What a weird solo...

Bucket

My dad showed me this last night - it's at 3:50. Played by the master, Dann Huff. Fab solo, but listen to all those fucking key changes!

I've worked it out - it's a minor VI-VII-i but modulating through several different keys. Here's how I've written it down:

Chorus - C#m

Solo pt. 1 - Em, starting on B (b7 of above key)

Solo pt. 2 - G#m, starting on a D# (#7 of above key)

Solo pt. 3 - Cm, starting on G (#7 of above key)

Solo pt. 4 - F#m, starting on F# (#4 of above key)

Solo pt. 5 - Am, starting on C (#4 of above key)

Chorus - C#m

Em is the tonic minor of the relative major of the previous key (C#m) in the chorus, then it leaps up a major third to G#m, then another major third to Cm - but then a tritone to F#m, then a minor third to A, then a major third to return to C#m. I've just tried playing those notes as an arpeggio and that makes no sense either, not that that was likely to be particularly relevant anyway.

Anyone have the faintest clue how to explain how this sounds so great?

axisus

That is .... unusual! Interesting though.

EricTheWeary

A couple of the changes sound very clunky to my ears, I'm not sure it's quite as clever as it wants to be; although my listening this week has been mostly two chord reggae songs so something this complex is a bit of a shock to my system...

bigjon

Good find!

imalrightjack

The way he puts a leading note at every shift turns me off completely. He doesn't actually transition smoothly between the changes at all, they're just tagged on jumps with a beat one bend.

SidNewton

imalrightjack said:

The way he puts a leading note at every shift turns me off completely. He doesn't actually transition smoothly between the changes at all, they're just tagged on jumps with a beat one bend.

That was my thinking also, he doesn't play through the changes and it ends up sounding pretty lame as a result. In short, it's a bit shit and not what I would have expected from someone with his reputation. Easy payday I guess.

thomasross20

I think it sounds cool. 

There doesn't have to be logic to it - I regularly just play what sounds good and you have to throw in total "out there" changes every now and then (reading this is like going in a time machine and looking at how I used to analyse songs lol). All about the ears! As long as you can go along with the changes all will be good.

Never heard that before - good tune.

EricTheWeary

Actually listened to the song now, Peter wanted to be Robert Palmer didn't he? There's some really nicely done guitar in the song including the earlier short solo but that main solo still sounds less than great - there a couple of stand out notes where I'd have thought they were clunkers.

roberty

Great find!  It's deliberate and it's meant to sound deliberate I think.

Deijavoo

imalrightjack said:

The way he puts a leading note at every shift turns me off completely. He doesn't actually transition smoothly between the changes at all, they're just tagged on jumps with a beat one bend.

I agree.

thomasross20

Nope, I like it

Danny1969

mmm to me it sounds like a safety note at the beginning of every change, like you would do if you were jamming as those changes of the fly would take some brain work

That intro to the song - Nothing dates a record to the eighties more than a Fairlight or synclavier does it

Sibelius

Sounds like a Tony McAlpine solo from the 80's to me.....but slower!

Brad

I've given it a couple of quick listens, but to my ears his playing is very 'inside' within each key area.

What is probably bending the ear are the changes and that occasionally he's anticipating the key change before it happens. What isn't helping is that the changes definitely feel pretty 'crow barred' in. That he kinda approaches each change in the same way emphasises this.

It's all in the ear of the beholder, but I think it's a pretty cool solo :-)

mellowsun

Maybe this chord progression could be the basis for next month's Solo of the Month to see if we can do any better!

imalrightjack

How does solo of the month, @mellowsun? Never had a go at that.

mellowsun

imalrightjack said:

How does solo of the month, @mellowsun? Never had a go at that.

Example here:

http://www.thefretboard.co.uk/discussion/47456/solo-of-the-month-6-chat#latest

carlos

Sounds all right, but it's a bit painting by numbers, isn't it? Those leading notes sound a bit off as the listener won't have heard that progression before I don't think.

bloodandtears

Like it...

I think the leading notes help the ear to accept the changes... IMHO

Maynehead

bloodandtears said:

Like it...

I think the leading notes help the ear to accept the changes... IMHO

My thoughts too.

Ché

I like it, every change makes my ear go "Ooo". It's like solo takes you to different dimensions within the same song. Kinda like when you're on the Xbox visuliser and change to another visual during the same song.