to in English punk music. Lots of the power chords and progressions found in his music are modelled on that style and he basically considered his music punk rather than "grunge".
He also liked the Beatles and one night he locked himself in a room with only a guitar and a copy of "with the Beatles" determined to produce a song. "About a girl" was the result.
That song, and one that caused a lot of controversy at the time,"rape me", was actually about women's rights and his disgust with the way an overtly masculine society behaved towards them. In the latter, he felt he was tired of skirting around the issue this was his unsuccessful attempt to make it obvious.
For contrast, Guns n Roses were recording a song called "Rocket Queen" where they wanted to have a girl moaning as if she was having sex. Their guitarists girlfriend was in the studio and after being cojoled and persuaded with bottles of whiskey, she agreed to have sex with Axl Rose in the studio while microphones recorded her noises for use on the track.
Kurt Cobain detested Guns n Roses for some reason. :greengrin
Where to begin with Dylan but the lyrics to Positively 4th Street are scathing. Lots of rumoured subjects of the tirade but generally thought to be a general F off to the fokies who criticised him for plugging his guitar in.
Positively 4th Street https://g.co/kgs/ukEdhg
Kiss them for me by siouxee and the banshees. Always liked it as a beautiful piece of music but recently dug a bit further into it's meaning
The opening chord in "A Hard Day's Night".
http://www.openculture.com/2011/12/g...ays_night.html
Dmitri Shostakovich permeated his music with a progression of D-E flat-C-B.
When expressed phonetically in German, it represented his name D-S-C-H
Fuller, more technical explanation here, with audio clips
Bach did something similar with his fugues I believe.
That's brilliant!Quote:
Originally Posted by snooky
It puts me in mind of one Sunday afternoon in Gordon Duncan's house. One of my mates was mucking about with a guitar that had been lying in a corner when Gordon stopped him, asking what chord he'd just played. The next 5 minutes were spent finding what had been played then figuring it out - an F sharp minor with a G in it or something, which Gordon scribbled down then half wrote a tune from it (to be completed, or not, later) . An astonishing talent.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordon_Duncan
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episod...howard-goodall
I watched this a few months ago.
The music geek in me absolutely adored it. Such a well-known album but having heard it so many times it is hard to appreciate how ground-breaking it was at the time, and it was brilliant to get the inside track on all of the techniques they used.
I always thought the voice in Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds sounded strangely high-pitched, I didn't realise that this was by design.
I will give it a watch but regardless I think Howard Goodall is a tremendous presenter on all things musical.Quote:
Originally Posted by Smartie
Not afraid of some simple double entendre either, as his series "Howard Goodall's Organ Works" showed. The boy should have been on the calendar thread.
This.Quote:
Originally Posted by Pete
I was never a big fan but they were punk as anything and their songs were very misunderstood.
A few years ago his daughter was asked if she listened to her father's music and she said no. I saw a few articles saying "her father was a musical genius" etc etc. It's not hard for anyone to understand why she doesn't surely?
I think he lived his life in true punk fashion. He preferred second hand gear and never owned a guitar worth more than few hundred dollars. He was embarrassed by the material wealth accumulated for him by the group and couldn’t deal with the fact that becoming famous also meant selling out to an extent.Quote:
Originally Posted by Haymaker
You could say they were more punk than the bands they idolised, like ones that were handed $1000 Gibson’s and who’s raison d’etre was to sell clothes.
Totally understand about his daughter who maybe resents the music. Maybe she’ll learn to appreciate it, and therefore try understand her dad a bit more when she’s older.
The saxophone riff in Gerry Rafferty's Baker Street was written and performed by fellow Scot Raphael Ravenscroft. He wasn't attributed a writing credit so never received any royalties. Instead he got a standard session fee - a cheque for £27. It bounced.
Rick Wakeman played the piano on Morning Has Broken, for a session fee of £9.Quote:
Originally Posted by Peevemor
Cat Stevens forgot to pay him. Years later, when RW dug him up about it, CS offered to pay it right away. RW declined, on the grounds that he'd told the story so many times over the years.... and didn't want to stop[emoji16]
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Sorry, but I believe the part about the sax player composing the famous riff is apparently an urban myth. On a studio recording there's one track where Gerry plays the riff on the guitar. This track was recorded before the sax player came to the studio for his recording session.Quote:
Originally Posted by Peevemor
Anyway, we all know that it was played by Bob Holness.Quote:
Originally Posted by snooky
[emoji38]
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Not according to the sax player.Quote:
Originally Posted by snooky
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/m...-sax-solo.html
The truth probably lies somewhere in between.
Kate Adie was another one that did the rounds at the same time.Quote:
Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod
I have so many responses to that... but it is Sunday. [emoji16]Quote:
Originally Posted by Peevemor
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Like David Bowie inventing Connect Four.Quote:
Originally Posted by Peevemor
And Mike Nesmith's mum inventing Tippex.Quote:
Originally Posted by NORTHERNHIBBY
(except that one is true....)
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She is also supposed to be the inspiration for the Beatles’ Something and Clapton’s Wonderful Tonight. Quite the trio of songs.Quote:
Originally Posted by McD
Glenn Campbell* played the lead part on the Monkees’ I’m a Believer.
* I can’t be the only person who wants the BBC’s political reporter to sing Rhinestone Cowboy when they cut to him?
And also Frank & Nancy Sinatra's "Something Stupid"Quote:
Originally Posted by JeMeSouviens
(The instrumental intro).
And Pet Sounds.Quote:
Originally Posted by snooky
And You've Lost That Lovin' Feeling.
Also played guitar on Elvis Presley, Viva Las Vegas :agree:Quote:
Originally Posted by CropleyWasGod
....and also was a member of the famous studio band the Wrecking Crew in LA