Page 76The Elements of Rhythm:
Time Signature
Music is written in a time signature. Just as the key signature tells you which notes to sharpen or flat in a given key,
so the time signature tells you how many beats there are in a bar. This is the pulse of the music. Here is a diagram of
basic note values and rests.
Simple Time
The most common time signature in popular song is 4/4, a form of what is known as "simple time" where the beats
are marked by quarter-notes/crotchets. Other simple times include 3/4, typified by the waltz dance form, and 2/4.
Well-known songs in 3/4 include 'Amazing Grace', 'Mull Of Kintyre', 'America', 'Annie's Song' and 'Only Love Can
Break Your Heart'. 'It's All In The Game' was originally in 3/4 but the Four Tops turned it into 4/4. Even a hard rock
song in 6/4 tends to have a languid feel – witness Soundgarden's 'Fell On Black Days'. The difference between a bar
of 6/4 and adjoining bars of 4/4 and 2/4 is one of emphasis. The first beat of any bar has more stress than the
remaining beats in that bar, so the 4/4 + 2/4 combination is one two three four one two and the 6/4 bar is one two
three four five six.
A 6/4 bar is useful if you want to heighten expectation for the start of a section by making the listener wait another
two beats:
I · VI · V · IV ···It is difficult to write a song in an odd-numbered time signature such as 5/4 or 7/4. It can be done, though, and hit
singles in 5/4 include 'Living In The Past' and the Dave Brubeck Quartet's instrumental 'Take Five'. (Note that these
two came from the jazz and progressive rock fields.) The 1960s TV theme for Mission Impossible is also in 5/4 time
- but when it was re-recorded for the 1990s film version, it was changed to 4/4, losing the asymmetry of the original.
Pink Floyd used 7/4 for 'Money'. Led Zeppelin's 'Four Sticks' is a memorable example of a hard rock tune in 5/4 and
'The Ocean' has bars of 7/8 (4/4 minus an 8th note). Although they did feature the occasional odd time signature,
some of Zep's weirder timings were made in 4/4 by shifting the accent. This can be heard in 'Black Dog' and in the
link from the guitar solo back to the guitar riff in 'Over The Hills And Far Away'.