All right, all right. Fine. You badgered me into it. (Plus, I was bored.)
For those who were interested, here it is. It is a multi-email exchange between me and Doug, dated around the beginning of March 2000, before Doug even had his first Empeg. We began with Doug trying to comprehend that certain guitar parts were in fact guitar and not synthesizer (Doug being a Classical buff and therefore unfamiliar with electric guitars). Doug is also a bit confused as to which members of Rush play which instruments, so I decide to set him straight. Note that we've already gotten past certain "givens", for instance, that the introduction is morse code for the letters YYZ, and that YYZ is the international code for the Toronto airport (their home town). We join the conversation in progress, Doug is in orange...
OK, now you've done it.
You have gotten me very curious indeed about the inner workings of YYZ.
I may have misled you (but I doubt it -- I mis-stated myself but I am pretty sure you knew what I meant) about that octave-shift note: it is not the fifth note from the end but the 12th note from the end -- I forgot about that next to the last measure, just before the da-da-da-thump end.
I am wondering if that octave-shift note is guitar or keyboard. If it is guitar, it is NOT Lifeson -- he is playing around in counterpoint an octave or two below the main melodic line all the way through the piece. And Geddy Lee -- what's he doing in that piece? I know that a lot of the time he is on keyboard. The question is, does he stay on keyboard and sound like a guitar, or is he switching back and forth? If he is switching, he is doing it *really* quickly in a few spots...
Sometime in the last minute or so of the piece, what sounds like guitar, has to be guitar, is screaming out the melody, then repeats the same two bars an octave or two higher, way above the normal range of the instrument. Can't be Lifeson, he's down low on the bass guitar playing counterpoint. How is this trick done?
Anyway, listen carefully to YYZ, and see if you can tell for sure if it is keyboard or guitar doing that octave trick. I don't see how it could be guitar -- the blend from low octave to high octave is just too perfectly pitched to be any kind of electronic trickery with feedback or something. (he says, whose sum knowledge of guitars is that they're skinny on one end and fat on the other...)
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>You have gotten me very curious indeed about the inner workings of YYZ.
Oh boy! Here we go! Just remember-- You asked for it.
>it is not the fifth note from the end but the 12th note from
>the end -- I forgot about that next to the last measure, just
>before the da-da-da-thump end.
I totally understand which note you are referring to, and yes, I knew you had forgotten the last four notes. I knew what note you were talking about, and my description still stands. That is feedback. That long sustained note is a high "G" played at the twelfth fret on the third string, and sustained. During the sustain, the guitar begins to gradually feed back through its amplification. (Working in radio, I assume you know what feedback is.)
The reason the note seems to go from one octave to the next is because of the nature of the way feedback works for electric guitars. When a string begins to feed back, it usually only resonates at one of its dominant harmonic sub-frequencies. The amplifier vibrates the air in the studio, which vibrates the body of the guitar, which adds energy to the string, which is picked up by the guitar pickups, which goes back to the amplifier... etc. When done properly, it's a wonderful, gradual fade from the root note to the harmonic. In this case, it's the octave harmonic that stands out and feeds back. (And yes, Al records standing right in front of the amplifier. Yes, they record by pointing microphones at the amplifiers instead of direct-in to the mixing board, just so that they can get the proper tonality and, of course to capture cool feedback like this.)
>I am wondering if that octave-shift note is guitar or keyboard. If it
>is guitar, it is NOT Lifeson -- he is playing around in counterpoint an
>octave or two below the main melodic line all the way through the
>piece. And Geddy Lee -- what's he doing in that piece?
Ho, man, you're going to [censored] a brick when I tell you this next thing... I can't believe you didn't know this...
Prepare yourself. You are about to reach a whole new level of respect for this band as musicians.
Are you ready? Good.
Most of what you're mistaking for Al on the electric guitar is actually Geddy Lee playing the bass. There are many bass lines on that song (and on all of their songs) that are very intricate, complex, and played in a high register. For example, in the middle break, where the drums trade off little solos with another instrument- all of those little solos are all bass. During that section, Al only strums the rhythm stabs between the solos. You may not believe me yet, but I assure you, it's the truth. In time, you will come to understand. :-)
All of the thing you refer to as "playing around in counterpoint" on the second half of the main theme is actually Geddy on the bass. The high, legato notes are Alex, and the lower, percussive notes are all Geddy. It's some of the most brilliant counterpoint I've ever heard, too. The way they play off of each other gives me goose bumps through that section. Note that some of that low counterpoint is CHORDS, too, played by Geddy. It's possible to play chords on a bass, it's just that it usually sounds terrible. Unless, of course, it's done really really well...
The snappy, guitar-like sound that Geddy gets on his bass is from a combination of factors. First, he plucks the strings REALLY hard, making them sound picked when in fact they are plucked with his fingertips. Second, he chooses his basses carefully, and deliberately selects models that allow him to get that sound (in the case of that recording, I believe the instrument is a Rickenbacker). Third, they are very careful to select the right amplification and recording equipment to emphasize that sound.
Now, I dare you to listen to that song again, knowing this. You will be in awe of what an incredible bass player Geddy really is. The man is a God.
>I know that a lot of the time he is on keyboard.
There is actually very little keyboard on YYZ. They get almost all of their signature sound with guitar, bass and drums. There are only two small synthesizer parts in that whole song.
The first synth part:
In the morse-code introduction, the dissonant synthesizer notes that ride atop the morse-code rhythm are played by Geddy, but they're played with his FEET.
Yes, his FEET.
He uses an instrument called a Moog Taurus Pedal. It's basically a one-octave set of organ pedals that controls a Minimoog synthesizer. The notes played are F-sharp, A-flat, E-flat, D-flat, C. That progression is played twice through. After that, there is no more synthesizer until the last part of the bridge (more on that later).
Both Alex and Geddy make extensive use of these pedals. Although recently, they switched to MIDI controller pedals to trigger newer model synthesizers instead of the original Taurus pedals. But the layout is the same: A one-octave set of organ pedals in a little case sitting on the floor in front of them.
Actually, come to think of it, it's possible that the intro synth is done by Alex. Either one of them could be doing it. Having seen them perform the song a dozen times live, I just realized I don't know which one of them really does that part. Since the guitar and bass are doing identical lockstep notes during that intro, it would be easy for either of them to do the part. It's probably Geddy, though, because of logistical reasons. There's a Taurus part later that I know is being done by Alex, and it's using a different patch (sound). If Ged did the intro, that would allow Al to do the Taurus part on the bridge without having to switch patches mid-song.
I have a set of bass pedals, too, and I really enjoy playing those parts. It makes me feel powerful because I'm able to play intricate stuff with my hands while still having enough "CPU cycles" left over for the parts to be played with my feet. It's quite fun.
The second synth part:
The last part of the bridge after the main big guitar solo. This part is clearly keyboards. It is played by Geddy, with his hands, on a Minimoog synthesizer. The basic chord progression is A minor, G major, D major, F major. This progression is repeated four times. During this time, there is a very low, droning "A" note. That low droning "A" note is played by Alex on his Taurus pedals as the last note of his guitar solo starts to feed back over the top (yes, another example of really sweet feedback, almost identical to the one at the end- listen for it), then he adds a little more soloing at the end as the progression finishes, just before they launch back into the main theme again.
After this point, there is no more synthesizer in the song. Everything else you hear is guitar, bass, and drums. And for the most part, it's played without overt multitracking. Throughout the song, you're hearing one guitar, one bass, and one drum kit. Remember, when this album was made, they were still in their "we won't put anything onto a studio record that we couldn't perform live" phase.
Everything else you mentioned can be traced back to the roots of you mistaking Geddy's parts for Al's parts. I'll make a chart here with time codes for you to be absolutely clear on what instruments are playing which parts:
0:00: Morse Code Intro. Neil Peart, Triangle.
0:05: Alex and Geddy play identical notes (a couple of octaves apart, of course) in lockstep to the morse code rhythm. Alex on guitar, Geddy on bass. The notes played are C and F-sharp. Note that the C's are the morse code "dashes", and the F-sharps are the morse code "dots". High, dissonant, Moog Taurus pedal notes are played by Geddy, with his feet, droning over the top of everything.
0:31: The band launches into one of their trademark "hey, everybody, look how tight we are!" riffs, where they all perform a set of incredibly complex start/stop riffs in odd time signatures with inhuman synchronization and precision. God, I love that. Alex and Geddy are still playing identical notes a couple of octaves apart, in lockstep.
0:42: Main theme. If this song had lyrics, you might possibly call this the "verse". Alex and Geddy are still playing identical notes, a couple of octaves apart, in lockstep. You can start to hear a slight difference in the notes that they're playing on this riff. Only a guitarist who's trying to learn the song would notice this, but Geddy plucks an extra double-strike note in a couple of places where Alex is only picking a single note.
1:10: Second half of the main theme. If this song had lyrics, you might consider this the "chorus". The sledgehammer rhythm of the intro and verse was just a build-up to this moment. The lockstep synchronization of the guitar and bass is shattered as Geddy and Alex split up, with Geddy racing off on his own to do an intricate counterpoint to Alex's soaring main melody. Alex shifts up two octaves and plays smooth, legato guitar phrases that ride atop a set of Geddy's staccato bass riffs. The sudden shift here from synchronized to unsynchronized playing is one of the most brilliant parts of the song's arrangement. The effect is almost tangible: It's like Geddy and Alex are two jet airplanes flying in perfect formation up until this point, and suddenly they peel off and begin dogfighting with each other here.
1:38: Bridge. Alex plays sharp reggae-style strums (alternating between the chords B major and C major), stopping to allow Neil and Geddy to trade brief solos. It breaks down like this:
1:38: Alex strums, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
1:43: Geddy solos on bass. Note that the last two notes are chords, played on the bass by plucking pairs of strings.
1:45: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
1:50: Neil solos on drums.
1:52: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him. There is a variation in this one, as Alex does a tiny arpeggio in addition to the chords here. There is a panning effect, too: strums are panned to one side, the arpeggio is panned to the other, but they are both the same instrument: Al's guitar. The arpeggio nestles neatly into Geddy's bass riff.
1:56: Geddy solos on bass.
1:58: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
2:03: Neil solos on drums.
2:05: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
2:10: Geddy solos on bass. The last two notes of this bass solo are interesting: They are plucked harmonic chords. He is effectively combining two different techniques, neither of which are usually done on a bass: Harmonics and chords. Harmonics means that you gently mute the string at a harmonic "node" (usually the 5th, 7th, or 12th fret), while plucking it, to achieve a "ringing bell" tone. This kind of tone is the one that Alex uses in the opening to "Red Barchetta". It's much easier to achieve this tone on a guitar than on a bass. Here, Geddy not only produces harmonics on his bass, but he's producing PAIRS of harmonics, plucking two strings at a time. (Tony melts into jelly at this point.)
2:14: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
2:18: Neil solos on drums, setting up the guitar solo.
Phew! As if that weren't enough, the song is only half-way over!!!!!
2:21: Alex launches into his big guitar solo. This solo is played in a very odd and "non-rock" scale. It's the scale of "E Harmonic Minor". (Note that the word "Harmonic" is used here differently than I used it previously. Here, it refers to the musical scale. Elsewhere it refers to a sub-frequency of a vibrating string.) The chord progression that set up this solo (during the trade-off section before) was B major to C major: Two chords precisely a half-step apart. This makes for a very odd set of notes to solo against. The only resolution to these chords is the E Harmonic Minor scale. The result is a solo that sounds very east-indian in nature.
During the solo, there is a really cool "WHACK" sound at the end of every other measure. This is a studio trick and is not reproduced accurately when they play the song live. From what I've gleaned from reading interviews, I'm pretty sure it's a combination of sounds mixed together, one of which is a recording of Neil smacking a piece of plywood onto the top of a wooden stool (hence the "plywood" credit in the liner notes). It also appears to be combined with a glass-break sample (right down to the tinkles of the bits of glass falling afterwards- listen closely for them) as well as gobs of reverb, and perhaps a whip crack, too.
2:47: Everyone stops as Alex performs a downward-spiraling riff to end the solo. This is all "hammers" and "pulls", a technique where you do not pluck or pick the notes- you simply fret the notes so firmly with the left hand that they ring out without the need for plucking with the right hand. It gives a very smooth, legato feel, and works best on a loud electric guitar with lots of amplification.
2:51: Geddy stops playing the bass altogether and slams into the Minimoog keyboards here. (When playing the song live, Geddy simply walks over to the keyboards and plays them while still wearing the bass around his shoulder. There's no instrument switching involved. That downward spiral that Alex played gives Geddy time to do this comfortably, although it can be much more hurried on other songs.) Alex lands on an "A" note the end of that downward spiral and continues to sustain it here. As Alex hits that last note on the guitar, he also steps on the "A" note of his Moog Taurus Pedal, which is set to one of those really low, arena-shaking bass patches.
Oh, wait! Sorry. You've never seen them live. You don't know what I'm talking about. There are moments in certain songs that can only be appreciated in concert. This is one of them. That low sound that Alex plays on the Taurus pedal is one of their trademarks in concert. They use that sound in a few places (most notably, the opening to Tom Sawyer). When it happens, you experience the sound on multiple levels. Your eardrums nearly burst from the sound pressure, your belly vibrates, your pant legs flap, you feel the note resonate up from the floor, through soles of your shoes, and up to the top of your head. Oh, and you see God.
2:54: The "A" note that Alex was sustaining on the guitar starts to feed back. It makes that same octave transition into feedback that you noticed at the end of the song, although faster and less controlled. It fades out pretty quick.
3:05: Alex, continuing to sustain the low "A" on the Taurus pedal, begins a short, melodic solo atop the synthesizer chords that Geddy continues to play.
3:20: Ged takes his hands off the keyboards, Al takes his foot off of the Taurus Pedals, and those instruments fade out naturally as defined by the "release" time programmed into the synthesizer patches. They launch back into the first main theme, as before, with Geddy on bass and Alex on Guitar, playing the same notes in lockstep a couple of octaves apart. From this point on, it's just the power trio: Guitar, bass, and drums.
3:47: Second half of main theme, as before, with Geddy playing a bass counterpoint under Al's soaring legato melody.
4:03: Al's variation on the main melody is to "pinch" the notes here. This is the same technique as the one he uses on the last note of the "Limelight" solo, although not as pronounced. It makes the notes squeal a little bit. I think he does it just for fun, just to dirty up the sound a little bit, not so much for musical reasons.
4:13: The last high note of Al's main theme melody is hit, and he sustains it as Geddy does a staccato downward riff on the bass, matched by Neil on the drums. Al's high note actually begins to feed back almost right away, but you don't really start to notice it until about...
4:14: Al's note shifts smoothly into feedback, one octave above the original note. Geddy and Neil are doing their own thing behind him, setting up for the finale. This is the only note Alex is playing at this time, and there are no synthesizers. You could argue that Alex isn't really playing the note- the note is actually playing itself. That's the definition of feedback. Well, OK, Al is adding some vibrato to sweeten the note, so he's helping it along.
4:16: Closing riffs and the end of the song, Alex and Geddy are playing lockstep identical notes, a couple of octaves apart. It is here that you notice the fact that Al's high melody was recorded on a different track than the final closing notes, because the feedback continues to sustain for a split second over the first note of the closing riffs. This is common in all kinds of rock recordings. It simply sounds better to have a solo smoothly taper into a rhythm part like that. When playing the song live, Alex simply switches to performing the rhythm part without trying to sustain the last note over the top.
>I don't see how it could be guitar -- the blend from low octave to
>high octave is just too perfectly pitched to be any kind of
>electronic trickery with feedback or something.
Feedback isn't electronic trickery. It's a natural part of the tonal range of the electric guitar as a musical instrument. Controlling feedback is difficult, and musicians have to go to great lengths to prevent it when it's unwanted (which is most of the time).
The "blend" you refer to is a natural part of the process. It's all about subharmonic frequencies, better known as "harmonics". It's the same thing that allows Alex and Geddy to get those "ringing bell" tones that I mentioned earlier. A vibrating string doesn't just vibrate at one frequency. It vibrates at several frequencies, each one being a sub-multiple of the main frequency. Each of these harmonics is audible in the root tone if you know how to listen for it. It's the ratios of these subharmonics that gives each instrument its tonal character.
Picture a vibrating string as an oscilloscope wave-- a dirty oscilloscope wave, with more than one "wave" combined to make a fairly complex wave. When you gently mute a string at the right point, it mutes some of the subharmonics, but leaves whatever harmonics were at the "0" crossover point of the wave at the point on the string where you muted it. The left over tone that's still ringing is a "pure" wave, a cleaned-up version of the original wave. For instance, if you mute the string gently at the 12th fret of a guitar, you are touching the string at the exact half-way mark. This harmonic frequency is exactly half of the root note, and therefore it's exactly one octave above the root note. The 12th fret harmonic is the most dominant subharmonic of any guitar note, and is the easiest to pluck. The others (located in several places along the string) produce different harmonic tones (such as fifths), but they are harder to produce because they are a fainter part of the root note and they require more precision to hit correctly.
Consequently, when a note on an amplified guitar starts to feed back, it usually tends to be at the 12th fret harmonic, one octave above the root tone. Now, feedback is achieved in a different way than a plucked harmonic, but the principle is the same. In order to feed back, the instrument needs to transmit the vibrating air back into the string so that the circle of energy can be completed. Because this involves physical distance (and the limitations of the speed of sound), the vibrating air is hitting the instrument at an offset of the string's original vibration. This offset tends to "mute" the other harmonic tones while accentuating the dominant one where the wave of the air and the wave of the string match. Hence, the feedback producing a pure tone one octave above the root note.
Experts like Hendrix could "play" feedback by altering the guitar's distance and angle from the speaker, deliberately accentuating different harmonics as they moved the guitar. Not very musical, but interesting from a technical point of view.
Now, I'll grant you that this particular instance of feedback in YYZ is exceptionally smooth and sweet sounding, giving it a synthesizer-like quality. There is also the fact that some effects (such as a chorus) are being put on the guitar, which helps to make it sound less electric and more electronic. But what you're hearing at the end of YYZ is definitely well-controlled feedback. It's not easy to make it sound that smooth. It takes careful placement of the amplifier and the instrument, and careful adjustment of the gain controls and the effects on the guitar. It probably took several takes to get it right.
Being a guitarist, I can hear the tones that the guitar is making, and I can tell that for most of the song, it's riding that hairy edge just beneath the level where the guitar will start feeding back. There's a certain way that the notes are ringing, it's hard to describe. But I can practically FEEL the volume level in the studio when I hear that recording. That's one of the reasons it's such an incredible piece of music and an incredible production job. That "just about to feed back" tone is where the electric guitar sounds its sweetest. What you're hearing is an example of an electric guitar recorded in the most perfect way possible, generating the most perfect tone possible. Some real magic happened in the studio when they recorded that album- it's so transcendent that it even crosses genre boundaries. You're a testament to that.
Jeez, it's 11:00 already. I've spent three hours composing this message. I guess I must be a real Rush fan. :-)
I'll be gone this weekend, but if you want to talk further on the subject, get back to me before Noon on Friday. I'm dying to hear what you have to say about all this.
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> Oh boy! Here we go! Just remember-- You asked for it.
And God, did I ever get it. Took 8 pages to print it out. Seriously, this was probably the best e-mail I have ever received.
> I totally understand which note you are referring to, and yes, I knew
> you had forgotten the last four notes.
I knew you would!
> When done properly, it's a wonderful,
> gradual fade from the root note to the harmonic. In this case, it's
> the octave harmonic that stands out and feeds back.
But why does the root note fade out, while the harmonic increase in volume? Intuitively it seems like the opposite would occur -- the amplifier would amplify the loudest frequency the most. Would there ever be a case where a sub-harmonic would amplify over the root note (i.e., an octave or a fifth or a third LOWER than the root) in the same fashion that the over-harmonic amplifies here?
> Most of what you're mistaking for Al on the electric guitar is
> actually Geddy Lee playing the bass.
You are 100% correct there (assuming you're not just making all this up out of your head. ;-) For some reason I had it in my head (the person who originally lent me the first Rush CDs I listened to told me this...) that Lifeson played bass guitar, and Geddy Lee played keyboards and sometimes "regular" (lead?) guitar. Is there even such a thing as a bass guitar? What do you mean when you say "Geddy Lee playing the bass."? I think of a bass as this sasquatch-sized violin standing on end, with some bearded, dark-glasses-wearing beatnik with a beret going "thum-thum-Thum-THUM-thum-thum-thum" on it. Obviously my mental image needs adjusting...
> For example, in the middle break, where the
> drums trade off little solos with another instrument- all of those
> little solos are all bass.
I knew that... I just thought it was Lifeson down in the low registers, not Geddy.
> All of the thing you refer to as "playing around in counterpoint" on
> the second half of the main theme is actually Geddy on the bass.
Yep. I know that now!
> Note that some of that low counterpoint is CHORDS, too,
> played by Geddy.
Haven't heard that yet, I'll be sure to listen for it.
> Now, I dare you to listen to that song again, knowing this. You will
> be in awe of what an incredible bass player Geddy really is. The man
> is a God.
Have done so. Will be even more impressed when I know exactly what a "bass" is...
> There is actually very little keyboard on YYZ. They get almost all of
> their signature sound with guitar, bass and drums. There are only two
> small synthesizer parts in that whole song.
Isn't there a third place -- where the guitar (s?) are trading solos with the percussion? I am referring to the part of the song where Peart does the "broken glass" sounds where I am pretty sure it is keyboard doing the chords, most notably at 1:58, where he is playing those short, choppy little notes. Or is this what you are referring to as the second synth part?
> Having seen them perform the song a dozen times live...
Does that mean you've been to a dozen Rush concerts? Or more... they wouldn't do YYZ in every concert, would they? I've never been to a rock concert of any type... If someone kidnapped me and dragged me to a live rock concert, I would willingly pay double the ticket price to be let out. The exception being Rush. I would actually pay money to see them in concert.
> The second synth part:
> The last part of the bridge after the main big guitar solo. This part
> is clearly keyboards. It is played by Geddy, with his hands, on a
> Minimoog synthesizer. During this time, there is a very low,
> droning "A" note. That low droning "A" note
> is played by Alex on his Taurus pedals as the last note of his guitar
> solo starts to feed back over the top (yes, another example of really
> sweet feedback, almost identical to the one at the end- listen for
> it), then he adds a little more soloing at the end as the progression
> finishes, just before they launch back into the main theme again.
I knew I really liked that part of the song, now I know why. I will listen
to that with much more attention now.
> After this point, there is no more synthesizer in the song.
Listening to the song with newly-educated ears, I must concur.
> Everything else you mentioned can be traced back to the roots of you
> mistaking Geddy's parts for Al's parts.
Correct.
> 0:00: Morse Code Intro. Neil Peart, Triangle.
> 0:31: The band launches into one of their trademark "hey, everybody,
> look how tight we are!" riffs,
They are actually *tighter* on the "Exit Stage Left" performance, which astounds me!
> Only a guitarist who's trying to learn the song would notice this, but Geddy
> plucks an extra double-strike note in a couple of places where Alex is
> only picking a single note.
I am embarrassed to admit this, but not only have I not noticed the "extra double-strike note in a couple of places" but it has never even registered on me that Alex and Geddy are mirroring each other.
> 1:10: Second half of the main theme.
Yes! to everything you point out there.
(lots of stuff skipped here... please don't assume I am unappreciative. There is so much good commentary that I am overwhelmed, and until I sit down with my CD player and your notes, I don't know what to say!
> 1:58: Alex strums again, Geddy plays intricate bass riffs behind him.
That is *not* an intricate bass riff. Somebody is pounding on a keyboard there! Either that, or Lifeson is really an octopus and playing about four guitars simultaneously.
> 2:10: Geddy solos on bass. The last two notes of this bass solo are
> interesting: They are plucked harmonic chords.
In the "Exit Stage Left" performance, the crowd goes nuts here -- is it because they have an appreciation for the difficulty of what he is doing (unlikely) or is he doing something else that really draws their attention?
> This kind of tone is the one that Alex uses in the opening to "Red
> Barchetta".
I always loved that opening -- and even more so the end, that long, long fade out of the four-note motif with all the subtle variations. I could listen to a full half-hour of that (assuming they could keep up with the subtle changes each eight notes...) with total delight. Never knew it had anything to do with "plucked harmonics" though. Never knew there was such a thing, even. Still don't entirely understand. You've got to remember, I know nothing of string instruments (I am a brass player) so I always figured that the frets were just markers where you put your finger so when you plucked the string it played the right note. Are you saying there might be more to playing a guitar than that? Naaahhhh, couldn't be.
> 2:21: Alex launches into his big guitar solo. This solo is played in a
> very odd and "non-rock" scale. It's the scale of "E Harmonic Minor".
> The result is a solo that sounds very East-Indian in nature.
What an excellent description. I'd never tried to identify the "ethnicity" of that part of the song like that before, just noted that it was different from the remainder of the piece. But I have to tell you... my music theory classes never talked about E Harmonic Minor. Wild stuff.
> During the solo, there is a really cool "WHACK" sound at the end of
> every other measure. This is a studio trick and is not reproduced
> accurately when they play the song live.
Actually, it's not too badly done in "Exit Stage Left" -- sounds like he's hitting a tambourine. Doesn't have the long "shattered glass" falloff of the studio version but it's still attention getting.
> From what I've gleaned from
> reading interviews, I'm pretty sure it's a combination of sounds mixed
> together, one of which is a recording of Neil smacking a piece of
> plywood onto the top of a wooden stool (hence the "plywood" credit in
> the liner notes). It also appears to be combined with a glass-break
> sample (right down to the tinkles of the bits of glass falling
> afterwards- listen closely for them) as well as gobs of reverb, and
> perhaps a whip crack, too.
That breaking glass sound was one of the first things that really grabbed my attention in YYZ. To me it sounds like a hard rim-shot (that's the plywood, maybe?), simultaneously with a tambourine hit and tinkling glass.
> 2:47: Everyone stops as Alex performs a downward-spiraling riff to end
> the solo. This is all "hammers" and "pulls", a technique where you do
> not pluck or pick the notes- you simply fret the notes so firmly with
> the left hand that they ring out without the need for plucking with
> the right hand. It gives a very smooth, legato feel, and works best on
> a loud electric guitar with lots of amplification.
I had *no* idea that you could make noise with a guitar by doing anything other than plucking the strings. I've always thought that riff was show-offy and needlessly flashy -- and I've always*loved* every single note of it! Even when I thought it was Geddy on keyboard doing it.
> Oh, wait! Sorry. You've never seen them live. You don't know what I'm
> talking about.
Right, rub it in, you hoser!
> Your eardrums nearly burst from the sound pressure, your belly
> vibrates, your pant legs flap, you feel the note resonate up from the
> floor, through soles of your shoes, and up to the top of your head.
> Oh, and you see God.
Just like when I play it in my car. ;-)
> 2:54: The "A" note that Alex was sustaining on the guitar starts to
> feed back. It makes that same octave transition into feedback that you
> noticed at the end of the song, although faster and less controlled.
> It fades out pretty quick.
I have never noticed that one. And that surprises me -- I usually catch stuff like that. I will be listening.
> 4:03: Al's variation on the main melody is to "pinch" the notes here.
> It makes the notes squeal a little bit.
I think it's more than just squealing -- doesn't the melody line jump up an octave (or two?) there?
> 4:14: Al's note shifts smoothly into feedback, one octave above the
> original note.
OK, I believe you now!
> 4:16: Closing riffs and the end of the song. It is
> here that you notice the fact that Al's high melody was recorded on a
> different track than the final closing notes, because the feedback
> continues to sustain for a split second over the first note of the
> closing riffs.
Well, maybe *you* notice it... I haven't picked up on that one (yet).
> Consequently, when a note on an amplified guitar starts to feed back,
> it usually tends to be at the 12th fret harmonic, one octave above the
> root tone. Now, feedback is achieved in a different way than a plucked
> harmonic, but the principle is the same. In order to feed back, the
> instrument needs to transmit the vibrating air back into the string so
> that the circle of energy can be completed. Because this involves
> physical distance (and the limitations of the speed of sound), the
> vibrating air is hitting the instrument at an offset of the string's
> original vibration. This offset tends to "mute" the other harmonic
> tones while accentuating the dominant one where the wave of the air
> and the wave of the string match. Hence, the feedback producing a pure
> tone one octave above the root note.
Aaahhh... Here is the answer to the question I asked at the top of this letter. I even understand it. Sort of.
> There is also the fact that some effects (such as a chorus)...sound less
> electric and more electronic.
Chorus? Elaborate, please....
> Being a guitarist, I can hear the tones that the guitar is making, and
> I can tell that for most of the song, it's riding that hairy edge just
> beneath the level where the guitar will start feeding back.
Even being a not-guitarist, I have been able to sense this -- sort of a raw, edgy feel to the sound.
> Some real magic happened in the studio when they recorded that album- it's
> so transcendent that it even crosses genre boundaries. You're a testament
> to that.
You nailed it -- it is the studio work, and the virtuosity of the performers, not the music itself that entrances me. I have rarely, if ever, heard music where such obvious attention was paid to the smallest details, where *somebody* knew exactly what they were trying to accomplish and wouldn't stop until they got it.
> Jeez, it's 11:00 already. I've spent three hours composing this
> message. I guess I must be a real Rush fan. :-)
Don't try eliciting any sympathy from me! Many's the time I've seen you on the empeg bbs well after midnight *my* time, which means one or two in the morning in California.
> I'll be gone this weekend, but if you want to talk further on the
> subject, get back to me before Noon on Friday. I'm dying to hear what
> you have to say about all this.
Hang onto this little essay you wrote. It is really good work. I have already saved it in my word processor, and unless you object I plan on forwarding it to a few people I know.
I thank you much more than you probably suspect for this -- you have definitely enhanced my enjoyment of what was already the second-favorite piece of music I own. (First place goes to Mozart Piano Concerto #21 in C-Major, Vilmos Fischer soloist. I may have mentioned that before. When I get going in the MP-3 business, I will send you a copy of that, and an email elucidating its delights comparable in scope to what you did with this one about YYZ.)
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>And God, did I ever get it. Took 8 pages to print it out.
>Seriously, this was probably the best e-mail I have ever received.
(*Blush*)
>Would there ever be a case where a sub-harmonic would amplify
>over the root note (i.e., an octave or a fifth or a third LOWER
>than the root) in the same fashion that the over-harmonic
>amplifies here?
Although you may have gleaned this answer later, the reason is that there aren't any lower sub-harmonics. All of the sub-frequencies are higher than the root note. The root note isn't even a frequency by itself- it's simply a complex sum of all the other subharmonics. When all the subharmonics get piled together, the result is the lower note.
>and Geddy Lee played keyboards and sometimes "regular" (lead?) guitar.
Geddy plays very little keyboards on the early albums, and has played more and more of them as their career progressed. Same with Al. He started off playing no keyboards at all, then they added the Taurus pedals, and now he actually has one keyboard off to the side of his onstage spot that he steps over to once in a while. The reason is that their arrangements have been getting increasingly complex, and in recent years they need to trigger samples and sequences from the keyboards sometimes.
>Is there even such a thing as a bass guitar?
Yes. It's the same thing. I avoided that term because I thought it might confuse you.
>What do you mean when you say "Geddy Lee playing the bass."?
>I think of a bass as this sasquatch-sized violin standing on end,
>with some bearded, dark-glasses-wearing beatnik with a beret going
>"thum-thum-Thum-THUM-thum-thum-thum" on it. Obviously my mental
>image needs adjusting...
Okay, when I say "Bass" it is short for "Electric Bass Guitar". It is simply an electric version of the beatnik instrument you just described, with a few differences: 1) It usually has frets like a guitar (although there are fretless ones too), 2) It's worn around the neck like a guitar (although there are standup ones too), 3) It has a solid body like an electric guitar instead of a large hollow body.
I don't know if the MP remaster CD has the same photos that mine does, but it shows Geddy holding a Fender bass while standing next to an Oberheim synthesizer.
Although there are similarities between an electric guitar and an electric bass, the two instruments have very different sounds and are played completely differently. An electric bass player has more in common with that beatnik than he does a guitar player. That's why Geddy's technique is so amazing. He can do things that make other bass players pee their pants.
>Isn't there a third place -- where the guitar (s?) are trading solos with
>the percussion? I am referring to the part of the song where Peart does the
>"broken glass" sounds where I am pretty sure it is keyboard doing the
>chords, most notably at 1:58, where he is playing those short, choppy little
>notes. Or is this what you are referring to as the second synth part?
The only synths are in the intro and in the obviously "synth" part starting at 2:51. There are no keyboards happening at 1:58. It's all guitar, bass and drums. These guys are very good at squeezing many different sounds out of their instruments. You'd be surprised how simple things like picking technique or choosing different chord inversions can drastically change the sound of an instrument.
>Does that mean you've been to a dozen Rush concerts? Or
>more... they wouldn't do YYZ in every concert, would they?
Actually, YYZ is one of their most popular songs, and they have performed it at every concert since Moving Pictures was released. They know we'd never forgive them if they dropped it from their live set.
When I say I've seen them perform it a dozen times, I'm counting both the times when I saw them live, and the times I've watched them do it on a concert videotape.
How many Rush concerts have I actually been to? Let me count... Hmm, I think it's been seven times. So I'm exaggerating. I've actually only seen ten different performances of YYZ. Seven in person and three on videotape. :-)
>I've never been to a rock concert of any type... If someone
>kidnapped me and dragged me to a live rock concert, I would
>willingly pay double the ticket price to be let out.
So would I... for most concerts. But there are some (not just Rush) that I wouldn't miss for the world. Peter Gabriel is a concert that just must NOT be missed. If you ever get a chance, that's the best concert for the money, hands down.
>I am embarrassed to admit this, but not only have I not
>noticed the "extra double-strike note in a couple of places"
>but it has never even registered on me that Alex and Geddy are
>mirroring each other.
That's a testament to how tight they are. But if you listen to the recording with your new ears, you can CLEARLY hear the bass and the guitar as two separate distinct instruments. It's crystal clear once you know what to listen for. Again, another example of how incredibly well-produced the album is.
Part of the reason the piece is so amazing is because of this doubling that they do. Most musicians would consider it boring to just have the guitar and bass doing the same lines for so long. But when they break apart on the chorus, it makes it all that much more amazing. The contrast between the rigid synchronization section and the freeform counterpoint section is so striking...
>That is *not* an intricate bass riff. Somebody is pounding on a keyboard
>there! Either that, or Lifeson is really an octopus and playing about four
>guitars simultaneously.
No, I just checked it. At 1:58, Lifeson is simply strumming those sharp, fast, reggae-style chords (chucka chucka CHA chucka chucka chucka CHA), while Geddy does his thing (bwa da dum da de da dum dum).
Now, it's possible that my CD/MP3 isn't time-indexed exactly the same as your remastered CD is. Just before 1:58 is a short bass solo that is rather amazing sounding. Perhaps that's what you're talking about? Still, even then, that's just Ged on the bass. Like I said, the man is a God.
>In the "Exit Stage Left" performance, the crowd goes nuts here --
>is it because they have an appreciation for the difficulty
>of what he is doing (unlikely)
No, that's exactly what's happening. Us Rush fans eat this stuff up. The crowd really does appreciate what's going on and they are literally cheering his solo.
>or is he doing something else that really draws their attention?
Trust me, he's got his hands full just playing the notes. There's nothing else he could be doing.
>(Re: Plucked harmonics)
>Never knew there was such a thing, even. Still don't entirely
>understand.
Have a guitarist demonstrate plucked harmonics for you sometime. Actually, you can even take a ringing note, and gently touch the string at one of the "nodes" and it will turn from a regular note into a harmonic. That's something that Alex does once in a while, too.
>I always figured that the frets were just markers where you put
>your finger so when you plucked the string it played the right note.
Frets are more than markers. They are physically raised from the surface of the neck so that you press down the string BEHIND the fret (not on it), and the fret becomes the new "end" of the string. When a guitarist frets a note, he is changing the pitch of the string by literally shortening the string.
>But I have to tell you... my music theory
>classes never talked about E Harmonic Minor.
The "E" part of "E Harmonic Minor" is just the key it's in-- which note the scale starts at. You can start any scale at any note. For instance, if the chords to the bridge were C and C-sharp instead of B and C, then the scale would have been "F Harmonic Minor" instead.
If you have played brass, then you know about how scales work. Most scales are just the major scale started at a different point. It's always the same pattern: Two whole steps, one half step, three whole steps, one half step. You can see this pattern on a piano keyboard as the intervals between the black and white keys.
What makes the Harmonic Minor scale sound odd is that its pattern of whole and half steps is quirky and doesn't follow the usual pattern. It has a step-and-a-half jump in one place, and three half-steps in another. It's quite fun to play.
>Actually, it's not too badly done in "Exit Stage Left" -- sounds
>like he's hitting a tambourine.
Actually I think it's a chinese cymbal, but I could be wrong.
>I had *no* idea that you could make noise with a guitar by doing
>anything other than plucking the strings.
Yeah, hammers are really fun. I like to stick my right hand up over my head when I play that riff. :-) Get a guitarist to demonstrate hammers for you sometime.
There is an instrument called a Chapman Stick that is designed around being played with ALL hammers. It's all fretboard. You use both hands to play it and hammer with both. You can accompany yourself on that instrument. It's really cool. Tony Levin from Peter Gabriel's band is a Stick player.
(Not to be confused with Steinberger guitars and basses, which are plain old guitars and basses but without a headstock and body...)
>> 4:03: Al's variation on the main melody is to "pinch" the notes here.
>> It makes the notes squeal a little bit.
>I think it's more than just squealing -- doesn't the melody line
>jump up an octave (or two?) there?
Nope. He frets the same notes. The "pinch" technique causes a similar thing to happen as with feedback and harmonics, making the dominant harmonic ring out. It sounds like the melody jumps up an octave, but the left hand is fingering the same notes.
>> There is also the fact that some effects (such as a chorus)...
>>sound less electric and more electronic.
>Chorus? Elaborate, please....
Chorus is one of many different kinds of electronic effects you can insert into a guitar's signal to alter its sound. Guitarists usually have a "pedalboard" containing lots of little boxes daisy-chained together, each one containing a different effect. Stepping on a switch on each of these boxes will activate or deactivate the effect.
Modern equipment usually involves multi-effects units: Rackmount units that sit at the back of the stage with the amplifiers and take the place of dozens of these little boxes. Those are controlled remotely from a high-tech pedalboard sitting on stage in front of the guitarist.
This is how Alex (and many other guitarists) can make their instrument change character in the middle of a song so easily.
The "Chorus" is a delay-based effect. In essence, it simply echoes the original sound back. But it does it very quickly, on the order of just a few milliseconds. This gives the guitar a sort of lush, swirling sound that makes it sound like the guitar has more strings than it really does. It's the most commonly-used guitar effect, and can be heard on almost every electric guitar these days.
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That's about all I need to post from this exchange, I think. That about covers it.
