Hello folks.
This is the second of the two songs that I wrote, recorded and mixed together from July through October of 2023. This song is called One Day and it’s on Spotify and on YouTube (and most of the other streaming services too).
(Spotify will sometimes embed a preview of the song below, rather then the whole song. It’s a mystery why, but you can play the whole thing by clicking on the track artwork or the name. Or you can just use the YouTube link.)
(The first song of the two is Pour Me Another One, which was released on October 13th on Spotify and YouTube, and there’s a post all about it here).
Also, if you find this kind of in-depth geeky writeup interesting, feel free to subscribe to get emails when I post another. I only ever send emails when I release a song.
Origins
This song is called One Day and while it’s related to Pour Me, it’s very different. For a start, it’s 100% pure pop, and I am not in the slightest bit ashamed about that, because I think pop music is a legitimate form of art like any other sort of music. And because I like a lot of classic pop music.
When I was thinking about the arrangement, I listened to all of Abba Gold to hear how Benny and Bjorn put their songs together. There’s a quote1 from Benny about Mamma Mia: “If you listen to it, you will hear that there’s no one on it who’s just strumming along; it’s extremely tightly arranged: everybody’s playing exactly what they’re supposed to be playing.” That’s what I aimed to do (though I am of course nowhere near the same league as Abba). Every instrument is in there for a specific arrangement purpose.
Where Pour Me is kinda sad, One Day is happy. It’s a very upbeat song about a downbeat subject; a decision by the singer to leave home. Like Pour Me, it’s intentionally ambiguous about the singer’s situation and reasons. You can read into it what you want to; what I think it’s about might not be what you hear.
My idea was that One Day is about the morning after the night described in Pour Me, where the last verse has the singer stumble outside now… looks like rain is coming, and snow maybe later. Not hopeful words. At the start of One Day the singer looked across the water / and realised that I was finally free. A change in attitude; hope, and optimism.
I also tried to reuse many of the same instruments for the two songs (there’s more about this in the sections below). I used to enjoy watching Jools Holland’s show Later on UK television, which would feature a number of bands all set up in the same studio. Often some of the bands would play more than one song, and I imagined that the band who had played Pour Me would play One Day next, so many of the instruments would appear on both songs.
Rules
In contrast to Pour Me, where I allowed myself only a limited set of instruments, this song is packed full of sound. I’m deliberately echoing the production on some of Abba’s major hits, which use a “wall of sound” approach something like Phil Spector’s classic productions. I’m not actually a fan of the full Spector Wall Of Sound; it’s too busy and drenched in reverb (and don’t get me started on how Phil Spector ruined the first release of the Beatles’s Let It Be), but what I did take from it is that way of stacking instruments through all the octaves to fill out the soundscape.
My self-imposed rules were:
Use staccato strings as a strong melodic pulse; I was inspired by ELO’s Livin’ Thing (Spotify, YouTube). On Pour Me, and on earlier mothershout songs like The Sky Beneath My Feet (Spotify, YouTube), the strings do a very different job, playing long slow notes to fill out the harmony. Here I wanted staccato, almost disco strings upfront.
Really emphasise the pulse of the song. The pulse is made up of the strong, emphasised beats. For example, if you divide each measure of the verse into 8 beats, the strong ones are 1, 3, 5 and 8 in the first measure, and 5 and 7 in the second measure. You can hear the piano hitting big block chords on each of those beats. That whole bam-bam pair of chords that starts each part of the verse is played by the kick drum, piano, bass, guitars and staccato strings, and drives the whole thing along.
Think disco. Although this is not really a disco song (it has too many anticipated beats that hit one beat earlier than expected), it has disco and funk influences. For example, the staccato strings in the chorus (on the last word of a little older and a little colder) match the guitars in playing a rapid 16th-note pattern, inspired by listening to a lot of ELO and Chic.
The disco vibe also influenced the vocals. In Pour Me the voice is solo, bluesy, and slips in and out of time. On this song all the vocals are on the beat and sung crisply, with backing vocals hitting just certain words and phrases.
Use the same instruments as Pour Me, where I could.
Use a really simple2 harmonic structure, and put the interest in the melody. More on this one below…
There’s also an overall rule of not repeating (which shows up in most of my other songs too). I’m not a fan of writing songs by looping (repeating) a backing section over and over. There’s nothing wrong with that, many people love it and plenty of really good tracks have been built that way, but I find it more interesting to build songs without loops. So in this song, no two verses or choruses or solos or sections are ever the same. There’s always a chord change or a rhythmic variation or a different arrangement.
Harmony
This song is mostly in D major. The intro and the verses are built around a simple progression of three chords; D, Em and G, the first, second and fourth chords of D major3. There are a couple of variations (in the last verse, the Em is replaced once with a Bb, and the second verse adds a passing FM7 before the Em).
The chorus uses the same chords, but in a different order: G, D (first inversion, with an F# bass) and Em. At the end of the chorus there’s an EbM74 leading from the Em back to the D that starts the next verse (I think of this as a major seventh tritone substitution5 for A7, the usual fifth chord of D major). That’s the backbone of the chorus progression, but in the second and last choruses there’s an added variation which follows the G with A F#/A# Bm A G D/F# FM7 Em in a nice ascending-and-descending series of chords with a different rhythm. Just to shake things up, and provide more of a buildup to what comes after each of those choruses.
Because I am an unashamed music theory geek and love this stuff, I’m going to point out a couple of Interesting Things about the two solos in particular.
The first is that the solos are played over cycles of three chords, not the usual four (this also happens in the bridge of Pour Me). It’s not something that’s immediately noticeable, but I like the effect; it subtly messes with the listener’s expectation of where the music is going, and it’s a nice challenge to write solo lines that fit.
The second Interesting Thing is the chords used for the solos, which are not in D major6. The first solo is over D, C and Bb, but all with D as the bass note7. That constant bass D pedal note (pedal meaning that it’s always the same note even while the chords change) makes those chords sound… well, I’m not sure what the right word would be. Vaguely threatening? Or ominous? The idea was to have a contrast to the upbeat happiness of the verses and choruses. It’s a bit of a rock cliché to use flat-seventh and flat-sixth chords over a pedal, but I think it works.
The second chorus then plays over D, Am7 and Gm7, and the Interesting Thing is Am7 has the same notes as C, but with an A note as the bass, and Gm7 has the same notes as Bb, but with a G in the bass. So these are really the same chords from the first solo, but altered by changing the bass note. That alteration makes them sound happy.
Adam Neely (whose YouTube channel is essential viewing for music theory and jazz harmony fans) said that one reason he loves being a bass player is that if the rest of the band play, say, a B diminished chord, he can turn that into a G7 by playing a low G, and there’s nothing the rest of the band can do about it. That’s one of the superpowers of the bass; the bass note dictates what chord is being played.
Anyway, what I was trying to do here was to have the first solo feel like a moment of self-doubt by the singer. Perhaps a moment of fear that things won’t go well after the decision not to go home again. But then the piano break between the solos represents a decision to look forward again, and to be optimistic. And that second solo feels mostly happy and optimistic to me.
Does it work? You be the judge. And even if none of that “meaning” comes across, I still love that melody of that second solo. So let’s talk about melody.
Melody & Arrangement
The Sundays wrote a really nice little song called Here’s Where The Story Ends. I’ll link to a cover by Tin Tin Out with Shelly Nelson singing, because it’s my favourite version (on YouTube, because it’s not on Spotify). One thing I love about its vocal melody is the rapid runs of notes on lines like it’s a little souvenir / of a terrible year. Every syllable on a different note, in falling cascades, and sung so damn well that it all stands out.
I challenged myself to try the same sort of thing. I think it works best on I don’t know where / I got all the / words that ended / everything for me (first verse) and the wind across the water / blew the dust of all the / past away from me (last verse).
Along with that, there are three very intentional and deliberate attempts to write a melodic hook that might stick in your head. In the verses you’ll hear one on looking over my shoulder, on we’re not very different and on looking over the ocean; a run of ascending notes followed by two steps back down. And in the chorus there’s one on I can’t remember when (though frankly, the entire chorus melody was written to be memorable and whistleable). And finally, the trumpet theme (in the intro and between the first and second verse) has been stuck in my head for a long time, so it counts. Do they all work as hooks? Do they stick in the memory? I don’t know, because I can’t hear the song with fresh ears anymore. But they were fun to write.
The background vocals generally sing only the start of the verse lines. In my notebook I wrote that I took the idea from ELO, but I didn’t note where I heard it, and I can’t remember the example. But there are many other places where this song borrows from ELO. The Latin-esque trumpets are inspired by Across The Border. The acoustic guitar strumming patterns borrow from Sweet Talkin’ Woman. Any string arrangement I do is going to be ELO-ish because as a teenager I used to listen to their albums and figure out the string arrangements on my guitar. The little double-time string pattern between the vocals in the choruses is pure ELO, and so is the descending string run that comes at the start of the third verse, just before the drums start in again.
On the very last I won’t be comin’ home again there’s a pitch-shifter that doubles the lead and backing vocals one octave down, to fill out the space left as the bass guitar dies away.
Those Horns
In the intro, then again after the first verse and over the outro (the last part), a four-piece brass section plays a slow melody that (I think) contrasts nicely with the faster pulse of the song. This is an old voice melody that I saved from a rejected earlier version of this song. Each time this melody returns, it’s subtly different. When it reappears after the first chorus, the chords under it change, which alters the sound, and the rhythm is slightly different. And when it reappears once more at the end of the song, the lower trumpets are playing a different harmony.
The idea was to have horns that sound Mexican, or Mariachi (I admit that’s a bit of a musical stereotype). To get that, I used Norrland Samples’ Solo Trumpet. This is an unusual instrument, because it has very limited styles of playing, but you can choose almost any possible type of trumpet mute. The straight metal and bamboo mutes (one of each on the two lead trumpets) give that “nasal” sound I was looking for, and adding a touch of vibrato (wobbling of the pitch) and tremolo (wobbling of the volume) helped me get closer to the style of performance I wanted.
There are also two trumpets from Native Instruments’ Session Horns Pro playing lower harmonies; they’re too nice and polite-sounding to carry the lead melody, but they fill out the sound beautifully.
That First Solo
The thing about trying to convey mental images or thoughts in music is that… it probably doesn’t work. I could tell you that this solo starts partway through a bar and ends on an unresolved chord because it’s supposed to evoke intrusive feelings of doubt, but in the end it’s just a guitar solo.
It does have an important role, though; the phrases it uses are echoed by the second solo, which has an entirely different sound and feel. So it sets the scene for what comes after it, and I think it does a fairly good job.
That Second Solo
This is probably the most self-indulgent thing I’ve added to a song yet. And I’m a very self-indulgent musician, because I’m writing for my own enjoyment, not for commercial success.
Firstly, the melody for the second solo is subtly related to the melody of the first; it arpeggiates some of the same chords and has a similar contour (the overall rise and fall of the melody notes). But those same ideas end up sounding very different, partly because of the different chords used (see the section above on Harmony).
Secondly, the second solo melody is constructed so that (deep breath) many phrases echo elements of the phrases before them, and anticipate elements of the phrases after. By “echo” and “anticipate” I mean that little bits of the melody follow something of the same pattern, which might be that they rise and fall in the same way, or have the same rhythm or that a section is repeated an octave higher.
Here’s the music for it (and hopefully this explanation makes some sense even if you don’t read music):
Each group of circled notes relates to other groups circled with the same colour; not all the echoes and anticipations are shown because the image is cluttered enough already, but hopefully you can see some of the relationships.
It’s played on a regular 6-string electric guitar through an effect that is supposed to makes it sound like an acoustic 12-string guitar, but I think it sounds more like there’s a sitar playing along. The piano also doubles the melody, just to make it sound that little bit different.
The Hidden Melody
Well, it’s not really hidden, but it’s not very noticeable. In the second verse, the background strings play a very simple slow descending line. I wanted to bring in something to help the second verse build on the first, and a descending line echoes how the vocal melody moves, and contrasts with the chords moving up.
Other Instruments
In the intro and verse, there are two acoustic guitars (one left, one right) keeping the rhythm. In the chorus and solos they’re replaced with two electric guitars, because the acoustic guitar just doesn’t have the right punch for the disco-ish chorus. And also because I fell in love with the electric guitar sound, which is heavily inspired by Chic records.
Through the whole thing, there’s a piano hitting the major beats, and that comes from Abba (especially SOS and Dancing Queen). When there are so many instruments playing at the same time, you have to make hard choices about which stand out and which are pushed back, because you can’t feature everything equally in the finished track, so the piano isn’t easy to hear. But it was really fun to play.
The staccato foreground strings emphasise the rhythmic pulse of the music, but also bring out important notes in the chords. I think they’re most effective in the second solo, where they match the guitar and bass rhythm but play repeated notes that link all the three chords used. Very ELO.
That Beginning
Originally, the intro started with hi-hats on beats 1, 2 and 3, and a snare drum BANG on 4, and then straight into the horns. But close to the end of recording I found an effect that simulates old vinyl records8 and had the idea of the song starting with the sound of a needle being dropped on a record. Then I needed something to sound “vinyl-ish”, and decided to add a count-in (done by the same Solaria voice that sings the lead). As someone whose first music purchases were all vinyl singles and albums, I find this rather deliciously nostalgic. And if you if it’s not your thing, it’s over after two bars.
…And That End
When you’re recording an instrument using a microphone, you learn to stay still while a final note or chord fades away into silence, so that you don’t interrupt the silence by moving. But on this track, if you listen right to the end, you can hear the two acoustic guitars on the left and right stop playing, and the creaking of my seat as I shifted position after the last chords died away. I decided to leave that in, because I like the way that it sounds, like a band sitting back after playing a full song. And I also like the idea of listeners being able to hear the human behind the music.
Instruments
As I wrote above, many of the instruments on this song are the same as Pour Me Another One. There’s a pair of Embertone Joshua Bell violins playing those staccato string lines, with Spitfire Audio’s Solo Violins underneath, and Spitfire’s Intimate Strings playing the long string notes in the background. The drums are IK Multimedia’s MODO drums. The guitars and bass are the same, and use some of the same amplifier and pedal settings (on a Line 6 Helix LT processor).
The lead vocal is Eclipsed Sound’s Solaria again, with Dreamtonics’ Natalie doubling the same melody (blended so low in volume that it merges with the lead). The background vocals are Solaria and Natalie again.
Pour Me has no percussion except the drums. This song has a shaker and bongos (both Logic Pro’s bundled instruments), but you’d have to have super-acute hearing to pick them out. Something I still find surprising about arrangement (generally in a good way) is that things you can’t hear can have a big effect. Without the percussion, the song doesn’t quite have the same groove, even though they’re essentially inaudible.
Artwork
From Adobe Stock, an AI-generated, human-cleaned-up-and-polished abstract view of a melange of instruments. I liked how this matches the way I visualize the song after hours of mixing; as a whole bunch of different sounds brought together. Or clumsily blended into a mess, depending on how you like the end result.
The idea was to have the artwork match Pour Me, but be lighter and more colourful, as One Day is happier and more upbeat than Pour Me. I like how they turned out.
Palm, Carl Magnus. Bright Lights, Dark Shadows: The Real Story of ABBA (p. 379). Omnibus Press. Kindle Edition.
Well, simple by my usual standards. It started simple but then I got all excited by harmonic possibilities…
Unlike Pour Me, where the fifth “dominant” chord is emphasised, the fifth doesn’t appear in this song except as a passing chord in the chorus. Only some music geeks will find this at all interesting.
One might argue that this should be called D#M7, since D is a key with sharps, but I like to think of it as flattening that Em.
A real jazz expert might say that tritone substitutes must be dominant chords so that they contain the leading tone. To which I would respond that there are no rules in jazz.
The solos use several chords borrowed from D minor. Which is another thing taken from Livin’ Thing.
Yes, they should technically be written as D C/D and Bb/D.
iZotope’s Vinyl plugin, which is very good, and also free!