Verse–chorus form
Verse–chorus formis amusical formgoing back to the 1840s, in such songs as "Oh! Susanna","The Daring Young Man on the Flying Trapeze",and many others.[1][2]It became passé in the early 1900s, with advent of theAABA(with verse) form in theTin Pan Alleydays.[3][4]It became commonly used inbluesandrock and rollin the 1950s,[5]and predominant inrock musicsince the 1960s. In contrast to32-bar form,which is focused on the refrain (contrasted and prepared by theB section), in verse–chorus form the chorus is highlighted (prepared and contrasted with the verse).[6]
The chorus often sharply contrasts the versemelodically,rhythmically,andharmonically,and assumes a higher level ofdynamicsand activity, often with added instrumentation. This is referred to as a "breakout chorus".[7]See:arrangement.
Contrasting verse–chorus form[edit]
Songs that use different music for the verse and chorus are incontrasting verse–chorus form.Examples include:
- "That'll Be the Day"byBuddy Holly(1957)[8]
- "Be My Baby"byThe Ronettes(1963)[8]
- "California Girls"byThe Beach Boys(1965)[8]
- "Penny Lane"and"All You Need Is Love"byThe Beatles(1967)[8]
- "Foxy Lady"byJimi Hendrix(1967)[8]
- "Smoke on the Water"byDeep Purple(1973)[8]
- "Can't Get Enough"byBad Company(1974)[8]
- "Biology"and"Sexy! No No No..."byGirls Aloud(2005 and 2007)
- "Prayer of the Refugee"byRise Against(2006)
Simple verse–chorus form[edit]
Songs that use the same harmony (chords) for the verse and chorus, such as thetwelve bar blues,though the melody is different and the lyrics feature different verses and a repeated chorus, are insimple verse–chorus form.Examples include:
- "Shake, Rattle, and Roll"byBig Joe Turner(1954)[8]
- "Louie, Louie"byThe Kingsmen(1963 cover), example not using blues form[8]
- "La Bamba"byRitchie Valens(1959)[8]
Simple verse form[edit]
Songs which feature only a repeated verse are insimple verse form(verse–chorus form without the chorus). Examples include:
- "Evil Ways"bySantana(1969)[8]
- Blues-based songs which are not simple verse–chorus form (above), such as "Heartbreak Hotel","Jailhouse Rock","Hound Dog",and"Lucille"[8]
and with a contrasting bridge:
- "Eight Miles High"byThe Byrds(1966)[8]
- "Tomorrow Never Knows"by The Beatles (1966)[8]
- "Purple Haze"by Jimi Hendrix (1967).[8]
Both simple verse–chorus form and simple verse form arestrophic forms.
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^RMS 1 Census-Catalogue of Manuscript Sources of Polyphonic Music, 1400-1550, edited by Herbert Kellman and Charles Hamm in 5 Volumes. Vol. I A-J (Volume 1),American Institute of Musicology,Inc. (1 January 1979),ISBN1595513116
- ^Ralf von Appen; Markus Frei-Hauenschild."Aaba, Refrain, Chorus, Bridge, Prechorus — Song Forms and Their Historical Development"(PDF).www.gfpm-samples.de.Retrieved27 March2021.
- ^The Life and Death of Tin Pan Alley, David Ewen, Funk & Wagnalls; First Edition (1 January 1964)ASINB000B8LYVU
- ^"Tin Pan Alley | musical history | Britannica".www.britannica.com.Retrieved27 March2021.
- ^Michael Campbell & James Brody (2007),Rock and Roll: An Introduction,page 117
- ^Covach, John. "Form in Rock Music: A Primer", p.71, in Stein, Deborah (2005).Engaging Music: Essays in Music Analysis.New York: Oxford University Press.ISBN0-19-517010-5.
- ^Doll, Christopher. "Rockin' Out: Expressive Modulation in Verse–Chorus Form",Music Theory Online17/3 (2011), § 2.
- ^abcdefghijklmnoCovach (2005), p.71–72
