This song could be used for a master class on consonant songwriting. As much as I personally appreciate edgy in music, be it arrangements, melodies, quarter-tones, what have you, this song uses pop-chord sequencing in a way that can and should be studied by those who pursue pop song writing.
A few points on this ==> note how the verse changes occur over a pedal bass during the sung verses, but the bass changes to root notes during the break (clarinet solo). See also how the flat-sixth is introduced only at the song’s ending, to inform the listener that things are resolving towards a finish, aided by the concurrent introduction of the root chord’s Major 7th during that final sequence.
Ofttimes a melody will dictate the appropriate changes to support it, but this song is different. It contains variety without disruption, simultaneously avoiding the monotony of so many pop songs while maintaining an aural continuity. I personally don’t listen to much of the pop music of my youth, but this one never gets old, because the craftsmanship is unexpectedly complex for its genre.
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