Some additional thoughts/corrections: 1) For reasons I don't fully understand, the stems I found for this song seem to be slightly sped up relative to the actual recording? Which is weird, 'cause it's typically the other way around. Anyway it seems to be only a couple BPM, so I'm not sure anyone would notice if I didn't say anything, but it does make the notes fairly sharp compared to the things I'm saying, to the point where it'd probably be slightly more accurate to round up to the next half-step. I decided to go with the note names based on the original recording instead of the thing I was actually playing for consistency, but in case anyone out there has perfect pitch and was confused, this is why. 2) One could argue that the intro riff _is_ in groups of 2, and it's meant to be a polyrhythm against the main groove. That fits with what's on the paper, but it doesn't match my hearing. The lack of dynamic accents means that, when the drum beat is played, the riff naturally organizes itself (for me) in groups of 3. It's only when that beat is missing that I hear groups of 2. 3) All the information on specific synth tones comes from this incredible article reconstructing the entire song: reverbmachine.com/blog/tears-for-fears-everybody-wants-to-rule-the-world-synths/ 4) A minor clarification: I said Smith drags his chest voice up instead of using his mixed voice, but mixed voice includes elements of chest voice. I think it's clear enough that I meant he drags up his _full_ chest voice, but if you want to be pedantic, here's your pedantic correction. 5) I said Smith and Orzabal adopted similar techniques, and I stand by that, but there are some differences. In general, I think Smith's delivery is more relaxed, while Orzabal's is more percussive, and he's also more likely to flip up into head voice, like in Head Over Heels. But when singing through this middle range, they both share that same approach to registration, which was my main point. Listening to this song and Shout, it is not immediately obvious to me that the two songs have different singers. (Also to be clear I don't know why they chose to do this, or whether it was in fact a conscious choice at all. When I said that it meant you could always tell you were listening to Tears For Fears, I was discussing effect, not intention.) 6) I didn't get into this in the video because it's not relevant to this specific song, but when talking about how the explosion of affordable synth technology in the 80s changed music, it's hard not to think of the legacy of the Roland TR-808. This was technically an analogue synth, not a digital one, but its relatively low price made it a staple of the evolving hip-hop scene, and the sounds and techniques it introduced can still be heard in hip-hop today.
The sharp pitch is something that's always bugged me about that song. All versions that I know of are like this - just confirmed it with the official TFF RUclips and Spotify. Was this an artistic decision or just a badly calibrated tape machine? Maybe we'll never know! Interestingly the remake of the song in the Reverb article linked is much closer to standard tuning, in case we wondered what it would have sounded like in the studio originally.
I started college as a Music Education Major - Voice was my instrument... so it was cool to hear you mention that was your focus much of the way through your time in college. I was shocked when you said that Smith was using his chest voice to hit that F#. I ALWAYS heard that as head voice. I thought he was using falsetto. It STILL sounds like that to me. I trust you 100%. You know more about music than I ever have or ever will. Much respect. It's just odd that my ear is so off in this case. My ear was never all that great, but I clearly hear falsetto. Anyway, as always, I love your content, appreciate the work you put into it, and value the information and entertainment. Thank you!
This has been one of my go-to karaoke songs for awhile now. Definitely gonna use "loose intonation" as an excuse the next time I drunkenly botch a verse 😅
Anyone who hasn’t listened to the entire Songs from the Big Chair album *needs* to…it’s TFF’s magnum opus, imo. This tune, the entire head over heels suite, mothers talk, listen, the working hour, shout…it’s just a front to back masterpiece. On top of that, it’s a really good representation of what was happening in the mid-80s. Lots of reverb, Linn drum machine, clean strats, thick bass, tight playing and massive vocals.
While I agree that Songs From the Big Chair was an amazing album, I personally considered Sowing the Seeds of Love their greatest achievement. But, to each their own.
I grew up listening to to Tears for Fears and Genesis. Always knew it was good music but it wasn’t until fairly recently that I realized exactly how complex some of these songs are. I love it.
@@avi_s0ncin0 Instrumentally “A trick of the Tail” was definitely good and very good in certain parts too, but it lacks the fantastic songwriting and creative vision Peter brought to the table. To me “A Trick of the Tail” is to Genesis what “The Division Bell” is to Pink Floyd. A very well composed album that lacks the vision, flair, authenticity and (especially) the songwriting chops.
@@TokyoBalletReprise And Then There Were Three is an amazing record. ABACAB has some more fantastic songs. Matter of fact, each of the Phill era albums has at least one extended "prog" songs on them.
7:00 - Something else about Curt Smith's voice: His singing voice is VERY different from his speaking voice. This isn't particularly uncommon, but the differences between his two voices are VERY noticeable. Accent, timbre, everything. The whole "pulling his chest into his head" thing that you discuss is likely a big part of this.
One other thing - Orzabal’s guitar solo was low-key killer. It gives you that sense of hope, because it injects something organic into all those layered synths.
Neil Taylor plays the solo at the end of the tune. Roland does the first bit prior and the chord solo to the accents and 'I can't stand this indecision....'. Yes, Roland can play that final bit but the band always has a great second guitarist and that role goes to him. Taylor also played on 'Broken', 'Woman in Chains' and 'Year of the Knife', the latter two being from 'Seeds of Love'. Taylor is also with the band on their concert video, 'Going to California' and it with them on the 'Live at Knebworth' video. His solo on 'Everybody...' is real Steely Dan caliber creativity. ruclips.net/video/xH50e8bsHO4/видео.html
To be honest, I'm a little surprised you didn't recognize the intro as triplets right away. The hi-hat does disorient a little bit, but it's just 6 hits against the 12 triplets in the synth. But I love your analysis. This is one of my top 5 favorite 80's pop song.
Why? With respect, you’re not living in his brain so why would you be surprised? I suppose it’s because he’s a musical theory genius..🙂 I heard triplets.. but I’m not 12 tone. All the best 🙂 Edit: in this comment I just shot from the hip as I wrote about him being a musical genius and think I was trying to big 12 Tone up (without really considering why) but no offence was meant in regards to the guy’s very reasonable comment. it was just a quick, first, kinda straight, unconsidered shot and I think an emotional response to someone saying something about why someone else thinks something-and also an honest idea about 12 tone going into the vortex coz he can-tho really there was not much need for my comment-love and respect to all
@@popstargirl79 if you heard triplets, then you heard it as 12/8. I think you're missing what 12tone is saying was his issue. Which 3 each triplet or 4/8ths encapsulates is his issue. If he was hearing the intro 8th as part of the first triplet, then he has literally never heard the riff before. And that's surprising. Oh, and music theory genius? Its theory, not relativity.
@@halcooper3070 thanks for your reply.. I don’t watch loads of 12 tone stuff but he’s great at music theory.. I think I was just saying to the other dude that because 12 tones so into music theory and good at it (kinda genius in my book) then maybe he heard it like that because his mind ‘can’ think and interpret it that way, which I probably couldn’t. (However, maybe I could, but I wouldn’t be able to necessarily say why by using music theory) 🙂
@@popstargirl79 as I pulled out my guitar this morning, to play the lick, amd the verse chords, I realized 2 things... First, the chords imitate the lick, shifting to the second on the 6, that's possibly why most hear the lick the way I hear it, I still can't imagine even liking the lick as 12tone heard it. Second, being a guitar player means you understand the origin, and therefore the rhythm, because of the natural way to play it. Upstroke on the first note allows you to alternate the rest of the lick, endlessly. If you start downstroke on the first note, what a mess, it's awkward and unnatural, and I'd have to practice it a bunch to play it smoothly. Plus, the pick strokes on the recording tell you how it was played. Still leaves me wondering how it can be heard any other way, but maybe the guitar is my bias, I was playing it on stage as soon as it came out, so of course I'd see it that way
As a passionate music enjoyer, getting a peak behind the curtain of music production is like looking at a nice blue ocean and then promptly submerging into it's depths. Music is so much more complex than people give it credit and I have utmost respect for the pioneers that have brought music as far as its come...
To be honest the actual writing process is not necessarily that complex for most music; even music with complex structures. Intuition is a huge part of writing and theory is there as a tool to help here and there. Think of it like this; the in-depth study into all of the physical reactions of a single swing and strike of a bat to a ball that leads to a homerun is extremely complex. However, the batter isn't necessarily thinking or knowledgeable of all of that and doesn't need to be. It is helpful for the batter to have some level of understanding of the physics though. Hope I didn't ruin the illusion for you. 😉
@@CynHicks Agreed. As someone who used to write songs in various bands during my younger days it was often the unplanned intuitive, instinctive jamming that produced something worthwhile, on occasions where we sat down intentionally to write something in a pre- agreed key or style the results were usually underwhelming. Creativity is a peculiar beast. He can show up when you least expect him and hide from you when you most want him.
@@29memyselfandi Pretty much anything I've ever written as a "theoretical demonstration" has become an exercise or completely lost. Parts, of course, make their way into improvising/writing. Theoretical knowledge, at least for me, is mostly useful when writing leads which for me is always improvising in the beginning. The creative (intuitive) aspect is what a "good" song starts with and is polished with. In my experience every musician that I know of that couldn't write a decent melody before theory can only write a decent one after. Like you wrote about creativity though; it's there or it isn't and no amount of theory is going change that. With some exceptions of course, as with most anything.
I just tried singing that main lick without going falsetto on “to” and it’s absolutely impossible. I just naturally kick up there on that note. I forced myself to stay down in chest and couldn’t help but scoop up into the note.
Robert, I recently had a go at recording this song, and experienced exactly the same problem. I have a Bass voice. I am contemplating lowering the key.
I’m a baritone & I don’t have any trouble getting there in chest, but it’s definitely easier to get there via falsetto. I think it’s an easy song to try an over sing. I find just relaxing helps those type of transitions much easier when I don’t over force my diaphragm…
@@acason4 i am a baritone myself but i have received good mixed voice training so i can do it seemlessly. it just takes coordination and training really. and relaxation, like you said.
5:00 - Tears For Fears is ABSOLUTELY known for musical misdirection at the beginning of their songs. Their very first song / title track of their debut does it, as do several other of their songs, including this one. (The title track "Elemental" is a third example.)
Personally, I *have* always heard the opening rhythm as triplets. If I'd never listened to the song before I might not, but knowing what's about to come next it's much easier for me to hear it that way than hear the transition as a tempo change.
Same here. At the beginning of this video I thought, "wow... I've had it wrong the whole time?" (not an uncommon revelation for me when watching 12tone's videos)
i think its one of the greatest pop songs of al time. i think the song has a wonderful uplifting hopeful sound to it while the vocals have a beautifully melancholy vibe and some how it blends together perfectly.
One of my favorite parts is the climax, where the song builds and he sings "Say that you'll never never never leave me." The verse melody and rhythm is radically changed, going from long spondee, to syncopated and bluesy. It's brilliant. Also, great video.
Well, they were one of the best songwriting bands of the 80s, even if most folks don’t actively remember how great they were (still are). I think they just wrote a really interesting song.
@@chairmankaga101 in terms of lyrics I'd say they are one of the best of all time, writing Everybody wants to rule the world would put you up highly already combine that with Mad World as well!
I've always heard this as a rock shuffle beat as a drummer. Just the hi hats going a lil different playing on the 2nd eight note triplet on beats 1 and 3 and plays the 1st and 3rd triplets on beats 2 and 4. That's how I've always counted playing along to this song.
This song was new, and played endlessly on the radio, when I was in college. As a drummer, I pretty quickly figured out what was going on in the intro, but yes, it’s totally done to mislead and surprise you. Whenever I would hear that intro, I would FORCE myself to hear the triplet in it and get the groove in my head as quickly as possible. I figured a drummer had no excuse to be fooled by such tricks. 😄 Great analysis!
I've been doing a "piano bar" stride cover of this tune for many years, and let me tell you this analysis makes me feel SO VINDICATED for so many choices I made
Love your "layering" insight and it really really REALLY makes me hope you do "Sowing the Seeds of Love" someday because it is layers all the way down. And sneaky time signatures.
9:07 ......if you pause the video right around there.... I like to then imagine what someone would think this video is about having only seen those drawings. Just random doodles of multi-trunked elephants, a lion, rainbows, a unicorn, a desert landscape, a skeptical eagle, a trash can, paper currency, etc. Next video I'll have to skip ahead, pause the video, and then try and back-engineer what's going on based on context clues in the drawings. Anyway....just a random thought. Love the channel....been a fan since day one and I love how much success it's had. Always excellent content. :)
12tone, This video is brilliant. Your style and explanations and doodles made what I frankly didn't like when it came out(Synth Pop/Rock), something I gave 20 minutes of my time to 40 years later. You are a genuine treasure as a content creator. BRAVO!
@@TokyoBalletReprise I was in my teens in high school....I played music and I felt 80's music in general sounded sterile andmechanistic. I hated the keyboards and synths and even to this day they sound so terrible to me. Quantizing beats and sounds that were just not musical to my ears. They have finally taken some of those techniques and electronics and coaxed some good out of all of it, but it was just so new and the experimenting sounded like bad experiments.
Something I think is interesting to add on to your analysis is that during the 17:25 melody that is finally D-centric, the bass part decides to Stop playing a D as part of the progression and instead go to a different progression (B-C-B-C-G-A). P.S. You're totally not alone on the intro being confusing
"EWTRTW" didn't exactly spring from Roland's head fully formed at the end of the sessions. The rhythm, beginning picking pattern, choir synth melody, and guitar solo originated on a demo called "Pharaohs". ruclips.net/video/EoIDw5Bf8Gw/видео.html
Exactly and did this guy mention Daft Punk? Lol they predated DP by over 10 years. Man people just enjoy the song instead of analysing it in ignorance.
I have no formal music education, and I’ve only recently started exploring music theory, which is how I discovered your channel. The way you’re able to succinctly deconstruct and describe what’s happening in a given section has been immensely helpful for me. Some of the ideas might go over my head at first, but since you use popular music examples, I find myself going back to a subject days later and revisiting for myself, listening to try finding the things you’ve pointed out. I’m not much of a commenter, but I wanted to say thanks for the work you do. It really is fascinating
This is one of those songs I never get tired of, and it's the perfect song for whatever mood I'm in. You know how when your sad, sad songs kind of help you feel? And happy upbeat songs help you feel happy? I find this song works for almost every existing mood
Everybody want to Rule the World is the 1980s summed up in one sound. This song is my childhood. One of the most amazing tracks ever made. Great video analyizing this timeless gem.
This has long been a favorite of mine...I had the TFF Greatest Hits album and absolutely loved it. Then I see on CBS SUNDAY MORNING that they're back together and doing new material! How crazy is that?
I find it interesting that you notated the song in simple instead of compound meter. I've always heard it as being in 6/8, so seeing you notate the chord vamp as a dotted quarter, then an eighth tied to a half note in 4/4 really threw me off, because I'd hear that as a dotted quarter tied to a normal quarter, then an eighth note tied to a dotted half note (all in 6/8). I definitely understand the metrical lack of clarity in the beginning, but for me, even that clearly delineates 6/8 after at least a full listen of the song if it's not clear at first, especially with the guitar pick-up and percussion. From a percussionist-background, it's a very common compound-meter trope to alternate between two notes/sounds but accent every third beat (for example, capital letters as accents, something like C d c D c d C d c D c d). This is strengthened by the fact that the "off-beat" pitches shift to accentuate this pattern; the B -- the higher of the "off-beat" pitches, happens on the second beat in 6/8 (using the earlier method: F# a f# B f# a). It is really interesting to learn how different people perceive it though. From a percussionist backgrouind I've been very in tune with tropes like this that can trick casual listeners. For example, isolated hi-hats to me are very idiomatic for indicating weak beats before strong beats come in, so often times when I hear tracks that don't introduce extremely clear metric identities, when the off-beat hi-hat trope comes in I instantly sync up with the non-accented downbeat due to practice-learned intuition.
Once you hear it, you can't un-hear it😃. As a drummer turned keyboardist, I still see and use keyboards (especially piano) as a percussive instrument; so you can have a 6/8 over a 4/4, as long as they "lign up".
thats so interesting cuz it literally never occurred to me u could even hear it as anything but a shuffled 4/4. maybe its bcuz i have drummer brain so, to me, the thing that sticks out to me to most abt this song is that groove.
Been watching your channel for many years now and one think I always love about your breakdowns is how you’re able to portray the potential creative process of the songwriters you’re analyzing. It makes me feel like I’m watching some kind of documentary in my head while seeing your video.
This channel has helped connect so many dots , always talk about this channel irl, truly helpful. Just the way you talk about theory is amazing. Keep up the great work
Love your perspective. "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is one of my all-time favorite songs and this gave me a whole new appreciation for it. Thank you for this.
The natural voice amidst all the synth reminds me of an organic human life amidst all the sterility and rigid mechanics of our artificial world. Everybody wants to perfect the world. That strips all the soft and living parts away leaving us straining to shape ourselves into a cog in the greater machine.
I have to admit that I never thought about it but always heard it as though the start of the song was cut off as a stylistic choice or unfortunate accident. It never occurred to me I was hearing it wrong. I have no idea what I would make of a live version.
You did it again, 12tone. A couple of my loose neurons got connected when you talked about vocal registration. I knew a little about different vocal registers, and about registers of keys on an organ, but I hadn't fully hooked up my concept of how this really applies to music in general...and then BAM, there it is. It's a little before 10am here, and if I take the rest of the day off from internetting, I will have done the thing I hope to do every day: I learned something I didn't know before. I'm over 60. This is triumphant af.
@12tone I think the reason you identified the triplets in the beginning in three pairs is because of the final chorus, when he sings "Say you'll never never never never never never need it," with the two-syllable "never"s played over the triplet groove with the same melody--it probably subconsciously lodged that interpretation of it in your brain.
So glad you did this song, it's one of my favorite ones to sing due to the variety in it. I'm always impressed at your ability to isolate lyrics and other parts for these videos.
I wish I'd heard this 10 years ago when I had to learn this song. I was making observations right before you said the same point. Great job analyzing Roland's vocals and TFF's arrangements.
as much of a pain as it is to program a DX7 i def could see them getting the sound after an hour or so, and just not even bothering to spend even more time setting up the velocity and breakpoint stuff. as a synth player i can sympathize with not wanting to waste your bandmate's time on perfecting a patch
Splendid video. And it complements beautifully with Rick Beato's one, as yours is very oriented in theory, themes, intent of the authors (with some lovely speculation too), while Rick's is delving into the licks, the details, the virtue in its execution. Loved both videos, thanks for highlighting his (I follow his channel but I had missed it). Love your work!
Im always excited to see you tackle one of my favorites. Africa was an absolute treat. Ive listened to your Black Parade more times than i can count. And this was certainly no exception to the rule. Fantastic job. And its already on my playlist of driving videos, among other playlists. X3
Loved the vid! Just thought I’d point out that I’d heard somewhere that one of the angles through which the lyrics could be viewed is as though the song is telling the story of ‘1984’. Always found that interesting.
Stunning. Thank you. As a failed fairlight programmer I think I can, possibly, add a couple of things: One 'trick', at the time, was increasing the Tempo by 2 bpm a couple of bars gradually before the Chorus and the 'not quite reaching the vocal F#' has a kind of a 'prosody' as no-one can actually 'reach' ruling the world, perhaps. Just a thought :-)
I've maintained for years that Tears For Fears is prog rock band disguised as a pop band. Their songs sound so simple at first, but when you start taking them apart, you keep finding all these tricky layers. This is one of the exemplars of that idea. It's interesting to me you brought up prog on this, even if you kind of dismissed it.
@@5roundsrapid263 Yeah, I guess it was Progressive Pop. The phrase 'Prog -Rock did not exist in the 70's - it was called 'Classical Rock' and 'Fusion' was called 'Jazz-Rock'.
I mean, they covered Sea Song by Robert Wyatt during these same sessions... they were also present at the first 1981 King Crimson (still billed as 'Discipline') concert in Bath.
Looking for a comment like this. Yes it is the time eater from slay the spire! It's crazy cause I was just playing it before watching this... also I listen to this song a lot too. But the gamer in me was strong when i saw that. 👀
I'm really surprised you view this as in 4/4 with a shuffle or swing beat and triplets, and not just being in 12/8? I've always heard it as being in 12/8 and the beginning makes more sense when you think of it like that, I've never heard the intro as being grouped in twos, only ever threes. BUT I've been very familiar with the song from an early age so I don't remember the first time I heard it, and I know where it's going to go so that probably makes a difference
"the beginning makes more sense when you think of it [in 12/8]", no, this is a red herring. the intro is either triplets in 4/4, or it's eighths-grouped-in-threes-per-the-time-signature in 12/8, neither of these make any more sense than the other, theyre both perfectly ordinary tropes. the distinction between 12/8 and shuffled 4/4 is wholly arbitrary in this case; they can be different things, because swing is typically not a triplet beat, but you can shuffle in 4/4 triplets (i.e., the same metre that 12/8 typically represents) just fine, as happens in this song. i think the point of confusion here is that 12tone starts out by outlining an interpretation (the intro grouped in twos) that he goes on to explicitly reject as implausible. i do agree that 12/8 is notationally cleaner, but yeah, this is a matter of notation; the metre is the same regardless of which time signature you choose in this case.
@@esthersmith3056 the reason why 12/8 makes more sense for the beginning is the piece before the first whole bar is more natural when treated as a single unit. 4/4 with triplets doesn't accomplish that.
@@esthersmith3056 you're absolutely right that it's a just matter of notation and I get what you're saying. When I hear music I think in notation, I can see the sheet music in my head, so that's where I was coming from. It makes a difference to me, but I get that for most people it wouldn't, because the audible result is the same.
Accidentally stumbled upon this video a couple months ago. And I still think about it every time I hear pretty much any Tears for Fears song on my car playlist. I had and have no idea about music theory, but what you said and drew made me think I can at least follow the thoughts a little
Wow, YT's algorithm works in frightening ways. I'm glad I got suggested this videos, after s few minutes I was really into how you graphically explain your process in drawing while listening. Superb! Thank you very much and please keep up the good work! Looking forward to it!
This was amazing!!! EWTRTW is one of my favorite song and I already knew it was accidental genius but to get the signatures, key, instrumental breakdown that you have given us 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾❤️❤️❤️
Love your vids and this is one of my favorite 80's classics. Thanks for so effectively and eloquently explaining the complexities of this wonderful piece of art
Your shrek “s” when you said layers 😂 I’m a total music noob and this is the first video of yours I have seen, but so far I am thoroughly impressed and can’t wait to see more!
This video helped me finally remember where the sample in a song I listen to came from, I knew it sounded so damn familiar but couldn't place my finger on it until now!
I liked your quip about Alexander weeping. Rick Beato did not make that reference. I liked your videos equally for different reasons, which seems to be true of all my favorite content creators.
cool upload. the drums definitely deserve more attention. they're such a big part of the song and there's a history behind that specific shuffle pattern.
Wow, breaking down this song like this for us takes it to a whole new level! Just two bloody chords but how complex! Never, I will listen to this this masterpiece again the same way.
One of the aspects of this song that I like the most is the drum groove. In the drumming community, this song has become well known for people playing the song and changing the rhythm part by metric modulations which take advantage of the rhythm and can allow for a drummer to play this in several related meters. There are numerous examples of creative drummers doing metric modulation versions of this song and some of them are quite impressive. I have always found the drum groove in this to be infectious. Great analysis of the song, I found it most insightful.
Wow this was an amazing breakdown, thank you for sharing! I love the idea of songs wondering around the root chord, never occurred to me that when this song finally gets there, it's still not resolved. Tears for Fears are amazing. Love the new album too by the way. They've still got it after all these years!
I can play 5 chords badly on a guitar (only took me 2 years ! ) and I have no idea what you are talking about from a technical perspective but both your and Rick B's breakdowns of my favourite ever song have motivated me to pull my finger out, thank you so much
I've never seen your videos before now, and I really enjoyed it. But the thing I enjoyed MOST? The reference to THE PRISONER w/the penny farthing bicycle when you said the number 6.
I'm clinically tone deaf (it's called amusia, which is funny because it's not at all amusing). I don't listen to a ton of music, and despite being a pseudo-known game critic, I mostly play games with the music turned off, if not the whole thing outright muted, because music messes with me. As I tell people who can't understand it, simply put, however music sounds to you, it doesn't sound that way to me. THIS is my favorite song. I don't have a ton of favorites, but what limited pop songs I do listen to, this is my #1. And I found it delightfully ironic that in my position as someone medically unable to process tone, that someone who does this as their passion had so much trouble with my favorite song. Go figure, huh?
Dude I always loved this song. When I was a little kid, i only ever heard a bit of it on a TV commercial about a compilation of a bunch of songs and every time the bit of this song would come on I'd wish it played the whole thing. Years later when I finally heard the whole song i was like... Nice.
I don't know why this appeared in my reccomended, but the music theory stuff here is really fascinating. I think I might have begun to go down a rabbit hole here. Great video.
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Some additional thoughts/corrections:
1) For reasons I don't fully understand, the stems I found for this song seem to be slightly sped up relative to the actual recording? Which is weird, 'cause it's typically the other way around. Anyway it seems to be only a couple BPM, so I'm not sure anyone would notice if I didn't say anything, but it does make the notes fairly sharp compared to the things I'm saying, to the point where it'd probably be slightly more accurate to round up to the next half-step. I decided to go with the note names based on the original recording instead of the thing I was actually playing for consistency, but in case anyone out there has perfect pitch and was confused, this is why.
2) One could argue that the intro riff _is_ in groups of 2, and it's meant to be a polyrhythm against the main groove. That fits with what's on the paper, but it doesn't match my hearing. The lack of dynamic accents means that, when the drum beat is played, the riff naturally organizes itself (for me) in groups of 3. It's only when that beat is missing that I hear groups of 2.
3) All the information on specific synth tones comes from this incredible article reconstructing the entire song: reverbmachine.com/blog/tears-for-fears-everybody-wants-to-rule-the-world-synths/
4) A minor clarification: I said Smith drags his chest voice up instead of using his mixed voice, but mixed voice includes elements of chest voice. I think it's clear enough that I meant he drags up his _full_ chest voice, but if you want to be pedantic, here's your pedantic correction.
5) I said Smith and Orzabal adopted similar techniques, and I stand by that, but there are some differences. In general, I think Smith's delivery is more relaxed, while Orzabal's is more percussive, and he's also more likely to flip up into head voice, like in Head Over Heels. But when singing through this middle range, they both share that same approach to registration, which was my main point. Listening to this song and Shout, it is not immediately obvious to me that the two songs have different singers. (Also to be clear I don't know why they chose to do this, or whether it was in fact a conscious choice at all. When I said that it meant you could always tell you were listening to Tears For Fears, I was discussing effect, not intention.)
6) I didn't get into this in the video because it's not relevant to this specific song, but when talking about how the explosion of affordable synth technology in the 80s changed music, it's hard not to think of the legacy of the Roland TR-808. This was technically an analogue synth, not a digital one, but its relatively low price made it a staple of the evolving hip-hop scene, and the sounds and techniques it introduced can still be heard in hip-hop today.
The sharp pitch is something that's always bugged me about that song. All versions that I know of are like this - just confirmed it with the official TFF RUclips and Spotify. Was this an artistic decision or just a badly calibrated tape machine? Maybe we'll never know!
Interestingly the remake of the song in the Reverb article linked is much closer to standard tuning, in case we wondered what it would have sounded like in the studio originally.
Great song choice! I also had the same feeling that something was wrong in the intro but your explanation seems correct.
I started college as a Music Education Major - Voice was my instrument... so it was cool to hear you mention that was your focus much of the way through your time in college. I was shocked when you said that Smith was using his chest voice to hit that F#. I ALWAYS heard that as head voice. I thought he was using falsetto. It STILL sounds like that to me.
I trust you 100%. You know more about music than I ever have or ever will. Much respect. It's just odd that my ear is so off in this case. My ear was never all that great, but I clearly hear falsetto. Anyway, as always, I love your content, appreciate the work you put into it, and value the information and entertainment. Thank you!
TIL the singer on Shout wasn't the same singer as on Everybody Wants To Rule The World.
Maybe the stems are at 44.1 kHz but you were playing them at 48khz? Or maybe someone else did something like this before you got the files
This has been one of my go-to karaoke songs for awhile now. Definitely gonna use "loose intonation" as an excuse the next time I drunkenly botch a verse 😅
Love it.
I’ve done it for karaoke as well. It brings down the house.
This is one of my favorite songs, and takes me straight back to 1985, the moment I hear it.
I can't sing "world" Too deep
@@ransbarger o
Anyone who hasn’t listened to the entire Songs from the Big Chair album *needs* to…it’s TFF’s magnum opus, imo. This tune, the entire head over heels suite, mothers talk, listen, the working hour, shout…it’s just a front to back masterpiece. On top of that, it’s a really good representation of what was happening in the mid-80s. Lots of reverb, Linn drum machine, clean strats, thick bass, tight playing and massive vocals.
For real.
The Working Hour💖💖💖💖💖
While I agree that Songs From the Big Chair was an amazing album, I personally considered Sowing the Seeds of Love their greatest achievement. But, to each their own.
I totally echo your sentiments about the album!
Listen is probably my favorite Tears for Fears song.
@@deathbypigx3h
Absolutely, listen is such an overlooked cut. I think the slow build might be a bit much people with short attention spans.
I grew up listening to to Tears for Fears and Genesis. Always knew it was good music but it wasn’t until fairly recently that I realized exactly how complex some of these songs are. I love it.
Eh depends on what Genesis era… The Phil Collins era was pretty meh, but the Peter Gabriel era on the other hand was fantastic.
Well 70’s Genesis is some of the most complex popular music. Especially Peter Gabriel era Genesis
@@TokyoBalletReprise the first couple Collins-led albums were great. A trick of the tail is a fantastic album
@@avi_s0ncin0 Instrumentally “A trick of the Tail” was definitely good and very good in certain parts too, but it lacks the fantastic songwriting and creative vision Peter brought to the table. To me “A Trick of the Tail” is to Genesis what “The Division Bell” is to Pink Floyd. A very well composed album that lacks the vision, flair, authenticity and (especially) the songwriting chops.
@@TokyoBalletReprise And Then There Were Three is an amazing record. ABACAB has some more fantastic songs. Matter of fact, each of the Phill era albums has at least one extended "prog" songs on them.
7:00 - Something else about Curt Smith's voice: His singing voice is VERY different from his speaking voice. This isn't particularly uncommon, but the differences between his two voices are VERY noticeable. Accent, timbre, everything. The whole "pulling his chest into his head" thing that you discuss is likely a big part of this.
That's true for every British singer known for singing RnB and Soul music.
One other thing - Orzabal’s guitar solo was low-key killer. It gives you that sense of hope, because it injects something organic into all those layered synths.
Neil Taylor plays the solo at the end of the tune. Roland does the first bit prior and the chord solo to the accents and 'I can't stand this indecision....'. Yes, Roland can play that final bit but the band always has a great second guitarist and that role goes to him. Taylor also played on 'Broken', 'Woman in Chains' and 'Year of the Knife', the latter two being from 'Seeds of Love'. Taylor is also with the band on their concert video, 'Going to California' and it with them on the 'Live at Knebworth' video. His solo on 'Everybody...' is real Steely Dan caliber creativity. ruclips.net/video/xH50e8bsHO4/видео.html
@@MrCherryJuice awesome, thank you!
@@MrCherryJuice word up, if you listen closely you can hear the different 'voices' between the 2 solos.
@@MrCherryJuice I also read that it was one take.
No pop song deserves this many badass solos. One would have been sufficient.
To be honest, I'm a little surprised you didn't recognize the intro as triplets right away. The hi-hat does disorient a little bit, but it's just 6 hits against the 12 triplets in the synth. But I love your analysis. This is one of my top 5 favorite 80's pop song.
Same. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Why? With respect, you’re not living in his brain so why would you be surprised? I suppose it’s because he’s a musical theory genius..🙂 I heard triplets.. but I’m not 12 tone. All the best 🙂
Edit: in this comment I just shot from the hip as I wrote about him being a musical genius and think I was trying to big 12 Tone up (without really considering why) but no offence was meant in regards to the guy’s very reasonable comment.
it was just a quick, first, kinda straight, unconsidered shot and I think an emotional response to someone saying something about why someone else thinks something-and also an honest idea about 12 tone going into the vortex coz he can-tho really there was not much need for my comment-love and respect to all
@@popstargirl79 if you heard triplets, then you heard it as 12/8. I think you're missing what 12tone is saying was his issue. Which 3 each triplet or 4/8ths encapsulates is his issue. If he was hearing the intro 8th as part of the first triplet, then he has literally never heard the riff before. And that's surprising.
Oh, and music theory genius? Its theory, not relativity.
@@halcooper3070 thanks for your reply.. I don’t watch loads of 12 tone stuff but he’s great at music theory.. I think I was just saying to the other dude that because 12 tones so into music theory and good at it (kinda genius in my book) then maybe he heard it like that because his mind ‘can’ think and interpret it that way, which I probably couldn’t. (However, maybe I could, but I wouldn’t be able to necessarily say why by using music theory) 🙂
@@popstargirl79 as I pulled out my guitar this morning, to play the lick, amd the verse chords, I realized 2 things... First, the chords imitate the lick, shifting to the second on the 6, that's possibly why most hear the lick the way I hear it, I still can't imagine even liking the lick as 12tone heard it. Second, being a guitar player means you understand the origin, and therefore the rhythm, because of the natural way to play it. Upstroke on the first note allows you to alternate the rest of the lick, endlessly. If you start downstroke on the first note, what a mess, it's awkward and unnatural, and I'd have to practice it a bunch to play it smoothly. Plus, the pick strokes on the recording tell you how it was played. Still leaves me wondering how it can be heard any other way, but maybe the guitar is my bias, I was playing it on stage as soon as it came out, so of course I'd see it that way
As a passionate music enjoyer, getting a peak behind the curtain of music production is like looking at a nice blue ocean and then promptly submerging into it's depths. Music is so much more complex than people give it credit and I have utmost respect for the pioneers that have brought music as far as its come...
To be honest the actual writing process is not necessarily that complex for most music; even music with complex structures. Intuition is a huge part of writing and theory is there as a tool to help here and there. Think of it like this; the in-depth study into all of the physical reactions of a single swing and strike of a bat to a ball that leads to a homerun is extremely complex. However, the batter isn't necessarily thinking or knowledgeable of all of that and doesn't need to be. It is helpful for the batter to have some level of understanding of the physics though.
Hope I didn't ruin the illusion for you. 😉
@@CynHicks Agreed. As someone who used to write songs in various bands during my younger days it was often the unplanned intuitive, instinctive jamming that produced something worthwhile, on occasions where we sat down intentionally to write something in a pre- agreed key or style the results were usually underwhelming. Creativity is a peculiar beast. He can show up when you least expect him and hide from you when you most want him.
@@29memyselfandi Pretty much anything I've ever written as a "theoretical demonstration" has become an exercise or completely lost. Parts, of course, make their way into improvising/writing. Theoretical knowledge, at least for me, is mostly useful when writing leads which for me is always improvising in the beginning. The creative (intuitive) aspect is what a "good" song starts with and is polished with. In my experience every musician that I know of that couldn't write a decent melody before theory can only write a decent one after. Like you wrote about creativity though; it's there or it isn't and no amount of theory is going change that. With some exceptions of course, as with most anything.
“Going home is giving up and we can’t give up yet” - musical advice explained so nice
I just tried singing that main lick without going falsetto on “to” and it’s absolutely impossible. I just naturally kick up there on that note. I forced myself to stay down in chest and couldn’t help but scoop up into the note.
Robert, I recently had a go at recording this song, and experienced exactly the same problem. I have a Bass voice. I am contemplating lowering the key.
I’m a baritone & I don’t have any trouble getting there in chest, but it’s definitely easier to get there via falsetto. I think it’s an easy song to try an over sing. I find just relaxing helps those type of transitions much easier when I don’t over force my diaphragm…
@@acason4 i am a baritone myself but i have received good mixed voice training so i can do it seemlessly. it just takes coordination and training really. and relaxation, like you said.
5:00 - Tears For Fears is ABSOLUTELY known for musical misdirection at the beginning of their songs. Their very first song / title track of their debut does it, as do several other of their songs, including this one. (The title track "Elemental" is a third example.)
Elemental is underrated
Standing on the Corner of the Third World does this after the bridge. it's twelve measures, but if you aren't counting carefully you will get lost.
@@digitalskins nope its garbage
@@LiveNinetyNine no u
@@LiveNinetyNine why is it garbage? 😮
Personally, I *have* always heard the opening rhythm as triplets. If I'd never listened to the song before I might not, but knowing what's about to come next it's much easier for me to hear it that way than hear the transition as a tempo change.
I also always heard it as triplets, but maybe hearing the rest of the song did it.
Same here. At the beginning of this video I thought, "wow... I've had it wrong the whole time?" (not an uncommon revelation for me when watching 12tone's videos)
i think its one of the greatest pop songs of al time. i think the song has a wonderful uplifting hopeful sound to it while the vocals have a beautifully melancholy vibe and some how it blends together perfectly.
One of my favorite parts is the climax, where the song builds and he sings "Say that you'll never never never leave me." The verse melody and rhythm is radically changed, going from long spondee, to syncopated and bluesy. It's brilliant. Also, great video.
Say, that you'll never, never, never, never need it
One headline why believe it?
Well, they were one of the best songwriting bands of the 80s, even if most folks don’t actively remember how great they were (still are). I think they just wrote a really interesting song.
Have you checked out their new stuff!
@@Green-eyedGirl19 the new record is great. Yeah! They were on Colbert recently as well, and sounded amazing.
@@chairmankaga101 in terms of lyrics I'd say they are one of the best of all time, writing Everybody wants to rule the world would put you up highly already combine that with Mad World as well!
I cannot Express the frustration I felt when I saw your time slug doodle, nice StS reference. Also a great video in general!
I've always heard this as a rock shuffle beat as a drummer. Just the hi hats going a lil different playing on the 2nd eight note triplet on beats 1 and 3 and plays the 1st and 3rd triplets on beats 2 and 4. That's how I've always counted playing along to this song.
This song was new, and played endlessly on the radio, when I was in college. As a drummer, I pretty quickly figured out what was going on in the intro, but yes, it’s totally done to mislead and surprise you. Whenever I would hear that intro, I would FORCE myself to hear the triplet in it and get the groove in my head as quickly as possible. I figured a drummer had no excuse to be fooled by such tricks. 😄 Great analysis!
I've been doing a "piano bar" stride cover of this tune for many years, and let me tell you this analysis makes me feel SO VINDICATED for so many choices I made
Love your "layering" insight and it really really REALLY makes me hope you do "Sowing the Seeds of Love" someday because it is layers all the way down. And sneaky time signatures.
Oh my gosh! (@8:40) You just nailed how synthesizers changed music, I have never heard anybody describe it any better.
9:07 ......if you pause the video right around there....
I like to then imagine what someone would think this video is about having only seen those drawings.
Just random doodles of multi-trunked elephants, a lion, rainbows, a unicorn, a desert landscape, a skeptical eagle, a trash can, paper currency, etc. Next video I'll have to skip ahead, pause the video, and then try and back-engineer what's going on based on context clues in the drawings.
Anyway....just a random thought.
Love the channel....been a fan since day one and I love how much success it's had. Always excellent content. :)
12tone, This video is brilliant. Your style and explanations and doodles made what I frankly didn't like when it came out(Synth Pop/Rock), something I gave 20 minutes of my time to 40 years later. You are a genuine treasure as a content creator. BRAVO!
By the way, how did I even get to this video?
How come you didn’t like it?
@@whatacrazyride1658 You probably watched a lot of music related videos recently and the algorithm recommended a video about music theory.
@@TokyoBalletReprise no, I haven't watched any music related stuff... In fact I was watching a long list of engineering explained videos.
@@TokyoBalletReprise I was in my teens in high school....I played music and I felt 80's music in general sounded sterile andmechanistic. I hated the keyboards and synths and even to this day they sound so terrible to me. Quantizing beats and sounds that were just not musical to my ears. They have finally taken some of those techniques and electronics and coaxed some good out of all of it, but it was just so new and the experimenting sounded like bad experiments.
Something I think is interesting to add on to your analysis is that during the 17:25 melody that is finally D-centric, the bass part decides to Stop playing a D as part of the progression and instead go to a different progression (B-C-B-C-G-A).
P.S. You're totally not alone on the intro being confusing
Yeah, I was going to say that, the melody should be hopeful but the bass makes it melancjoly
"EWTRTW" didn't exactly spring from Roland's head fully formed at the end of the sessions.
The rhythm, beginning picking pattern, choir synth melody, and guitar solo originated on a demo called "Pharaohs". ruclips.net/video/EoIDw5Bf8Gw/видео.html
Exactly and did this guy mention Daft Punk? Lol they predated DP by over 10 years. Man people just enjoy the song instead of analysing it in ignorance.
I LOVE Pharaohs! I have been known to play it on loop endlessly!
@@kehindeahe mentioned DP as an example of music that's purely artificial without organic counterpart, not to suggest they were contemporariws
I have no formal music education, and I’ve only recently started exploring music theory, which is how I discovered your channel. The way you’re able to succinctly deconstruct and describe what’s happening in a given section has been immensely helpful for me. Some of the ideas might go over my head at first, but since you use popular music examples, I find myself going back to a subject days later and revisiting for myself, listening to try finding the things you’ve pointed out. I’m not much of a commenter, but I wanted to say thanks for the work you do. It really is fascinating
This is one of those songs I never get tired of, and it's the perfect song for whatever mood I'm in. You know how when your sad, sad songs kind of help you feel? And happy upbeat songs help you feel happy? I find this song works for almost every existing mood
Everybody want to Rule the World is the 1980s summed up in one sound. This song is my childhood. One of the most amazing tracks ever made. Great video analyizing this timeless gem.
This has long been a favorite of mine...I had the TFF Greatest Hits album and absolutely loved it. Then I see on CBS SUNDAY MORNING that they're back together and doing new material! How crazy is that?
Uhhmmm, they have been back together since 2004!
Their new album is pretty great!
I find it interesting that you notated the song in simple instead of compound meter. I've always heard it as being in 6/8, so seeing you notate the chord vamp as a dotted quarter, then an eighth tied to a half note in 4/4 really threw me off, because I'd hear that as a dotted quarter tied to a normal quarter, then an eighth note tied to a dotted half note (all in 6/8). I definitely understand the metrical lack of clarity in the beginning, but for me, even that clearly delineates 6/8 after at least a full listen of the song if it's not clear at first, especially with the guitar pick-up and percussion. From a percussionist-background, it's a very common compound-meter trope to alternate between two notes/sounds but accent every third beat (for example, capital letters as accents, something like C d c D c d C d c D c d). This is strengthened by the fact that the "off-beat" pitches shift to accentuate this pattern; the B -- the higher of the "off-beat" pitches, happens on the second beat in 6/8 (using the earlier method: F# a f# B f# a).
It is really interesting to learn how different people perceive it though. From a percussionist backgrouind I've been very in tune with tropes like this that can trick casual listeners. For example, isolated hi-hats to me are very idiomatic for indicating weak beats before strong beats come in, so often times when I hear tracks that don't introduce extremely clear metric identities, when the off-beat hi-hat trope comes in I instantly sync up with the non-accented downbeat due to practice-learned intuition.
Once you hear it, you can't un-hear it😃. As a drummer turned keyboardist, I still see and use keyboards (especially piano) as a percussive instrument; so you can have a 6/8 over a 4/4, as long as they "lign up".
yeah I don't hear a 4/4 shuffle, just 6/8
thats so interesting cuz it literally never occurred to me u could even hear it as anything but a shuffled 4/4. maybe its bcuz i have drummer brain so, to me, the thing that sticks out to me to most abt this song is that groove.
This is exactly how I've always heard it as well, thanks for the insight.
Been watching your channel for many years now and one think I always love about your breakdowns is how you’re able to portray the potential creative process of the songwriters you’re analyzing. It makes me feel like I’m watching some kind of documentary in my head while seeing your video.
This channel has helped connect so many dots , always talk about this channel irl, truly helpful. Just the way you talk about theory is amazing. Keep up the great work
Love your perspective. "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is one of my all-time favorite songs and this gave me a whole new appreciation for it. Thank you for this.
The natural voice amidst all the synth reminds me of an organic human life amidst all the sterility and rigid mechanics of our artificial world.
Everybody wants to perfect the world. That strips all the soft and living parts away leaving us straining to shape ourselves into a cog in the greater machine.
I have to admit that I never thought about it but always heard it as though the start of the song was cut off as a stylistic choice or unfortunate accident. It never occurred to me I was hearing it wrong.
I have no idea what I would make of a live version.
Everytime I hear the song I think of driving my car down a dirt road with friends and just having fun.
This tune is one of my favorite songs of all time. It takes me straight back to 1985, the moment I hear it.
You did it again, 12tone. A couple of my loose neurons got connected when you talked about vocal registration. I knew a little about different vocal registers, and about registers of keys on an organ, but I hadn't fully hooked up my concept of how this really applies to music in general...and then BAM, there it is. It's a little before 10am here, and if I take the rest of the day off from internetting, I will have done the thing I hope to do every day: I learned something I didn't know before.
I'm over 60. This is triumphant af.
At about 1:00 12tone uses the halo symbol for the word boring, and I feel attacked
@12tone I think the reason you identified the triplets in the beginning in three pairs is because of the final chorus, when he sings "Say you'll never never never never never never need it," with the two-syllable "never"s played over the triplet groove with the same melody--it probably subconsciously lodged that interpretation of it in your brain.
So glad you did this song, it's one of my favorite ones to sing due to the variety in it.
I'm always impressed at your ability to isolate lyrics and other parts for these videos.
Wow! I’ve loved this song my entire life, your videos really help me see every part of a song and walk away with a new appreciation for it. Excellent!
I wish I'd heard this 10 years ago when I had to learn this song. I was making observations right before you said the same point. Great job analyzing Roland's vocals and TFF's arrangements.
It's the other guy doing the lead vocal this one; Roland just sings harmony.
as much of a pain as it is to program a DX7 i def could see them getting the sound after an hour or so, and just not even bothering to spend even more time setting up the velocity and breakpoint stuff. as a synth player i can sympathize with not wanting to waste your bandmate's time on perfecting a patch
Splendid video. And it complements beautifully with Rick Beato's one, as yours is very oriented in theory, themes, intent of the authors (with some lovely speculation too), while Rick's is delving into the licks, the details, the virtue in its execution. Loved both videos, thanks for highlighting his (I follow his channel but I had missed it). Love your work!
Im always excited to see you tackle one of my favorites. Africa was an absolute treat. Ive listened to your Black Parade more times than i can count. And this was certainly no exception to the rule. Fantastic job. And its already on my playlist of driving videos, among other playlists. X3
The melody in this song has always been incredible.
Yessss I was waiting for this one!! Thank you
Loved the vid! Just thought I’d point out that I’d heard somewhere that one of the angles through which the lyrics could be viewed is as though the song is telling the story of ‘1984’. Always found that interesting.
The timing of the intro to that song has always messed with my head! Glad to get confirmation that i'm not alone, and in such esteemed company!
6:12 "... the songs iconic timbre ..." Mmmmh. Good.
Stunning. Thank you. As a failed fairlight programmer I think I can, possibly, add a couple of things: One 'trick', at the time, was increasing the Tempo by 2 bpm a couple of bars gradually before the Chorus and the 'not quite reaching the vocal F#' has a kind of a 'prosody' as no-one can actually 'reach' ruling the world, perhaps. Just a thought :-)
LOVING hearing your analysis of vocal tone.
@12tone Thank you sooooo much for clarifing such a rich song so well!!!!
4:30 - Loved that Slay the Spire reference with the Time Eat... ehm Keeper!
I've maintained for years that Tears For Fears is prog rock band disguised as a pop band. Their songs sound so simple at first, but when you start taking them apart, you keep finding all these tricky layers. This is one of the exemplars of that idea. It's interesting to me you brought up prog on this, even if you kind of dismissed it.
I mean you could consider quite a few of Tears for Fears’ songs as being “Prog Pop”. “Prog pop” does exist.
@@TokyoBalletReprise Prog started out as pop; Pet Sounds, Revolver, etc.
@@5roundsrapid263 Revolver & Pet Sounds are not prog. Revolver is mostly psych rock and Pet Sounds is Baroque pop/Sunshine pop.
@@5roundsrapid263 Yeah, I guess it was Progressive Pop. The phrase 'Prog -Rock did not exist in the 70's - it was called 'Classical Rock' and 'Fusion' was called 'Jazz-Rock'.
I mean, they covered Sea Song by Robert Wyatt during these same sessions... they were also present at the first 1981 King Crimson (still billed as 'Discipline') concert in Bath.
Once again, if you have triplets and weird rhythms all over the place, it's probably 12/8. 12/8 and it all falls together.
Wait, this is April 1st and not a parody. Isn't that illegal around here? 😂
Fantastic analysis as always.
I love the touch of drawing the Time Eater at 4:28
4:50 Time Keeper? Slay... I guess.
Badum Tss
Looking for a comment like this. Yes it is the time eater from slay the spire! It's crazy cause I was just playing it before watching this... also I listen to this song a lot too. But the gamer in me was strong when i saw that. 👀
Great Job On 2 Great Songsmiths!🙌🏻🙌🏻🍎
I can't get past how you hold the marker like a club yet produce a plethora of intricate well-done illustrations in quick time.
First time viewing. I’m blown away with howcool this presentation is. Brilliant! thank you. One of my favorite songs.
[THE OUTFIELD-YOUR LOVE] Should be your next understanding video! Btw Great job on this one!😀
Why do I like your doodling so much?! This was an awesome video in my opinion.
I never realized how complicatrd this song was up until I tried to play it on drums. I thought I was having a stroke XD
I gotta try it out myself now to se if I also would have that experience!
I'm really surprised you view this as in 4/4 with a shuffle or swing beat and triplets, and not just being in 12/8? I've always heard it as being in 12/8 and the beginning makes more sense when you think of it like that, I've never heard the intro as being grouped in twos, only ever threes. BUT I've been very familiar with the song from an early age so I don't remember the first time I heard it, and I know where it's going to go so that probably makes a difference
I've never heard it as anything else. This video mystified me, as its so obvious and there is no extra 8th or confusion, or whatever.
"the beginning makes more sense when you think of it [in 12/8]", no, this is a red herring. the intro is either triplets in 4/4, or it's eighths-grouped-in-threes-per-the-time-signature in 12/8, neither of these make any more sense than the other, theyre both perfectly ordinary tropes. the distinction between 12/8 and shuffled 4/4 is wholly arbitrary in this case; they can be different things, because swing is typically not a triplet beat, but you can shuffle in 4/4 triplets (i.e., the same metre that 12/8 typically represents) just fine, as happens in this song. i think the point of confusion here is that 12tone starts out by outlining an interpretation (the intro grouped in twos) that he goes on to explicitly reject as implausible.
i do agree that 12/8 is notationally cleaner, but yeah, this is a matter of notation; the metre is the same regardless of which time signature you choose in this case.
@@esthersmith3056 the reason why 12/8 makes more sense for the beginning is the piece before the first whole bar is more natural when treated as a single unit. 4/4 with triplets doesn't accomplish that.
@@esthersmith3056 you're absolutely right that it's a just matter of notation and I get what you're saying. When I hear music I think in notation, I can see the sheet music in my head, so that's where I was coming from. It makes a difference to me, but I get that for most people it wouldn't, because the audible result is the same.
it's totally 12/8
The layering you mention really makes me think of theme and variations. Unusual for rock music, yes.
Accidentally stumbled upon this video a couple months ago. And I still think about it every time I hear pretty much any Tears for Fears song on my car playlist.
I had and have no idea about music theory, but what you said and drew made me think I can at least follow the thoughts a little
Wow, YT's algorithm works in frightening ways. I'm glad I got suggested this videos, after s few minutes I was really into how you graphically explain your process in drawing while listening. Superb! Thank you very much and please keep up the good work! Looking forward to it!
This was amazing!!! EWTRTW is one of my favorite song and I already knew it was accidental genius but to get the signatures, key, instrumental breakdown that you have given us 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾❤️❤️❤️
Love your vids and this is one of my favorite 80's classics. Thanks for so effectively and eloquently explaining the complexities of this wonderful piece of art
I appreciate this analysis. I knew that Tears For Fears sounded different from other bands/songs, but I was never really clear why.
I've never heard this song before, and the intro just sounded like 6/8 to me all the way, with the accents on where the accents are on the drum groove
@ghost mall sir with all due respect I wasn't even swimming in my dad's balls in the 80s
Your shrek “s” when you said layers 😂 I’m a total music noob and this is the first video of yours I have seen, but so far I am thoroughly impressed and can’t wait to see more!
This video helped me finally remember where the sample in a song I listen to came from, I knew it sounded so damn familiar but couldn't place my finger on it until now!
❤️❤️❤️i love nerding out on songs like this. Thank you.
Weird, I've never been confused by the opening, I just hear it clearly as a one-two-three-ONE-two-THREE sort of beat
I liked your quip about Alexander weeping. Rick Beato did not make that reference. I liked your videos equally for different reasons, which seems to be true of all my favorite content creators.
cool upload. the drums definitely deserve more attention. they're such a big part of the song and there's a history behind that specific shuffle pattern.
I keep replaying that bridge portion. That guitar is so sweet
Wow, breaking down this song like this for us takes it to a whole new level! Just two bloody chords but how complex! Never, I will listen to this this masterpiece again the same way.
One of the aspects of this song that I like the most is the drum groove. In the drumming community, this song has become well known for people playing the song and changing the rhythm part by metric modulations which take advantage of the rhythm and can allow for a drummer to play this in several related meters. There are numerous examples of creative drummers doing metric modulation versions of this song and some of them are quite impressive. I have always found the drum groove in this to be infectious. Great analysis of the song, I found it most insightful.
Wow this was an amazing breakdown, thank you for sharing! I love the idea of songs wondering around the root chord, never occurred to me that when this song finally gets there, it's still not resolved. Tears for Fears are amazing. Love the new album too by the way. They've still got it after all these years!
I love that I fell in love with this song right around when I discovered one of the band members lives remarkably close to me.
I can play 5 chords badly on a guitar (only took me 2 years ! ) and I have no idea what you are talking about from a technical perspective but both your and Rick B's breakdowns of my favourite ever song have motivated me to pull my finger out, thank you so much
I played percussion, I always heard it as triplets. I listen to a lot of Irish music, too, and 6/8 fits the jig rhythm, so it all fits for me.
Music is Hard Work.
It's not all elephants and gummy bears.
You have increased my appreciation for this song and TFF!
I've never seen your videos before now, and I really enjoyed it. But the thing I enjoyed MOST? The reference to THE PRISONER w/the penny farthing bicycle when you said the number 6.
Really great analysis of a really great song.
I'm clinically tone deaf (it's called amusia, which is funny because it's not at all amusing). I don't listen to a ton of music, and despite being a pseudo-known game critic, I mostly play games with the music turned off, if not the whole thing outright muted, because music messes with me. As I tell people who can't understand it, simply put, however music sounds to you, it doesn't sound that way to me.
THIS is my favorite song. I don't have a ton of favorites, but what limited pop songs I do listen to, this is my #1. And I found it delightfully ironic that in my position as someone medically unable to process tone, that someone who does this as their passion had so much trouble with my favorite song. Go figure, huh?
it really is a perfect, flawless, 10/10 song
Amazingly enough I played some guitar on Curt Smith’s solo album Soul on Board.
You're amazing, love your analysis videos
Great band and song that defines the 80’s to a degree, but with poignant lyrics that resonant loudly today still
Yes! I too struggled to hear this correctly at first. Your video helped me figure it out. I'm now able to hear it the correct way, but damn.
Dude I always loved this song. When I was a little kid, i only ever heard a bit of it on a TV commercial about a compilation of a bunch of songs and every time the bit of this song would come on I'd wish it played the whole thing. Years later when I finally heard the whole song i was like... Nice.
Honestly, the Timelord from Slay the Spire makes me hit the sub button and your analisys are awesome, grettings from Mexico.
I don't know why this appeared in my reccomended, but the music theory stuff here is really fascinating. I think I might have begun to go down a rabbit hole here. Great video.