00:00Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most
00:10commonly utilized song structures in popular music.
00:26Our listening habits are in a constant state of flux.
00:29This also goes for how we produce the art form, particularly in today's digestible world
00:34of bite-sized social media.
00:35TikTok especially has made it easy for songwriters to strip their music to its barest essence,
00:40crafting shorter songs that get to those hooks almost immediately.
00:49Granted, TikTok fame is as fleeting as those proverbial 15 minutes referenced by Andy Warhol
00:54back in 1968.
00:55Still, in a world that thrives on instant gratification, the success of songs like
01:00Old Town Road by Lil Nas X prove that getting straight to the point pays off.
01:04This reaps rewards not only for artists chasing viral success, but also for listeners with
01:09brief attention spans.
01:10Yeah, I'm gonna take my horse to the Old Town Road.
01:14I'm gonna ride till I can't no more.
01:18Number 9.
01:1912-Bar Blues.
01:20Go, go, go, go, Johnny, go, go, go, go, Johnny, go, go, go, go.
01:26It's a chord progression as old as rock and roll itself.
01:29A time-tested classic.
01:31You don't need to understand music theory in order to feel a 12-bar blues loop.
01:35Famous songs like Johnny B. Goode by Chuck Berry and Hound Dog from Elvis Presley built
01:40their infectious energy on this very progression.
01:42You ain't not gonna...
01:44You ain't not gonna have longer...
01:50Today, 12-bar blues numbers are largely seen as nostalgic throwbacks to rock and roll's
01:55infancy.
01:56But it's important to remember how the stuff was once seen as dangerous.
01:59Conservative voices at the time worried how the urges of youth might be encouraged by pop
02:04music's adoption of the blues.
02:06They couldn't stop rock and roll, however.
02:08And this popular song structure endures today.
02:10We're gonna rock around the clock tonight.
02:13We're gonna rock, rock, rock, no broad daylight.
02:15We're gonna rock, we're gonna rock around the clock tonight.
02:18Number 8.
02:19No Bridge.
02:20Early one morning the sun was shining.
02:22She was lying in bed.
02:24There's no right or wrong way to write a song.
02:26This is why the art form remains so fun and unique.
02:29Artists like Bob Dylan prided themselves upon expanding traditional songwriting parameters.
02:34Telling stories with their music in ways that were then unimaginable.
02:38His song, Tangled Up in Blue, eschewed the inclusion of a bridge.
02:41Instead, hammering its point home via multiple verses.
02:44And he just grew, tangled up in blue.
02:49The title itself is repeated as a sort of refrain or mantra, serving as a thematic connective tissue.
02:55For Dylan, the lyrics are the message.
02:58And there is no need to sully them up with extra bridges or even choruses.
03:01These decisions can still be seen today in singer-songwriters whose intentions are to share rather than just entertain.
03:08If everybody goes...
03:15Number 7.
03:16Power Ballads.
03:17Just one more night and I'm coming on this flopping, winding road.
03:23The Power Ballad wasn't born in the 1980s.
03:27Neither does it belong exclusively to the era of songs like Home Sweet Home by Motley Crue or Nobody's Fool from Cinderella.
03:33To trace its true roots, we need to turn to arena rock legends like Aerosmith and Styx.
03:38Aerosmith's Dream On and even more so Styx's Lady, which was penned by songwriter Dennis DeYoung, serve as prototypical examples of the medium.
03:46Like a child you handle, you're my lady.
03:53Power Ballads were usually designed to showcase the softer side of an aggressive act, often being placed in the third or fourth position on an album.
04:00Their structure tended to be melodic and sensitive up front, with a rousing, electrifying finale.
04:05Piano and acoustics were optional, as long as the effect felt suitably sincere.
04:10Oh, Gary! Gary!
04:18Number 6.
04:19Doo-wop Progression, a.k.a. 50s Progression.
04:22Oh, my love.
04:28The beauty of the 50s Progression lies in its simplicity.
04:31Though it first gained traction in the late 1930s, it became more closely associated with the doo-wop era of the 1950s, hence its name.
04:38The 50s Progression evokes memories of innocence and nostalgia due to its inclusion in hits like Earth Angel by the Penguins.
04:44Earth Angel, Earth Angel, please be mine.
04:52But it has remained alive since that era, being used in such modern songs as Perfect by Ed Sheeran.
04:57It's a brief looped progression that locks onto a melody and holds it for the duration of the song.
05:02If I don't deserve this, darling, you look perfect tonight.
05:10Some tunes may throw in a bridge for variety, but the heart of the song remains rooted in that unmistakable, timeless progression.
05:17Number 5.
05:1832 Bar Form, a.k.a. Verse and Bridge.
05:21When I was 21, it was a very good year.
05:30Jazz standards and the Great American Songbook are goldmines for songs built on the classic 32-bar form.
05:36This song structure doesn't feature a chorus, but instead allows room for improvisation and vamping over two 8-bar verse sections,
05:43an 8-bar contrasting bridge, and one final 8-bar verse to bring it all home.
05:47Great Falls of Fire is an excellent example of a verse-bridge A-A-B-A form, as is the theme from the Flintstones cartoon show.
05:54For vocalists like Frank Sinatra or Judy Garland, this arrangement allowed them to showcase their talents,
06:05while jazz standards emphasized the musicality of each player as they improvised new material.
06:10Some day I'll wish upon a star and wake up where the clouds are far.
06:17Number 4.
06:18Quiet Loud.
06:18Let our popcorns bring your friends as fun to do.
06:25Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana may have been composed with a traditional song structure,
06:30but its true influence lies more within its dynamics.
06:33Kurt Cobain and his bandmates were notably inspired not only by punk rock and underground heavy metal,
06:38but also contemporary alternative voices of the day.
06:48The signature quiet loud structure of the Pixies, for example,
06:51was said to have inspired how the bass-led verses of Teen Spirit contrast with its guitar-heavy chorus.
06:56Elsewhere, Washington rock band The Melvins was already pushing boundaries,
07:00exploring song structures that deviated from that era's glam metal radio dominance.
07:08But it was Nirvana's massive public profile that convinced a generation of musicians
07:13to forego flashy performances in favor of raw, unpolished energy.
07:17Well, the lights out, it's as dangerous!
07:22And we are now, entertain us!
07:26Number 3.
07:27Verse, Chorus, and Bridge.
07:28What's Love Got To Do With It was a smash hit for Tina Turner back in 1984,
07:40achieving chart success by utilizing a tried-and-true formula.
07:43The song follows a traditional verse and chorus structure,
07:46while also adding a bridge for emphatic and dynamic effect.
07:49Bridges can be useful tools within a songwriter's arsenal,
07:52but not every song includes them in the process.
07:55I've been taking on a new direction,
07:59but I have to say...
08:03What's Love Got To Do With It makes use of a bridge after the instrumental break,
08:07rather than before, which makes it feel impactful.
08:09The modulated final chorus assists to this end,
08:12showing just how much a well-crafted and well-placed bridge can elevate any song.
08:16What's Love Got To Do With It?
08:21Number 2.
08:22Multiple Sections and No Chorus.
08:25The realm of progressive and avant-garde music
08:33isn't usually a place where traditional songwriting can be found,
08:36but complex song structures are not exclusive to just prog and art rock bands.
08:41Even acts like Queen and Billy Joel have experimented with songs that feature no chorus,
08:45and instead move through multiple propulsive sections.
08:48Bohemian Rhapsody is perhaps the most famous of these,
08:57a mini-operetta that achieved worldwide success in spite,
09:00or perhaps because, of its bold and uncompromising structure.
09:04On the other hand,
09:05Billy Joel's scenes from an Italian restaurant may not feel as dramatic,
09:08but it also tells a complex story in a similarly unconventional manner.
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09:33Number 1. Verse Chorus
09:37Homer Simpson said it best when he yelled,
09:46Get to the working overtime plan!
09:48And sure,
09:49working overtime may not be the chorus to Backman-Turner Overdrive's Taking Care of Business,
09:53but the sentiment remains.
09:55We love a good chorus,
09:57to the point where it's often the only thing we retain from many hit songs.
10:00Taking care of business
10:02Every game
10:03Taking care of business
10:05Everywhere
10:06We're often so excited to get that shot of dopamine that we forget the verses even exist.
10:12But without that push and pull dynamic, or working overtime if you will,
10:15the payoff wouldn't feel nearly as good.
10:17The ABAB structure of songs like Smoke on the Water ensures that the chorus is the star,
10:23because it's in stark contrast to the verses.
10:25That is the secret that turns good songs into hits.
10:28Are there any songs with a totally unique structure that you dig?
10:38Let us know in the comments.
10:39You got your gum original, you got your gum original,
10:43our entertainers, gum original.
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