Big Barn Bed – So Much More Than Three Chords
On first hearing Big Barn Bed (from Red Rose Speedway, 1973), you could be forgiven for thinking that this is quite a simple song. After all, isn’t the entire piece based on the three chords of Eb major, F major and Bb Major?
As I explained in Volume Two, McCartney must have thought that there was something special about the track, as he used the song as both opening track on Red Rose Speedway and on the James Paul McCartney TV Special.
In truth, there is musical interest throughout the track. It “grabs the ear” due to the tension inherent in the flattened “blues third” of Ab and the more “Westernised” A natural of the major scale.
The vocals begin with a very bluesy “who’s that coming round” (with the Ab on the second syllable of “coming”) on the chord of Eb major – the chord on the flattened leading note in F-Mixolydian. The slightly “edgy” Ab is shortly resolved onto A natural on the descending vocal on “corner” and the tonic chord of F major.
The tension between Ab and A natural is given even greater focus in the song’s chorus, where the phrase “sleeping in big barn – bed” begins on repeated notes of Ab before moving to A natural on the word “bed”. This is why the word “bed” really jumps out at the listener.
There is obviously much more to the track than this move between Ab and A natural, but it is my contention that this melodic move is the primary “hook” throughout the song.
Other points of musical interest in the track include:
- The recurring use of sus4 and ninth suspensions and their resolution over the tonic chord of F major
- Backing vocals: A melismatic part sung by Denny Laine on the later repeats of the chorus and a descending harmony sung by Linda McCartney in the second part of the bridge. Linda McCartney also provides effective descant harmony in each return of the chorus.
- Instrumental details that are easily overlooked, such as Seilwell’s varied drum fills and McCartney’s bass guitar work that explores the upper reaches of the fretboard
- A final dramatic and resonant “wo-man” that moves from Ab4 to F4. The final chord is in bare fifths, leaving the song’s minor third/major third dichotomy starkly unresolved
Please let me know what you think about this track in the comments.
Read more about this track and others here (click below):
Comment He must have had Hey Jude on the brain during the chorus heading toward the end with the F Eb Bb F repeating chords