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- This song was first recorded on the morning Barack Obama won the Democratic nomination for the presidential election in the USA in 2008.
- The lyrics pay tribute to the black Civil Rights movement in America (referencing Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jnr.).
- The song has the effect of a positive anthem-like message for the African-American community as they celebrated the landmark occasion.
- The main musical substance on the backing beat is the strings which move stepwise up by five intervals before moving back down. The strings move on a pattern of a dotted minim - crotchet in each bar (three beats - one beat).
- The music is in a steady 4/4, which is typical of this kind of music.
- There are also digitalised drum beats.

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Young Jeezy - My President (Official Music Video) ft. Nas

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- Another Alicia Keys classic is the popular song Empire State of Mind...also commonly known as New York!
- This song shares many similar features to Fallin'. As such, it emphasises the certain characteristics of the genre which make it associated with R 'n' B.
- There is a prominent piano part and like the previous song, the tempo is also slow.
- The chord progression stays the same throughout the song, changing only for the short, 6-bar bridge section.

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- One of the most recognisable R 'n' B artists of the last 20 years.
- Born in New York in 1981, she has enjoyed an illustrious career, stints at number one, most notably with this song in 2001.
- There are certain characteristics of this music which make it R 'n' B:
- Tempo is slow, about 60 beats per minute. Time signature is 6/8.
- The chord pattern is very simplistic, hinging on two alternating chords (Em (occasionally with an added 7th) and Bm7).
- Piano part based upon an arpeggiated quaver pattern, which creates an arch shape pattern within each bar.
- Heavy use of melisma (more than one note per syllable). Typical of this kind of music.
- The song is quite repetitive in a variety of elements (rhythm, tempo, key, chord progression etc.) so there are other areas which build the interest, such as layering of backing vocals, backing strings and varied drum patterns.

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Alicia Keys - Fallin' (Official HD Video)

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- Rhythm and Blues, or R 'n' B as it is more commonly known, is another genre which, like the blues, was born out of a cultural blend of multiple genres and styles.
- R 'n' B owes its origins to pop music, but has deep cultural relationships to black culture and the community, specifically soul music.
- Other

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'I Believe In A Thing Called Love' by The Darkness

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'I Believe In A Thing Called Love' by The Darkness

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- As rock stars go, The Darkness epitomise everything we associate with fame and music, from the extravagant clothes to the exotic music videos!
- This is another example of a song which uses the power chord to drive the song forward and generate the excitement within the song.
- This song also has a heavy reliance on the primary chords; I, IV and V. The opening three chords are I, IV and V!
- The verses and choruses are interspersed with guitar solos. Can you name any of the guitar techniques used in these solos?
- Justin Hawkins (lead vocals) had an exceptionally high voice and could sing as high as a soprano! That's a range equivalent to that of Freddie Mercury.
- Can you name any of the vocal techniques used in the song?

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The Darkness - I Believe In A Thing Called Love (Official Music Video)

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- Composed by Rick Parfitt (rhythm guitar) and Andy Brown (keyboard).
- Released in 1979, it reached number 4 in the charts.
- The song hinges on a strong I - V chord progression.
- There is a quiet, opening melody played on the guitar, followed by a series of power chords.
- The opening driving rhythm on the rhythm guitar plays at an interval of a fifth. On the guitar, this technique is known as a power chord.

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- Status Quo are an English rock band who have been writing and performing rock music since the early 1960's...that's right, they're still going!
- One of the most successful rock bands, they have produced over 60 chart hits in the UK, with 22 top tens.

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- This genre formed the basis and broadened to create sub-genres, such as punk rock, glam rock, heavy metal, progressive rock and psychedelic rock, to name but a few.
- There are common traits to all and all come under the broad genre of 'rock music'.
- Heavy dependence on electric guitars, rhythm guitars (providing a strong pulse), drum kit, bass guitar and a vocal line.
- Songs are almost exclusively created using simple harmonic progressions, catchy melodic shapes and written with 4 beats in every bar. This style of music became very appealing to listeners.
- Heavy dependence on chords I and V.

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- Without question, The Beatles' most standout album release came in 1967, a year after they had decided to retire indefinitely from touring.
- The album title is the band's alter ego; whenever the band wanted to release music which was new or inventive, they would release the music under the name 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band', so that they could gauge people's reactions.
- The release was a concept album, one which was created with the illusion of being a live performance, complete with pre-recorded applause and instruments being tuned periodically throughout the LP. The album was released with the intention of it being played from start to finish without a break, but the Beatles never intended to perform any of the music live, allowing them to experiment with different instruments and techniques within the recording studio.
- 'With A Little Help From My Friends' was written by Lennon and McCartney for Ringo Starr. Starr was the drummer in the band, but regularly provided backing vocals to a lot of the tracks. However, he was not a particularly confident singer. As such, the song introduces Starr as 'Billy Shears'; Starr's personal alter ego in Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
- There are many ways in which the song is cultivated to help atone for Starr's lack of vocal prowess: The vocal line is mostly within the mid range of his voice, with the verse only spanning the interval of a fifth, whilst the octave leap at the end was put in with careful consideration. The vocal line is also entirely syllabic, which is easier to sing. The song also includes a lot of call and response between Starr and Lennon & McCartney.

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The Beatles - With a Little Help from My Friends

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- Despite only reaching number two in the UK chart, producer George Martin said this was the best single they ever released. Incidentally, Penny Lane is a street in Liverpool.
- The song has a strophic form (verse-chorus pattern) There is no intro or outro.
- The Beatles were inventive; in this song, they do not focus around one 'key'; the verse is in B major whilst the chorus is in A major. In harmonic terms, these two keys are very far apart.
- The sections do not only differ by key; the lyrics of the verse are sung in the third person, whilst the chorus is sung in the first person!
- The song also features a trumpet solo (which starts with a  two-semiquaver upbeat into the first beat).
- The bass line changes between sections also, moving from a descending, stepwise movement in the chorus to a more traditional I - IV progression in line with the chords (moving through the third to allow further stepwise movement into the root of chord IV in second bar).

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The Beatles - The Beatles - Penny Lane (Official Music Video) [Remastered 2015]

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- One of the most popular and most successful bands in history, The Beatles achieved a lot in the ten years they were together.
- Led by the songwriting duo of Paul McCartney and John Lennon, the Liverpudlian band toured the world until 1966 when fame, threats and exhaustion led them to focus on recording music.

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- See below for roman numeral chord structure of the 12-bar blues.

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- Years of austerity following the second world war were at an end, as the new era of independence, signalled by a 'baby boom' started to reap reward.
- Fashion and music shaped the decade.

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- Formed in London in 1967.
- Made up of two pairs of couples, this band was notorious for writing songs of hatred about other members of the band and recording the lyrics in secret.
- A a band, they covered many genres but were note known for their blues style.
- Listen out for the repeated quavers played on the ride cymbal.
- In this song, the harmonica provides the fill and the solo.
- Bass line riff.

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Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits Full Album Playlist Peter Green

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- John Lee Hooker was born in Mississippi, the so-called home of the blues, in 1917.
- He was one of the most prominent blues musicians after the second world war, with this recording coming from 1961.
- This song is built around the 12-bar blues structure.
- Can you identify key features such as repeated, mournful lyrics, instruments and a solo

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- Blues music uses call and response (a feature of African music to this day).
- A 12-bar structure to the verse has become a staple feature of Blues music (hence the term 12-bar blues).
- Melodic lines using flattened notes (usually the 3rd, 5th or 7th notes of the chord). These are known as blues notes.
- Growling timbre to the vocal part, often accompanied in a similar fashion by trumpets and saxophones.
- Fill (two-bar improvised melody at the end of each line of verse).
- Riff (repeated melody or pattern, often in a guitar).

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- Blues originated amongst the black salves of America, brought over from Africa and auctioned to wealthy land owners to work plantations.
- The genre is a blend of traditional white American culture and the black culture which the slaves brought with them.
- Early blues music was known as spirituals. These songs were sung by the slaves on the plantations as a way of occupying their minds whilst working long days in poor conditions.