What Makes a Good Song?

[nirm123]

The most important aspect is melody, this is what Paul Mccartney is considered to be the best songwriter of all time (and rightly so). Lennon melodies however, very poor, this is why most Beatles fans always skip them (all turgid shite except for Revolution 9 which is quite interesting and doesn't suffer from a bad melody, as there isn't any melody at all).

[vurt]

The most important aspect is melody, this is what Paul Mccartney is considered to be the best songwriter of all time (and rightly so). Lennon melodies however, very poor, this is why most Beatles fans always skip them.

this might be the answer or one of many, in a theory thread.
this is more of a "why do i like this song?" thing i think

also, melody can ruin a drone

[nirm123]

The most important aspect is melody, this is what Paul Mccartney is considered to be the best songwriter of all time (and rightly so). Lennon melodies however, very poor, this is why most Beatles fans always skip them.

this might be the answer or one of many, in a theory thread.
this is more of a "why do i like this song?" thing i think

also, melody can ruin a drone

This is because you don't think of music as an art of communication like I do, you seems to believe it should alienate people.

[donkey tugger]

Of course it's about communication - he uses a telephone exchange to make them.

[nirm123]

This is what I think as well, all about communication.

[vurt]

The most important aspect is melody, this is what Paul Mccartney is considered to be the best songwriter of all time (and rightly so). Lennon melodies however, very poor, this is why most Beatles fans always skip them.

this might be the answer or one of many, in a theory thread.
this is more of a "why do i like this song?" thing i think

also, melody can ruin a drone

This is because you don't think of music as an art of communication like I do, you seems to believe it should alienate people.

not quite true, i believe it can alienate people, but i also think other kinds of music exist, and shock horror, i even like some of them

im a lot more multifaceted than some folk give me credit for, it's not all bloops and lovewood.

[nirm123]

The most important aspect is melody, this is what Paul Mccartney is considered to be the best songwriter of all time (and rightly so). Lennon melodies however, very poor, this is why most Beatles fans always skip them.

this might be the answer or one of many, in a theory thread.
this is more of a "why do i like this song?" thing i think

also, melody can ruin a drone

This is because you don't think of music as an art of communication like I do, you seems to believe it should alienate people.

not quite true, i believe it can alienate people, but i also think other kinds of music exist, and shock horror, i even like some of them

im a lot more multifaceted than some folk give me credit for, it's not all bloops and lovewood.

I'm sorry, you're wrong about that one...

[donkey tugger]

bloops and lovewood.

If one was to start a 90s disco house poptastic duo this would be the name. Or maybe a detective drama set in Manchestoh, mayyte.

[vurt]

i think it's time for a new manc crime show.
capaldi could be the captain who is always on their case!

[niterateaudio]

the things that are "wrong" so to speak, in music, that stand out for me as special.

It just means you like things that are a little alternative and are not mainstream. The idea that there are wrong things in music I don't agree with. A lot of it has to do with trends and aesthetics.

mark e smith of the fall, his voice is f**king awful, whiny nasal and very salford, but it works in the context of the fall, and they are like no one else!

Not familiar with their music, but singing style in rock and pop follows trends just like anything else. A lot of the alternative acts had very unique and distinct singers who I think had a much bigger role in keeping those acts "alternative" and preventing them from crossing over to mainstream pop. A list of "greatest" singers circa 89 from another forum I am on. Note how the usual suspects rank pretty low on these lists.

[Roman Empire]

I agree with Billy Joel who said that it all comes down to that if you can play it in a simple arrangement on a piano and it sounds good, then you´re on the right track. I guess he made We didn´t start the fire to prove himself, as it certainly gets very boring if you just play it on a piano.
If a good song becomes about everything else than that, arrangement, hair length, political standing point, production techniques, lyrics, musicians performance etc., then it´s a never ending discussion. I personally both like songs that shine when following "the Billy Joel-method" but also songs that for instance have great musicians performing in them. The latter just - to me - in itself doesn´t qualify as a good song, nor do songs with good lyrics, arrangements and so on: They´re good for THAT reason but I don´t tell people "here´s a great song", I tell them "here´s a song with a great arrangement" - unless they´re also "good songs" as defined in the above.
But again, even if a song is limited to what sounds great in its most simple form, there´s still 7 billion different ears to judge when something is good or bad and they have all kind of - often subconscious reasons - to judge the way they do. For instance I love when something has a strong melody (and what´s that again?) but where the chords take some unexpected twists that surprise me the first time I hear the song. I remember when I was listening to Rupert Holmes: That´s what he was doing the whole time, but now if I hear other music using similar twists, I will only like it if the melody line somehow stands out, or my brain will tell me that we´ve been there, done that.
Some other people are so much more into what they recognize and not seeking surprises, so it´s different for everyone.
Anyway, just my 5 cents and personal opinion...

[vurt]

the things that are "wrong" so to speak, in music, that stand out for me as special.

It just means you like things that are a little alternative and are not mainstream. The idea that there are wrong things in music I don't agree with. A lot of it has to do with trends and aesthetics.

thats why it was in quotes.
i was answering in the context of bones comment on aggro tech being weird because its gruff vocals over trance.

im the last person anyone here would accuse of thinking anything can be wrong in music

[BONES]

take mark e smith of the fall, his voice is f**king awful, whiny nasal and very salford, but it works in the context of the fall, and they are like no one else!

You say that like it's a good thing but The Fall were mostly awful. I liked Totally Wired but everything else of theirs I've ever heard was terrible. I saw them live, back in the day, but their live show didn't work any better for me than their records.

Coldplay and Oasis is just commercial garbage.

[Dirtgrain]

Nobody even said pizzazz? WTF?

[vurt]

. How do you describe colour to a blind man?

smell.

"that shirt is the colour that would smell like fresh cut grass, but the pants are more horse manure, but they work together!"