best one chord song?

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"Plastic Dreams" - Jaydee

LOCK THREAD

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:29 (twenty-one years ago)

The key is to get rid of that whole "melody" thing and focus on rhythm instead.

Then, there isn't a song anymore.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:32 (twenty-one years ago)

Geir, don't you ever tire of being wrong? I mean, on a basic, fundamental, dictionary-definition level, YOU ARE WRONG. Give up already, it's okay to say that there are ways of writing songs that you dislike, you don't have to exclude them from being music altogether.

― The Ghost of Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:35 (twenty-one years ago)

Lucinda Williams "Joy" I think

― dan. (dan.), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:38 (twenty-one years ago)

Crap, you're right about "Run run run".
Just.

― Koens (Koens), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:38 (twenty-one years ago)

"Duane Eddy" by the Great Unwashed (ie the Clean pretty much).

― Venga (Venga), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:39 (twenty-one years ago)

"Coconut" by Harry Nilsson (C7, I think)

― electric derby, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 19:47 (twenty-one years ago)

matlewis - I'm just impressed that a drummer has learnt to use the internet.

― lexurian (lexurian), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 20:11 (twenty-one years ago)

Costello's Big Boys is comprised of E, A, B, G, Em, C, & D. It does however stay on E at the beginning for quite some time.

xxxxxxpost

― darin (darin), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 20:40 (twenty-one years ago)

Run Run Run by VU briefly switches chords (in the chorus)...

― Joe (Joe), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 21:41 (twenty-one years ago)

"Silverfuck" by the Smashing Pumpkins is technically only one chord, right? At least the main riff is...

― The Brainwasher (Twilight), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 21:47 (twenty-one years ago)

Years and years ago the Mission, the band who British Sea Power most resemble, did a version of 'Tomorrow Never Knows' and proudly told the Melody Maker that they'd put an F in there as the original was boring.

― snotty moore, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 22:07 (twenty-one years ago)

it *is* boring, regardless of how many chords it has.

― AaronK (AaronK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 22:23 (twenty-one years ago)

Dylan's "Drifter's Escape" is A and D/a as recorded on John Wesley Harding. In its current live incarnation, it's just one chord with a lead part, though.

His "TV Talkin' Song" is only one chord, but it's not a very good song.

How about "Papa Was A Rolling Stone"? The bass moves, but the song's actual tonality never changes.

― Douglas (Douglas), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 22:51 (twenty-one years ago)

bo diddley - bo diddley

Not as Bo performed it, since whenever he went into a break, he dropped from I to VII. (But it is the best song mentioned so far on this thread.)

― Frank Kogan (Frank Kogan), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 23:11 (twenty-one years ago)

guided by voices, "postal blowfish"

(not the best, i'm sure of that. but it's one chord and it's good, which should count for something.)

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 00:54 (twenty-one years ago)

"Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)" - Sly Stone (the winner)
"Shake Your Hips" - Rolling Stones
"Fun House" - Stooges
"Ballad of Hollis Brown" - Bob Dylan
"Frankie Teardrop" - Suicide
"Yeah" - LCD Soundsystem
"Whitey on the Moon" - Gil Scott Heron

There's tons of them, especially r&b/funk tunes (James Brown, Parliament, etc) that are just build on a riff or bass line.

― Keith C (kcraw916), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 01:10 (twenty-one years ago)

lcd soundsytem, "losing my edge"

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 01:11 (twenty-one years ago)

bo diddley, "who do you love" (i think; haven't heard it in a while)

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 01:11 (twenty-one years ago)

The key is to get rid of that whole "melody" thing and focus on rhythm instead.

Then, there isn't a song anymore.

-- Geir Hongro (geirhon...), June 14th, 2005.

-- The Ghost of Dan Perry (djperr...), June 14th, 2005.

It's not "wrong" to say that a "song" has to have a "melody". By dictionary definition, it does have to have a melody.

― Hurting (Hurting), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 01:14 (twenty-one years ago)

Now it’s past my bed I know
And I’d really like to go
Soon will be the break of day
Sitting here in blue jay way

I'm so happy that I get to be the first to mention this song.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 04:04 (twenty-one years ago)

"Blue Jay Way" good call. In fact, most of George Harrisons' Indian influenced songs have only one chord. The musical sophistication in Indian ragas lies in the melody, not in the harmonies.

― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 08:35 (twenty-one years ago)

blue jay way is not a one chord song !

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 09:00 (twenty-one years ago)

attaque surprise by Vive La Fete!!!

― breezy, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 13:14 (twenty-one years ago)

blue jay way is not a one chord song !

I'm afraid it is.

explain how it isn't please.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 17:06 (twenty-one years ago)

C#maj and yes it is only one chord the whole song. Good thing we're not talking about dub music.

It is SO not C#.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 18:21 (twenty-one years ago)

It's an A that's slightly sharp of concert pitch, I do believe.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 18:22 (twenty-one years ago)

"Silverfuck" by the Smashing Pumpkins is technically only one chord, right? At least the main riff is...

The main riff is, but other chords be droppin' later.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 18:24 (twenty-one years ago)

It's not "wrong" to say that a "song" has to have a "melody". By dictionary definition, it does have to have a melody.

but surely this definition isn't still relevant. what with avant garde, noise, various types of non-Western music...

― matlewis, Wednesday, 15 June 2005 19:44 (twenty-one years ago)

I generally shy away from using "song" to describe instrumental music.

― jaymc (jaymc), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 19:47 (twenty-one years ago)

"Pulse" by the Furs

At least I think it is. I think Tim Butler said it was one chord.

― Aja (aja), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 20:04 (twenty-one years ago)

Unrest, various versions of "Hydro"

― Zack Richardson (teenagequiet), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 20:14 (twenty-one years ago)

jaymc OTM. Song =/= Music

― Hurting (Hurting), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 20:42 (twenty-one years ago)

jaymc OTM. Song =/= any piece of music

― Hurting (Hurting), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 20:42 (twenty-one years ago)

Unrest, various versions of "Hydro"

does that one win for longest song without a chord change?

― fact checking cuz (fcc), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 20:45 (twenty-one years ago)

Breath deeper.

Daydreamer.

― Michael F Gill (Michael F Gill), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 21:18 (twenty-one years ago)

Tenacious D - One Note Song

― pinder (pinder), Wednesday, 15 June 2005 21:41 (twenty-one years ago)

Well ok, let's assume that in order to have a song you need a melody. Still, the melody can be so minimalistic or uninteresting as to be at best a secondary element of the song. Take Can's "Vitamin C." Melody takes a back seat to harmony and, most of all, to rhythm. More than one chord there, though.

― These Robust Cookies (Robust Cookies), Thursday, 16 June 2005 04:20 (twenty-one years ago)

The Doors -- "L.A. Woman"

― Flaneur, Thursday, 16 June 2005 14:12 (twenty-one years ago)

A song is "A brief composition written or adapted for singing." Whatever is sung is the primary melody.

― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Thursday, 16 June 2005 14:21 (twenty-one years ago)

The Doors -- "L.A. Woman"

One chord? Are you deaf?

― Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 16 June 2005 14:26 (twenty-one years ago)

Did somebody already mention "Coconut" by Harry Nilsson? That's indisputably one chord and it's indisputably a proper song - and a damn fine one too!

― Dadaismus (Dada), Thursday, 16 June 2005 14:31 (twenty-one years ago)

Was going to say "Who Do You Love" but see I was beaten to it. There are a lot of great two-chord songs. One-chorders are decidedly rarer.

― Burr (Burr), Thursday, 16 June 2005 14:48 (twenty-one years ago)

about blue jay way : http://www.recmusicbeatles.com/public/files/awp/bjw.html

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Thursday, 16 June 2005 15:02 (twenty-one years ago)

I say "Rollin' and Tumblin'," Elmore James, that is the best one-chord tune. And yeah, "Tomorrow Never Knows" is a C pedal tone with a B-flat over it; "chords" don't really describe this song anyway. Same thing with "Blue Jay Way," it's just a drone/mode over C. "One Note Samba" is actually a fiendishly difficult song with a zillion chords. Most later James Brown things are really blues with something left out, like "Sex Machine" is A6 which goes to D and some chromatic shit in there. That Nilsson tune is one seventh chord. Anyway, yeah Geir, please give up sometimes, the Elmore James song is a fucking song, so is "Coconut" and so is "Sex Machine" and "Super Bad" and "It's a New Day" and "There It Is."

― edd s hurt (ddduncan), Friday, 17 June 2005 02:06 (twenty years ago)

I don't see anywhere in the notes on "Blue Jay Way" to state that there's more than 1 chord in the song. I see how it shows that melody notes and fills are added to the one chord, which I already knew. It stays in C for the whole song.

― billstevejim (billstevejim), Friday, 17 June 2005 04:26 (twenty years ago)

hum...to me there's a slight change with D#. but haven't listened to it in a while so i may be wrong...

― AleXTC (AleXTC), Friday, 17 June 2005 07:15 (twenty years ago)

Sly Stone's "Thank You" is just about my favorite song ever, but I wouldn't quite call it a one-chorder--think of the little break that got sampled for Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation."

Sonic Youth play "Within You Without You" as a one-chorder on Sgt. Pepper Knew My Father.

Very few of James Brown's funk-era songs are actually on a single chord--there's almost always a bridge (which is almost always on a IV chord).

― Douglas (Douglas), Friday, 17 June 2005 08:04 (twenty years ago)

"Thank You" has one bass line in the entire song, which is in E. Where are you saying it moves? Try playing any other chord besides E7 against the riff--it doesn't sound right. The whole thing's in E.

― Keith C (kcraw916), Friday, 17 June 2005 10:06 (twenty years ago)

>Sly Stone's "Thank You" is just about my favorite song ever, but I wouldn't quite call it a one-chorder--think of the little break that got sampled for Janet Jackson's "Rhythm Nation."

Don't have the first version at hand, but the songbook I have for Sly's "Riot" has that version as A7. "Riot" is just about my favorite album ever.

― edd s hurt (ddduncan), Friday, 17 June 2005 12:53 (twenty years ago)

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