Post your favorite song with an unusual time signature!

[bbernardini]

I'll post a video link later, but today, I'm really digging Porcupine Tree's "Open Car," which has verses in 17/8 (5+5+5+2 followed by 5+5+7).

[lost-in-nj]

1. ummm

yeah sure thing......



:rofl:

WTH????



lost

:hi:

[LisaM]

2. First, let me get my catalogue of the time signatures from my favorite songs...

Oh wait! There isn't one!

How does one go about doing this, exactly?

[Aristus]

3. "Wintertime Love" by The Doors is in 3/4 time. 3/4 is not an unusual time signature

in and of itself, but for a rock song, it's odd. Technically, unless a rock song is in 4/4 time, it's not actually "rock". And 3/4 time makes "WtL" a waltz.

[nomorenomore08]

9. This song is also in 3/4, I believe: R.E.M. - "Swan Swan H"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_QG6tr9mjo

A young Michael Stipe with all his hair. Trippy, ain't it? :P

[regularguy]

4. Estimated Prophet (Grateful Dead), in 7/4.

Of course Take 5 (5/4) and other songs on that Dave Brubek album. Contrary to popular belief, Take 5 was written by sax man Paul Desmond, not Brubek

[Richardo]

5. Don Ellis' 'Bulgarian Bulge'. A fast 33/16.

BULGARIAN BULGE
ARRANGED BY DON ELLIS

(8 Brass) This tune was the one everyone wanted but was unpublished. Written in 33/16, this was one of the all-time favorites. It's based on a Bulgarian folk tune and provides fiendish challenges for everyone's fingers and brains! Recorded on the Underground and Tears of Joy albums. There are sax doubles.

:D


I loved Don Ellis when I played trumpet in Jr High and High School. I don't think he EVER did a song in 3/4 or 4/4.

http://www.ethnomusic.ucla.edu/archive/EARwinter2001.htm

[Ptah]

6. Take Five - 5/4 time

http://youtube.com/watch?v=DDOgYw5-pNs

[Pierre.Suave]

15. I was going to post that one

I have to be pretty quick to get to it before you I guess.

[Rambis]

7. The Eleven Grateful Dead

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONV8I8Poc68

[nomorenomore08]

10. Damn! That's the same song I was gonna post! Great minds...

:hi:

[Rambis]

16. fave quotes

it was a response to an editorial in th des moines iowa paper-

Dear Pat ( winy reviewer of the dead concert in Des Moines)
The grateful dead were experimenting with different time signatures, rhythms and genres of music while you were messing in your pants and listening to the Archie's!:hippie:

[Iggo]

8. Them Bones - Alice In Chains

It's in 7/8 time. Driving, and made more tense by the lack of an eighth beat.

(And hey, this is my 1000th post! Almost all of them completely innocuous! Yay!)

Oops...forgot to post the link...heheheh.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=d_qRTMKDqXA

[nomorenomore08]

11. Yeah, I always thought there was something "unusual" about that song.

Now I know what it is.

[Cabcere]

12. Pink Floyd's "Money" is in 7/4, I believe

although I couldn't swear to it. :) At any rate, it's a good song. :hi:

[Elidor]

18. You're correct

And they made the sax player play in 4/4 time.

[Iggo]

22. And then they switched the whole thing to 4/4...

...for the main guitar solo, so Gilmour didn't have to work so hard.

Burn, sax player! Burn!

[Elidor]

29. ROFL!

:rofl: Is that true? I would have figured Dave could handle it. Maybe he'd heard too much of Steve Howe and didn't feel safe going there.

[Iggo]

50. Yep, saw it on Classic Albums.

Gilmour was laughing about as hard as you!

:rofl:

[Steven_S]

13. How's this one...

Tool - The Grudge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNTWwbYYlgU

Don't know what time it is.

[bbernardini]

17. 5/8 or 10/8. Another unusual time signature can be found in "Intolerance."

The opening riff alternates between 13/16 (grouped as 3+3+3+4) and 4/4.

[hellbound-liberal]

14. How about Living in the Past?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsdE1ZTKOGM

[johnnie]

19. "Good Morning Good Morning" The Beatles

5/4, 4/4 and 3/4 in one song.

[bbernardini]

20. Here's a "video" of "Open Car" by Porcupine Tree from YouTube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_vnnjRlk_A

I say "video" as it's just the audio with a picture of the album cover.

[Cant trust em]

21. Scherzo in C Major from Symphony in E flat Major DD 68, BB 25, by Bela Bartok

what a trip.

[hellbound-liberal]

23. Solsbury Hill by Peter Gabriel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ah3vTq2ZxYk

[darkstar]

24. Cool thread topic!

Yay. You rock. That's why you get a special party!!!

Out buddy Todd R. had lots of compound meters I think they'd be called, in Utopia, but I'm not sure if they are consistent time signatures.

As per up thread, more Dead: "Playing in the Band" is in 10 the whole way. One of my favorite things about those guys is how "normal" they can make the unusual signatures sound.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AW_kPXpd28g

Here's one that "feels" odd to me: Neil Young's "Words" with big sections in what I guess you'd call 11.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VHwCdVFpcTA

:hi:

[nytemare]

25. Apocolypse in 9/8 from Supper's Ready by Genesis.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jbFGzXS3gI

Gabriel at his best!

[bbernardini]

27. Particularly during the instrumental part...

...where Tony Banks plays a solo that has nothing to do with 9/8, but more with 4/4 and 7/8.

[nytemare]

35. Tony Banks was entirely underrated.

Stiff as he was, the man could play some crazy-difficult keyboard solos.

[Oeditpus Rex]

26. Zappa's 'Rubber Shirt'

on "Sheik Yerbouti."

11/4

[Bennyboy]

28. Estimated Prophet...Grateful Dead

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzOyHuRzzq0

[nomorenomore08]

30. This song is so long, it's in two parts. But it has lots of different time signatures (I think).

Yes - "Close to the Edge"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-XCnrIdv0I (part 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdfZFQaLPbY&feature=related (part 2)

[Dr. Strange]

31. YYZ and Tubular Bells

I suspect that AllegroRondo will also put in a vote for YYZ.

[nomorenomore08]

32. "Tubular Bells"? AKA the theme from "The Exorcist"?

:scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared: :scared:

[Dr. Strange]

33. That's right.

It's a nice piece of music. At least, it is for me, maybe due to the fact that I haven't seen that movie.

[Xipe Totec]

39. ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bYmIKcP7Nbc

[PunkinPi]

58. Yes,

the disassociation with the film helps.

Before I saw the movie, I heard the song and there is a difference!:)

[bbernardini]

34. A few by UK (Wetton, Bruford, Jobson, Holdsworth)

Presto Vivace & Reprise:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BuvnsJLgPfE

(NOTE: the above is NOT performed by UK, but by some 11-15 year old kids from the UK. Still pretty impressive.)

In The Dead Of Night:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30c-wEGRwig&feature=related

(Performed by the original UK lineup.)

[Rabrrrrrr]

36. Songs in just one time signature? Fucking boring.

Go for the real songs, that change meter every few bars - like a lot of songs by Rush, Genesis, Yes, Zappa, and so forth.

I really like music that's in five or seven - those meters have a sense of forward movement that I find exciting and wondrous.

[Xipe Totec]

37. Don't know jack about time signatures,

but this is one of my favorites:

Cruz del Sur - El Cascabel

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jbsw-D6ypek

Maybe you can tell me what the time signature is...

[BlueJazz]

40. Sounds like the guitar is playing in 4/4 Harp in 6/8

[BlueJazz]

38. Blue rondo ala turk.....Take Ten

[pink-o]

41. Don't forget "The Phone Call" by the Pretenders.

I'm not a fan of Chrissie Hynde's limited vocal range, but that chick could WRITE!!

[Doc_Technical]

42. "Contrasong" by Egg.

n/t

[eppur_se_muova]

43. Don Ellis's "Upstart", in 3&(2/3)/4.

The quintessential Ellisian piece, IMHO.

Bela Fleck/Flecktones are the current epicenter for weird time signatures. Wish I could figure out "Tell It To The Guv'nor"! Fleck hops around so much between time signatures, throws in extra measures, etc. I can't usually figure them out.

ETA: Neat thread! I knew there were a few pop/rock musicians who dabbled in odd time signatures, but hadn't realized how many, or how far they went.

[Richardo]

49. Another Don Ellis fan!

:pals:

[eppur_se_muova]

55. You bet! My sig features Maynard, but I discovered Don about the same time ...

picked up "Live at Monterey" and "Live in 3&(2/3)/4 Time" in the LP cutout bin (remember those?) back during high school. Don passed away before I even got through college. :( Glad to see his albums reissued on CD, even with some interesting bonus tracks.

[begin_within]

44. I think I win.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=k-rqOJDo0-8

Odd time signatures such as 11/4, 3/16, 11/9, etc., and sometimes changes signatures with every measure.

[eppur_se_muova]

46. Um, 11/9 ? Got carried away?

The 4,8, 16 etc. only indicates notation, not the actual beat, anyway.

[ZombieNixon]

45. Meshuggah - New Millennium Cyanide Christ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZvPM9D4hws

Begins with a 23/16 + 13/16 pattern, repeating
Then 3/8 + 5/8, repeating
Then 3/4, 9/16, 3/4, 9/16, 3/4, 5/8
Then 4/4 triplets
Ends with 6/8, 8/8, 6/8, 8/8, 4/8

[Iggo]

51. I LOVE MATH METAL

I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL. I LOVE MATH METAL.

In case you didn't know...I love math metal.:headbang:

[Manifestor_of_Light]

47. Last page of the Firebird Suite.

It's in 7/4. It's been so long since I played it I can't remember the rest of it.

The Rite of Spring, also by Igor Stravinsky, changes time all over the place. When I played that, I had to memorize all the time signatures and tap my foot.

Prokofief's 7th Symphony, another toe-tapper-so-I-don't-get-lost.

[Alexander]

48. Four Sticks - Led Zeppelin.

5/4 and 6/8.

[AwakeAtLast]

52. Unsquare Dance and Rusty Cage - how's that for variety!

Unsquare Dance - an interesting version

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sRYrKYFXZU


"Rusty Cage" - Soundgarden

Uses 4/4 and 19/8 :wow:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHy5tFI05js

[CrownPrinceBandar]

53. "Spoonman" by Soundgarden..........

I think its in 7/8 or something like that

http://youtube.com/watch?v=nxtL-_m7fGM

[Ahpook]

57. I really like that band..

A really good one to come out of that genre.

Another would be Rusty Cage. At least i get lost on it when my mind wants to try and play guitar some other way:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJWpRmreA8I

[AwakeAtLast]

54. O.k., one more - Question! - System of a Down

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwcpZ7nyHwg


I love System of a Down! :loveya:

[Ahpook]

56. Well no thread like this is complete without...

Primus:)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zbz8Dupz0Z4

I always have trouble with their tunes:)