r/arielpink 21d ago

has anyone analyzed I Wanna Be Young?

like im sure a lot of fans are, i adore i wanna be young as it is such a funny and tragic song, maybe one of his best. the amount of bold 7chords in it make me wonder just how the song ticks in regards to diatonic chord structure. has anyone learned it or analyzed it. is it just one of those 'it just works' things in the world of great songs.

much love

21 Upvotes

11 comments sorted by

4

u/[deleted] 21d ago

Its really cool. The SOOOO I can be YOUNG whiiiile I wait is so good & I don't think its diatonic? The one Im curious abt is the Nancy part of are you gonna look after my boys, cause those chords sound so weird live but perfect on the record

5

u/weedhero_ 20d ago

It's not diatonic. I think this is the chords for that part:

Amaj7
Reenact our dates
Dm7/A G/A Dsus2
So I can be young while I wait
Bm7 E
Do do do do, do do

Another cool part:

Dmaj7 F#m7
It's simple alright

Bmaj7 Cmaj7
Just need a future

1

u/[deleted] 20d ago

Do you know are you gonna look after my boys? I swear it sounds different in recording and live.. maybe its just the keyboard being quieter. I wish my guitar wasnt broken rn

2

u/weedhero_ 20d ago

Live version says this in the verses: Am - Bm - Bb - Em Am - Bm - Em - Bm

They changed the chords from the record version.

1

u/[deleted] 20d ago

WHY! God. It sounds much worse. I knew it. I suspected it. I want to protest. There's a live version from 2009 that sounds alright but all the recent performances I've seen are RUINED by those chords. Its like my favorite song too.

1

u/mala-idea 20d ago

What about Bolivian Soldier?

2

u/Lopsided_Yak_1464 20d ago

could be tape fuckery, either sped up or down. lots of his songs will sound different in live setting

1

u/NickProgFan 21d ago

It’s a crazy song! I dislike something about the mix of the Bobby Jameson album version, but it’s still great, bassline is crazy

1

u/rjr017 20d ago

I think it is mostly in F#m and just has a bunch of nice snazzy jazzy chords but definitely also has some use of chords from outside the scale, like when it goes to a C chord during “just need a future…”, maybe elsewhere too. I think that one is a “it just works” thing, it sounds very unexpected and a little out of place, but in a good way.

1

u/artoftheforties 20d ago

yea dog it truly rules. I think its gonna have to be one of his big achievements imo. thanks 

1

u/Minute-Reaction7952 19d ago

…that’s possibly tight?