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Page 64

Section 5—

Song Structures

ABBREVIATIONSRoman numerals I VII

indicate chordrelationships within a key.

m maj minormajor

Song sectionsbr bridge :

c ch codachorus

hk i introhook

pch v versepre-chorus

Most of the chord-sequence examplesare standardized for comparison

into Famous songs referred to inC or A minor. C major

orthe key of the original recordings A minor are not necessarily in.

The classic popular song structure has three primary sections:

verse + chorus + bridge/middle eight

These are sometimes referred to by the letters A, B and C – which is where Genesis got the title for 'ABACAB'.
Cream's 'Badge' was named after one of the writers misread the word 'bridge' on a piece of paper.
Secondary sections include an intro, an outro (or coda, literally meaning "tail") and any instrumental solos, links or
riffs that are used to get from one primary section to another. Let's look at these one at a time.

The Intro
The intro has several functions. It establishes tempo, key, style and mood. It is strongly affected by the question of
who your audience is. If you are writing a song intended to be a single, your intro has to be shaped to fit certain
commercial considerations. It will have to be brief – perhaps only a few seconds – and it will have to grab the
listener's attention. If the song is not intended as a single, then you can take more time – but this is one area where
commercial considerations and aesthetic values need not conflict. An intro can be very short ('A Design For Life'
takes five seconds to get to its verse) or extended (the intro of 'Some Might Say' is 36 seconds owing to an initial
guitar solo, and 'Do You Know What I Mean' takes as long to get to its first chorus as many 1960s rock singles
required to get to their codas). 'Ten Storey Love Song' has a 50-second atmospheric intro. Many amateur songs are
spoiled because there has not been ruthless enough cutting of the length of various sections. Guitarists in particular
need to be aware of this. A riff may be fun to play but do you really need to do it 36 times before the verse starts?
It is perfectly legitimate to have no intro at all. You could start straight away with a few words in a pickup bar
followed by the instruments entering on the first beat of the first whole bar. This might be a verse or a chorus. Think
about the dynamics of your intro. Ballads can start quietly to set a mood. A dance song needs to be loud. Sudden
beginnings will certainly make people sit up and pay attention. Some songs, such as '2000 Miles' or 'Eight Days A
Week', fade in – but this is not so effective on the radio as at home.
One common trick is to use part of A, B or C as the intro and simply not have a vocal on it. It could be an
instrumental version of the chorus or a section of the