What Do You Call The Parts Of A Song?

Dr. Varney

Dr. Varney

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I know there are 'musical' terms to describe the parts of a song, such as intro, lead, hook, verse, chorus, etc. I can identify a verse and a chorus, but that's all.

In a typical pop/rock track, what are the different parts called and why?

Dr. V
 
Well I can't speak for pop or hip-hop much, but in rock/alternative I know the song structure is as follows (not in order):


Intro - first few measures, usually instrumental
Verse - usually comes directly after intro and repeats with different lyrics 1-3 times throughout the song
Pre-chorus - transitions the verse to the chorus, is usually only 2-8 measures
Chorus - the part of the song that repeats with the same lyrics 1-4 times throughout a song, can have the same chord progression as verse but with altered playing style OR could have a completely different chord progression
Bridge - generally comes after a chorus, doesn't repeat in any other place during the song, has different vocal melody and chord progression than any other part of the song
Outro - the ending of a song. Could be as simple as a fade-out on a repeated chorus
Post-chorus - transitions the chorus to the verse or bridge, is generally shorter than the pre-chorus, is rarely used as a part of a song
Solo - spot where the singer stops singing and, depending on the type of solo, the band may or may not stop playing while an instrument takes the "spotlight". If the band continues to play they will most likely be playing a loop of the chorus or verse chord progressions
 
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Chorus is the repeating part that contains the memorable lines (which are called the hook).

The bridge is another verse that is typically has a different melody and chord structure from the regular verses and chorus. The bridge is to tie it all together or show a twist in the story, or a different perspective. Usually, if the verses are in a major scale, the bridge might be in a minor scale to musically show that it's the counter-point of the song.

The outtro is just what is says, the end of the song.

Lead or lead solo is just that, the improv part usually played over the verse chord progression, but it could be different.
 
Just to confuse things different people mean different things when talking about 'the bridge', some people are talking about the 'pre-chorus' and some people are talking about the 'middle eight' which usually appears just after the second chorus, is often eight bars long and starts roughly in the middle of the song, as has been said is different to what has come previously and usually then leads into the 'Super Chorus' at the end of the song, or if there is a 'pre chorus' in that perticular song, into that first, then 'Super Chorus'

A bridge is a link between 2 sections of a song so they are both technically right.
 
You better stop that, grim. Lately folks have been getting their jockys in a real knot over humorus responses to their "serious" posts.:rolleyes:
 
You cannot dissect art...

as if it were a frog in third period Biology class:mad:

You may be a doc but we are creators of beauty!
 
grimtraveller said:
Perhaps. But you can certainly dissect the process by which the said art is created.
HR.com, anyone ?

I deny it. I wasn't even in the country at the time.
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GT is always serious... he's our resident existential philospopher...

My songs generally just have verses, then everything else is referred to as a "thing" or "bit". I often don't write recognisable choruses, or leave them as instrumental bits, so they're not really choruses as such, most of my bridges are instrumental (where I have them) and most of my intros are instrumental as well... so it all gets a bit confusing at rehearsal time... :laughings:

I get confused when other people refer to pre-choruses and middle 8s and all that ... I mean I know what they are... just have no particular use for the terminology... ;)
 
♫♪Tyson♫♪;3539693 said:
Oh you troll :rolleyes:

What does that have to do with anything???:spank:
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You are the one appearing the Troll.


You're the noob here..talking to some very helpful people with the wrong attitude and littering the OT forums with your empty comments.

Perhaps you should reconsider?
 
Let's take a look at a typical pop song and label the parts as they'd usually (IMO) be labeled:

Beatles: "I Wanna Hold Your Hand"

(Intro)
Chord move: C to D, played 3 times, holding out D on the final time

(Verse 1)
Oh yeah, I'll tell you something
I think you'll understand
When I say that something
I wanna hold your hand

(Chorus)
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand

(Verse 2)
Oh please, say to me
You'll let me be your man
And please, say to me
You'll let me hold your hand

(Chorus)
Oh let me hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand

(Bridge)
And when I touch you I feel happy inside
It's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide
I can't hide ... I can't hide

(Verse 3)
Yeah you got that something
I think you'll understand
When I say that something
I wanna hold your hand

(Chorus)
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand

(Bridge - again)
And when I touch you I feel happy inside
It's such a feeling that my love, I can't hide
I can't hide ... I can't hide

(Verse 4 - same as 3)
Yeah you got that something
I think you'll understand
When I say that something
I wanna hold your hand

(Chorus - outro)
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand
I wanna hold your hand


It's actually harder than you might think to find a song that's "typical" in every way. "I wanna hold your hand" doesn't have a pre-chorus, and it actually contains the bridge twice, which isn't very common. I suspect they did that because it would have been too short without it, and they repeated the 3rd verse as the 4th verse because it wouldn't work to go from the bridge straight into the chorus.

Here's another early Beatles tune that does have a pre-chorus: "She Loves You"

(Intro)
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
She loves you yeah yeah yeah yeah

(Verse 1)
You think you lost your love, well I saw her yesterday
It's you she's thinking of, and she told me what to say

(Pre-chorus)
She said she loves you, and you know that can't be bad
She loves you, and you know you should be glad

(Verse 2)
She said you hurt her so, she almost lost her mind
But now she said she knows, you're not the hurting kind

(Pre-chorus)
She said she loves you, and you know that can't be bad
She loves you, and you know you should be glad (oooh!)

(Chorus)
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
And with a love like that, you know you should be glad


(Verse 3)
You know it's up to you, I think it's only fair
Pride can hurt you too, apologize to her

(Pre-chorus)
Because she loves you, and you know that can't be bad
She loves you, and you know you should be glad (oooh!)

(Chorus)
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
She loves you yeah yeah yeah
And with a love like that, you know you should be glad

(Tag)
And with a love like that, you know you should be glad
And with a love like that, you know you should be glad

(Outro)
Yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

This tune has a pre-chorus that actually doesn't lead to the chorus the first time. Also, it doesn't have a bridge.
 
Armistice said:
My songs generally just have verses, then everything else is referred to as a "thing" or "bit". I often don't write recognisable choruses, or leave them as instrumental bits, so they're not really choruses as such, most of my bridges are instrumental (where I have them) and most of my intros are instrumental as well... so it all gets a bit confusing at rehearsal time... :laughings:

I get confused when other people refer to pre-choruses and middle 8s and all that ... I mean I know what they are... just have no particular use for the terminology... ;)
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Because I often do lengthy multi~part songs, the verses and choruses {if there actually are any} are quite easy for me to label, but it's the other parts that get frisky. I'll label things as 'interludes', 'runouts', 'first part of intro' and whatnot. As for my middle 8s, I haven't written many that are actually just 8 bars, or at least I don't think I have. I'll call any middle~ish bit a middle 8. Sometimes there'll be 2 middle 8s. I never count things like bars. I call them 'sequences' or 'rounds' or like you, 'bits'. For all I know, half my middle 8s could be 50 bars !
It gets even more confusing when I listen to Indian music. I love it, I've been listening to it for 30 years but I still have problems identifying where one sequence ends and the next begins.
 
A lot of times, bands have certain formulas that they like to stick. One of the best examples I can think of here is Nirvana. At least regarding their singles, they almost never had pre-choruses. The only example to this is possibly "Smells Like Teen Spirit," if you count the "hello, hello, hello, how low" bit as a pre-chorus. It has the same music as the verse, but the melody is different, and to me it does function as a pre-chorus. But almost all of their others---"In Bloom," "Lithium," "Heart-Shaped Box," "All Apologies," "Come as You Are," etc. are all straight verse into chorus (and many times a big chorus at that).
 
I'm convinced... next song I write will have both a pre-chorus and middle 8 (which may or may not be 8 bars.... with you on that one GT!).. :eek:
 
Hmm, A, B, A, B, A, B, C, B, B
Which isn't good because there aren't any vowels & a vowelless song sounds like an extrapolated strangulation (which is what my songs usually sound like so I guess I've just defined my songs & sound).
When would a pre chorus just be considered part of the chorus instead of a prelude to it?
I lied above, my last song was just A, B, ad infinitum - it was so because I couldn't see where I was going with it.
Now, about the bridge, where is that confounded bridge? When does a bridge (or modulation even) take on the role of middle eight? Is it ONLY when it's eight meaures? Can a middle eight be a middle 7 double plus?
I did write a song that was just A. I think it was in the TRANCE genre because it induced a deep sleep.
I was, obviously falsley, of the belief that a bridge was a transition passage to link two sections of a peice that were in different keys.
Definitions:
Intro - a brief section often previewing the chorus in order to set up a reasons for bothering with a verse
Verse - a section of song that treads water whilst waiting for the chorus to arrive to save it.
Chorus - the justification for a verse
Middle eight - a section where the lead guitarist proves that he can't actually play the melody but can fake a few modes around it and play some fast shred runs to justify sitting back and smoking while the rest of the band play non stop (except the singer who smokes while the lead guitarist his flailing away)
Outro - a chorus reprise that also is a reprise for the middle eight because the singer & guitarist couldn't agree on who was going to get the glory.
 
This looks like a job for Regular Expressions!

(intro)?(verse)?(verse(pre-chorus)?chorus)+(bridge|solo+)(chorus)?(verse)?(pre-chorus)?(chorus|outro)+

That oughta match ninety-some percent of your songs.
 
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...and then of course, there are many songs that don't follow the Verse/Chorus/Bridge structure. Like "Yesterday". Where's the chorus of that song? There isn't one, really.It's an AABA song. Many story-telling songs just have an A and a B part. "A Day in the Life" has no chorus, either. Lots of tunes are like that.
 
RAMI said:
...and then of course, there are many songs that don't follow the Verse/Chorus/Bridge structure. Like "Yesterday". Where's the chorus of that song? There isn't one, really.It's an AABA song. Many story-telling songs just have an A and a B part. "A Day in the Life" has no chorus, either. Lots of tunes are like that.
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Totally agree.
Funny thing, on "Yesterday", I always thought of the "Why she had to go, I don't know ~ she wouldn't say" bit as the chorus without consciously thinking 'this is the chorus'. But it doesn't feel like a chorus.
 
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