Songwriting Secrets of the Beatles, The

Dominic Pedler

• Publisher: Omnibus Press
• Year: 2010
• eBook ISBN:
  9780857123466
• Topic: Media & Performing Arts
• Subtopic: Music

From humble beginnings in murky, Liverpool clubs in the early sixties, four songwriters emerged who would change the course of popular music forever: The Beatles. Within only a decade they created an arsenal of songs which set the template for all popular music that followed, and, over half a century later, their music still beats with the same vitality, pangs with the same melancholy and grips with the same fervour. How is this possible? What mystical components were fused to create these extraordinary emotions? Why are they still so influential today? The Songwriting Secrets of The Beatles sets out to answer these questions. Chord sequences, melodies, harmonies, rhythms and structures are all examined in a clear and readable style, unlocking the musical secrets within - not just for advanced musicians, but anyone who has ever felt the power of these songs for themselves. Printed music and lyrics feature within the text allowing rhythms and melodies to be analysed in detail within each chapter. The Songwriting Secrets of The Beatles is essential for any musician who has marvelled at The Beatles creative intelligence; a new and perceptive analysis of both the most enduring and captivating songs of our age.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title Page
• Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter One: Tension, Resolution and the Power of V
• Chapter Two: The Three-Chord Trick and the Blues
• Chapter Three: The Minor Pop Chords
• Chapter Four: ‘Supercharging’ a Song with Secondary Dominants
• Chapter Five: ‘Exotic birds’ … and the Great Aeolian Cadence Mystery
• Chapter Six: Relative and Parallel Minor Switches
• Chapter Seven: ‘Borrowing’ … and the Rise of Rock
• Chapter Eight: The Modal Connection
• Chapter Nine: Descending Bass, Inversions and ‘Aug’ Chords
• Chapter Ten: Middle Eights and Mega Modulations
• Chapter Eleven: Diminished: Songwriting Sleight-of-Hand
• Chapter Twelve: Tritone Substitution and Other Mystery Chords
• Chapter Thirteen: The ‘A Hard Day’s Night’ Chord – Rock’s Holy Grail
• Chapter Fourteen: Melody – Intervals, Motifs and Phrasing
• Chapter Fifteen: Harmonisation in Focus
• Chapter Sixteen: ‘I nicked it!’ – Derivation, ‘Plagiarism’ and Pop
• Chapter Seventeen: And in the End … Lyrical and Tonal Movement
• Coda: ‘She Loves You’ – Anatomy of a Perfect Pop Song
• Also Available...
• Appendix 1: A Beginner’s Guide to Music Theory
• Appendix 2: Beatles Chords in Practice
• Appendix 3: An Introduction to Harmonisation
• Appendix 4: An Introduction to Beatles' Song Form
• Appendix 5: Science, Surprise and the ‘Tingle’ Factor
• Appendix 6: A Summary of Early Beatles' Influences
• Appendix 7: Song Index
• Further Reading
• About the Author
• Acknowledgements
• Copyright