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| From | "kerry_kompost" <kerry_kompost@yahoo.com> |
| Subject | Re: The bridge: help |
| Date | Tue, 10 Aug 2004 00:13:06 -0000 |
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> Top bridges of all time?
I love bridges; I think that -- for me -- they're consistently the
most fun (and motivating) part of the songwriting process.
I define a bridge as a one or two-time occuring musical stanza that
is completely unrelated to the rest of the song, musically speaking.
Sometimes songwriters will simply 'quiet down' a verse or chorus and
call it a bridge (ie. Alice Cooper's "No More Mr. Nice Guy", the "my
dog bit me on the leg today" part is simply the verse, subdued);
other times songwriters will use a musically unique bridge more than
once (see The Beatles famous 'middle eights'). Some songs don't need
a bridge at all; a musically-unique outro can be a similar means to
this end (that's a whole 'nuther songwriting discussion right there).
Some songs have amazing music-only bridges (ie. guitar solos, etc; my
list below focuses only on those with lyrics). There are no rules,
really.
I think the music comprising a bridge should enhance the mood of the
song, be it uplifting, dark, whatever is musically appropriate. When
a great bridge leads into a modulated chorus, well, there's really
nothing more akin to aural orgasm that I can think of. Really.
Personally, I love a one-time occuring bridge; there's something
about an incredible musical moment happening exactly ONCE in a song
that tickles me silly.
Some of my faves:
1) Is It You -- Lee Ritnour. Go ahead, laugh at my number one choice
of this fuzak-cum-pop-song; listen to the kickass bridge and weep,
aspiring songwriters. It's the musical sequence of this particular
bridge -- cycling ever upward, spiraling into the sky -- that I find
absolutely sublime. Totally fucking left-field weird, *exactly* what
a bridge should be -- to me, anyway.
2) I Feel Fine -- The Beatles. I could pick any one of dozens of
examples of awesome Beatle bridges (or middle-eights as they
called 'em); many of their songs utilize the bridge twice (the "I'm
so glad that she's my little girl" part for the above-mentioned song,
fer example). How cool is that? I find it amazing that
Lennon/McCartney learned this trick so early in their development as
songwriters; all the better for us (well, except Tam, maybe).
3) Ballet for a Rainy Day -- XTC. Andy Partridge consistently writes
the best bridges in town; this is but one shining rainbow in a
hurricane of examples. The "Ballet" bridge is absolutely magnificent,
uplifting, the centerpiece of a royal crown (or Crown Royal) of
jewels. Pass me a hankie, would ya?
4) We've Only Just Begun -- The Carpenters. I'm still trying to
figure out if Paul Williams wrote the music, the lyrics, or a
combination of both (along with Roger Nichols) for this insanely well-
crafted masterpiece (David Ponak -- you blueberry smoothie, you --
would you be able to shed some light here? Anyone?). "Sharing
horizions that are new to us...". Holy shit, that rocks. The dropped
half-step modulation that happens behind the "...getting older just
the two of us" part reduces me to tears every time (fun fact: I stole
the half-step modulation idea for my song "One Summer Sunday", but I
used it in a verse/pre-chorus transition, not the bridge [the song
doesn't even have one] so it's not stealing). :)
5) Rikki Don't Lose That Number -- Steely Dan. "You tell yourself
you're not my kind." Too filthy cool. Man, what DOESN'T this song
have? The perfect bridge, the perfect intro, a beyond-perfect guitar
solo (still brings my heart to a flitter-flatter pace; breathtaking,
actually), killer lyrics, ultra-catchy melody. It's no wonder the Dan
were one of the most well-respected songwriting teams of the
songwriter-saturated 70's -- -- among musicians, anyway.
6) As I Go Along -- Gladhands. You don't have to be famous to write
great bridges; just ask Jeff Carlson of Gladhands. This bridge is a
textbook example of an uplifting musical sequence, a feeling of
climbing a melodic ladder with steps made out of clouds. There are
some *very* strange melodic moments during this bridge, places where
the key seems blurred, transitory; I find it extremely thrilling and
highly effective.
7) Crazy Train -- Ozzy Osborne. I *had* to throw in an old metal
tune, just for grins. This particular bridge -- not all that
impressive, in and of itself -- is more notable for setting up the
blazing guitar solo that the late, great Randy Rhodes laid down all
those years ago. Many Rhodes-era Ozzy tunes have absolutely
*incredible* music-only sequences (the "Diary of a Madman" guitar
solo section is unreal) that effectively serve as bridges; this song
sports a traditional bridge with lyrics ("I know that things are
going wrong for me").
8) People Need to Know -- Tribeca. I'm in this band because I am a
huge fan of the songwriting, and this Dave English-penned song
delivers a plaintive bridge made all the more poignant by a lonesome,
meloncholy pedal-steel guitar figure courtesy of Tribeca wunderkind
Matt Gaskins (the song is downloadable at www.tribecamusic.net for
anyone interested). Definitely the centerpiece of this song, as far
as I'm concerned; I wish I wrote it. :)
I wish I had time to detail a few more; I love bridges. One day I'm
going to write a song that's *all* bridges. :) Until then, pop on,
poppers.
kErrY kOMpOsT
www.abelincolnstory.com (swing-punk-soul project; Viper Room gig with
Trainwreck [Kyle Gass of Tenacious D's band] 8/18/04)
www.kompost.blogspot.com (weekly blog, sort of)
www.soundclick.com/kompost (demos, some with bridges)
www.tribecamusic.net (pop-fusion project)
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