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Time Signature Madness

Writer's picture: Phil HepworthPhil Hepworth

A few months ago I asked my friends on the wonderful world of Facebook for their favourite or most interesting songs with alternative time signatures or something interesting about their rhythms/feel. Here is the list we came up with.

When I say alternative time signatures, I mean ones that aren't just in 4/4 3/4 or 6/8, although some of these may well be with something else quirky about them.

I'm not gonna put links to videos - lazy.

5/4

Take Five - Dave Brubeck

Seven Days - Sting

Mission Impossible - Lalo Schifrin

Everything in it's Right Place - Radiohead - or 10/4

From Eden - Hozier

7/4

Solsbury Hill - Peter Gabriel

Times Like These - The Foo Fighters - in 4 and 7 later on

7/8

March of the Pigs - Nine Inch Nails - 7/8 for three bars 8/8 for one

Money - Pink Floyd - other than the guitar solo in 4

Them Bones - Alice in Chains

The Sounds of Muzak - Porcupine Tree (count it as 3+3+3+3+2 to make 14, it's easier)

9/8

Blue Rondo à la Turk - Dave Brubeck

I Hung My Head - Sting

Umm...

Postman Pat Theme -Bryan Daly - 3/4 bar within 4/4

Kashmir - Led Zeppelin - 4/4 (drums) vs 34 (everything else) + random bar of 9/8

Black Dog - Drums in 44 guitar and bass in 5/4 - 5 over 4

Golden Brown - The Stranglers - 13/8 - or three bars of 3/4 then one of 4

Heart of Glass Blondie - carefully placed bars of 3/4 within 4/4

Hey Ya - Outkast - sneaky bar of 2/4

Paranoid Android - Radiohead - 4/4 7/8 8/8

Commemorative T-shirt - Oceansize - 9/8 and 11/8

Why Do You Hate Me - Marmozets - 9/8 4/4 3/4 11/8 2/4 - in different orders within the first 15 seconds of the song. Ouch.

The Riverboat Song - Ocean Colour Scene - 6/4

Tubular Bells - Mike Oldfield - 9/8 7/8

Turn it on Again - Genesis - 6/4 and 7/4 (13/4) for some parts. 4/4 5/4 (9/4) in others.

2+2=5 - 7/4 8/4 4/4

The Pyramid Song - Radiohead - See below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IlFWJWk--F8

Random others that are interesting:

Six Ate - Camel

45 - Bearskin

Subdivisions - Rush

It's Indian Tobacco My Friend - Cornershop

To the End - Blur

Dave's Gone skiing - Toto

All Radiohead time signatures in almost mundane detail:

Here's a Spotify link to them all: (there are probably a few missing)

This post is more detailed than mine:

Enjoy.

Visit my old site to view my old blog pages and updates before I take it down :



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