Magical Music Moments
I’m just moving this parlour game over from the Inheritance Tracks post to its own space here.
The Game:
You have to pinpoint a transcendent moment in a track which constitutes a magical music moment. Provide URL of track in YouTube or similar and pinpoint the precise second the magic happens.
Moment #1 (Adam Gee)
This first one is based on a performance at the Royal Dublin Showgrounds – an uplifting moment when I realised Springsteen is at his best as a gospel/soul voice and got carried away on it.
My City of Ruins (Bruce Springsteen)
The moment is 4:07 but is indivisible from the build up 3:03-4:06
“With these hands With these hands With these hands With these hands”
Moment #2 (Adam Gee)
The second one is a massive cliche but no less powerful for that – it is one of The Great Rock Moments
Stairway To Heaven (Led Zeppelin)
4:18 at which point every fibre of you so needs those drums to come in (to deliver fully at 06:22 and 06:42)
Moment #3 (Doug Miller)
One of the great live jazz albums is ‘Live at Peps’ by Yusef Lateef (Vols 1 and 2 are both great). The track is called ‘Number 7′. It’s got a great feel to it. You can hear the chat in the audience and the drinks being served behind the bar. Everything a great jazz club should be. There are two great changes – the first at 6.49 when a trumpet catches you unawares. The second a few seconds later when the piano comes in at the perfect moment and plays the blues. The audience responds and it’s recorded so well that you imagine yourself as an audience member. Yusef is now 92 and still playing. His album ‘Eastern Sounds’ is one of the great jazz albums – one of my top 10. But that’s another game.
More to follow…
Simple Pleasures part 4 
The moment I add is from Little Girl Blue by Nina Simone. It happens at 0.49 where the piano introduction ends and the vocal starts. Beautiful and, for me, literally breathtaking – it always causes me to gasp. http://youtu.be/LGSGCmuJuKA
Another magical moment is from Springsteen’s fabulous love song “Drive All Night” from the album The River. It happens at 6.05. ”
heart and soul” – wow – a tingle down the spine moment. http://youtu.be/ElVcxC89lqk
Brian – can you pass the baton on?
1’50 into this is certainly transcendent for me:
@TLH Darn, they really were good – that bit sets up the re-entry of John Bonham at 2:08 to be quite something
@CB (Nina S) – will remember that one for the festive season, cool choon. where the voice first comes in in a song strikes me as a bit more obvious than some moments that really take you.
@CB (Bruce) – now that one is really hitting the spot – as you say, a spine-tingler. interesting how it has in common with My City of Ruins the repetition and building dynamic. class one.
This is mine:
Melodic shift at 2min 20sec: sounds like being submerged underwater, and then emerging to gasp for air.
ET
Welcome aboard Emira. Good choice – outside the usual listening of most of us on here so a good call all round!
Another choice. I love the guitar tone at 0’51. Randy California at his best.
My final choice. A deeply personal one this from a great 70’s prog band. The transcendent moment comes in at 4’47. But 1’07 is great too.
Great track – pity about the rancid video!
@Emira Good one – someone must have tied up the guitarist at 2.20 Some of the examples above are created by an instrument coming in (eg Stairway) but yours is a neat case of one dropping out
The video is terrible isn’t it! It’s a great album – as are some of their others. ‘Floating World’ particularly. I remember ‘floating’ to it in my younger days…
@TLH it’s a lovely tone but whether it constitues a Magical Moment I’d say is still up for debate – an instrument coming in for the first time so early in a track is pretty par for the course, however sweet it sounds
@TLH not convinced by the tune at 4’47” but the wheelie is magnificent 😉 perhaps what I’m missing here is a major intake of ganja
That may also be my problem!
Arkangel – it’s a transcendent moment for sure. Listen again. A new level (apparently 50 overdubbed guitars). But you’re not a prog man I’ll wager.
Sorry TLH, I’m with Archangel and I am a bit of a prog man!
You’re all hitting my musical amygdala here! @catB – are you saying it’s a great track but not a transcendent moment? Anyway @arkangel – I would like to play a new game soon. Musicians for which you have a complete blind spot. My nominations – Bruce Springsteen, Otis Redding, Joni Mitchell and Laura Nyro. (threw Bruce in because I know you and @catB like him.
Great track. No moment! Will consider my blind spots, of which there are several including Eric Clapton and Van Morrison (you already know this TLH) More shockers to come! However am still considering additions to transcendent moments – that should continue.
OK, folks, Magical Moments stays here and let’s carry on passing on the baton. I’ll set up a new thread/post for Blind Spots.
@TLH I think you’re reading stuff into the Jade Warrior track because you know how it was made. That’s an easy thing to do and could easily constitute self-deception.
[…] is a spin-off music game/chat from Magical Music Moments picking up on Doug Miller’s idea (did I mention his new book is available from Amazon and […]
OK, here’s the new spin-off thread for Musical Blind Spots https://aarkangel.wordpress.com/2012/12/04/musical-blind-spots/
This is a superb piece of music. In fact it’s two superb pieces of music. And 1’22 is transcendent. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6-a_5JdyLhg
That’s quite a transition. I know this song via George Benson of all people, didn’t realise where it came from. I saw Leon Russell live last year in a small venue in Westbourne Grove at a recording for BBC4’s Songwriters’ Circle. I met him briefly afterwards in Khan’s restaurant with Paul Brady. That’s a great series and that was a really good episode.
4:12
goes deep into his blues
[…] Magical Musical Moments […]