Same Music, Different Melody
Lesson time: (2min 31sec)
The Middle 8 is a chance to change things up and Feel features a slide guitar solo that became part of Guy and Robbie's sound world.
Course preview
This lesson is part of the course Song Studies: The Songwriting Secrets of Guy Chambers
Watch a preview of the full course below.
Lesson transcript:
Understanding the Middle Eight in "Feel"
The middle eight of "Feel" is an instrumental section. Just like "Angels," actually.
The Slide Guitar Solo
Funny enough, we used the same guitar solo trick that we did in "Angels," which is a slide guitar solo. I think there was definitely , probably a bit of a,
"Owning your own cliches."
We thought, "That's our cliche." Not that we invented the slide guitar solo , we didn't. You know, that goes back to The Beatles. But for that era, I think we kind of reintroduced it. It was part of our sound, and we thought, "Let's use it again."
Musical Structure
The middle eight is pretty conservative musically. It comes out of the chorus and then plays the riff again. The only difference is that the bass does move with it this time. By this point in the song,
"For the bass not to move would make it too static."
If the bass was just doing the same thing, it wouldn't provide enough progression.
Purpose of the Middle Eight
To me, the middle eight should take you on a journey away from the chorus and the verse.
- Journey Away: It takes you far enough away that when you return to the final chorus, it sounds different.
- Contrast: You've already heard this chorus twice by this point, so you want the final chorus to feel distinct.
The only way to achieve that is to take the listener on a journey.
Final Thoughts
In this particular middle eight, it's a guitar solo that accomplishes this with a different melody that you haven't heard anywhere else in the song.
- New Melody: It's the same music but feels different because it's a solo.
- Lyrical Relief: When you get the chorus again, there's a sense of relief:
"Oh, I know this bit."
But it feels different because I've been taken away from it.
That's the function of the middle eight for me.
About the instructor
Guy Chambers is one of the UK's most successful living songwriters. He is the writer behind songs we know from the radio, from the movies, and from the dance floor. Songs we know from our parties and our weddings. Songs that half the world can sing along to note for note. Songs that take us back in time to where we used to be. Songs that carry us forward beyond the everyday to where we wish we were; 'Angels'; 'Let Me Entertain You'; 'Strong'; 'No Regrets'; 'Millennium'; 'Rock DJ'; 'Feel' - to name but a few. "Guy was the first person in the business who ever took me seriously" says long-standing writing partner Robbie Williams. "The first person who could see the artist that I knew I could become". The list of other collaborators reads like pop music royalty. Over the years Guy has written and produced for Diana Ross, Tom Jones, Tina Turner (whose scorching take on 'Feel' really has to be heard to be believed), Kylie Minogue, James Blunt, Scissor Sisters, Rufus Wainwright and Mark Ronson, among many others. He is consistently pushing himself, seeking new, creative endeavours, one of which was creating a children's folk opera based on the Oscar Wilde short story 'The Selfish Giant' - which he dedicated to his late mother, Pat. The show premiered at The Vaudeville Theatre in London's West End in 2018. In 2019 Guy released his debut solo piano album, 'Go Gentle Into the Light' - a collection of some of the best-loved songs that he and Robbie Williams have written together, with the single 'The Road To Mandalay' reaching over 6 million streams. He produced the BBC Children in Need official album 'Got it Covered', featuring stars such as Olivia Colman, Jodie Whittaker and Helena Bonham Carter, which reached Number 1 in the UK Charts. Guy and Robbie Williams teamed up with Chris Heath to compose the music and lyrics for the RSC musical adaptation of David Walliams' best-selling book 'The Boy in the Dress', which opened to five-star reviews (The Independent, What's On Stage) at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-Upon-Avon. Guy has produced Robbie Williams' most recent UK Number 1 album 'The Christmas Present' and co-wrote the single 'Time for Change'. He lives with his wife Emma and their four children in Camden and in Sussex, where he enjoys "good wine, good food, cinema and pretty much everything French". "And writing songs, of course". read more