HACKING
HIT SONG STRUCTURE Stop Writing Songs Even Your Friends Don’t Remember
By TotalControlAudio.com
First Edition Copyright 2013. All Rights Reserved. Total Control Audio, LLC Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
HACKING
HIT SONG STRUCTURE Stop Writing Songs Even Your Friends Don’t Remember
Even if your goal isn’t writing a hit song, you can quickly learn the framework to make your songs catchier and more memorable. In this eBook, we’re hacking hit songs to understand the similarities and differences from one hit song to another hit song. We hack across popular genres...so you don’t have to! Song structure for the Songwriter is like the Sistine Chapel’s ceiling1 was for Michelangelo’s painting. It’s your canvas. Now let’s get started.
1. The Sistine Chapel ceiling is a cornerstone of Renaissance art that Michelangelo painted between 1508 and 1512.
“Just because you can sing the phone book doesn’t mean you can write with weak song structure. Unless you’ve had a hit, always start with intro, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, bridge, outro.” 2 ~ Desmond Child3
2. Desmond stated this during the ASCAP Expo 2008 Presentation on Hit Songwriting. 3. He has written over Seventy Top-40 Hits and has sold 300 million records.
HACKING
6 Reasons to Read this eBook
Even If You HATE Hit Songs (As I Do, Sometimes) Hacking Hit Song Structure isn’t an eBook about how fantastic Hit songs are, though it might look like it. Even if you hate Hit songs, here are six reasons why you should glance through the Hit Song Structure examples: #1 We start with AC/DC! Okay, maybe you hate rock songs too, but “Shook Me All Night Long” has stood the test of time. And, it’s very similar in structure to the global smash hit “Firework” by Katy Perry. We’ll show you both. #2 It doesn’t take much work. The eBook will take you less than 15 minutes to peruse. We use big diagrams so you don’t have to read much. #3 It’s interesting stuff. We’re hacking into the structure of Hits. It’s fascinating to see the similarities and differences. #4 We’ve done the analysis for you. For Free! #5 There aren’t any wrong answers. You just might get inspired to try something new. It’s the awesome thing about songwriting. Write what you want to write. #6 Because it’s fun to write songs people like. And, maybe you’ll get rich! As Bruce Lee said, “Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own.”
HACKING
Hit Song Structure The Sections
Intro
Verse
Pre Chorus
Chorus
Verse
Pre Chorus
Chorus
Bridge
Outro
Summary of the Song Sections: The Intro has become a very short part of the hit song. Today’s Hits often have Intro’s less than 10 seconds long. Many Hits have Intros of 5-8 seconds.Yes, “Livin’ On A Prayer” had a 38-second Intro, but that was 1986. “Wrecking Ball” has an 08-second Intro today. Most of today’s Hits have only two Verses of 12 -16 bars each. The Pre-Chorus is a 2 - 8 bar lift prior to the Chorus. Using a Pre-Chorus is common in Hit Songs. Since we’re hacking the Hits to understand the basic structure, we simply define the Pre-Chorus as any lift that happens prior to the Chorus. What others might call a B-part, extended verse, pre-hook, or lift, we simply call a Pre-Chorus. The Chorus or Hook in Hit Songs is typically 12 - 16 bars, with 16-bars being extremely common. Most Hits have two Choruses. The majority of today’s Hits have a Bridge, which is sometimes called the Middle-8 because the Bridge is often 8-bars. The Outro almost always repeats the Chorus and sometimes elements of the Pre-Chorus, Bridge, and Intro. Most Hits are less than four minutes long.
Six Steps to a Hit Song: 1. Make your Intro extremely short 2. Try a Pre-Chorus in your song 3. Get to the Verse within one minute 4. Use only two Verses (or three for Rap) 5. Include a Bridge 6. Skip the solo
“It is possible to become world-class in just about anything in six months or less. Armed with the right framework, you can seemingly perform miracles, whether it’s Spanish, swimming, or anything in between.” ~ Tim Ferriss4
4. Tim is the #1 New York Times Best Selling author of “The 4-Hour Workweek. Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich.”
HACKING
Hit Song Structure
On the following pages we’ll hack into the “framework” of Hit Songs. We’ll start with classic songs and work our way to current Hits.
SHOOK ME ALL NIGHT LONG - AC/DC Hit Song Structure Tempo 125 BPM
:30
Intro 16-Bars
Song Length 3:30
@ 1:02
Verse 12-Bars
Pre
4-Bars
Chorus 8-Bars
Verse 12-Bars
Pre
4-Bars
Gtr Solo
Chorus
Outro 24-Bars
16-Bars
8-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Shook Me All Night Long” Written by Young, Young and Johnson
Hit Song Information US Billboard Hot 100 #35
Tempo: 125 BPM
No. 10 on VH1's list of "The 100 Greatest Songs of the 80s"
Time Signature: 4/4
Back in Black Album 26m+ sales
Key Signature: G Major
Played at every AC/DC concert
Length: 3:30
Released August 19, 1980
Intro Length: 30 seconds
Youtube Link: Shook Me All Night Long Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
LIVIN’ ON A PRAYER - Bon Jovi Hit Song Structure Tempo 122 BPM
:38
Intro 16-Bars
Song Length 4:10
@ 1:25 sec
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus
Chorus
8-Bars
Solo
16-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Livin’ On A Prayer”
9-Bars
Outro (fade) 20-Bars
Hit Song Information
Written by Jon Bon Jovi, Richie Sambora, Desmond Child Tempo: 122 BPM
Billboard Hot 100, #1 Hit Song for 4 weeks Top five on 12 charts around the world Slippery When Wet album has sold 28m+
Time Signature: 4/4
Released October 31, 1986
Key Signature: E minor Length: 4:10 (Album) & 4:47 (Full Version)
Youtube Link: Livin’ On a Prayer
Intro Length: 38 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
SMELLS LIKE TEEN SPIRIT - Nirvana Hit Song Structure Tempo 115 BPM
:16
Intro 8-Bars
Song Length 4:30
@ :57 sec
Verse 12-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus
Verse
16-Bars
12-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Solo
Verse
8-Bars
12-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Smells Like Teen Spirit” Written by Cobain, Novoselic, and Grohl Tempo: 115 BPM Time Signature: 4/4 Key Signature: F minor Length: 4:30 (Single Version)
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Outro 16-Bars
Hit Song Information US Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks: #1 Nominated for two Grammy Sold over 2 million copies Released September 10, 1991 Youtube Link: Smells Like Teen Spirit
Intro Length: 11 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
LIVIN’ LA VIDA LOCA - Ricky Martin Hit Song Structure Tempo 178 BPM
:11
Intro
8-Bars
Song Length 3:59
@ :53 sec
Verse 20-Bars
Pre Chorus 10-Bars
Chorus 28-Bars
Verse 8-Bars
Pre Chorus
Chorus
10-Bars
28-Bars
Pre Chorus 10-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Livin’ La Vida Loca”
Time Signature: 4/4 Key Signature: C# minor Length: 3:59
55-Bars
Hit Song Information
Written by Luis Gómez Escolar, Desmond Child, Draco Rosa Tempo: 178 BPM
Outro
Billboard Hot 100, #1 Hit Song for 5 weeks #1 on 20 charts around the world Sold over 8 million copies Released March 23, 1999 Youtube Link: Livin’ La Vida Loco
Intro Length: 11 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
LIVE LIKE YOU WERE DYING - Tim McGraw Hit Song Structure Tempo 80 BPM
:24
Intro 8-Bars
Song Length 4:28
@ 1:05 sec
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus
5-Bars
Chorus 14-Bars
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus
5-Bars
Chorus 11-Bars
Outro
Bridge 6-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Live Like You Were Dying” Written by Tim Nichols and Craig Wiseman Tempo: 80 BPM
24-Bars
Hit Song Information Billboard Country charts #1 seven weeks Billboard’s #1 Country song 2004
Key Signature: G Major
ACM Single & Song of the Year, NSAI Song of The Year and CMA Song of the Year, and Grammy Best Male Country Performance
Length: 4:21 (Radio) & 4:58 (Album)
Released June 7, 2004
Intro Length: 24 seconds
Youtube Link: Live Like You Were Dying
Time Signature: 4/4
Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
EMPIRE STATE OF MIND - Jay Z Hit Song Structure Tempo 86 BPM
:11
Intro
4-Bars
Song Length 4:34
@ :55 sec
Verse 14-Bars
Pre
2-Bars
Chorus 10-Bars
Verse 14-Bars
Pre
2-Bars
Chorus 10-Bars
Verse 14-Bars
Chorus
Pre
2-Bars
10-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Empire State of Mind” Written by Hunte, Keys, Shuckburgh, Keyes, Sewell-Ulepic, Carter, Robinson
Outro
Bridge
6-Bars
10-Bars
Hit Song Information US Billboard Hot 100, Rap, R&B: #1 Grammy, Best Rap Song
Tempo: 86 BPM
Sold over 5 million copies in the US
Time Signature: 4/4
Released October 20, 2009
Key Signature: E Major
Youtube Link: Empire State of Mind
Length: 4:34 Intro Length: 11 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
FIREWORK - Katy Perry Hit Song Structure Tempo 124 BPM
:08
Intro
4-Bars
Song Length 3:44
@ :54 sec
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus
Chorus
8-Bars
16-Bars
Outro
Bridge 8-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Firework”
24-Bars
Hit Song Information
Written by Katy Perry, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Billboard Hot 100, #1 Hit Song in 2010 and Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm, Ester Dean 2011 Tempo: 124 BPM
Top five on 20 charts around the world
Time Signature: 4/4
Sold over 10 million copies in the US
Key Signature: Ab Major
Released November 24, 2010
Length: 3:44
Youtube Link: Firework
Intro Length: 7.7 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
GANGNAM STYLE - Psy Hit Song Structure Tempo 132 BPM
Intro 8-Bars
Song Length 3:39
@ :1:07
:14
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus 13-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Verse 16-Bars
Pre Chorus
Chorus
13-Bars
16-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Gangnam Style”
Outro
Bridge 8-Bars
11-Bars
Hit Song Information
Written by Park Jae-Sang, Yoo Gun-Hyung
#1 Hit Song on 35 charts globally
Tempo: 132 BPM
1.8 billion Youtube views
Time Signature: 4/4
Sold over 4.5 million copies in the US
Key Signature: G minor
Released August 14, 2012
Length: 3:39
Youtube Link: Gangnam Style
Intro Length: 14 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
DIAMONDS - Rihanna Hit Song Structure Tempo 92 BPM
:11
Intro
4-Bars
Song Length 3:45
@ :52 sec
Verse 8-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Verse
Pre
8-Bars 4-Bars
Chorus 16-Bars
Bridge
4-Bars
Outro 16-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Diamonds”
Hit Song Information
Written by Sia Furler, Benjamin Levin, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen Tempo: 92 BPM Time Signature: 4/4 Key Signature: B minor Length: 3:45
#1 on 23 Charts around the world Top five on 36 charts around the world Sold over 7.5 million copies worldwide Released September 27, 2012 Youtube Link: Diamonds
Intro Length: 11 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
THAT’S MY KIND OF NIGHT - Luke Bryan Hit Song Structure Tempo 110 BPM
:08
Intro
4-Bars
Song Length 3:10
@ :35 sec
Verse 10-Bars
Pre
2-Bars
Chorus 15-Bars
Verse 10-Bars
Pre
Chorus
2-Bars
15-Bars
Outro
Bridge 8-Bars
FAST FACTS About “That’s My Kind of Night”
19-Bars
Hit Song Information
US Billboard Hot Country Songs: #1 Written by Dallas Davidson, Chris DeStefano, Thomas Walker, and Ashley Gorley Sold over 1 million copies in the US Tempo: 110 BPM Released August 5, 2013 Time Signature: 4/4
Youtube Link: That’s My Kind of Night
Key Signature: E Major Length: 3:10 Intro Length: 7.7 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
WRECKING BALL - Miley Cyrus Hit Song Structure Tempo 120 BPM
:08
Intro
4-Bars
Song Length 3:32
@ :41 sec
Verse
Pre Chorus
8-Bars
9-Bars
Chorus 10-Bars
Verse 8-Bars
Pre Chorus 8-Bars
Chorus
Outro
Bridge
18-Bars
16-Bars
25-Bars
FAST FACTS About “Wrecking Ball”
Hit Song Information
Written by Gottwald, McDonald, Moccio, Skarbek, Walter
Billboard Hot 100, #1 Hit Song
Tempo: 120 BPM
Released August 25, 2013
Time Signature: 4/4
Youtube Link: Wrecking Ball
Key Signature: D minor Length: 3:32 Intro Length: 8 seconds Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
HACKING
Now What?
5 Steps Toward a Hit Alright, so we’ve looked at a handful of massive Hits. What can you do with this song structure stuff? Step One: Decide if experimenting with Hit Song structure is for you. If it seems cool then proceed. That’s easy! Step Two: Pick one Hit Song from this eBook and listen to it while referring to our structure hack. We’ve include a YouTube link on each song’s page to make it easy for you. When you feel confident in identifying each section of the song, listen to another one of the Hits and do the same. Step Three: Play the best song you’ve ever written. Listen to the structure. How similar is it to the Hits? Step Four: Use your favorite audio program (i.e. GarageBand, ProTools, Sonar, etc.) drop in one of the Hit Songs and use our free Songwriter Loop Pack to build a new drum track. Step Five: Delete the Hit Song track. Write a new song using the drum track you built!
HACKING
Now What?
FIREWORK Example in GarageBand
Watch Ron Wikso’s video demonstration
Songwriter Resources ASCAP BMI SESAC HFA Nashville Songwriter Association International Berklee Online SOCAN National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Songwriters Guild of America
Songwriter Tools Lilac Writer Hooktheory Groove3 Chromatik SoundCloud Writing Hit Country Lyrics
Inspiration
“I'm sick to death of people saying we've made 11 albums that sound exactly the same. In fact, we've made 12 albums that sound exactly the same. It’s just rock and roll. A lot of times we get criticized for it. A lot of music papers come out with: 'When are they going to stop playing these three chords?' If you believe you shouldn't play just three chords it's pretty silly on their part. To us, the simpler a song is, the better, 'cause it's more in line with what the person on the street is.” ~ Angus Young5
5. Angus has a band called AC/DC that has sold over 200 million records worldwide.
“My vocation is more in composition really than anything else—building up harmonies using the guitar, orchestrating the guitar like an army, a guitar army. I always felt if we were going in to do an album, there should already be a lot of structure already made up so we could get on with that and see what else happened.” ~ Jimmy Page
“I didn't really know what I was doing when I started. I just started writing songs. After two songs I just continued to explore it. I don't force it. If you don't have an idea and you don't hear anything going over and over in your head, don't sit down and try to write a song. You know, go mow the lawn.” ~ Neil Young
“There’s a lot of craft that goes into achieving a hot song—at the beginning of your career, you’re usually more inspiration than craft, and you get great when those intersect.” ~ Kara DioGuardi6
6. Kara has over fifty Top-40 Hits, 160 million records sold and was an “American Idol” judge.
“I've just really been into melody and lyrics and songwriting. Writing a rap, to me, is easy. I could write a rap like that. But writing songs and melodies and s**t that's hopefully going to stick around for 30, 40 years is f**king hard. If you have good songs and you're talented, people will eventually come to your shows, people will buy your music.” ~ Kid Rock
“I don't think rock n' roll songwriters should worry about art. I don't think it comes into it. As far as I'm concerned, Art is just short for Arthur. I look for ambiguity when I'm writing because life is ambiguous. A painter's got a canvas. The writer's got reams of empty paper. A musician has silence.” ~ Keith Richards
Bonus Material Hit song structure is not just about what you’re reading in this eBook. There was much more we wanted to include. We’re busy doing song analysis and building useful tools for songwriters and recording musicians.Yes, we specialize in drum loops, but we’re about writing memorable songs. If you’re not on our email list, please sign up here. We give away useful stuff. And, since you’ve read all the way to the end of this book, we have some bonus drum loops for you! www.totalcontrolaudio.com/bonus/
Copyright 2013. All Rights Reserved. Total Control Audio, LLC | Contact us at
[email protected] Hit song structure analysis performed by totalcontrolaudio.com
Now go write a memorable song!
