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OT: Rick Beato YouTube Discussion on Music

Also, a quick Google shows that what people (and @yessir321, presumably) are talking about is the INTRO to both songs - claiming "they're exactly the same". One guy on a "Eighties" tutorial vid actually commented "Thanks, now I know how to play "Come As You Are".

None of these people are musicians. And no, the aforementioned commenter does NOT know "how to play Come As You Are".

Here's the first 2 measures of both songs:

Come As You Are:

D D Eb / E G E G E E Eb

Eighties:

E E G E G E D / E Bb E E Bb E G E

What's confusing the unlearned is the tempo, which is similar. But that's like saying "All blues songs are the same because of the shuffle". It's an inherently uneducated POV.
Other than the similarity in the intro riffs, nobody on the planet thinks Come as You Are and Eighties sound remotely similar. Eighties is a high energy banger in the best punk sense, while CAYA is a somewhat typical, for Nirvana, slow build to fast punk rocker with loads of atmosphere and tension. Both are fantastic songs. IMO.



 
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Other than the similarity in the intro riffs, nobody on the planet thinks Come as You Are and Eighties sound remotely similar. Eighties is a high energy banger in the best punk sense, while CAYA is a somewhat typical, for Nirvana, slow build to fast punk rocker with loads of atmosphere and tension. Both are fantastic songs. IMO.



They play Killing Joke Eighties on Altrok pretty regularly. I have never once associated that song with Nirvana and Come as You Are. There is not even a remote similarity in my opinion.
 
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They play Killing Joke Eighties on Altrok pretty regularly. I have never once associated that song with Nirvana and Come as You Are. There is not even a remote similarity in my opinion.
I'm guessing I'm one of the few people on this board who had "Eighties" as one of their top songs in 1984 when it came out and I can absolutely tell you that I never thought of it when I heard "Come as You Are" which is my favorite Nirvana song, which I also played to death. The intro riffs are very similar, but the overall songs are very different.
 
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I'm guessing I'm one of the few people on this board who had "Eighties" as one of their top songs in 1984 when it came out and I can absolutely tell you that I never thought of it when I heard "Come as You Are" which is my favorite Nirvana song, which I also played to death. The intro riffs are very similar, but the overall songs are very different.
I was ready to peacefully bow out, but now I want to argue with you on the intro riffs. LOL.

They are not even close, IMO.

The best I got at this late hour while taking a mental break from some brain busting patent work is Vanilla Ice's argument as to why Ice, Ice Baby and Under Pressure were not the same. 😜



But seriously, those riffs from KJ and Nirvana are further apart. I'm not technically savvy with music, but the Nirvana riff is slower and downtuned (if that is the right word) compared to KJ, which has a faster tempo too.

Actually, the KJ riff sounds more like some old Smithereens tunes, and this comes to mind. The word I am looking for that is in no means technical, is the KJ riff is more of a jangly guitar, while the Nirvana tune has more of a bass tone.

 
Other than the similarity in the intro riffs, nobody on the planet thinks Come as You Are and Eighties sound remotely similar.

Umm, Kurt Cobain himself did…. He actually tried to get the manager of the record label to not release Come as you are after they nearly got sued by mudhoney for plagiarism after their first EP.



Years later, 9 after Kurt died, Dave Grohl being the ultimate rockstar he is ‘paid them back’ by playing drums on their 2003 album for free.

Now why didn’t killing joke sue at the time? Plain and simple it was bad publicity. I’ll make a recent reference you might appreciate, it’s like Prodigy suing Gannon Buhr…. Sure they were well within their rights however the backlash has been ‘less than favorable’ to say the least by the simple look of a company suing a 17 year old. Smells like teen spirit was already out before CAYA was released, Nirvana was HUGE at the time, it would have been career suicide to sue them at the time👍
 
In my opinion there is similarity in the two songs. The notes in the melody are similar not exactly the same. The tempo is different and lyrics, etc. This is not unusual with Rock, R&B, Country, Jazz. Musicians are thieves and you can find plenty of examples. Check out Sly & Family Stone’s “Sex Machine” from 1969 , Joe Walsh’s “Rocky Mountain Way” in 1973 and Steve Miller’s “The Stake” in 1976:


 
I'm guessing I'm one of the few people on this board who had "Eighties" as one of their top songs in 1984 when it came out and I can absolutely tell you that I never thought of it when I heard "Come as You Are" which is my favorite Nirvana song, which I also played to death. The intro riffs are very similar, but the overall songs are very different.
+1
Anybody that thinks the two songs are the same is a fool. If "partially similar" is the bar for copying, every artist in the world is guilty of copying. LOL!
 
I think ya’ll are misunderstanding that I’m not saying nirvana wasn’t a great band who was incredibly important to rock and roll and music as a whole… of course they were. The ONLY point I was making was that by Kurt dying it allowed the world to see the full potential of Dave Grohl and the foo fighters, who are in my opinion the better band.

Again many put Kurt up on such a pedestal because he represents a time of their youth and memories, he deserves some recognition sure, however it’s undeniable that when you listen to both bands, from a musical standpoint they aren’t even close. Listen to the ‘Sonic Highways’ album then follow it up with ‘In Utero’ and talk to me about the musicianship…. It’s like comparing Neil Peart to Meg White
 
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+1
Anybody that thinks the two songs are the same is a fool. If "partially similar" is the bar for copying, every artist in the world is guilty of copying. LOL!

There's a lot of it that's quite intentional. Joe Bonamassa is well known for using portions of Jimmy Page guitar solos in songs other than those from which they came.
 
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There's a lot of it that's quite intentional. Joe Bonamassa is well known for using portions of Jimmy Page guitar solos in songs other than those from which they came.
Of course there is copying, some with consent and some without. The one is just not the case.
 
I think ya’ll are misunderstanding that I’m not saying nirvana wasn’t a great band who was incredibly important to rock and roll and music as a whole… of course they were. The ONLY point I was making was that by Kurt dying it allowed the world to see the full potential of Dave Grohl and the foo fighters, who are in my opinion the better band.

Again many put Kurt up on such a pedestal because he represents a time of their youth and memories, he deserves some recognition sure, however it’s undeniable that when you listen to both bands, from a musical standpoint they aren’t even close. Listen to the ‘Sonic Highways’ album then follow it up with ‘In Utero’ and talk to me about the musicianship…. It’s like comparing Neil Peart to Meg White
^^^^^ Angry Dave Grohl fan since he is still living in Cobain's shadow. :)
 
Lol,

I guess Kurt cobain himself is a fool then as he himself knew it was a ripoff…


That article is pretty vague. "Built around" can mean a lot of things - and as I've shown, the intros to the two songs are NOT note-for-note identical. They have a similar tone and cadence, but the scales are different.

Perhaps you'd like to tell us about the modes those two pieces are written in.
 
^^^^^ Angry Dave Grohl fan since he is still living in Cobain's shadow. :)
Uhhhh could absolutely care less…. Pretty sure the results aren’t in your favor here either…. Dave Grohl is still selling out festivals and arena’s while collaborating with artists like Paul McCartney while Kurt was a junkie who chose heroin over his wife and child….

Sad as this is Kurt left Courtney an absolute mess and much like Monica Lewinsky in the 90’s society had a tendency to blame the woman when it was the man who created the mess… So Kurt kills himself, leaves his wife and child behind, Courtney gets blamed somehow for a while because no one wanted to accept that Kurt was exactly like his lyrics, constantly depressed and strung out.

And you think Dave Grohl wound up with the short end of the stick? Lol ok…
 
Uhhhh could absolutely care less…. Pretty sure the results aren’t in your favor here either…. Dave Grohl is still selling out festivals and arena’s while collaborating with artists like Paul McCartney while Kurt was a junkie who chose heroin over his wife and child….

Sad as this is Kurt left Courtney an absolute mess and much like Monica Lewinsky in the 90’s society had a tendency to blame the woman when it was the man who created the mess… So Kurt kills himself, leaves his wife and child behind, Courtney gets blamed somehow for a while because no one wanted to accept that Kurt was exactly like his lyrics, constantly depressed and strung out.

And you think Dave Grohl wound up with the short end of the stick? Lol ok…
well, it's clear that you're on the other end of grohl's stick...
 
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That article is pretty vague. "Built around" can mean a lot of things - and as I've shown, the intros to the two songs are NOT note-for-note identical. They have a similar tone and cadence, but the scales are different.

Perhaps you'd like to tell us about the modes those two pieces are written in.
even if an artist never took a music class and invented his or her instrument, and it wasn't built on existing instruments, it is likely the music and vocals they use have a lot in common with past music.... otherwise it would sound like Yoko Ono screeches she called music and it would suck.

an artist would have to be deaf and never even felt the beat of music or vocals or read lyrics and then created their own instrument and vocals to create something new that does not borrow from the past.

I'll go further.. I think music might be in our DNA from generations of evolution and that's why certain ethnicities are attracted by certain music. Afterall.. for what reason on gods green earth could I possibly like the sound of bagpipes?
 
+1
He certainly revealed his emotions and POV with that post! :)
Lol, you’ve been the most emotional person this whole thread man! This is comical for me honestly how much it bothers ya’ll that someone just pointed out that the foo fighters are a better band and the reasons why. It wasn’t to discredit nirvana, just pointing out who the better band wound up being.

yet you’re so personally offended that someone doesn’t admire Kurt in the way you do you’ve been tagging along this whole time passively liking posts along the way😂

Tbh, neither band holds a candle to Trey and Phish…😂
 
As a recent retiree, I have extra time so I took out the strat and tried to replicate the melody for “ Come As You Are” by ear. I had some trouble getting the notes of what sounds minimal and straightforward. From past experience, I thought alternate tuning and checked into it. Sure enough, Cobain is tuned down a full step on this. It’s in the key of E. The melody is pretty easy to figure out . It’s played on the low E string (D) and open A (G) string.
 
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As a recent retiree, I have extra time so I took out the strat and tried to replicate the melody for “ Come As You Are” by ear. I had some trouble getting the notes of what sounds minimal and straightforward. From past experience, I thought alternate tuning and checked into it. Sure enough, Cobain is tuned down a full step on this. It’s in the key of E. The melody is pretty easy to figure out . It’s played on the low E string (D) and open A (G) string.
Can you do Eighties now from Killing Joke?
 
Can you do Eighties now from Killing Joke?
I was completely unaware of the group and this song until it was mentioned here. Just comparing the intro melody/riffs - where there is some similarity, I think the Killing Joke song is in standard tuning and I think it is the key of E. The rhythmic candence is similar but the tempo is quicker. The notes in melody are not exactly the same.
 
I was completely unaware of the group and this song until it was mentioned here. Just comparing the intro melody/riffs - where there is some similarity, I think the Killing Joke song is in standard tuning and I think it is the key of E. The rhythmic candence is similar but the tempo is quicker. The notes in melody are not exactly the same.
My father would be embarrassed for my asking the question (he was a professional musician, and that skill passed over me), but they are both in the key of E.

You said Killing Joke is standard tuning, while Nirvana is down tuned. In my muddled way, I said "the Nirvana riff is slower and downtuned," so my Dad would be proud.

When you say downtuned, does that make the tone sound deeper? As I noted above, I thought the Killing Joke guitar sounded a bit more jangly (like The Smithereens), while the Nirvana guitar sounded more ominous.

 
My father would be embarrassed for my asking the question (he was a professional musician, and that skill passed over me), but they are both in the key of E.

You said Killing Joke is standard tuning, while Nirvana is down tuned. In my muddled way, I said "the Nirvana riff is slower and downtuned," so my Dad would be proud.

When you say downtuned, does that make the tone sound deeper? As I noted above, I thought the Killing Joke guitar sounded a bit more jangly (like The Smithereens), while the Nirvana guitar sounded more ominous.

Believe me, I’m an amateur, kind of hack musician who is a work in progress. I’ve been trying to play the guitar for 18 yrs, which does help with hearing stuff but my musical ear needs a lot work. I believe both songs are in the key of E. The guitar on the Nirvana song is tuned down a full step, so instead of the open strings tuned standardly to EADGBE, it is tuned to DGCFAD. This does give the sound a lower tone. The Killing Joke song is in standard tuning and im not sure what else may be at work technique or gear wise that is creating the more jangly sound you are hearing. That opening melody which is similar on both songs is played on the low E (top string) and A (2nd from top) at the 2nd fret, using notes and open strings at the beginning. The Killng Joke melody is more difficult to pick up.
 
Believe me, I’m an amateur, kind of hack musician who is a work in progress. I’ve been trying to play the guitar for 18 yrs, which does help with hearing stuff but my musical ear needs a lot work. I believe both songs are in the key of E. The guitar on the Nirvana song is tuned down a full step, so instead of the open strings tuned standardly to EADGBE, it is tuned to DGCFAD. This does give the sound a lower tone. The Killing Joke song is in standard tuning and im not sure what else may be at work technique or gear wise that is creating the more jangly sound you are hearing. That opening melody which is similar on both songs is played on the low E (top string) and A (2nd from top) at the 2nd fret, using notes and open strings at the beginning. The Killng Joke melody is more difficult to pick up.

The one thing that is true for the Nirvana song is that the guitar is tuned down a whole step, which makes open E an open D - and that note is used repeatedly in the riff. The other song, being in standard tuning, doesn't have that low D available to use. Right away that one little fact dismisses the argument that the riffs are the same, since one utilizes a note that's not even available to the other.
 
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Lol, you’ve been the most emotional person this whole thread man! This is comical for me honestly how much it bothers ya’ll that someone just pointed out that the foo fighters are a better band and the reasons why. It wasn’t to discredit nirvana, just pointing out who the better band wound up being.

yet you’re so personally offended that someone doesn’t admire Kurt in the way you do you’ve been tagging along this whole time passively liking posts along the way😂

Tbh, neither band holds a candle to Trey and Phish…😂
What's comical is you can't even be honest with yourself. You've made a bunch of disparaging remarks about Cobain's tortured personal life in order to discredit him and his music, which is ridiculous, as his personal life has zero to do with the musical comparison.

And again with stating your opinion as if it's fact - it's a really poor way to argue. FF are a great band and Grohl has the distinction of being in two of the greatest rock bands ever, but plenty of people, including me, like Nirvana a bit better - that's our opinion. Just like my opinion that Phish sucks, but if you want to say they're better than FF or Nirvana, that's up to you - very few will agree with you, though.
 
Honestly, I'm not a big fan of Dave Grohl or Foo Fighters. Nothing in their catalog is inspiring to me, it's not like there's any amazing guitar work. The writing has little to no edge. To me, Grohl is a music factory but, as the old blues giants used to say, "the man got no soul."
 
My father would be embarrassed for my asking the question (he was a professional musician, and that skill passed over me), but they are both in the key of E.

You said Killing Joke is standard tuning, while Nirvana is down tuned. In my muddled way, I said "the Nirvana riff is slower and downtuned," so my Dad would be proud.

When you say downtuned, does that make the tone sound deeper? As I noted above, I thought the Killing Joke guitar sounded a bit more jangly (like The Smithereens), while the Nirvana guitar sounded more ominous.

I leave my guitar tuned to Drop D (DADGBe) . If you assume EADGBe as "standard" tuning, any tuning where strings are tuned lower is "down tuned". Drop D makes playing power chords on the low strings easier.

Most modern metal bands play in even lower tunes...Drop A being common for the heaviest bands.


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I think Beato is one of the best YouTube music segments. He is extremely knowledgeable and informed. I’m going to post some of my favorite episodes. A discussion on the current state of rock music, a discussion on the declining interest in jazz, a series on the history of guitar players/playing and an interview with one of my favorite contemporary
musicians Derek Trucks which is one of the best music interviews I’ve seen:



Derek Trucks at 14 years old playing Layla outro and a jam.
He's been good for a long time. Notice the Skydog, Duane Allman, T-shirt.
 
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What's comical is you can't even be honest with yourself. You've made a bunch of disparaging remarks about Cobain's tortured personal life in order to discredit him and his music, which is ridiculous, as his personal life has zero to do with the musical comparison.
Oh no you misunderstood, I only made those comments to p*ss off the couple of posters who are overly emotional that someone said FF were the better band. You are correct that those comments had nothing to do with the music👍
 
Honestly, I'm not a big fan of Dave Grohl or Foo Fighters. Nothing in their catalog is inspiring to me, it's not like there's any amazing guitar work. The writing has little to no edge. To me, Grohl is a music factory but, as the old blues giants used to say, "the man got no soul."

Not surprising being you’re such a Tom Petty fan. Nothing wrong with it but you like simple music with simple tunes… that’s cool👍
 
Derek Trucks at 14 years old playing Layla outro and a jam.
He's been good for a long time. Notice the Skydog, Duane Allman, T-shirt.
Trucks is gifted and has worked hard at becoming a great player. He really embodies everything you want in a musician , completely all about the music and not the “rock star” BS. He has taken electric slide guitar to places it has never gone and can also play great standardly with his finger picking. Regarding the song Layla , Eric Clapton gets all the credit for that but Allman created the famous lick (taken from an Albert King vocal line on one of his songs) and his slide playing on the outro of that iconic song is some of the most beautiful stuff in rock history.
 
Not surprising being you’re such a Tom Petty fan. Nothing wrong with it but you like simple music with simple tunes… that’s cool👍
Tom Petty’s music catalogue is one of the best in rock. He was a fantastic songwriter and his band was outstanding. I always get a kick out of people who cite a type of music as “simple”, usually they would not play it well. It’s not easy to get things just right. Sometimes I hear people who only listen and play rock , say traditional blues is “simple, minor pentatonic, same chord progressions,” blah, blah,blah. Yet when they play it , they sound and play like crap.
 
Not surprising being you’re such a Tom Petty fan. Nothing wrong with it but you like simple music with simple tunes… that’s cool👍

I like Tom Petty because we were born in the same hospital - we're from the same place, so his lyrics resonate. I started listening to his music when Damn the Torpedoes was released. I'm also a big fan of the entire Allman Brothers musical tree (see above post by @RUGuitarMan). Fundamentally, I'm a blues guy.

If you can listen to all the guitar work by the great blues guitarists and call it "simple" then you've pretty much outed yourself completely as someone who really doesn't know what you're talking about.
 
I leave my guitar tuned to Drop D (DADGBe) . If you assume EADGBe as "standard" tuning, any tuning where strings are tuned lower is "down tuned". Drop D makes playing power chords on the low strings easier.

Most modern metal bands play in even lower tunes...Drop A being common for the heaviest bands.


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Great post. I’ll add that a lot of early Delta blues and Chicago blues guys (e.g.,Robert Johnson) used open A, open E, open D. And G, and other alternate tunings very frequently, and often tuned down 1/2 step. Many rock and blues,riffs stemmed from these roots.
 
I like Tom Petty because we were born in the same hospital - we're from the same place, so his lyrics resonate. I started listening to his music when Damn the Torpedoes was released. I'm also a big fan of the entire Allman Brothers musical tree (see above post by @RUGuitarMan). Fundamentally, I'm a blues guy.

If you can listen all all the guitar work by the great blues guitarists and call it "simple" then you've pretty much outed yourself completely as someone who really doesn't know what you're talking about.
Like I said before, happy to stop by your tailgate with my acoustic, bring a 12 pack from a fantastic local brewery near me for you all, and play both one after the other quickly showing the subtle differences… I’ll do it for Polly as well👍
 
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