The stock confetti explosion every time the key changes is absolute peak editing. I hope you don't feel like it was overused because it was the correct intersection of useful, whimsical, and humorously low-effort.
For me, songs that typically feature key changes immediately became an instant favorite for me, i don't really know why but i just love when a song completely changes its key
As if David wasn't already a master of making enjoyable videos out of something relatively dry like music theory, this really put a big load of icing on the cake.
I love this key change. It's effectively the final climax of the song and super fun to sing along to. It also allows the vocalist to have a bit of fun before the end of the song.
At gigs I always use a gearshift mime to indicate a key change. We used to joke about it, but it turns out there's a genuine reason. Run out of gears with Mack the Knife though.
How else would the audience know when to clap? (I have never seen it, but I assume that the audience applauds every high note, long note, and key change)
@@spyderlogan4992 It was also OK when Rush did it in Time Stand Still. BTW, look up the US Army Concert Band's tribute cover they did when Neil Peart died.
The Thong Song is one of those songs that did NOT have to go as hard as it did - the fact that he even pulls in a string section really sells his devotion to the thong, haha.
That's because the instrumental melody immediately before it goes E - F# and would naturally continue to G#. The Ab is the same note but now in a different harmonic context.
Not gonna lie, you awoke my PTSD when you brought up "I Just Called To Say I Love You" (I was told to learn that for a vocal course, and I did *not* like all the key changes, haha).
You read my mind. I was about to go look up Livin' on a Prayer as the end of the video was approaching, but sure enough, you covered it as your final and most well-known example. Because of course it is! Everyone who's ever sang karaoke knows this one.
Something interesting is when video game music does this - not because of the video game context directly, but because VGM often loops, or goes back to the start of the piece once it's played through - and when you've got a looping track, what goes up must come down. The Xenoblade video game series has a couple of battle themes with a truck driver, and they achieve this in different ways. For the tracks with truck driver gear shifts in Xenoblade 2, such as Incoming! and Monster Surprised You, they generally have an 'inverse truck driver' at the looping point - where it does an equally unprepared modulation back to the original key. Incoming! hides this within a relatively crunchy chord progression, but Monster Surprised You just goes right back down a tone at the loop. A bit audacious but it works surprisingly well. In Xenoblade 3, on the other hand, they did something pretty interesting for You Will Know Our Names ~ Finale - the single battle theme has _two_ loops (technically 3 but two are relevant here). When the enemy's at high HP, the piece goes through the first loop, which continues until the enemy hits about 40% HP. Then at one of several predetermined points in the loop, the piece breaks into a transition section, which leads into the second loop. The second loop continues until the enemy is defeated, ending the track. The key part is that the second loop is a tone above the first loop - and the truck driver modulation happens in the transition section. This has several effects. One is that it neatly avoids the issue of needing to modulate back at some point during a loop. The transition section, and therefore the modulation, only plays a maximum of once per battle, so it safely stays in the first key and then safely in the second key during looping sections. The second is that the truck driver is timed to occur when the battle itself is hitting its climax - when the enemy is at low HP, it's "enraged" and gets a good bit stronger/scarier to fight. So the background music doing the classic up-a-tone key change is very much fitting for that.
Livin' on a Prayer was probably the first key change I really noticed. I was a young kid and the song was just playing in the background somewhere, possibly at a birthday party although I could be wrong. I wasn't really paying much attention to the music but when the key change happened, it was so jarring and unexpected that it forced me to take notice and go "holy crap, what is this song?" I probably actually had this same reaction a few times since my first few times hearing it would have been months if not years apart, causing me to forget the song in between.
My all time favourite is in Man in the Mirror - idk who edited the music video (one of my most hated videos of all time but that's another rant) but the key change on 'CHANGE' with the fucking bombs being dropped from the plane and the EXPLOSION makes me laugh every single time. Just an unintentionally absolutely hilarious bit of editing. 10/10
I’ve always loved Swift’s example in Love Story because while musically it comes out of nowhere, in the story of the lyrics Juliet has a hit an all time low right before it and the story switches perspectives to Romeo on the key change telling Juliet everything she wants. So the release of tension it provides complements the story really well
I wouldn’t say it comes out nowhere, if she had kept the same key it wouldn’t have had the same kind of effect. The song of course did use it exactly as it should and that’s why it’s such a great song. That’s what I find really great about music production though, when the producers know that kind of stuff, it turns a well-written song into a super hit.
The best thing about it is how it helps subvert the narrative, specifically if you know the original story of Romeo & Juliet - which most definitely doesn't end well 😅 It's so corny, it's so happy, I can just imagine Shakespeare doing a double take, like "...wait, what?" while confetti is thrown into his face 🎉😂 Taylor needs to do more key changes... although the few ones she has are really good. Getaway Car, Mr. Perfectly Fine, Betty, and my fave, Paper Rings.
@@reese8453 ño I mean, I'm not saying her composition is revolutionary - it's actually very straightforward, formulaic pop. I'd especially wish she was bolder with her chord progressions. However, her songwriting, melodic, and vocal arrangement skills are incredible, so when her music does something exciting like a clever modulation, advanced harmony or weird chord, the result is fan fuel for people with music knowledge 😂
My brain is rotted, I cannot hear "I Want it That Way" without getting hyped for the crazy key change that happens in that one edit where someone uses the Weird Al version, which hits especially harder because Weird Al sings in an even HIGHER key based on his range and the song just goes absolutely crazy with "I'M HIGHEST BIDDER!!!" the hype is UNMATCHED
I instinctively love key changes, but never knew what they were. But yes, they add interest to the songs, are dramatic, and often thrilling. It's very gratifying to know the name of this thing I love!
The Man in the Mirror one is so good. It builds up so much tension in a small moment of silence and having the chorus snap it back instead of Michael feels like a warm ocean wave.
I think the fact that "Man in the Mirror" is a song about personal growth and it modulates on the word "change" makes it brilliant. Most truck driver key changes don't try to justify themselves. But that one plays off the lyrics and theme of the song extremely well.
Right. Whomever wrote/produced that Beyoncé song knew what they were doing, throwing those egregious key changes on top of each other like that lol. It’s almost like satire
@@jeremyowens3319 to me, it feels like the first part of the song is the narrator reflecting on the changes he wants to make, and then after the key change, he’s the new man who has made those changes. It just feels like a weight has been lifted
I had never heard the term "truck driver gear shift key change" before, but seeing it in the title, I immediately knew what you meant. I'm not necessarily here to learn today. I'm really just watching/listening to feel those shifts and get myself into a higher gear. But as usual, you show me how the magic works. Always grateful to have this channel in my life, David.
Me starting this video: Oh, I LOVE it when artists do this. Me watching the rest of the video and having been a major Michael Jackson fan when I was young: Well, it seems we might have a chicken and the egg scenario on my love of this technique. LOL
My favorite example of a Truck Diver Gear Shift is My Sweet Lord by George Harrison. It's a pretty ordinary jump of two semitones but instead of adding it at the very end as a cheap gimmick, it actually happens pretty much exactly in the middle of the song which changes the entire mood of the song. I don't know any other song that does that.
I dont think that would be considered the same thing as Harrison did add some chords to make this key shift happening. (Though I personally feel the way he did was a bit cheap anyway. Maybe a proper Truck Driver Gear Shift would have been a better choice..)
I'd argue that isn't a TDGS at all. It's not a single two-semitone key change - it's actually two key changes in succession, first down a semitonic, then up three semitonics - it doesn't happen on near the end, and it's not an unprepared modulation whose function is simply to make the song less samey, as it's actually reflected in (or dictated by, depending on your perspective) the lyric. It might be the least TDGS-y key change in a pop song ever. TDGS doesn't mean _any_ key change in a song. Keys are allowed to change, that's part of the reason we have them.
When you started talking about minor third changes, I paused the video, turned to my slightly baffled wife (who's a singer but not much into music theory) and I said-Livin on a prayer. And of course later on the victory air punch was administered in the room.
I knew this as the “train wreck” modulation. I noticed modulation in hymns at church and asked the music director about it. He would introduce the hymn in its written key, modulate down a half step and sometimes go up a half step every new verse, or at least the final verse. Very challenging on a church organ.
I was once in a service where the music director took it up a key but half the band weren't experienced enough and didn't follow and it really was a train wreck.
I feel like Earth Song is a little bit less egregious in this case. Because it does feels like it "ends a section" and then continues with something slightly different instead of a carbon copy of what came before.
Excellent examples illustrating a variety of ways this style of modulation occurs in pop music. What this video seems to have neglected is the necessity of connecting this modulation to its roots in gospel music and the rich tradition of Black church music.
I was thinking this same thing, I'm glad you wrote this. That's why I don't think of this as a "cheap and easy" trick. Not everyone can utilize their voice in that way.
I love key changes and glad you included my all time favourite, Livin' on a Prayer. The 'missing' beat in the preceding bar is brilliant. Was surprised no mention of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons' Opus 17 (Don't You Worry About Me) which has five 1-semitone changes from F# to B (from memory)!
This is such a great name for the concept because despite knowing basically nothing about music or truck driving for that matter, I somehow instantly knew what it was referring to immediately from the title.
In the third movement of Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto there’s a melody which features something I think could be formed to fit the definition of the truck driver gear shift key change. The melody (recurring but starting in the piano at rehearsals 31 and 37 and again in the orchestra in the final maestoso section of the movement) features a chord that essentially functions as the dominant 7 of the key a semitone up, out of the blue, before transitioning back to the original key. It’s super grand and awesome and it just feels so powerful especially in the end and I love it so much
I love the fact that even as someone who has never picked up an instrument, because of David, I recognised the time signature of his outro music. It has switches back and forth from 7/8 to 4/4.
So last Wednesday in choir practice at church, we had an anthem that modulated not just once, but twice up a half step. Both times, I turned to my neighbor and said "gear shift." My neighbor, being a composition major, chuckled. The next anthem had but one such key change, but I kept waiting for a second one to occur.
I love the key-change videos: thank you! One note for viewers not familiar with manual transmissions: the engine sound will lurch as the driver shifts gears, hence the phrase. (I'm not sure that was clear in the intro.)
Something about the key change in "Mandy" actually sounds more graceful to me than your average truck driver key change. I think it has to do with the way the melody bridges the gap.
I love learning about different music terminology! Incidentally, I don't think the song "I Like Trucking" has this key change, but it is the song I have in my head now!
I instantly hear Weird Al's "Truck Driving Song" whenever I hear or see the phrase, and that does have a very prominent example of such a change. Since it comes at the two-minute mark of a song that doesn't even get to two and a half minutes total, *and* has a chorus of backing vocalists join in for the first time right as the key change hits, I feel safe in saying it's an intentional joke on Al's part.
I love the key change in ABBA's I do I do I do. It makes the song sound more desperate. Which goes well with the lyrics. "Can't you see? Can't you feel it? Don't you too?"
Ah yes the "randomly jump up a tone", the most sickeningly sweet modulation unless you've done it VERY well. Been rolling my eyes at it for ages, now I know what it's called
My favourite has to be Invisible Touch by Genesis. The song is in F, but the prechorus has Bb and C chords, so when the key steps up to G on the last chorus, the C goes from being the V chord to the IV chord. Not to mention that the last note of the prechorus melody is a G, so when the first note of the chorus melody is a G instead of an F, it still works. Perfect pop songwriting.
omg I haven't thought about S Club 7 in FOREVER. Also ty for explaining why that part in I want it that way by backstreet boys hits so goooood, I sing that part every time like 🗣️🗣️🗣️
The story of that song and the translation into English is very interesting. It's one of my favorite anecdotes about pop music. The song is written as a biting satire about a dying man's farewell to the world, and it ends up transformed into a sentimental and effective pop song.
@@lakrids-pibe It's like that Al Franken bit "and gosh darn it I'm good enough." My mother was a social worker with zero sense of humour and the thought that was a literal self-help thing. And about her level of understanding about anything, ie epic fail.
@@Ea-Nasir_Copper_Co Well, she was already like that, so she became a social worker in my teen years. I mean, to be British-born and not appreciate Monty Python is pretty damn bad.
As an OTR (long haul) truck driver, imagine my surprise when I saw the title and thumbnail. How about a little more truck driving content, David? Just kidding, of course. This did make my day of course.
It would be interesting to review some of those key changes and see which performers ended up regretting their choices. I am sure Jon Bon Jovi dreaded having to go up that minor third after the whole concert, especially as he got older..
Even on the studio version, it sounds like he’s at the very top of his range toward that last part of the tune. I’m sure that got to him after singing that song for like the 10,000th time
For context, I remember my mother used to love Westlife and their key changes used to send me up the wall. I asked ChatGPT how many Westlife songs have a key change in, just to make sure I haven’t made it up in my head. Apparently at least 15 of their 32 singles had a key change 😅 (if it’s info is correct)
2:44 Yall please correct me if I'm wrong, but on both Micheal Jacksons Rock with You and Stevie Wonder's Sunshine of my Life, I hear a borrowed chord that sets up the key change.
![SAFEPLANET - ดาวเคราะห์ [ THE PLANET ]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/4X1XL3I_k3c/mqdefault.jpg)
The stock confetti explosion every time the key changes is absolute peak editing. I hope you don't feel like it was overused because it was the correct intersection of useful, whimsical, and humorously low-effort.
It got funnier as the video went on, I like that a good number of examples from different genres were used too.
considering that they announced the absolute worst kinds of pop song key changes, i think the level of effort and sincerity was entirely appropriate
@@soupalexWhat are the best kinds in your opinion
You put this perfectly haha. I love it
I’m happy someone else noticed and appreciated that.
In music school we called it "modulation by cymbal crash."
On point 😂
I never knew that this technique had a name and I love what it is
As a hobby drummer and other instrument abuser I approve this name.
Oh so that's what Metallica does
Or, if you are Australian, the DankPods Cymbal Toss
In Iceland this is called "Eurovisjón hækkun " = "Eurovision raise" cause it's so common in songs in the Eurovision song contest.
Hahaahaha eurotrash raise lol
Allways heard it referred to as the «Eurovision trick»
Not just in Iceland, it's on the Eurovision drinking bingo card all over Europe.
I get it so much I burst out laughing lol
same in sweden!!!
I’m ngl, I always had a soft spot for sudden key changes like this
I actually like using software to add key changes to songs that don't have them
@@kenyaholloway-reliford8213sounds interesting
For me, songs that typically feature key changes immediately became an instant favorite for me, i don't really know why but i just love when a song completely changes its key
I didn't even know they were a thing and I loved them. I knew something was happening but I didn't know enough about music to explain it
Stand by REM
Always referred to this kind of change as the "Encore" cause it sounded like the song getting its last run in lol
Great name, I'll remember it!
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
Really appreciate the confetti when the key change comes up, it's just so cute.
very appropriate
As if David wasn't already a master of making enjoyable videos out of something relatively dry like music theory, this really put a big load of icing on the cake.
@@Colaholiker With sprinkles.
@@WoefulMinion and the cherry.
And don't forget 0:17 - maybe not "cute" but very funny!
I love this key change. It's effectively the final climax of the song and super fun to sing along to. It also allows the vocalist to have a bit of fun before the end of the song.
Completely agree. It's always an exciting addition when done right.
The confetti was funny every single time.
That bar of 3/4 before the key change in livin on a prayer is the clutch
100%. Key change + missing beat? Love the unpredictability.
That's why it sounds wrong to me!
Never heard them referred to as this. Would have always called them "Eurovision key change" or "boy band standing up from their stools" key change.
TV Tropes uses the term.
But Led Zeppelin did it, too. And John Lennon.
@@fnjesusfreak Cool. Every day is a school day.
@rick49 oh I know. To me though, the first thing I would think of was eurovision songs. Especially ones that have the key change in the last chorus.
Always called it the Disney key change haha
For me, as a guitarist, changing the key from Eb to E brings a huge sense of relief...
Not when you're tuned down half a step.
B Major to C Major, Db Minor to D Minor
your comment got an audible snort from me! amen, fellow guitar player!
Get gud
I can feel my pinky seizing.
What can I say? I am a simple girl loving simple key changes apparently. Thanks for the teaching and the confetti. So much fun!
😊😊😊
If it works, it works.
As a non-musician, this is what I think of when I hear "key change". I have even heard them called "livin' on a prayer" key changes
As a musician, if you know Livin' on a Prayer you know 90% of what there is to know about key changes lol
@@AlkanetEXE and 3/4 bars.
Call it a cheap trick, but they just hit every time 😩🔥
Ironically, Cheap Trick was not known for using step modulation
1:40 the confetti effect on these key changes is sending me 💀
0:39 THE CONFETTI OMG😭😭😭
what about it? i dont get it
@@fNicks It was so goofy, that I found it funny.
It was beautiful+ it's Whitney
Visual sarcasm feels like a lost art.
yipee!
At gigs I always use a gearshift mime to indicate a key change. We used to joke about it, but it turns out there's a genuine reason. Run out of gears with Mack the Knife though.
I'm a long haul truck driver and a songwriter, everything from Rock to Country to Jazz and Latin, and I approve this message.
Please tell me you time your gear shifts to truck driver key changes!
You probably know this but the guy who wrote Convoy is the same guy behind Manheim Steamroller.
I gave you a like to get you from 666 likes to 667. It had to be done!
this is the always the goose bump moment of many songs
The Confetti never fails to make me laugh 😭
😊😊😊
I'm a sucker for this type of key change. I don't care how cheesy it is nowadays. It's fun and I like cheese. 😌😂
2:00 I guess I'm subconsciously a big fan of key changes because every single one of these songs is in my Spotify playlist
Also a Eurovision staple. :) I didn't even know it had a name.
It had been a Eurovision cliche for decades and then it just stopped. I think like maybe a single song in this year contest had a key change
It does have a name and it’s not this 😂
How else would the audience know when to clap? (I have never seen it, but I assume that the audience applauds every high note, long note, and key change)
@@SnowyJanethat’s not a name, staple is a word
My old choral director use to explain key changes to her young musical theatre students as “It’s when Westlife stand up.”
"These Eyes" by The Guess Who has a series of shift-like key changes but by fourths/fifths that creates a similar effect!
That's my favorite The Guess Who song.
Ooo solid example
Alright but who made the song?
@@MrBrno You'll have to guess. It's part of the fun.
Guess Who's On First
a professor some years ago called that a producer's modulation.
Nice! I’ve always called it the “out of ideas modulation” or the “cheap and easy” key change.
Bingo. A formal, accurate description. Unless it's 'My Generation'...the only exception...
@@spyderlogan4992 It was also OK when Rush did it in Time Stand Still. BTW, look up the US Army Concert Band's tribute cover they did when Neil Peart died.
@@spyderlogan4992 that same professor told us that My Generation is the first instance of a rock song trading fours.
Abba key changes are stig andersson's love for those effects not B and B responsibility !
“cheap, and *diirty* “, love it
Sisqó’s “Thong Song” has a HUGE truck driver gear shift key change
That is the song that I thought of right away. There is a really dramatic lead up to the change in that one.
THAT THOOOONG
Him adding that "YEEEEEAAAAAAAÆÆÆÆÆAAAAH" definitely gave it some extra exclamation marks. It sounds melodically robust every time.
The Thong Song is one of those songs that did NOT have to go as hard as it did - the fact that he even pulls in a string section really sells his devotion to the thong, haha.
Now I'm sad that the Thong Song wasn't included
why did i get chills even when s club 7 did the key change
Because hit makers know what they're doing. The hook brings you back.
the confetti really makes this video
The key change in “My heart will go on” is actually really good.
That's because the instrumental melody immediately before it goes E - F# and would naturally continue to G#. The Ab is the same note but now in a different harmonic context.
Not gonna lie, you awoke my PTSD when you brought up "I Just Called To Say I Love You" (I was told to learn that for a vocal course, and I did *not* like all the key changes, haha).
Alternative chorus:
I was told
to learn
thatfora vocal course
and I did
not like
all the key changes
I love Stevie so I hate to criticize anything the man has done, but that song… Yeah, if I never heard it again, that would be OK
I love key changes in music. I had no idea what it was called. That alone makes this video entirely worth it.
You read my mind. I was about to go look up Livin' on a Prayer as the end of the video was approaching, but sure enough, you covered it as your final and most well-known example. Because of course it is!
Everyone who's ever sang karaoke knows this one.
Something interesting is when video game music does this - not because of the video game context directly, but because VGM often loops, or goes back to the start of the piece once it's played through - and when you've got a looping track, what goes up must come down. The Xenoblade video game series has a couple of battle themes with a truck driver, and they achieve this in different ways.
For the tracks with truck driver gear shifts in Xenoblade 2, such as Incoming! and Monster Surprised You, they generally have an 'inverse truck driver' at the looping point - where it does an equally unprepared modulation back to the original key. Incoming! hides this within a relatively crunchy chord progression, but Monster Surprised You just goes right back down a tone at the loop. A bit audacious but it works surprisingly well.
In Xenoblade 3, on the other hand, they did something pretty interesting for You Will Know Our Names ~ Finale - the single battle theme has _two_ loops (technically 3 but two are relevant here). When the enemy's at high HP, the piece goes through the first loop, which continues until the enemy hits about 40% HP. Then at one of several predetermined points in the loop, the piece breaks into a transition section, which leads into the second loop. The second loop continues until the enemy is defeated, ending the track.
The key part is that the second loop is a tone above the first loop - and the truck driver modulation happens in the transition section. This has several effects. One is that it neatly avoids the issue of needing to modulate back at some point during a loop. The transition section, and therefore the modulation, only plays a maximum of once per battle, so it safely stays in the first key and then safely in the second key during looping sections. The second is that the truck driver is timed to occur when the battle itself is hitting its climax - when the enemy is at low HP, it's "enraged" and gets a good bit stronger/scarier to fight. So the background music doing the classic up-a-tone key change is very much fitting for that.
1:05 this transition genuinely made me high
This comment made me genuinely lol
Livin' on a Prayer was probably the first key change I really noticed. I was a young kid and the song was just playing in the background somewhere, possibly at a birthday party although I could be wrong. I wasn't really paying much attention to the music but when the key change happened, it was so jarring and unexpected that it forced me to take notice and go "holy crap, what is this song?" I probably actually had this same reaction a few times since my first few times hearing it would have been months if not years apart, causing me to forget the song in between.
My all time favourite is in Man in the Mirror - idk who edited the music video (one of my most hated videos of all time but that's another rant) but the key change on 'CHANGE' with the fucking bombs being dropped from the plane and the EXPLOSION makes me laugh every single time. Just an unintentionally absolutely hilarious bit of editing. 10/10
I’ve always loved Swift’s example in Love Story because while musically it comes out of nowhere, in the story of the lyrics Juliet has a hit an all time low right before it and the story switches perspectives to Romeo on the key change telling Juliet everything she wants. So the release of tension it provides complements the story really well
Yes yes yes the pure unadulterated HAPPINESS AND JOY this gear shift represents is beautiful and powerful ❤❤
I wouldn’t say it comes out nowhere, if she had kept the same key it wouldn’t have had the same kind of effect. The song of course did use it exactly as it should and that’s why it’s such a great song. That’s what I find really great about music production though, when the producers know that kind of stuff, it turns a well-written song into a super hit.
The best thing about it is how it helps subvert the narrative, specifically if you know the original story of Romeo & Juliet - which most definitely doesn't end well 😅
It's so corny, it's so happy, I can just imagine Shakespeare doing a double take, like "...wait, what?" while confetti is thrown into his face 🎉😂
Taylor needs to do more key changes... although the few ones she has are really good. Getaway Car, Mr. Perfectly Fine, Betty, and my fave, Paper Rings.
can you guys calm down with the tailor swift analysis
@@reese8453 ño
I mean, I'm not saying her composition is revolutionary - it's actually very straightforward, formulaic pop. I'd especially wish she was bolder with her chord progressions. However, her songwriting, melodic, and vocal arrangement skills are incredible, so when her music does something exciting like a clever modulation, advanced harmony or weird chord, the result is fan fuel for people with music knowledge 😂
My brain is rotted, I cannot hear "I Want it That Way" without getting hyped for the crazy key change that happens in that one edit where someone uses the Weird Al version, which hits especially harder because Weird Al sings in an even HIGHER key based on his range and the song just goes absolutely crazy with "I'M HIGHEST BIDDER!!!"
the hype is UNMATCHED
I instinctively love key changes, but never knew what they were. But yes, they add interest to the songs, are dramatic, and often thrilling. It's very gratifying to know the name of this thing I love!
I absolutely adore the key change in Man In The Mirror! ❤
The multiple key changes in Love On Top are also amazing!
Very interesting video, thank you!
The Man in the Mirror one is so good. It builds up so much tension in a small moment of silence and having the chorus snap it back instead of Michael feels like a warm ocean wave.
Especially, since it changes right on the word "CHANGE" 😜
I think the fact that "Man in the Mirror" is a song about personal growth and it modulates on the word "change" makes it brilliant. Most truck driver key changes don't try to justify themselves. But that one plays off the lyrics and theme of the song extremely well.
Right. Whomever wrote/produced that Beyoncé song knew what they were doing, throwing those egregious key changes on top of each other like that lol. It’s almost like satire
@@jeremyowens3319 to me, it feels like the first part of the song is the narrator reflecting on the changes he wants to make, and then after the key change, he’s the new man who has made those changes. It just feels like a weight has been lifted
I had never heard the term "truck driver gear shift key change" before, but seeing it in the title, I immediately knew what you meant.
I'm not necessarily here to learn today. I'm really just watching/listening to feel those shifts and get myself into a higher gear.
But as usual, you show me how the magic works.
Always grateful to have this channel in my life, David.
Me starting this video: Oh, I LOVE it when artists do this.
Me watching the rest of the video and having been a major Michael Jackson fan when I was young: Well, it seems we might have a chicken and the egg scenario on my love of this technique. LOL
My favorite example of a Truck Diver Gear Shift is My Sweet Lord by George Harrison. It's a pretty ordinary jump of two semitones but instead of adding it at the very end as a cheap gimmick, it actually happens pretty much exactly in the middle of the song which changes the entire mood of the song. I don't know any other song that does that.
“Dark Lady” by Cher does it in a similar way
I dont think that would be considered the same thing as Harrison did add some chords to make this key shift happening. (Though I personally feel the way he did was a bit cheap anyway. Maybe a proper Truck Driver Gear Shift would have been a better choice..)
I'd argue that isn't a TDGS at all. It's not a single two-semitone key change - it's actually two key changes in succession, first down a semitonic, then up three semitonics - it doesn't happen on near the end, and it's not an unprepared modulation whose function is simply to make the song less samey, as it's actually reflected in (or dictated by, depending on your perspective) the lyric.
It might be the least TDGS-y key change in a pop song ever. TDGS doesn't mean _any_ key change in a song. Keys are allowed to change, that's part of the reason we have them.
Surrender by Cheap Trick
When you started talking about minor third changes, I paused the video, turned to my slightly baffled wife (who's a singer but not much into music theory) and I said-Livin on a prayer.
And of course later on the victory air punch was administered in the room.
I knew this as the “train wreck” modulation.
I noticed modulation in hymns at church and asked the music director about it. He would introduce the hymn in its written key, modulate down a half step and sometimes go up a half step every new verse, or at least the final verse. Very challenging on a church organ.
I was once in a service where the music director took it up a key but half the band weren't experienced enough and didn't follow and it really was a train wreck.
@@claireskrine4837 Ha!
@@claireskrine4837 Ha!
I FUCKING LOVE THE TRUCK DRIVER'S KEY SHIFT 🗣️🗣️🗣️🔥🔥🔥
Your editing the clips by key together is great
I feel like Earth Song is a little bit less egregious in this case. Because it does feels like it "ends a section" and then continues with something slightly different instead of a carbon copy of what came before.
Heal the World however.....
I started to make a playlist of songs with these key changes years ago. The change in Man in the Mirror tends to make me cry. Thanks for this!
2:32 Yes, yes, but notice that Siedah Garrett cleverly put the word "change" at the keyshift in this song of hers. Gotta give props for that!
similar to Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror where he shifts key on the word ''change''
@@o.a-b7212 …is this a bit or do you not know that Siedah Garrett is the writer of Michael Jackson's Man in the Mirror?
@@maitele I didn't know...well I guess it makes sense now, thanks for the information
Excellent examples illustrating a variety of ways this style of modulation occurs in pop music. What this video seems to have neglected is the necessity of connecting this modulation to its roots in gospel music and the rich tradition of Black church music.
I was thinking this same thing, I'm glad you wrote this. That's why I don't think of this as a "cheap and easy" trick. Not everyone can utilize their voice in that way.
0:17 never thought i'd hear that coming out of david's mouth
Oh, I missed that!
Lol!
I love key changes and glad you included my all time favourite, Livin' on a Prayer. The 'missing' beat in the preceding bar is brilliant. Was surprised no mention of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons' Opus 17 (Don't You Worry About Me) which has five 1-semitone changes from F# to B (from memory)!
david sounds so disgusted in the intro sequence lol i never heard him like this but i find it very funny
Semi-tone key changes always make me think about "Sunny" (and they happen throughout the whole song so they are hard to miss 👀)
This is exactly what I was thinking!
Oh yeah, that song is notorious for the truck driver gear shift key change 😂
This is such a great name for the concept because despite knowing basically nothing about music or truck driving for that matter, I somehow instantly knew what it was referring to immediately from the title.
In the third movement of Rachmaninoff’s second piano concerto there’s a melody which features something I think could be formed to fit the definition of the truck driver gear shift key change. The melody (recurring but starting in the piano at rehearsals 31 and 37 and again in the orchestra in the final maestoso section of the movement) features a chord that essentially functions as the dominant 7 of the key a semitone up, out of the blue, before transitioning back to the original key. It’s super grand and awesome and it just feels so powerful especially in the end and I love it so much
Belinda Says by Alvvays is a fairly recent example of modulating up a semitone.
Also Stacy's Mom by Fountains of Wayne modulates up a minor 3rd
Belinda Says is a great illustration of how this move doesn't have to be cheesy, it's just used in a lot of cheesy songs
I love the fact that even as someone who has never picked up an instrument, because of David, I recognised the time signature of his outro music. It has switches back and forth from 7/8 to 4/4.
Feel like this such a good move when youre working with an amazing vocalist. It’s shows there chops so well
Our House by Madness needs to feature in a key change video...
@@Syncop8rNZ great example!
Actually, more Madness in general. There’s some pretty sophisticated songwriting there.
our house in the middle of our house
I always think of this as the best example!
If they change keys, whose house is it then?
My coworkers listen to this 80s radio station and so many songs have this. Always wondered if it had a term for it.
Your analysis of music theory in well known songs is second to none on TH-cam.
Because of You is absolutely one of my faves. Kelly changing all the lyrics and some of the melody during the key change really makes it hit
Confetti. Confetti everywhere 😂
These videos make me appreciate music even more
I saw an interview years ago with Queen's Roger Taylor, where he voiced his absolute hatred of this kind of key change, lol!
A drummer complaining about a key change, lol!
I agree with Roger
@@mastersloseymusic3928 He´s also a singer, guitar player and a song writer.
now that i think about it, i don't recall this style of key change in any Queen song
@@feduwtcI don’t know much music theory but maybe the end of Breakthru?
So last Wednesday in choir practice at church, we had an anthem that modulated not just once, but twice up a half step. Both times, I turned to my neighbor and said "gear shift." My neighbor, being a composition major, chuckled. The next anthem had but one such key change, but I kept waiting for a second one to occur.
I love the key-change videos: thank you! One note for viewers not familiar with manual transmissions: the engine sound will lurch as the driver shifts gears, hence the phrase. (I'm not sure that was clear in the intro.)
Something about the key change in "Mandy" actually sounds more graceful to me than your average truck driver key change. I think it has to do with the way the melody bridges the gap.
It's my favourite song of all time. Perfect in every way.
Well put. :) Def. has to do with the bridging of the gap.
The confetti is hilarious 🤣
The editing on the examples, leading from song to song in matching keys, was EXTREMELY satisfying to listen to. Appreciate the attention to detail :)
I love learning about different music terminology! Incidentally, I don't think the song "I Like Trucking" has this key change, but it is the song I have in my head now!
I instantly hear Weird Al's "Truck Driving Song" whenever I hear or see the phrase, and that does have a very prominent example of such a change. Since it comes at the two-minute mark of a song that doesn't even get to two and a half minutes total, *and* has a chorus of backing vocalists join in for the first time right as the key change hits, I feel safe in saying it's an intentional joke on Al's part.
I absolutely love that Love on Top is just Beyoncé showing her amazing vocal range by slowly going up and up and up!
Never heard of the term before, but as soon as I read the title, several of those songs came to mind.
I love the key change in ABBA's I do I do I do. It makes the song sound more desperate. Which goes well with the lyrics. "Can't you see? Can't you feel it? Don't you too?"
yesssss!!!
Next we’ll have the Jake Brake decelerando
I freaking love the truck driver shift so much
That beyonce bit is actually incredibly impressive.
I love key changes.
I love confetti.
Is this my birthday?
Finally, I understand the function of key changes like this. This has plagued me ever since I knew what music was 😂
Ah yes the "randomly jump up a tone", the most sickeningly sweet modulation unless you've done it VERY well. Been rolling my eyes at it for ages, now I know what it's called
My favourite has to be Invisible Touch by Genesis. The song is in F, but the prechorus has Bb and C chords, so when the key steps up to G on the last chorus, the C goes from being the V chord to the IV chord. Not to mention that the last note of the prechorus melody is a G, so when the first note of the chorus melody is a G instead of an F, it still works. Perfect pop songwriting.
Incredible. A halfstep modulation is the easiest way to touch an audience.
Westlife's oeuvre thrived on them. Great video!
omg I haven't thought about S Club 7 in FOREVER. Also ty for explaining why that part in I want it that way by backstreet boys hits so goooood, I sing that part every time like 🗣️🗣️🗣️
Bring it all back is of course the most epic example imo 😂
This sort of thing happens so much in the eurobeat genre. I love it so much.
According to its lyrics, the confetti on "Seasons in the Sun" was a rather cruel effect 😄😄
The story of that song and the translation into English is very interesting.
It's one of my favorite anecdotes about pop music.
The song is written as a biting satire about a dying man's farewell to the world, and it ends up transformed into a sentimental and effective pop song.
@@lakrids-pibe It's like that Al Franken bit "and gosh darn it I'm good enough." My mother was a social worker with zero sense of humour and the thought that was a literal self-help thing. And about her level of understanding about anything, ie epic fail.
@@marshwetland3808I don't know how a social worker could have a sense of humour or irony, after everything they regularly see.
@@Ea-Nasir_Copper_Co Well, she was already like that, so she became a social worker in my teen years. I mean, to be British-born and not appreciate Monty Python is pretty damn bad.
As an OTR (long haul) truck driver, imagine my surprise when I saw the title and thumbnail. How about a little more truck driving content, David? Just kidding, of course. This did make my day of course.
Dang, now I have to write a song that changes it up 6 half steps. I'll write it for Björk.
It would be interesting to review some of those key changes and see which performers ended up regretting their choices. I am sure Jon Bon Jovi dreaded having to go up that minor third after the whole concert, especially as he got older..
Even on the studio version, it sounds like he’s at the very top of his range toward that last part of the tune. I’m sure that got to him after singing that song for like the 10,000th time
Me at the start of the video: Got a feeling Westlife will feature heavily in this
Me at the end: **shocked Pikachu meme**
For context, I remember my mother used to love Westlife and their key changes used to send me up the wall.
I asked ChatGPT how many Westlife songs have a key change in, just to make sure I haven’t made it up in my head. Apparently at least 15 of their 32 singles had a key change 😅 (if it’s info is correct)
Yeah, I guess Westlife were too obvious.
I love the confetti effect during the key change in this video.
2:44 Yall please correct me if I'm wrong, but on both Micheal Jacksons Rock with You and Stevie Wonder's Sunshine of my Life, I hear a borrowed chord that sets up the key change.
In the beginning showing the tonal modulation montage, I really appreciated the consecutive whole steps from C up to F#!
I've heard pretentious music critics complain about this. It makes me want to hear it more often just to spite their arrogant asses.
Wow, I've never liked these key changes because of this exact thing. Never knew there was a name for it.