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Topic starter
04/02/2007 11:42 pm
Hey guys.
First post here, just wanted to find out something that's been bugging me about Bold as Love by Hendrix.
For those that don't know..
The verse chord progression is a basic I-V-VI-IV.
The pre-chorus is IV-I-II-bVII
The song is in the key of A but tuned down half a step per Jimi.
I don't bother tuning down and just raise the pitch of the song using software to match standard tuning.
So thinking in the key of A.. during the pre-chorus the bVII chord is the G major..
I have a live version of this track Jimi plays without vocals and it is a real masterpiece.. he was such a fine rhythm guitarist.. and during the G chord in one of the pre-choruses he substitutes a descending D-major scalar lick instead of hammering on and around the G chord like he normally does.
It sounds really good and the lick ends on a D which leads back to the IV chord (Dmajor).
The question is, what is the theory behind this?
05/02/2007 12:03 am
As he's temporarily 'looked' outside the key of A major by going to a G chord, the scale run D C# B A G F# E D will work well (I'm avoiding calling it a D major scale). It contains only one note which is foreign to the key of A major. And that note (G) just happens to be the root of the chord its played over. It can't fail.
Welcome to the forum by the way :D
Topic starter
05/02/2007 12:42 am
Thanks Fretsource.
Ok i understand that theory but is there a way of discerning some sort of method out of the madness?
Or is it simply just having a very good understanding of what notes are in what key and realising that the notes in D major are very similar to A major except the G which should be sharped in A major..
Maybe I have understood the lick incorrectly and it is simply an A major lick with the G flatted instead of sharped?
He definately plays the G natural and not sharped.
I guess maybe Jimi was thinking in the key of A and just flatted all the G's to G natural?
In my mind it seems easier to visualise a D-major shape...
Also one last thing.. I am not too familiar with modes but this thing is starting to smell like some sort of modal application..
05/02/2007 2:12 am
Maybe I have understood the lick incorrectly and it is simply an A major lick with the G flatted instead of sharped?
He definately plays the G natural and not sharped.
I guess maybe Jimi was thinking in the key of A and just flatted all the G's to G natural?
In my mind it seems easier to visualise a D-major shape...
Also one last thing.. I am not too familiar with modes but this thing is starting to smell like some sort of modal application..
Yes - that's the danger, and that's why I deliberately avoided calling it D major. It is what it is. It's just a run containing exactly the notes he wanted.
It's temptingly convenient to call it a descending D major scale, as it tells you every note in the correct order but that only serves to obscure what's going on musically, because it gives the note D more importance than it deserves.
I agree with your other interpretation. It's best (i.e., most meaningfully) described as an A major scale run starting on the 4th degree, with flatted 7th degree - coinciding with the harmony, rather than a D major scale - or D ionian as some modalists would prefer to call it.
Topic starter
05/02/2007 10:42 am
Actually on second analysis I think the song modulates to the key of D in the pre-chorus.
I think that makes a lot more sense.
:P