Kelly Clarkson

Kelly Clarkson - Since U Been Gone (yousendit. expires 3/6/05)

Yep, I'll admit it. This song is awesome. I can't stop listening to it. Let's break it down.

Now, I doubt Kelly Clarkson wrote or arranged the song, so the credit goes to to those people. Anyone with a decent singing voice could have sung this song, but Miss Clarkson does a fine job with her 318 vocal overdubs in the chorus. The lyrics are so-so, but it's a pop song, so we'll give it the benefit of the doubt.

A nice, simple guitar opening, with the electronic drums leading way for the vocals. The stripped down approach works well as the quiet part to the chorus' loud part. Although we haven't heard the loud chorus yet, we know it will be, since well, this is a fucking pop song and that melody in the chorus will be punded over our heads and stuck there for days.

The guitar notes alternate between an G and an E. The note B is constant throughout the chords. When the E moves to an F at the end of the phrase, it creates dissonance with the B note, which, when put in conjunction with the lyrics, is a musical signal that while there is momentary disharmony in the relationship, it too will be resolved, just like the chord will resolve itself when the F moves to the G.

In the middle of the first verse, the keyboard drops on on the quarter note pulse to mark the build up to the chorus. Very shortly, the "Since You Been Gone" vocal overdubs kick in over the rhythm section pause.

The mark and beauty of a good melody is the "less is more" mantra. Here, the main melody consists of basically 2 notes and one basic rhythm. These two notes are then expanded as necessary, including the lush harmonies. The chords underneath essentially are structured so that their movement echoes the movement of the two notes in the melody. Thus neither the chords nor the melody are competing with each other and work in a mutually happy relationship.

The second verse adds another layer of keyboard as well as other electronic blips to give it more texture. Based in the strength of the verse melody in the beginning, the listener, while still paying attention to the melody can also listen to what else is going on the background.

The second chorus is the same as the first. This is kind of like brand recognition. The listener is introduced to the melody in the first chorus, and so when the second chorus comes along, they should at the last be able to hum along to the two note root of the chorus.

The middle section is meant to break down the the earlier parts of the song. Here, the melody stays in the same range as the earlier vocals. The drums keep the same steady pace. This keeps the energy level high. If the drums were to drop off at the beginning of the mid section, it might signal an extended middle section, as it would take longer for the song to build up the energy to come into the chorus again. Lyrically this section ties together what is said in the verses and chorus and puts drives the point home.

As the vocals end, the guitar immediately takes the lead and plays the chorus riff, while the other instruments come back and help reinforce the riff. This quick transfer from the vocals to the guitar signals to the listener that the chorus is coming up next.

After two choruses, the listener should now be able to sing the words and the melody to the chorus of the song. So now that the final chorus comes in, there are additional vocal parts added before and after the main melodies. The reason this was added at the end is because the listener is used to the melody and again they can listen to what else is happening in the background of the song while still keeping the focus on the main melody.

The outro, or coda, brings back the original electronic looped drum part, so the song is able to come full circle. This section is generally quieter to give the listener a break after the loud chorus. The title of the song and opening of the chorus "Sing You Been Gone" are repeated (branding the song, yet again), so that the listener remembers (in case they forgot) the song.

Overall, the song should appeal to a very wide variety of people. The heavy vocals should appeal to anyone who likes pop music. The electronic drum beat, while it is a rock beat, is dancable, so that generally appeals to someone to something with a heavy drum beat - dance music, hip hop, etc. The chorus contains distorted guitars so that appeals to those who like anything rock related.

This is a near perfect pop song.