PG Music Home Forums General Discussion Woodshedding - Learning to Play! What are the best songs to learn to get various 'modal sounds' into your ears ?

...preferably, songs that people like !!!

Hi all - I'm working hard at paying my dues to learn to play modally - and while playing scales and chord harmonies are important - I'd like to ENJOY more of my practice time.

Can anyone recommend some tunes that stay reasonably "in mode" for the 7 various modes (excluding locrian - because it's so rarely uses from what I understand).

Also - some vamps for melodic minor, harmonic major, augmented, and diminished practice.

Thanks in advance,
Joe V.

A quick couple of easy ones.

G Harmonic Minor.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bn5TNqjuHiU

Dorian
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WzSayxVM_E0

I recall having seen a list of songs in written in the different modes, but I do not recall where. I'll try to find the source.

Edit:

Well I found it. Chris Smart on the Jazz Guitar list has put up a list with songs for all modes except locrian and asked the others.

Here is the list:

1. Ionian:

G Ionian: Cliffs of Dover - Eric Johnson
G Ionian: Jesu Joy of Man's Desiring - J.S. Bach
G Ionian: Brown-eyed Girl - Van Morison
E Ionian: Beast of Burden - The Rolling Stones
F Ionian: Call Me Al - Paul Simon
F Ionian: Free Falling - tom Petty
C Ionian: Down on the Corner - CCR
C Ionian: Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan
C Ionian: Let It Be - The Beatles
D Ionian: Goodbye to Romance - Ozzy Osbourne
D Ionian: Ode To Joy - Beethoven
B Ionian: Always With Me, Always With You - Joe Satriani

2. Dorian:

D and Eb Dorian: So What - Miles Davis (melody is in the bass line)
D Dorian: Another Brick IN the Wall part 2 - Pink Floyd
E Dorian Scarborough Fair - Simon and Garfunkel
E Dorian: A Horse with no name - America
E Dorian: Riders On the Storm - The Doors
E Dorian: Who Will Save Your Soul - Jewel
E Dorian: Eleanor Rigby - The Beatles
A Dorian: Fly Like an Eagle - the Steve Miller Band
F# Dorian: Godzilla - Blue Oyster Cult
G Dorian: Surfing With The Alien - Joe Satriani
Ab Dorian: Light My Fire - The Doors (solo section only!)

3. Phrygian:

A Phrygian: Mr. Man - Alicia Keys (melody also uses harmonic minor on the V chord)
C Bemsha Swing - Thelonious Monk
F# Phrygian: White Rabbit - Jefferson Airplane

added by sonomatips:
Keith Jarrett's tune 'Spiral Dance' fron his "Belonging" album is in phrygian mode.


4. Lydian:

Theme music from The Simpsons and the Jetsons
C lydian: Flying In A Blue Dream - Joe Satriani
G Lydian: Jane Says - Jane's Addiction
D Lydian: Hey Jealousy - the Gin Blossoms
D Lydian: Oceans - Pearl Jam
C Lydian E.T. Theme - John Williams
A Lydian: Here Comes My Girl - Tom Petty (intro and verses)
E Lydian: Hog Heaven - Frank Zappa

5. Mixolydian:

E Mixolydian: Norwegian Wood - The Beatles
E Mixolydian: Folsom Prison Blues - Johnny Cash
D Mixolydian: Bodysnatchers and Give UP the Ghost - Radiohead
E Mixolydian: NO Rain - Blind Melon
E Mixolydian: I'm So Glad - Cream
Ab Mixolydian: On Broadway - George Benson
A Mixolydian: Jessica - The Allman Brothers Band
G Mixolydian: Lowrider - War
D Mixolydian: Dear Prudence - The Beatles
D Mixolydian or G Ionian: Sweet Home Alabama - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Db Mixolydian: Sweet Child O' Mine - Guns 'n Roses (solo section in Eb Aeolian)
A Mixolydian: Dark Star and Fire ON the Mountain - The Grateful Dead
Eb Mixolydian: Here Comes Your Man - Pixies
* Scottish bagpipe music is sort of in Bb Mixolydian.

6. Aeolian:

A Aeolian: Black Orpheus - Luis Bonfa
A Aeolian: Rhiannon - Fleetwood Mac
A Aeolian: I Kissed a Girl - Katie Perry
A Aeolian: First Tube - Phish
A Aeolian: Losing My Religion - R.E.M.
B Aeolian: Building a Mystery - Sara McLachlan
C Aeolian: You Give Love a Bad Name - Bon Jovi
C Aeolian: Sweet Dreams" - the Eurythmics or Marilyn Manson
C Aeolian: Blue Bossa - Kenny Dorham (the bridge modulates up a semi-tone to Ionian)
C Aeolian: All Along the Watchtower - Jimi Hendrix
D Aeolian: Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits
D Aeolian: Black Magic Woman: Fleetwood Mac or Santana (ending section of the Santana version is in D mixolydian)
E Aeolian: Paranoid - Black Sabbath

7. Locrian (added by akmbirch)

British folk song artist, John Kirkpatrick, "Probably the only song in the revival repertoire written in the Locrian mode "Dust To Dust":
Available on Amazon (A nice collection!)
A Folk Song A Day: April
http://amzn.to/11qwHb5


Have fun practising.


Guido

Guido - this list is EXCELLENT - thanks so much for sharing !!! I know many of these songs - yet can't hear the modal aspects of any in my head. This will be a huge help for me.

I'm still not good hearing the properties of the different modes. But I practise with German children songs like "Alle meine Entchen". It is an easy meoldy using the first six notes of the major scale. See here: http://www.kinderliederbox.de/liederseiten/alle_meine_entchen/alle-meine-entchen.html

Now walk through the modes.
Ionian: C, D, E, F, G, G, A, A, A, G...
Dorian: D, E, F, G, A, A, B, B, B, A...
Phrygian: E, F, G, A, B...

You get the drift. For me listening to a song in mixolydian doesn't really help. Playing the same song in different modes helps a lot.

Guido

Hey - great suggestion again Guido....I think this is probably one of the least mastered areas that separates musicians. I know I've 'read' about it for years, but did not pay my dues. Now, at 48, I'm paying them...wish I did it earlier.

WOW thank you GNiNCH taking the time to type that listing.

Guido,

What is the Jazz Guitar List?

The 7 modes their Fretboard diagrams and chard suggestions
http://gosk.com/scales/major-scale-for-guitar.php

Understand Modes for Guitar 1 http://www.guitarnoise.com/lessons/understand-modes-for-guitar-part-1/

Understand Modes for Guitar 2 http://www.guitarnoise.com/lessons/understand-modes-for-guitar-part-2/

Understand Modes for Guitar 3
http://www.guitarnoise.com/lessons/understand-modes-for-guitar-part-3/

Understand Modes for Guitar 4 has song references
http://www.guitarnoise.com/lessons/understand-modes-for-guitar-part-4/