She Said She Said
By Jim
08/10/2006
Wow. This was a tough song to do. It seemed so easy to play on the piano, but there's a whole lot going on under the hood.
First issue: Ringo's drumming. It's just too complicated to deconstruct in a short amount of time, which is all I want to spend on a single track for a single song, particularly on a drum track that I'll never play again. I used a basic drum beat loop, then added individual hits in places that would give it a hint of Ringo's style. For example, I added a drum fill and then added a cymbal hit on each beat when I sing "making me feel like I've never been born". It's not The Beatles, but if you don't listen too closely, it's OK.
"No, no, no, you're wrong, when I was a boy... Everything was right" - this part goes from a 4/4 beat to a 3/4 beat for a single measure and then back to a 4/4 beat. I know I could do that in Cakewalk's software, but I never have. One choice was to make the change to the basic drum beat by hand; the rest of the instruments would then be played as usual. I first realized this was an issue because I played the piano part as I always do, matching the recording, only to hear the drum beat move out of time - it was a single beat off. Bill confirmed that the 4/4 to 3/4 to 4/4 switch was happening. Another possible solution was to delve into Cakewalk and figure out how to let the software manipulate the drum beat. My solution is the lazy way, but it works. I simply added an extra beat to the next measure without lyrics. So the music calls for: Bb (4 beats) Ab (3 beats) Bb (4 beats) Fm7 (4 beats) Bb (4 beats), but I played Bb (4 beats) Ab (4 beats) Bb (3 beats) Fm7 (4 beats) Bb (5 beats) - I think. It's not The Beatles, but if you don't listen too closely, it's OK.
The lead guitar plays a prominent role in this song. I remembered the opening, but I was surprised to hear how much of it is spread throughout the song. Electric guitar is a tough sound to produce on a keyboard. I added splashes of sound in the appropriate places, and it's not too bad.
When I started this song, I thought the harmonies would be the stumbling block. Shows you how little I know.
Voices: Piano, Guitar, Bass, Drums.
Click here to listen: