23 - Black (Pearl Jam)

So...why do I sear? Perfect harmony of lyrics and chords. And an unforgettable vocal performance. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

Alright, let's dive into Black by Pearl Jam. So the cool thing I want to say about the song is how well the chords personify and uh characterize what the lyrics are saying. It's such good word painting because the song starts like with like a sunny blue sky in E major. It's just going one to four, like major one to major four. Right? Maybe the occasional Asus two. And I'll talk about that. But as the song is going, it gets tainted darker and darker. It like gets black. It gets sh like the darkness comes until it completely engulfs the song. So that contrast of like the blue sunny sky going into the darkness, like the pit of like sadness, right? It's just feels like black. And he's talking about tattooed, like tattooed everything, right? Just like completely engulfing everything, like just like the lyrics are saying, because the song's about lost love. And it's so powerful. So I'm gonna talk not so much about like the different guitar parts going on, but just the chords and the melody and the lyrics, right? So one thing I will say is that the intro has now that's just outlining E7. So that's just E major with a dominant seven, with a flat seven. So instead of regular E, this would be E major seven. Nice and dreamy, but E7 sounds bluesy, right? So they're doing that. Nice and kind of of a bluesy sound, and then that's A, which is the four chords. So one to four is very common, okay? Um just like that. But they add a so that makes it sus two. Now sus two is like it's it's essentially a major, but you know, they they I feel like sometimes they play a major, sometimes they play sus two. So sus two just means that they're substituting the major third, which is the note that's making it major, like a major chord. They're substituting that with the second, so it sounds more like ethereal. It sounds more like beautiful, right? So that's kind of essentially what they're doing in the intro. Oh, right, and then it and I love the bass, the like the like for a second there, it's a tritone. It's so cool. Okay, and now we get to the verse, and it's so nice, man. So we got E major, it's like we're in a major key, it's like a major song's called black, and we start in E major, okay? So it's like a blue sky, it's like what I keep picturing. He goes, Sheets of empty canvas. I love Aceus canvas right there on the ASUS 2, right? So open and vast.

SPEAKER_00 2:56

Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay.

SPEAKER_01 3:07

Okay, so one four, that's all just two chords, right? Sheets of empty canvas, untouched sheets of clay. Like he's just going up the major scale.

SPEAKER_00 3:23

Okay, we're split spread out before me. As her body once did.

SPEAKER_01 3:33

Sometimes his vocals like the vocal line sounds like a violin line. And then it stays on either, right? Instead of going to A, it goes we're late spread out before me. There's A as her body once did. Now instead of going back to A, it stays on E.

SPEAKER_00 3:55

Oh five horizons revolved round her soul.

SPEAKER_01 4:04

I like his phrasing is so awesome. Eddie Vetters has such great vocal phrasing, it's very unique. Like oh five. That's such a nice octave job. Round her soul, and then as the earth to the sun, right?

SPEAKER_00 4:26

Now the air I tasted and breathe. Oh, he goes, breathe. I love that. Now the air I tasted and breathe has taken a turn.

SPEAKER_01 4:40

Stays there. Okay, watch. Now the darkness is starting to come. The first cloud comes. So he goes to C major. Now C major is not in the key of E major. They add C here, which is the flat six. Okay, so it's like a borrowed chord from E minor. E minor is dark, E major is generally happy. So it's like has taken a turn.

SPEAKER_00 5:05

Here's E minor, and then right, so that's E minor now, okay?

SPEAKER_01 5:20

So it's like it's like tainted. This blue sky has now been tainted at this moment. And I just I just love the Mmm right and he sings a C too.

SPEAKER_00 5:34

And a la t her was everything right, E major. Sorry, E minor.

SPEAKER_01 5:42

I'm a fool, man. I'm a fool.

SPEAKER_00 5:44

Man, uh, was everything E minor mix?

SPEAKER_01 5:47

So cool. Okay, so we were just E major. We're playing some we're teasing some E minor now.

SPEAKER_00 5:52

I know she gave me all that she woo E so C major to E minor, and now my bitter hands.

SPEAKER_01 6:05

So now we're like like we're just kinda like we're like we're in E minor now, right? That's a little weird. It's getting like darker and darker. Now this D chord is the seven, okay? So it's like the flat seven. So we're like in E minor at this point, like we've just gotten dark, and he's and the lyrics are so much darker.

SPEAKER_00 6:21

And now my bitter hands chafed beneath the clouds of what was everything.

SPEAKER_01 6:29

Like he's just singing the minor notes, like minor seven, minor six, perfect fit of what was everything, and all the pictures had all been washed in black, and he's saying tattooed every tattooed everything like we have tattooed everything now, harmonically speaking and lyrically, right? Uh and uh melodically too, he's like outlining just like he's singing in a minor key, we're playing an E minor, and this is such a nice transition. So he's like uh all the pictures have been washed in black, I tattooed everything, yeah. Right, and then all of a sudden we go E minor, we go to E major. So we're back to the the blue sky, right? Just like the hat, like it's just happy, happier chords, right? And I love what he's saying, like it's so vast. He goes, I take a walk outside. Like I take a walk outside. Woo! I am surrounded by some kids at play. Like that's such nice uh vocal rhythm there. I can feel their laughter. So what do I see? Stays on E major. Now this verse is only half the length of the first verse, right?

SPEAKER_00 7:55

And then he goes back to it, like twisted thoughts that spin round my head.

SPEAKER_01 8:07

Like here we are, E minor, man. Like it's it we're getting dark, dark, and tainted. I just picture like black ink like pouring over like a white and blue like sheet of paper, man. Just like a picture of a blue sky. Black ink is like pouring all over it, and like the chords are like supporting that image too, right?

SPEAKER_00 8:24

Around my head, I'm spinning. Oh, I'm spinning. How quick the sun can drop away.

SPEAKER_01 8:39

That's like so haunting, like we'd be like those notes, the perfect fifth and the minor sixth, are often paired together. Like in a day in the life, she turns me on turn I love to turn you right, or in Jimmy by Tool. It's like very haunting.

SPEAKER_00 9:06

Oh how quick the sun can drop away. So haunting.

SPEAKER_01 9:13

How my bitter hands, cradle, cradle bro and how my bitter hands, cradle broken glass. Of what was everything? It's so dark. We're just going from the seven to the six to the minor one now.

SPEAKER_00 9:31

Everything, all the pictures have all been washed in black. Tattooed everything, all the love combat, turn my world to black right here.

SPEAKER_01 9:46

Tattooed all last C So that's a first in the song, okay? Because instead of going D C E minor, D C E minor, it goes D C D. So it's like we're in this, like, like, what's the word, man? We're in this just like cocoon of darkness, right? He's like trying to break out, but he's like still in like going now. I'd I'd love to jump back to D. It's like it's just like we're like stuck in this like darkness.

SPEAKER_00 10:14

Oh, the love gone back to my world to black. Tattooed all I see. It's tattooed everything I see. Oh I am all be.

SPEAKER_01 10:25

So he's like singing, so we're playing E minor now, right? We're back to the E minor DC loop. Um, but he's singing the minor seven. And B like the minor seven is like the reaching chord. So like during those chords, he's like, Oh love B. I love so nice. That's just the minor notes, like root, min major seventh, sorry, major second, minor third. Like the main minor notes right there. And then and then it goes to the bridge, man. It's like so beautiful, right?

SPEAKER_00 11:12

I know someday you'll have a beautiful life. I know you'll be a star.

SPEAKER_01 11:18

Like these lyrics are crazy. I know someday you'll have like it's about lost love. I know someday you'll have a beautiful life.

SPEAKER_00 11:25

I know you'll be a star in somebody else's sky, but can it be? Oh can it be like holy cow man.

SPEAKER_01 11:51

I know someday you'll have a beautiful life. I know you'll be a star in somebody else's sky, right? But why, why, why can't it be? Oh can't it be mine? And that part is so powerful, right? And it gets like compounded because the piano is playing it and the lead guitar is playing it, and Eddie Vetter is singing it. And so you got those three usually like instruments, like different instruments are like harmonizing with each other. Maybe two will play the same thing, but in this case we got three instruments the piano, lead guitar, and vocals. And these are just like the dark chords, right? It's like so heavy. It's like so many songs do this, okay? Like I I I say it a lot in my videos. Like minor one to seven to six, it's just so heavy. Can't get enough of that, and I love the bass riff that comes. Just outlining the chords, right? Minor D, C. And it just fades into blackness, and the song is starts off with that blue sky and just gets tainted and tainted. Blue sky comes back a little bit. Short-lived, right? Not as long. Verse 2 is a little shorter, and then it like goes back to the darkness and just falls into the pit of darkness, gets deeper and darker, and it fades out like black. So effective. It's such a cool like technique when the chords like really support the lyrics. Uh, really nice marriage of everything in the song. Guys, thanks for listening and watching. Please leave a review, it helps the podcast out immensely. And just check out learn.damberacuda.com slash sessions if you're interested in some private one-on-one breakdown sessions with me. Thank you guys, and see you in the next episode.