Music Analysis

Music Analysis

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Music Analysis

Introduction

“Hey You” by Pink Floyd is one of the most memorable songs of the English band and one of the reasons that it has been the influential song is due to the fact that how well it combines the different elements of the musical orchestra as well as the other underlying characteristics of the song. The song is the part of their album “ The Wall” and the functionality of the album is such that it is organized in the way that not only invokes enough insight to the casual listeners, it also goes a long way towards providing insight to the keen listeners of the music in a sense that they are able to understand the technicalities of the song in a better manner. The arrangement of the song is such that there are variety of musical elements that one gets to see through it. The song starts with the arrangement of the acoustic guitar, that is combined in pretty much the similar manner as is being used in the Nashville Tuning. Furthermore, the other aspect about the technicality of the song is that contrary to the common perception discussed in that era, the low E in the strings are replaced by the High E thus providing comparatively higher beats. Thus, it is an interesting of the contemporary pop and some other elements of the popular music at that time.

Biography of the Artist

Pink Floyd is one of the greatest English bands of all time. The band was formed in London in early 1965 and with the passage of time, due to their psychedelic sensitivity, they were able to create huge following among their stakeholders . One of the keys defining traits of the band was that how they were able to make sure that they use extended compositions as a metaphor for their singing skills. It allowed them to ensure that they experiment with their sounds and create philosophical lyrics. Not only that, the band was quite well known for their live shows that were quite an elaborate fair to say the least. They were in some ways the flare bearer of the progressive rock genre that gained popularity at that point of time and are regarded as one of the more critically acclaimed band with great commercial success to accompany that.

The founder of the band constituted by Syd Barrett that took the guitar as well as being the lead vocals of the band. Other than that, Nick Mason, Roger Waters and Richard Wright were the other members of the band. Barrett was the unofficial leader of the band and it was under his tutelage they were able to come up with their two charting singles as well as their own highly successful debut album. It was in late 1960’s that there were some changes in the lineup of the band in a sense as Waters become the primary vocalist of the band as well as coming up with the concepts that were integral in setting up the success of the band in the latter half of their career . The major legacy that is being left behind the band is that they are one of the first British bands to be having in the experience of psychedelia groups. Not only that, they are one of the few bands that are credited with bringing about the influence in some of the other genres such as how the succession of the progressive work was supposed to be working out and how the ambient music was supposed to work. The commercial success of the band can be measured by the fact that they had about four albums in the United States and United Kingdom record charts. The songs such as “See Emily Play” and “Another Brick in the wall” are some of their top singles.

Genre and Musical Arrangement of the Song

As compared to some of the other songs of the band, where higher tones and electronic guitars are being used, in this case, the Nashville Tuning is being used. The low E string that is being prevalently used in that era has been replaced by the higher octave sounds that were quite common in that era. The other thing that was witnessed in the case of the song is that how the arpeggios are being preferred. As a matter of fact, they are preferred over the E and D minor resulting in the addition of the ninth chord . The other salient feature of the song is the way alternate stringing is being carried out during the routine. Due to the way alternate stringing is being done, it makes sure that the adjacent pitching that gives a groovy feel to the song is being looked after. Not only that, they ring out quite separately to one another during the arpeggio.

The second part of the song is that how the fretless bass is going to be made the part of the song. This bass is played extremely well by David Gilmour as contrary to the usual personnel that takes care of the bassist that is Roger Waters. The entrance of Fender Rhodes gives a new feel to the song in a sense that the electronic piano brings about some interesting contrast in terms of the way recording of the song is being done. The middle of the guitar specifically speaking is the one that is played during the leitmotif of the album and the distinct sound that one gets to see during the course of the album is such that it plays an important role as far as the way whole thing is supposed to work out at the particular point of tine. The ending of the chord is done with the E minor and it is one of the prime reasons that it leads to the reprise of the instrumental introduction that is quite expertly done during the premises of the album. The sound that is witnessed in the case of the ARP quadra’s that are used quite well. It also plays an important part in the arrangement of the piece since it creates very strong transitions that work out well in most of the cases. For instance, what is being done here is that the sonar like sounds are being created that are creating pretty much the same effects that are being done with the help of the echoes and how they are made to sound. When the final verse was being crooned out by Waters, he goes around at a higher octave range that is quite high as compared to the Gilmour. The highest note in this case is going to be C and the middle one would turn out to be middle C in the given case. The other major strength of the band was the fact that they were one of the few bands that experimented with the innovative sound effects. The state-of-the-art audio recording was one of the things that was started by them and the recording technology that they used at that point of time was used in the manner that the creative and artistic expression were made possible. In the song, Mason’s work also seems to be standing out the most as they are using the Homophonic system . This system is integral when it comes to making sure that how the audio processing technique is going to be used. The idea behind this initiative is to make sure that the simulation of the three-dimensional sound is being made. The system also worked effectively in the manner that there was a conventional stereo tape that used to produce an effect that had the ability to move the sound . This sound movement was so pronounced that it was even felt around the head of the listener, specially the instance when they were wearing headphones. The process was enabled in the manner that the simulation was created to make sure that some sort of illusion is created where sound behind, or in front of the ear of the listener is being interpreted. As is the case with most of the other songs that are played by the band, the guitar work that is being done by Gilmour is done in the manner that it turns out to be an integral part of the way Floyd used to manage sounds in most of their rings. These are some of the factors due to which “Hey you” are considered as one of their most complete songs. The song starts off with an acoustic guitar, restrung in a fashion similar to Nashville tuning, but with the low E string replaced by a high E tuned two full octaves higher than normal. It plays arpeggios over E and D minor added ninth chords. The alternate stringing allows for adjacent pitches (such as the E, F♯, and G of the Em9 chord) to ring out separately on separate strings throughout the arpeggio. A fretless bass enters, also played by guitarist David Gilmour rather than usual bassist Roger Waters. Next to join in is the Fender Rhodes electric piano by Rick Wright,[3] Gilmour's vocals, singing in the first person, as the character "Pink" ("Can you feel me?"), and overdubbed acoustic guitar and drums at the start of the second verse. In the middle is a guitar solo which is played over the album's leitmotif of the melody to "Another Brick in the Wall" (in E minor and A minor, rather than D minor). After the solo, Roger Waters sings the lead vocal for the rest of the song, in a narrative role, referring to "Pink" in the third person ("No matter how he tried").

Conclusion

In the hindsight, it can be said that that “Hey You” is in some ways the artistic manifestation of the work that is being created by Pink Floyd. One of the reasons that they have been so successful is since they have experimented with the sounds and worked out a method that allows them to use technology. Combined with the fact that the band had members that had actual artistic acumen, and especially in the case of this sound, the understanding of how the sonics work went a long way towards the creation of this wonderful piece of art. The sense of harmony and the synchronization of the melody is another thing that has worked out well for the

List of Sources

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Waters, Roger, David Gilmour, and Bob Ezrin. The wall. Columbia, 1979.

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