"Whenever You're Ready"

Backdated, archival post

[link to original on tumblr]

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I knew that I'd learned some of the guitar part in "Whenever You're Ready," and last night I refreshed what I know of it (actually learning more than what my last - and only!? - recorded version contains), and then - thanks to The Zombies Greatest Hits published by the Alfred Company - I learned the chords too.  I changed some of what they have (I don't think the F or Bb are major 7ths), but it was immensely helpful.

I'm still struck by how it ends on a C major 7th.  I think the song is mostly in C major, so ending on a C major 7th doesn't provide a sense of resolution, which provides the same sense of waiting expressed in the lyrics - "call me when you're ready / Whenever you're ready."

I also learned the introductory electric piano phrase.

I'd noticed the chromatic phrase in this before (A, Ab, G), but after learning the chords, I discovered that there's actually a Bb major before that part, so there's a chromatic phrase from Bb to G.  That Bb is also in a bass, but it's in a different octave than the A, Ab, G phrase.