"Thoughts & Words"
Posted: Tue Nov 06, 2007 8:27 am
One of my favourites off of YTY. We all know that Chris is the star of this album, and this song is NO EXCEPTION. 
This song ALWAYS get's left off EVERY Byrds package!! Even the new box set, which is the best yet, is missing two key cuts:
John Riley & Thoughts & Words.
Always having a soft spot for "Call & Response" tunes, like "Help!", etc, it's lovely what Crosby does here in the final verse, and the resolve he reaches with Chris at the end of the phrase is gorgeous.
After close listening this evening on the left channel, I'm noticing that Roger's playing is a bit "Random & Spattering"; NOT a bad thing. He's kind of wanting to "Eight Miles High" the song a little bit.
Sounds damn cool, and I came up with a slight modification to that, to make it a little more "Straight ahead rock/folk/rock" if you will.
Ok; PUT A CAPO ON THE SECOND FRET.
Now; try these blends, and play it in a double time roll (Very much like the solo in "Turn!") on the D, G, B, & E strings.
The tab I'm indicating here is ACTUAL, and NOT "Using" the capo as a "New" nut position.
OK-Here we go:
X09700 X07700 X06700 X04650
At the beginning of each line, swipe that open A string (Which is now a B) and let it ring for the whole descending part. This really fills up the song.
You'll really "Feel" the whole suspended 4th thing when you play the last of those four chords listed above, and it just gives it that "YTY" thing.
OK- The bridge: "I thought I was on top of it all, everyone else was so small".
Basic of course; simply C7 to B7. Two strikes on each chord. There IS
a subtle difference though that I just noticed tonight. The second C7 swipe, the 7th is dominant. On BOTH B7 swipes the 7th is dominant.
So it looks like this:
91191099 91110129 7978107 7978107
Actually, it's somewhat random, and a couple times the chords are identical, a couple times not. Probably just a mistake!!
Then the end of that phrase: "I knew what she wanted to do"
F#m (Now open Em w/the capo). An important part is to pull your fingers of of the em to just open between the "I knew what she wanted to dos"
In fact, you can hear Crosby dropping the low E down to open E as well. David does some cool kind of "Latin like" two note runs during the verse, not at all unlike Lennon's work in "The ballad of John & Yoko". You can really hear it on the right side.
Also, remember, this is "Younger than yesterday":
BACK DOWN ON THAT JANGLE!!
What I always do for playing anything off this album, is put the toggle in the middle position, and use the classic Rick "5th knob" to bring in some creamy bass.
This is par for the course for capturing YTY.
The descending line in a minor key is not an original thing at all; in fact here's a list of songs that are all pretty much the same thing:
"While my guitar gently weeps"-Beatles
"Suite Madame Blue"-STYX
"Babe, I'm gonna leave you"-Zeppelin/Joan Baez
"25 or 6 to 4"-Chicago
"Comin' in to Los Angeles"-Arlo Guthrie
All these are essentialy the same song, and it's a wonderful pattern that always makes for a good tune.
Chris Hillman's tune is NO exception.
And of course, there's alot of backward guitar goofing around not only on this song, but throughout the album. Mind Gardens is PERMEATED with it!
Enjoy!
Christian
"The Walrus was Crosby"
"The Boxart Den"-World's largest display & collection of FULLY RESTORED rare & collectable model kit box art
http://theboxartden.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Box-Art
http://www.myspace.com/craviola990
http://www.youtube.com/craviola990
This song ALWAYS get's left off EVERY Byrds package!! Even the new box set, which is the best yet, is missing two key cuts:
John Riley & Thoughts & Words.
Always having a soft spot for "Call & Response" tunes, like "Help!", etc, it's lovely what Crosby does here in the final verse, and the resolve he reaches with Chris at the end of the phrase is gorgeous.
After close listening this evening on the left channel, I'm noticing that Roger's playing is a bit "Random & Spattering"; NOT a bad thing. He's kind of wanting to "Eight Miles High" the song a little bit.
Sounds damn cool, and I came up with a slight modification to that, to make it a little more "Straight ahead rock/folk/rock" if you will.
Ok; PUT A CAPO ON THE SECOND FRET.
Now; try these blends, and play it in a double time roll (Very much like the solo in "Turn!") on the D, G, B, & E strings.
The tab I'm indicating here is ACTUAL, and NOT "Using" the capo as a "New" nut position.
OK-Here we go:
X09700 X07700 X06700 X04650
At the beginning of each line, swipe that open A string (Which is now a B) and let it ring for the whole descending part. This really fills up the song.
You'll really "Feel" the whole suspended 4th thing when you play the last of those four chords listed above, and it just gives it that "YTY" thing.
OK- The bridge: "I thought I was on top of it all, everyone else was so small".
Basic of course; simply C7 to B7. Two strikes on each chord. There IS
a subtle difference though that I just noticed tonight. The second C7 swipe, the 7th is dominant. On BOTH B7 swipes the 7th is dominant.
So it looks like this:
91191099 91110129 7978107 7978107
Actually, it's somewhat random, and a couple times the chords are identical, a couple times not. Probably just a mistake!!
Then the end of that phrase: "I knew what she wanted to do"
F#m (Now open Em w/the capo). An important part is to pull your fingers of of the em to just open between the "I knew what she wanted to dos"
In fact, you can hear Crosby dropping the low E down to open E as well. David does some cool kind of "Latin like" two note runs during the verse, not at all unlike Lennon's work in "The ballad of John & Yoko". You can really hear it on the right side.
Also, remember, this is "Younger than yesterday":
BACK DOWN ON THAT JANGLE!!
What I always do for playing anything off this album, is put the toggle in the middle position, and use the classic Rick "5th knob" to bring in some creamy bass.
This is par for the course for capturing YTY.
The descending line in a minor key is not an original thing at all; in fact here's a list of songs that are all pretty much the same thing:
"While my guitar gently weeps"-Beatles
"Suite Madame Blue"-STYX
"Babe, I'm gonna leave you"-Zeppelin/Joan Baez
"25 or 6 to 4"-Chicago
"Comin' in to Los Angeles"-Arlo Guthrie
All these are essentialy the same song, and it's a wonderful pattern that always makes for a good tune.
Chris Hillman's tune is NO exception.
And of course, there's alot of backward guitar goofing around not only on this song, but throughout the album. Mind Gardens is PERMEATED with it!
Enjoy!
Christian
"The Walrus was Crosby"
"The Boxart Den"-World's largest display & collection of FULLY RESTORED rare & collectable model kit box art
http://theboxartden.com
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Box-Art
http://www.myspace.com/craviola990
http://www.youtube.com/craviola990