McCartney’s Static Melodies
What do we think of when we imagine a great melody? A vocal phrase that gently rises and then perhaps soars, before falling again?
One of the most famous songs of the twentieth century certainly seems to embody that ideal:
It might come as a surprise that some Beatles songs involve a very static approach to pitch. Rather than rising and soaring, they seem to be fixed on one pitch.
John Lennon’s vocal on Julia (1968) is steadfastly fixed on A3 for seventeen notes, and finally moves down via a melisma on “Julia” at 0:14.
Hints of Static Melody on Abbey Road
Its is perhaps noteworthy that a couple of McCartney’s songs on Abbey Road (1969) begin with a static-pitched vocal, but in both cases, it doesn’t take long for the melody line to soar.
Golden Slumbers begins with repeated G3s. At 0:15, the vocal is sequentially moved up a major third to B3, and at 0:22, McCartney soars up to A4 on the word “sleep”, near the top of the standard tenor range.
You Never Give Me Your Money begins with repeated E4s, but they soon fall to D4 via an appoggiatura above the harmony of D minor.
Another Day
Another Day was released in February 1971, but had been written during the sessions for Let It Be in January 1969.
McCartney uses a static vocal to great effect. Although the melody eventually rises and falls, the static melody here communicates the relentless humdrum of office life – seventeen repeated notes of B3.
Did We Meet Somewhere Before?
Fast-forward to the summer of 1978. Did We Meet Somewhere Before is an unreleased track that was rejected for the movie Heaven Can Wait.
It features a vocal melody that is very static for a large part of the refrain-verse. However, we don’t hear this melody as static or unvaried because the harmony is remarkably rich, passing through major seventh, diminished and even minor major-seventh chords.
As the track develops, the melody begins to move in leaps rather than remaining static. It is this element of variety between sections that is an essential ingredient in nearly all of McCartney’s finest songs.
London Town
The title song from Wings’ 1978 album was ironically recorded aboard a yacht moored in the Caribbean Virgin Islands. The vocal melody for London Town is remarkably static throughout almost the entire song.
But we don’t notice that it’s static because all of our attention is again focussed on the rich chord progressions. More importantly, though, our ear latches onto the stunning three-part harmonies delivered by Paul, Linda and Denny Laine.
The first sixteen notes of London Town are pitched on B3, and following fourteen are on C#4. But the effect is the very antithesis of monotony.
Conclusion
Static melody lines, or melody lines involving elements of stasis, are more common than might be assumed and are notable in a number of songs of The Beatles.
McCartney has tended to employ static melody lines after 1970 where the attention is focussed instead on harmonic movement. This technique can be seen to greatest effect in the song London Town.
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