"Hit Me With Your Best Shot", “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”

I spent more time on this week’s song than in previous weeks for a couple of reasons. I pondered over which song would have a bassline as fun to watch as it is to listen to, and then it just hit me; at the end of Sunday’s Lady Lions basketball game, Pat Benatar’s “Hit Me With Your Best Shot” came on the stadium speakers and I couldn’t get it unstuck from my head since.

I love how this song attacks you from the first beat and doesn’t back off. The tough girl attitude gets in your face and presents itself in all aspects of this song. The guitar and bass play a verse that is just as catchy as the vocals and the guitar solo is quick, clean and to the point. The bassline is instantly noticeable and it stands out even when you aren’t listening for it (especially during the third verse, the one coming out of the solo) although it isn’t particularly difficult, it allows some room to improvise which is so much fun to do. I try my best to play the song as straightforwardly as I can for the video, but I did make some tweaks in what I was playing.

Speaking of recording, making the video was the second reason I spent so much time with “Hit Me With Your Best Shot”. Up until now I had been able to crank out a decent recording in one take, but the third verse kept eluding me, and I kept falling apart there because the song is pretty repetitive leading up to and following that portion of the song. However, the third (okay, perhaps it was the fourth or fifth) time was the charm and I got through it pretty successfully.

I used a tab by Gary Hricewich for the elusive third verse and the rest of the song I based off a tab by “lilwelshrocker” (both were found on Ultimate-Guitar.com). However, I added slides on my own, and I actually play two octaves of E for the root note simultaneously (basically I played a high E and a low E at the same time for the opening note) which I thought helped give it a fuller, more emphasized sound. Honestly, it was a blast, and a slight yet rewarding challenge to put together. No special effects this week; I tried to get HD video quality, but it wouldn’t fit into blogger!

 

Free Song Review

Nobody makes classic R&B anymore! I guess nobody told that to Charles Bradley, because his Discovery Download, “The World (Is Going Up In Flames)”, brings me back to Marvin Gaye and Al Green. He really pulls off what makes classic Rhythm & Blues so irresistible, he carries a raspy tone he even utilizes the essential female background singers. It almost reminds me of “Ball of Confusion” by the Temptations perhaps from the “world falling apart” message conveyed (Oh, and if you haven’t heard of Ball of Confusion, drop what you are doing right now and listen to it!). Anyway, if you love good classic R&B, it wouldn’t hurt to download this one, and if you don’t know a lot about R&B, then give it a try and take a listen to some “Earth, Wind & Fire” while you’re at it!