Hit Songs/Singles with Odd Time Signatures

[klothos]

There was a thread awhile back about Odd Time Sigs but Imt curious what are some hit singles with Odd Time Signatures that got a lot of airplay or video rotation?

"Take Five" is one of the biggest -- although Im not sure which artist had it as a single.

Heres a few others:

Pink Floyd - Money Predominately 7/4 with 4/4 gaps and a 12/8 swing added during the solo

Soundgarden - My Wave Predominately in 5/4. This song has a very infectious phat groove for 5/4. In the past, it would come on jukeboxes at gigs I played at that ran their own break music and it was always fun to watch girls stutter dance to it not knowing why

[trurl]

Living In The Past was a minor hit and is in 5/4. Speaking of Soundgarden iirc the main riff to Spoonman was in 7 as well. And of course there's Genesis and Turn It On Again which was in 13/4 (the verses, anyway)...

[ThomasKDye]

"Turn It On Again" was sort of a hit, wasn't it? And it's in 13/8.

[Mister Triscuits]

"Ring of Fire" by Johnny Cash is in 11/4. Sort of. Actually it's all over the place.

The mariachi trumpet riff is in 7, so you get the intro in 7, then in the verses Johnny sings 4-beat phrases alternating with the trumpet lick in 7, making 11 beats. The chorus is in straight 2/4, and the instrumental break with the trumpets goes back to 7/4. In the third line of the second verse, the trumpets come in a beat late, so there are 12 beats on that phrase.

[bob_32_116]

"Take Five" was Dave Brubeck Quartet. That's also the first "odd" time signature hit I can think of. They recorded a number of other pieces with unusual time signatures.

Composers for film and television do not seem to have been afraid to try unusual times. The theme from "Mission Impossible" comes to mind.

Surprised I'm the first to mention Peter Gabriel - Solsbury Hill.

[GuitarGeek]

I remember someone telling me that intro of Let Her Dance by The Bobby Fuller Four alternates between different time signatures, though I've forgotten the specifics. Something like two bars of 3/4 followed by a bar of 2/4.

And isn't the beginning of Tubular Bells in some weird time signature? That was a hit.

[Adrian]

"Solsbury Hill" and Soundgarden's "Outshined" are both in 7.

The opening of "Tubular Bells" is in 15/8. I know because it was driving me crazy and I took the time to count it out.

[Adrian]

Another one: "Whipping Post" by the Allman Brothers Band, partially in 11/8.

[bob_32_116]

"Solsbury Hill" and Soundgarden's "Outshined" are both in 7.

The opening of "Tubular Bells" is in 15/8. I know because it was driving me crazy and I took the time to count it out.

If it's odd time signatures you want, listen to Incantations - especially Part 1. But that wasn't a "hit single" of course.

[Kavus Torabi]

Blondie's Heart Of Glass has a bit in 7.

[Twelfth Earl of Mar]

Maybe not hits - but songs you might have heard on the radio:
Sting - Seven Days is in 5 I believe
Pretenders -Tattooed Love Boys alternates between 7 and 8 (or 15).

[Scott Bails]

Rush had a minor hit with "Subdivisions," which is partly in 7.

[trurl]

Rush had a minor hit with "Subdivisions," which is partly in 7.

They had a bigger hit with Tom Sawyer which is also partially in 7! Not the singy bits though.

[viukkis]

The verse of All You Need Is Love is (mostly) in 7/4.

The instrumental break in Jive Talkin' by Bee Gees is also in 7/4.

[trurl]

OH! Here Comes The Sun! Bridge in alternating measures of 3,2 and 4. That's a whacky one. All kinds of ways to count it; you can say measures in 5, or 11...

[No Pride]

Good Morning, Good Morning is pretty wacky too. It starts with two bars of 3 followed by a bar of 4.

[No Pride]

Burt Bacharach liked alternating meters. "Promises, Promises" starts out with alternating bars of 5 and 7.

[trurl]

Could the Mission: Impossible theme be considered a hit? 5/4... until you get to the lame reworking for the movies. And not a hit, but maybe worth a mention, the main symphonic underscore theme for the new version of Doctor Who is in 7.

[No Pride]

Could the Mission: Impossible theme be considered a hit? 5/4... until you get to the lame reworking for the movies.

See post #5

[bob_32_116]

Burt Bacharach liked alternating meters. "Promises, Promises" starts out with alternating bars of 5 and 7.

It took me a long time to get my head round that rhythm. One of my favourite Bacharach compositions.

I saw him once on television performing the instrumental version of that song. He was playing piano, and conducting the orchestra at the same time. It was amazing to watch.

[bob_32_116]

Another song I remembered is one of the songs from Jesus Christ Superstar. I think it's called "Everything's All Right", sung by the person who plays Mary Magdalene. It's in 5/4.

Then there is "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers. Most of the song is in 6/8, but bits of the bridge have extra beats, making it 7/8.

[GuitarGeek]

Another one: "Whipping Post" by the Allman Brothers Band, partially in 11/8.

I don't think Whipping Post was even released as a single, never mind it being a "hit".

[Scott Bails]

I don't think Whipping Post was even released as a single, never mind it being a "hit".

It's played on the radio all the time.

[GuitarGeek]

It's played on the radio all the time.

So? That doesn't make it a hit. A hit, by definition is a record that shifts large number of units upon release.

[Scott Bails]

So? That doesn't make it a hit. A hit, by definition is a record that shifts large number of units upon release.

Only if you're being pedantic.