The best moment in the song is...

[QuikSand]

Okay... this is a "thing" of mine. Mrs Q puts up with me pointing this out from time to time, but really doesn't get what I'm talking about. In the past, sometimes I have found that quirks of mine are more widely held here than I might expect... so I'll share, and see what happens.

First... I a not a music guy. Can't read music, never learned an instrument, and I don't exactly speak the language. Not a central issue - I feel that I have a good sense of aesthetics, and I more or less trust my ear. Besides, I'm talking here about popular music, and that belongs to the listener as much as any art form, I'd think. So... this is not a technical thing.

Here's my thing. Listening to music, I have a real fondness for "moments" that I think just work perfectly. Sometimes they happen in a song that I really like, sometimes they are just hidden on an album cut that hardly anyone ever heard of. But I derive a disproportionate share of my musical enjoyment from these moments. Some are just a perfect line or two of lyrics that just click perfectly, sometimes it's something in the musical accompaniment that I like, and sometimes it's even more subtle than that.

So... to the extent anyone shares what I'm talking about here (even if you never thought of it quite that way) this thread is to post things like: "the *moment* in [name of song] is when..."

What say you?

[RendeR]

These moments are generally called "hooks" and they are the elements that the artists tend to build the songs up from.

** I'm in the same boat, having no training or particular musical talent, however I learned this point from musicians in San Francisco.

[QuikSand]

Prompted by this song, heard in the supermarket this morning:

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Not a song I love, or would single out, but it has a moment.

In the video (that hasn't held up well, incidentally), it's at about 1:02. Hay just gets through what is essentially the chorus, and hits the line "ghosts appear and fade away." In the song, in this first verse, that is followed by a space that could have been another lyric... instead it's just a bass line with a change in chord. For this song (and maybe for this band) *this* is the moment. It's perfect... made so by the fact that they hit that spot again later in the song and do other things with it, but the first time it's just a bridge.

That's what I'm talking about. A moment in the song that hits for you.

[QuikSand]

These moments are generally called "hooks" and they are the elements that the artists tend to build the songs up from.

** I'm in the same boat, having no training or particular musical talent, however I learned this point from musicians in San Francisco.

I'm really not talking about hooks (I get that concept) -- as you will see in my MAW example above, what I'm talking about (more or less) is the little thing that stands out to you, not the real fabric of the song that's designed as a centerpiece. Nobody thought about that moment of non-singing in Overkill and thought it was important. But it totally works, and every time I hear that song, that's the moment I listen for.

[cuervo72]

The moment in Pour Some Sugar on me is when they sing the verse "You gotta squeeze a little, squeeze a little/Tease a little more/Easy operator come a knockin' on my door." Specifically the way "knockin' on my door (or-or)" goes between (I think) F and G-.

[RendeR]

But your example *IS* the hook in this song, its actually the chorus you're talking about.

"But day after day it reappears, and night after night my heartbeat shows the fear...ghosts appear and fade away...."

thats the chorus. If you listen to teh second verse they toss in that extra lyric you mention is missing in teh first one:

"come back another day..."


See what I mean?

[QuikSand]

My moment is *not* the entire chorus, not even the "ghosts appear" section of it. My moment is the way they elect not to sing another line the fist time through, and how for just that small section of the song it's the bass that is the most prominent thing.

Not that this is particularly important (none of this is) but it's not that I like the chorus of the song (which indeed is a central building block of the song)... what I like is a roughly 4-second segment that comes right after the first singing of the chorus. Nobody built a song around 4 seconds of nothing.

[RendeR]

Ahh, that makes more sense then. I don't think I was thinking of it that way.

I always did think it was interesting teh way they left that space in the lyrics though. I bought that Cassette tape the day after its release in the US. listened to it so much it literally borke in the machine, and bought a second copy.

Loved MAW when I was young.

[JonInMiddleGA]

I'm pretty sure I know what you mean here & there are several examples that came to mind immediately.

One of those is the first couple of seconds of guitar (about :16 seconds into the song) of Starship's Jane.

[lighthousekeeper]

Thanks for posting the video. Cargo was the first cassette I ever got as a kid, and it's great to hear a song I haven't heard in decades.

[QuikSand]

I'm pretty sure I know what you mean here & there are several examples that came to mind immediately.

One of those is the first couple of seconds of guitar (about :16 seconds into the song) of Starship's Jane.

In my opinion, that's a very memorable moment in the song -- definitely a "hook" designed as a major part of the song. And no denying it's the best part of that song, too.

Kinda tough to separate the deliberate moments from the incidental ones, I suppose.

[JonInMiddleGA]

In my opinion, that's a very memorable moment in the song -- definitely a "hook" designed as a major part of the song. And no denying it's the best part of that song, too.

Kinda tough to separate the deliberate moments from the incidental ones, I suppose.

I think I was focused primarily on the "moments" that I think just work perfectly criteria that you set out initially, not whether the moment was incidental or intentional, etc.

[QuikSand]

I get that Jon, and agree that moment works perfectly (setting aside intent).

[Groundhog]

One of my fave genres is progressive rock, and really, that style is all about these moments. Sometimes I'll sit through 4 1/2 minutes of noodling just because the band finally hits their stride and has 30-40 seconds of musical brilliance before yet another 4 1/2 minutes of wanky jamming. :)

[QuikSand]

Okay, one more.

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Here, I think the defining moment in the song (indeed the entire album) comes fairly late in this song. Mercer sings most of the song with an unusually high pitch, and then there's a second "voice" he uses, and only late in the song does he re-enter with something close to his usual voice. Anyway, when he does so (in this short film, it's at about 3:40) it shifts the sound of the song... and right after he sings the lyric "Was it all for show" there's a quick descending piano bit. Just six notes, nothing complicated, but to me, it is most definitely the *moment* of this excellent song and is the instant of the album that I listen for. (I wish they didn't use the same piano bit a little later in the song, it's still okay there but that's not a moment, if you get my drift)

By the way, they seed in that piano bit early on in the short film linked above, before the song starts in earnest. I thought posting the video might undermine my point here... but then I figured that any censorship of Ms Hendricks is downright unamerican, and I don't want to be part of that, even indirectly.

[Bigsmooth]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lnp9VjhDFYQ

Pixies - Hey. Right at 2:01. Love that song and it actually has a couple moments like you mention. To me at least, obviously.

[kurtism]

While I love the whole song, the moment comes at 3:11, when everything drops out, and then the drums kick back in with a vengeance.

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[Sgran]

you need a copy of Scotty J.'s Awesome Mix Tape #6. Wait, wait, here comes the crescendo: "you're motoring!"

[albionmoonlight]

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At 3:06, when the background singers drag out the "you" line and the next verse starts over it.

[Buccaneer]

I think part of it could be the anticipation of the hook(s) that heightens your senses to what preceeds that. Your minds, probably subconciously, wants to pay more attention and looks for things that could validate your anticipation. Or something like that.

To me, I love transitions in songs, whether a verse shifting to a different key or tempo (or instrumentation changing to acoustic or the opposite), then back to the regular chorus. I'm sure there's a name for that.

[Comey]

I completely understand this. Most of my moments are from live performances. There's the part at the end of Pearl Jam's "Black" (the MTV Unplugged version) where Eddie comes unglued (at the "I know someday you'll have a beautiful life/I know you'll be the stars/In somebody else's sky/But why can't it be mine?" mark), where the rest of the band is singing backup and Eddie's losing his shizz. Love it...shivers every time.

There's also Howie Day's version of "The Drugs Don't Work" where he sings the line "If you leave my life/I'm better off dead". He stops everything at that point, but you have a resonating echo for a moment.

Perhaps the biggest one(s) for me are from Dave Matthews Band. People give the band shit for thinking their a jam band, or they're hippies or whatever. Go listen to Halloween, which is the result of Dave proposing to his then-girlfriend three times and getting rejected. Angriest song I know. But there's another song, called Shotgun, which hits me hard.

Nobody was quite sure what the song was about. But a version from SPAC (Saratoga, NY) in 2008 cleared it up, at least for me. Towards the end of the song, he starts singing "You almost got out the door/You almost made it to freedom", and starts singing "Come Back" over and over...then goes on to sing "Never had the chance to say goodbye/Bye Bye/Why?". His sister, Anne, was murdered in South Africa in 1994 by her husband, I believe via shotgun blast. He then killed himself. The first time I heard that, tears came to my eyes. Here's the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfP3gA4F4gc

I have many, many others...but those stand out at the moment.

[Bonegavel]

You often post things that strike a chord in me (pun intended) and this one immediately makes me think of Led Zeppelin's Ten Years Gone. Right around 4:16 where the base drum switches up ... it's extremely subtle but I always hit that point in the song and it makes me think about the premise of your post.

[Maple Leafs]

I absolutely do this. I have plenty of songs on my ipod that I enjoy maybe three seconds of.

One of my favorite songs from the last few years is MGMT's Time To Pretend. It's a fun pop song about being a rock star that sounds like a parody but works even better if it you assume it's meant unironically, which it apparently is.

Although you kind of need to hear the whole thing for it to really work, the best part of the song starts at 2:13, with the overly whistful verse about all the things that they'll miss once they become big stars. And the "moment" comes at about 2:28, with the incredibly over the top return of the drum machine.

It's completely ridiculous and should ruin any sincerity the song has, but somehow it woks perfectly.

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[Maple Leafs]

While I love the whole song, the moment comes at 3:11, when everything drops out, and then the drums kick back in with a vengeance.

Pretty much any moment in a song where some instrument drops out and then comes back, or is introduced for the first time, will get a "that moment" from me.

I really am that easy.

[cuervo72]

Pretty much any moment in a song where some instrument drops out and then comes back, or is introduced for the first time, will get a "that moment" from me.

I really am that easy.

Or like in the Beastie Boys' Sabotage, when for a brief moment *everything* is silent, then the guitar starts back up...then everything else follows at "WWWWWHHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY????"

[DanGarion]

Ahh, that makes more sense then. I don't think I was thinking of it that way.

I always did think it was interesting teh way they left that space in the lyrics though. I bought that Cassette tape the day after its release in the US. listened to it so much it literally borke in the machine, and bought a second copy.

Loved MAW when I was young.
This song reminds me of one of the best Scrubs episodes, where Colin Hay sings the song through the episode.

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[Easy Mac]

I know what you're talking about. My favorite is probably from the demo version of The Fray's "Over My Head". If you listen to the version that made the full CD, the guitars end up somewhat muted and bland as they kick into the chorus, with the vocals moved to prominence. But in the demo that got tons of play on the indie rock station before they hit it big, the guitars were much more prominent and really just kicked the longing/sorrow of the song into overdrive, it made it more than just a bland 5 for Fighting-type song. The guitars seemed like they were part of the vocals, not just a compliment to them. There was more of a guitar screech and it made me LOVE the song. Sadly, I can't find that version anymore, and the station went under before I had the idea to contact them for a promo copy.

[Kodos]

I think one of those moments for me comes in The Police's "Every Breath You Take." Through the first part of the song, Sting is melancholy and singing about this girl, but is keeping his stuff together. Then the tempo changes and he just loses his shit with the "Since you've gone, I've been lost without a trace, I dream at night I can only see your face, I look around but it's you I can't replace, I feel so cold and I long for your embrace, I keep cryin' baby baby please." Then he trails off and the piano comes in, and the song goes back to the slower tempo.

[Maple Leafs]

Or like in the Beastie Boys' Sabotage, when for a brief moment *everything* is silent, then the guitar starts back up...then everything else follows at "WWWWWHHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY????"
Yes, exactly. Love that moment.

[johnnyshaka]

Green Day's "Panic Song" stats off with a minute and a half of intense build up and then at about 1:45 it sort of levels off and puts you in a holding pattern while you try to figure out which way they are going to take you...absolutely love the first 2 minutes of this song.

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[Buccaneer]

The best vocal moment of any rock song, for me, is when the singer suddenly goes up an octave or at least a few steps up on the harmonic scale. You see this in many, many songs and it usually gets me if the singer can do it and is in control. For example, using my favorite song "Silent Lucidity", when Geoff goes into "Come tumbling down, and a new world will begin" in the middle of third verse.

Additionally, I love when an acoustic verse suddenly has the drums come in. Elton John's "Someone Saved My Life Tonight" has the drums come in unexpectedly in the third line of the second verse, on "I'm strangled by your haunted social scene".

My favorite moment of drums coming in is my favorite Springsteen song "Worlds Apart". The first verse has a nice, easy Middle Eastern-inspired drum shuffle but just as the first line of the second verse starts, powerful drums come in building up into the middle of that first line "Where the distant oceans sing and rise to the plain".

[Mustang]

The best moment of any Bob Seger song is the last note. At least then I know it is over and I won't have to be subjected to it any longer.


One of the parts of a song that sticks for me is the bass in Paul Simon's "You Can Call Me Al" (more towards the back end of the song). I saw some show once where Paul Simon was breaking down the song and one of the pieces he was discussing was how they played the bass and then played it in reverse. I find that piece of the song more interesting now based on his breakdown of it.

[Warhammer]

I would just like to add Overkill is one of my all time favorite songs.

[Subby]

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The transition that starts at 2:38 makes my brain dump a shitton of dopamine. I don't know what it is about this "moment" but it always puts me in a euphoric place.

[whomario]

first off i have to say that i find it incredibly ridiculous that it´s come to the point that 6 of the 8 songs posted are "not available in your country"


Foo Fighters imo have a talent for this sort of "moments" which is quite a feat considering they don´t really have many different Tempi in most songs.

I personally am a sucker for songs making a "statement" and setting the tone very early, with the first couple of notes as well with the first lyrics. 2 examples of this :

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as soon as that 2nd "key" comes in at the 7 seconds mark i was (and still am) hooked.

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again, as soon as the bass starts i was hooked.
Another one in here is at 1.10 when he goes "Oh my, are you the beast again? Is it the violence you like?"


a rather obvious choice as most Post Rock Bands offer this "moments" and shifts to compensate for not having lyrics :

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right at 2:17

[Karlifornia]

The first one that came to mind was the beginning of the solo in "Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 2". They finish the second chorus, and there's some filthy leftover feedback, and this very clean toned, nifty guitar solo starts kind of out of nowhere.

Also, when the horn starts playing during "Spitting Venom" by Modest Mouse. When they did it live I screamed like a little kid.

[Butter]

The "sparkly" keyboard bit of "Let Down" by Radiohead. Right around the 3:30 mark. And then the whole next verse where it's just Thom Yorke semi-yodeling over the top of his own vocals. I get goosebumps pretty much every time.

[sabotai]

To me, I love transitions in songs, whether a verse shifting to a different key or tempo (or instrumentation changing to acoustic or the opposite), then back to the regular chorus. I'm sure there's a name for that.

Sounds like you might be talking about the bridge: Bridge (music) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bridge_%28music%29)

And I'm the same way. A bridge can make or break a song for me.

[Buccaneer]

The first one that came to mind was the beginning of the solo in "Another Brick In The Wall Pt. 2". They finish the second chorus, and there's some filthy leftover feedback, and this very clean toned, nifty guitar solo starts kind of out of nowhere.



Good call, any time a Pink Floyd solo starts has to be a moment. :bowdown:

Thanks sab.

[rowech]

Rush -- 2112 -- explosions sound followed by "and the meek shall inherit the Earth", pause, and then just unleashed sound of voice, drums, and guitar.

[Abe Sargent]

I think the perfect example of this is Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight, when it stops being a soft ballad and turns into rock with the drums and stuff, late in the song.

[Matthean]

Patty Griffin - "Nobody's Cryin'" during the bridge. The song sits there slowly cooking and building and then she gets to the bridge and it just starts taking off with those lyrics. By the time she gets to the end of the bridge her voice is just flying.

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[Draft Dodger]

Good call, any time a Pink Floyd solo starts has to be a moment. :bowdown:

Thanks sab.

yeah, I was actually going to say the first 3 notes of the Comfortably Numb solo. All the same note, but with different harmonics.

Phil Collins' In The Air Tonight has to be on any song "moments" list

Let's see...Van Halen's Fools when Eddie starts shredding so fast it sounds like his guitar can't keep up with his fingers, and then he slams on the breaks.

Jane's Addiction Three Days which builds up and builds up until Perry Ferrell yells "Get ready, Jesus"

Fastball's The Way when the song drops out

Led Zeppelin's Heartbreaker towards the middle of the red hot guitar solo. you think things are winding down, then he breaks into a little chord progression and the craziness starts up again

The first twangy guitar note (low E) from Def Leppard's Too Late for Love

I have a video moment as well. The Bangles' Walk Like an Egyptian when the music stops and Susannah Hoffs does that thing with her eyes. I still get wood when I see that

[Draft Dodger]

"my time is a piece of wax, falling on a termite who's choking on the splinters"

"I once got busy in a Burger King bathroom"

[Draft Dodger]

"one break, coming up"

[Drake]

How about the exact opposite...where the entire song is the lead up to the *moment* that never comes.

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I don't have words for how perfectly executed this song is.

[Scarecrow]

if I'm understanding right (and I think we're talking about bridges), but ummm...

Clapton's Layla???????

[Maple Leafs]

"Madagascar" by Guns and Roses is a pretty forgettable ballad for three minutes or so, then suddenly turns into a combination extended guitar solo/collection of movie quotes/MLK speech. You get "I Have A Dream" spliced together with Michael J. Fox, Morgan Freeman and Braveheart. Yes, it's exactly as awesome as it sounds, starting at 2:52 of this (live) version.

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Favorite "moment" would be Gene Hackman's "Let's get something straight, this whole thing is fucked up". Yes it is Gene. Yes it is.

[judicial clerk]

Or like in the Beastie Boys' Sabotage, when for a brief moment *everything* is silent, then the guitar starts back up...then everything else follows at "WWWWWHHHHHHHHHYYYYYYYYYYYY????"

Yes

Also, the beginning of Sunday Bloody Sunday with the drums and then the guitar starts. I like that.

[BYU 14]

I have a video moment as well. The Bangles' Walk Like an Egyptian when the music stops and Susannah Hoffs does that thing with her eyes. I still get wood when I see that

My Fav Susannah Hoffs "eye" moment is during eternal flame when she is sitting on the Beach........sigh

[BYU 14]

Yes

Also, the beginning of Sunday Bloody Sunday with the drums and then the guitar starts. I like that.

+1

[Scoobz0202]

Good call, any time a Pink Floyd solo starts has to be a moment. :bowdown:

Thanks sab.


The entire length of Shine On You Crazy Diamond is a moment.

[Kodos]

I think the perfect example of this is Phil Collins' In the Air Tonight, when it stops being a soft ballad and turns into rock with the drums and stuff, late in the song.

I love it when the aggressive drums kick in.

[sabotai]

The entire length of Shine On You Crazy Diamond is a moment.

I once experienced that moment for a full 7 hours with some........you know....."medical" help.

[CrimsonFox]

Okay... this is a "thing" of mine. Mrs Q puts up with me pointing this out from time to time, but really doesn't get what I'm talking about. In the past, sometimes I have found that quirks of mine are more widely held here than I might expect... so I'll share, and see what happens.

First... I a not a music guy. Can't read music, never learned an instrument, and I don't exactly speak the language. Not a central issue - I feel that I have a good sense of aesthetics, and I more or less trust my ear. Besides, I'm talking here about popular music, and that belongs to the listener as much as any art form, I'd think. So... this is not a technical thing.

Here's my thing. Listening to music, I have a real fondness for "moments" that I think just work perfectly. Sometimes they happen in a song that I really like, sometimes they are just hidden on an album cut that hardly anyone ever heard of. But I derive a disproportionate share of my musical enjoyment from these moments. Some are just a perfect line or two of lyrics that just click perfectly, sometimes it's something in the musical accompaniment that I like, and sometimes it's even more subtle than that.

So... to the extent anyone shares what I'm talking about here (even if you never thought of it quite that way) this thread is to post things like: "the *moment* in [name of song] is when..."

What say you?

I know EXACTLY what you mean and I keep a list of these moments in my head. Often sing them at the top of my lungs when the moment happens. Some bands are good at moment. Some never achieve a one.

I will most likely check into this thread a lot.

Oingo Boingo (Danny Elfman's band in the 80's) has several of these.

In "PRivate Life"

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the moment is the part
"In my humble room at night, I often WONDER what goes ON UP THERE, what MAKES me run so SCARED, I often stare...at the people passing by but they can't see me through my windowshades it's like I'm not even there." Kind of a dark lonely moment. I've felt like this before and done that. And they further it at 2:33 by escalting the moment with another moment. Damn that guy has range, both vocally and emotionally.

They are a moment band. They have lots of moments.


That's kind of what The Beatles would call "The Middle 8" that part of the song that's different from the rest that's an insert.

[CrimsonFox]

The entire length of Shine On You Crazy Diamond is a moment.

My favorite MOMENT of that moment is at 7:37 when the sax kicks in! :)


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[thesloppy]

The last 45 seconds of Mastodon's 'Seabeast':
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx-jAf0QcCE#t=3m29s

The flamenco jam-out in Love's 'Alone Again Or'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yVBMUXr4xo#t=1m45s

The pounding intro to Van Halen's 'Runnin With the Devil'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRGDqA6g6Zo

...and the 'been to the edge' part of 'Ain't Talkin' Bout Love"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgTgbV8bZiw#t=1m49s

The break (and the false ending) in 'Banging Camp' by The Hold Steady
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrRqmhb1cag#t=2m12s

The bridge in the Beta Band's 'Dry the Rain'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wsbR2dEmHGc#t=3m25s

[johnnyshaka]

Thought of another one...Led Zep's Bron y aur Stomp...at 0:36 when the stomping begins...I dare you to try and not stomp along!

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[Qwikshot]

Been a long time since I listened to Men at Work, popped it on this morning on the drive to work.

I think "Overkill" is a great song. I started off listening to "It's a Mistake". I remember the videos to these songs. I was always fascinated with "Overkill" because of the rhymes with -ation. I was still in grade school and learning words like that so I think it helped with learning.

"Down Under" and "Who Can It Be Now" are great little tunes too. I think they were trying to hard on some songs to include that sax (or woodwind). But on "Overkill" it really adds to the melancholy mood of the song.

One song I really like on the greatest hits CD that I don't recall hearing too much is "Hard Luck Story" which has these vocals that are so different from the other songs, it's kind of hidden under the murk of the music where in the other songs, Colin Hay's vocals stand out front of the music. In "Hard Luck Story" he's more bitter and menacing and they're altered with reverb and maybe some gain, so while he sounds he's singing in a gutteral exasperated whisper/scowl, it sounds almost like he's doing it on a bull horn.

But it all sounds pretty 80's slick to me, save maybe "Overkill". At least each band had a "save the world" type tune ("It's a Mistake"). But I do think Men at Work had a cool vibe (got me into Midnight Oil).

I recently was listening to Duran Duran and I was amazed at the bass playing on "Rio" and "View to a Kill" but really "Rio" has a really funky frenetic bass groove. Again, 80's slickness is over the top but the shimmering high hats with that bass really stands out.

On a completely different note, I love what Nick Cave will do to his songs. "Stagger Lee" is just amazing with menace and a cutting guitar that ends in almost ear bleeding screaming (don't play this song at work).

Elvis Costello's "Watching the Detectives" has a cool drum break right at the beginning (heavily Police or reggae influence) and the keyboard/organ has a cool little bit on that song, it's amusingly whimiscal while being acidic. Nothing though is more stark that "I Want You" which he starts off with this lovely acoustic bit and lyrics that ooze love (I love you more than I can say) than all of a sudden a hollowbody electric guitar cuts it off and the lyrics go from love to stalker/jilted lover (I want you, when I woke up one of us was crying), and he keeps repeating I want you before each lyric. And the music kind of trudges forward but that guitar is cutting, like a knife until it erupts it a little solo, and then the rage of the disolution of the break-up has been exhausted and he's almost plaintive, pleading. It's just an awesome song.

Finally, I'm sorry but George Thoroughgood always had a touch of menace to songs like "Who Do You Love", "Bad to the Bone" and his guitar solo and vocal "Yeaaaahhhh" near the end of "One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer" is great (when the drums kick in on that song you know it's grooving), and even the starker "I Drink Alone" has that swagger and menace...that being said when I heard "Get a Haircut, Get a Real Job" it sounded forced and bored, no menace in the vocals, just tired singing to unimaginative lyrics.

Love this topic...finally I'll leave you with how Mick Jagger screams "Gimme a Little DRINK!!" to the angry drumming on the toms by Charlie Watts ..."of your LOVING CUP!"

[Butter]

and his guitar solo and vocal "Yeaaaahhhh" near the end of "One Bourbon, One Scotch and One Beer" is great (when the drums kick in on that song you know it's grooving),

In this song, when his landlord tells him to get a job, and he says "but I'm TIRED."

[johnnyshaka]

In this song, when his landlord tells him to get a job, and he says "but I'm TIRED."

My favorite line from that song:

"Now you funny, too."

[CrimsonFox]

and "I saw you today you was standin up against a POST."
and "So she let me SLIDE, ya know people!"

heh. Yeah not a fan of his but this song has some fun moments.
Okay Who do you love is great too. That Bo Diddley riff is awesome. I guess they nicked stuff from him so much they figured they owed him so they put him in their Bad to the Bone video.

[CrimsonFox]

Been a long time since I listened to Men at Work, popped it on this morning on the drive to work.

I think "Overkill" is a great song. I started off listening to "It's a Mistake". I remember the videos to these songs. I was always fascinated with "Overkill" because of the rhymes with -ation. I was still in grade school and learning words like that so I think it helped with learning.

"Down Under" and "Who Can It Be Now" are great little tunes too. I think they were trying to hard on some songs to include that sax (or woodwind). But on "Overkill" it really adds to the melancholy mood of the song.
But it all sounds pretty 80's slick to me, save maybe "Overkill". At least each band had a "save the world" type tune ("It's a Mistake"). But I do think Men at Work had a cool vibe (got me into Midnight Oil).




I agree with what you've said. I have loved Men at Work. One of my favorite 80s bands and yeah most of their stuff had that fun pop 80s feel with a slightly dark edge. (DOwn UNder, Who can it be, Be Good Johnny) but Overkill really was a wonderful deep haunting song.

The OP's choice of moment is awesome. I do like how the sax echoes him out of knowwhere as if to agree with the singer. "Day after day it reappears," says Colin. "Yes, it does reappear," moans the sax at he end of the bar.

"COme Back another day" is a great moment. The guitar solo is a moment, although this band kinda drove me crazy in that they used this exact same chord progression in many of their songs. This and It's a Mistake and one other.
My other favorite moment here is when he jumps an octave for the last verse. When he gets to "Especiallyyyyyyyy at night". I thiink THAT is my favorite moment.
I sang this in Karaoke when I was in LA visiting some friends. GOt applause and hoots for that verse. :D

[dawgfan]

Great thread Quik. Some ones off the top of my head:

Jane's Addiction, "Three Days"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SmvG2GZ3S7o
At 8:15 in when they drop out the drums and Navarro's guitar tone changes - the contrast just heightens the power of the section before and sets up the return to it a short bit later. I always visualize it as something powering forward and then all of a sudden the ground drops away and you're coasting in air until reaching the other side.

The Who, "Eminence Front"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2_-Ue0LhVsI
The break at 2:54 always gets me. The song is essentially one beat, one guitar riff throughout, so when that break happens, it's a fantastic release of tension that keeps the song from feeling too static.

Soundgarden, "Superunknown"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwdjreJKggg&ob=av2e
At 3:52 as the bridge ends, Cornell sings "control" for the 2nd time and Thayil's solo kicks in - sublime moment. The bridge is a good release for the full-frontal assault of the rest of the song, and you can feel the tension building back up that explodes in the first several notes of Thayil's guitar.

The Sundays, "Can't Be Sure"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARVs1ZNLjU&ob=av2e
Harriet Wheeler's voice is a great instrument. Her little expressions found at 0:58, 1:41, etc. get me every time.

King Crimson, "Waiting Man"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=En6orVmjH6M
Great beat and rhythm throughout the song, but listen at 2:17 when Bruford locks into a solid beat on the snare, but then at around 2:25, when you think the groove is locked, he decides to shift the beat to keep you on your toes.

Michael Jackson, "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yURRmWtbTbo&ob=av2e
This will always be one of the most danceable songs ever produced. I love the little touches Quincy Jones puts in the production of this track, especially the extra tom-tom beats at 1:21, 2:25, 2:57, etc. The bridge sounds very dated though, about the only thing that doesn't hold up.

[thesloppy]

For anyone wanting their youtube vids to go to a certain segment of time, use this format:

{original video URL}#t=(number of minutes)m(number of seconds)s

..so, for 1 minute 30 seconds into a video, you'd use:

{original video URL}#t=1m30s

[Comey]

Well, I'm frustrated...but I'm going to share this with you.

This song is about Dave Matthews proposing to his girlfriend, which he did three times. She said no, three times. So, he wrote this song, and debuted it on Halloween in 1992. It's aptly entitled "Halloween", and it's a pretty angry song.

It's also a very rare song; it had only been played seven times in the last decade, going into 2008. Then it started showing up after another song was faked. They took a very happy song, Everyday, and faked that into this. Then they took one of their major segues and took that into Halloween. My favorite one of those is what I'm sharing.

The moment for me comes twice; the first is when the crowd realizes what's being played. This was the first time this segue had happened (you can see Dave set up the horns right before they start). Really cool to see. I finally got to see this last year, and I took a video of it. The crowd response was insane. Secondly, and this is on the older versions of this song...Dave absolutely flips out. He still shows it here, but not nearly as much as he did in the 90s. There's a website that has single versions of these songs (as tapers are at every show)...the 10.31.96 version even made my girlfriend shiver at his wails.

Basically, he starts my moment at "But tell me, are you satisfied with fucking?"

The version I'm sharing here, from 8.9.08, is also awesome for the Mike Tyson's Punchout outro that Tim Reynolds plays. Hopefully you hear it.

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[Toddzilla]

The "moment" in Safe European Home by The Clash is the opening drum beat. Loud, hard, and in your face. Sets the mood for the entire album.

If there was a "Best First Note/Sound" for an album, this wins for Give Em Enough Rope.

[cuervo72]

If there was a "Best First Note/Sound" for an album, this wins for Give Em Enough Rope.

For Best First Note* on a song, Hush by Deep Purple comes to mind for me. Nice, power guitar chord**.

*the first sound for the song is actually a wolf howl, which is pretty cool too.

** yeah yeah, technically a chord isn't a note

[stevew]

Motorin'. What is your price for flight.

I also think of Alfred Molina in a robe and tighty whiteys smokin crack.

[Scarecrow]

If there was a "Best First Note/Sound" for an album, this wins for Give Em Enough Rope.

May I suggest the bell toll at the beginning of Back In Black...

[stevew]

You know where you are? You're in the Jungle baby.

[stevew]

Beatles. Day in the Life. Obviously where the tone dramatically shifts.

[thesloppy]

any part where Paul McCartney jabbers like he's wearing a raccoon coat and yelling into an olde-tymey megaphone.



oh no, wait that's the worst part.

[stevew]

B.I.G. P.O. P-P A
No info for tha DEA
Federal Agents mad cause I'm flagrant
They tapped my cell and the phone in the basement

[Abe Sargent]

Do elements dance songs count as this? You know, when it starts with one element of the song, like a beat, and then another, and then another, and then two leave and another enters, and then you hear a tiny part of the melody and then it fades to a stronger beat and then another element, and then another part of the melody, and then the melody stops and the harmony goes solo over the drum line and then, finally., two minutes into the song, everything plays at once?

Happens a lot in dance music. It's definately built around that moment, when everything plays, and you are teased for a while before it happens.


Here's an example. The Song is full fledged at 3:06 out of a 4:10 song


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[judicial clerk]

I got a few more:

The Beatles Hey Jude; the last third of the song but specifically when McCartney first screams;

Kanye West GoldDigger; The opening with Jamie Foxx/Ray Charles singing then the beat comes in;

Jimi Hendrix Voodoo Child; basically the beginning of the song. I think maybe Hendrix has an inordinate amount of "moments";

This one may be lame, but ... The old theme song to MNF had the cool drum part and the string part where it was like rising to a crescendo;

Paul Simon Fifty Ways to Leave Your Lover; the snare drum part.

[CrimsonFox]

OK Go White Knuckles.
THey have made a career off of crazy video ideas and has paid off. So this one, their latest one has the most amazing moment at 2:28 where the video/audio synch is priceless!

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[cartman]

Just had one hit me out of the blue when I was listening:

The part in Pearl Jam's 'Alive' during one of the codas where Vedder sings "I can't see, I just stare". The codas are definitely hooks, but this particular one stands out to me more than the others, and qualifies as a "best moment in the song".

[cuervo72]

<iframe width="425" height="349" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/kZNOKuEPRFo" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

The horns at 1:07. Horns are prominent throughout the song, but that's where they're at their fullest, their most powerful fanfare.

(wish YouTube had a higher quality version)

[Antmeister]

Great thread and I am not sure how I missed this.

I had to think about those moments since it is unconscious for most of us.* Usually, for me, that moment in the song occurs when I am not paying attention to a song and then something prompts me to sing along or it is when the song reaches a perceived crescendo/peak and I exclaim either "That's the jam!" or promptly start playing some air instrument.


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Prince – Do Me, Baby
This is one of those songs where I immediately sing to a certain part of the song. It occurs at 22 seconds after I hear that funky guitar note right after he says “He we are in this big old empty room”.



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Daft Punk – Something About Us
Another song where if not paying attention, would usually pick up at a certain part of the song. This actually from 1:45 to 2:15 and occurs when the drum kicks back in and ends with “....in my life”.



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The Whispers – And The Beat Goes On
I believe it reaches the peak of the song at 2:26 when he is singing “On----ooooooooohhhhhh” and it my "That's the jam!: moment. Just one word that last for about four seconds. And right after it goes “Huh”, I start into my silly funky dance that the wife and kids may get embarrassed about if played in public place.



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Kings of Convenience - I'd Rather Dance With You
Another song where I believe it hits it peak is at around 2:58 and that's the moment where I am usually rubber-neckin playing my air piano. This will last until 3:24. I could listen to that section over and over again. Something about the piano and the beat.



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E.S. Posthumus – Unstoppable
This song actually builds up to a crescendo and where the best moment occurs for me is from 2:36 – 2:38. There is silence and then you hear the beginning of the percussion before the horns come in. To me, the perfect way to end the build-up of that song, which ends with a nice afterglow. :D

[Pumpy Tudors]

There are two moments (actually the same thing that occurs at two different points) in Drowning Pool's "Sermon" that send me into a fit of wild dancing. My dancing is so ugly that it has been described as a hate crime. I have had people pull over when they see me dancing in my car just so they don't pee their pants with laughter while they're driving. It's really disturbing.

Unfortunately, I am at work right now and don't have any way to share the exact moments I'm talking about, so I'll have to do it later if I remember. If I don't remember, well, you'll just have to imagine me convulsing to a Drowning Pool song.

[Ksyrup]

So what you're saying is we shouldn't let the Pumpy hit the floor?

[Antmeister]

...My dancing is so ugly that it has been described as a hate crime...

LOL! That needs to be recorded and placed on your YouTube channel.

[Suicane75]

Desperados Under The Eaves. The line "And if California slides into the ocean, like the mystics and statistics say it will, I predict this motel will be standing, until I pay my bill". I love the way only California has backing vocals. I can't put it into words, it's like the song's about to get majestic and then it punches you with the bass of Zevons voice, all alone.

This thread popped into my head the moment I heard it.

[cthomer5000]

One my constant favorites is a 'clipped' vocal. It's usually intentional from a production perspective. The vocal is intentionally cut short from it's full length. A really good example is Corin Tucker providing backing vocal (to herself, singing lead) in 'Get Up' from the 1998 (99?) Sleater-Kinney album 'The Hot Rock.'

I can never get enough of when her 'Ooooohhhhh' vocal is abruputly cut off in the background. It's about 26 seconds in.

Sleater-Kinney "Get Up" - YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubyVReV2gDc)

The song itself took a lot of learning to like even at the time, and it's far from their most accessible or best album but has grown to be my favorite single sonic moment from the band.

A similar example would be Kim Deal's cut off 'Oooohhhh....I' at the beginning of 'Where Is My Mind?' by the Pixies.

[SteveMax58]

One of those moments for me is in John Lennon's Working Class Hero at about 2:10. Now, there are many moments in this song & a lot of great lyrics to choose from that are what I'd call "mood-disrupting" but for me...the revelation of "you think you're so clever, and classless, and free" is just that type of moment I think. Its reiterated in the "peasants" line (which is certainly intended to be a jolt) a few moments later but to me is equally as powerful.


<iframe src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Ve-mANenpC4" allowfullscreen="" width="420" frameborder="0" height="315"></iframe>http://youtu.be/Ve-mANenpC4

[korme]

It's very clearly

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The 2:34 mark

So powerful

[cuervo72]

Peter Gunn theme - Nick Davies, Lahti Symphony Orchestra - YouTube (http://youtu.be/jtibpixjhLM)

The stretch beginning at 1:55. It's like the entire orchestra collectively says "ok, this is where we all blow the roof off this fucker."

[HerRealName]

This one hits at 3:14 into the album but starts towards the end of the first song on the album at around 2:54. The whirring sound was recorded by one of the band members hanging a microphone out of the car window while another drove across the John A Roebling bridge in Cincinnati. This is still one of my favorite albums after 20+ years.

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[Umbrella]

For me, I have a lot of songs like that, but the first one I thought of was "Rosalita". I'm not even a Bruce guy. The section leading up to "And my tires were slashed" gives me goose bumps every time at the moment where the verse starts. It happens at from about 5:11-5:18. It is such a random thing, but there you go.

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I tried the starting at the time trick, but it didn't seem to work for me.

[cartman]

The parts in 'Lido Shuffle' by Boz Scaggs where he sings "One more for ro-oh-oh-oh-oad" before hitting the chorus.

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[QuikSand]

heh

[cuervo72]

Man, I wanted to bump this the other day too.

More, More More - Andrea True Connection (HQ Audio) - YouTube (https://youtu.be/RlJGrIyt-X8?t=2m20s)

You know, the one they based a whole song around in the 90s.

Also, was the discussion about songs that were made to sound old in a thread or somewhere else? (Because this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cT0Jh9lUhrc).)