― lexurian (lexurian), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:39 (eighteen years ago) link
― Bifidus Digestivum (Dada), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:39 (eighteen years ago) link
D major all the way.
― hmmm (hmmm), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:40 (eighteen years ago) link
― Geir Hongro (GeirHong), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:40 (eighteen years ago) link
― lexurian (lexurian), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:43 (eighteen years ago) link
since hit songs are gonna be more and more made to become ringtones...
― AleXTC (AleXTC), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:48 (eighteen years ago) link
you're a freekin' smackhead man... that's one of the best.
― Nic de Teardrop (Nicholas), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 11:52 (eighteen years ago) link
― bg (creamolafoam), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:01 (eighteen years ago) link
― Derek Krissoff (Derek), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:04 (eighteen years ago) link
The version on the record has at least three chords (F, C, Em), but I once saw Stipe do it solo, live, while playing an acoustic guitar. Up until that point I had no idea he played any instrument whatsoever.
Anyway, it sure looked to me like he was just strumming a G chord the whole way through. I could be wrong. But that's the only thing I can think of.
― The Mad Puffin, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:27 (eighteen years ago) link
― Jazzbo (jmcgaw), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:40 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tripmaker (SDWitzm), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:46 (eighteen years ago) link
― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:51 (eighteen years ago) link
― AaronK (AaronK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 12:58 (eighteen years ago) link
― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:05 (eighteen years ago) link
First, if I bang away on a C chord on a piano with my left hand, and sing some crap along at the same time, I am playing a one-chord song, yes?
Second, if I start banging with my right hand, starting on C also, but sometimes switching to A minor, that would probably become a two chord song, yes? What is the other chord apart from C, is it Am or C6?
Is it still a two-chord song if I start banging really loudly with my left hand, and very very quietly with my right?
Okay, last one: if I stop banging with my right hand, just keep up hitting a C with my left hand, and use my right hand to pick up a piccolo which I start tooting away on, just blowing on the note of A from time to time, is that a one- or two-chord song?
That is the last question for now.
― Eyeball Kicks (Eyeball Kicks), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:16 (eighteen years ago) link
True enough that the verse stays on is B7 and the chorus E7.
But the main riff goes B B B B Bb A, B B B B Bb A. Even if you don't count the Bb (just hit in passing), the A is pretty necessary and makes three.
Lately in concert he does some Bo Diddley-ish stuff with the verse that should technically count as additional chords.
― The Mad Puffin, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:22 (eighteen years ago) link
First of all, my answer would be that you cannot really play two "chords" at the same time on the same piano -- the notes of both chords would form one chord, as a chord is just a group of notes played at the same time. So in your example you'd basically be playing a C6.
Part two of your question is harder for me to answer -- I think it would depend on just how you were playing the A on the piccolo -- whether you were playing it in tandem with the piano chord or just erratically.
― Hurting (Hurting), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:30 (eighteen years ago) link
Neu! and Faust win this one, I think.
― Brooker Buckingham (Brooker B), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:39 (eighteen years ago) link
"O.D. Catastrophe" is my favourite S3 one-chord song.
In Stereolab's "Superelectric", the guitar plays only one chord throughout, but the organ changes chords a couple of times. I'm not sure if this counts.
― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:39 (eighteen years ago) link
― Bifidus Digestivum (Dada), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:40 (eighteen years ago) link
"I do dream you" is mostly one chord (G# i think)..but theres some passing chords thrown into the bridgy, prechorus/postchorus bits.
― b b, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:56 (eighteen years ago) link
― you will be shot (you will be shot), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 13:59 (eighteen years ago) link
Yeah, I was thinking that on some of the turnarounds they seem to allude to some other chords, but mostly it's that one glorious chord.
― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:00 (eighteen years ago) link
― naturemorte, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:16 (eighteen years ago) link
― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:16 (eighteen years ago) link
― Curt1s St3ph3ns, Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:17 (eighteen years ago) link
― o. nate (onate), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― Mr. Snrub (Mr. Snrub), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 14:51 (eighteen years ago) link
I kept listeningto make sure there was just one,and in fact it's true
― Haikunym (Haikunym), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:03 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tripmaker (SDWitzm), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:18 (eighteen years ago) link
― C-Real (neither nor easter), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:30 (eighteen years ago) link
― Hurting (Hurting), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:31 (eighteen years ago) link
― 666 (Robust Cookies), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:32 (eighteen years ago) link
I just want to point out that "One Note Samba" has quite a few chords! The only thing that's "one note" about it is the melody of the verse -- and not even the whole verse! "This is just a little samba, built upon a single note, other notes are bound to follow, but the root is just this note" -- all that's one note, but then the next line is a fifth up, so there's a total of two notes in the verse.
The chords, on the other hand, are always moving, on like every other beat: "this is JUST(Dm7) a little SAM(C#7)-ba, built u-PON(Cmin7) a single NOTE(B7b5)."
And then the chorus, of course, is all about the contrast with the verse, running up and down scales, more or less.
― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 15:35 (eighteen years ago) link
― PappaWheelie (PappaWheelie), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:17 (eighteen years ago) link
― lexurian (lexurian), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:27 (eighteen years ago) link
― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:29 (eighteen years ago) link
Jesus and Mary Chain must have done some one-chorders?
Nope - they were a whole lot more melodic than people remember. Even their cover of Can's "Mushroom" has at least a couple.
― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:36 (eighteen years ago) link
― MindInRewind (Barry Bruner), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:39 (eighteen years ago) link
― CharlieNo4 (Charlie), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― jaymc (jaymc), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:43 (eighteen years ago) link
C#maj and yes it is only one chord the whole song. Good thing we're not talking about dub music.
― gygax! (gygax!), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 16:50 (eighteen years ago) link
― Tim Ellison (Tim Ellison), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:00 (eighteen years ago) link
― AaronK (AaronK), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:01 (eighteen years ago) link
― lexurian (lexurian), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:09 (eighteen years ago) link
― Bifidus Digestivum (Dada), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:19 (eighteen years ago) link
― joseph cotten (joseph cotten), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:41 (eighteen years ago) link
― pdf (Phil Freeman), Tuesday, 14 June 2005 17:55 (eighteen years ago) link
eheh, listening to "Love Thy Will Be Done" on the Prince Originals comp made me think of this thread... only to find out I had already written the EXACT same thing I was planning to post !Ageing memory...Regarding "Tomorrow Never Knows" I think I remember McCartney actually saying in the Anthology or something that Lennon was just strumming the C chord throughout the song and how unusual and new it was for them.
― AlXTC from Paris, Friday, 28 June 2019 10:00 (four years ago) link
Sheets of Easter, of course
― mfktz (Camaraderie at Arms Length), Friday, 28 June 2019 10:18 (four years ago) link