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Anatomy of a Hit

Anatomy of a Hit
Hit song analysis
View all Anatomy of a Hit Articles

Coming Soon:
Beyonce—Irreplaceable
Corrine Bailey Rae—Put Your Records On
KT Tunstall—Suddenly I See

Nelly Furtado–Promiscuous
Ne-Yo—So Sick
James Blunt—You're Beautiful
Rascal Flatts–What Hurts The Most
Eminem—Lose Yourself

Norah Jones —Don't Know Why
Avril Lavigne —Complicated
Alan Jackson—Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning?

Pink—Get the Party Started
Craig David—Fill Me In
Alicia Keys—Fallin'
Train—Drops of Jupiter
Janet Jackson—All For You
Dido—Thank You
Sisqo—Incomplete
Macy Grey—I Try
Faith Hill—Breathe
Destiny's Child—Say My Name
Santana/Rob Thomas—Smooth
Ricky Martin—La Vida Loca

More Anatomy of a Hit Articles...

Classic Songcraft Articles
Reprints from Cat's columns in The Music Connection and LASS/NAS Musepaper

Outside vs. Inside Songwriting
Cat describes the change of opportunities in today's songwriting scene from Outside Songwriting for established artists to Inside Songwriting for original acts.

Grabbers and Shakers
Cat lists many of hue characteristics that make a pop song a hit song including what grabs a listener's attention and what keeps an audience involved all the way through to the end.

A Songwriter's New Year's Resolutions
Cat lists some goals and resolves we as songwriters can make to improve our writing and our careers for the coming year.

Other Classic Articles

The Hispanic Invasion
Today's pop scene has much in common with that of the mid-'60s. American pop music is being invaded by foreigners. Only this time the British aren't coming, it's the Hispanics.

1999: A Year of Retro and Recycling
Cat looks at the year 1999 in pop music and saw a return to recordings with older more melodic writing and more romantic dance styles including latin dance styles. Hot and sexy began to replace alienation and rebellion as the millennium turned.

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All For You
Title
Janet Jackson
  Artist
Album All For You

Buy this Album

All For You
 
J. Jackson, J. Harris III, T. Lewis, W. Garfield, M. Malavasi
  Songwriters
 
Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, Janet Jackson
  Producers
Play Song Excerpt Help with Real Audio
Concept
Sexy dance-oriented groove song.
Lyric

General party lyrics for good-time dancing and listening. No great literary statement is made here, just if want my body you can have it kinda words.

Groove
Heavy disco 70s feel a la "Chic" (Le Freak). A pulsing quarter-note kick drums sets up uptempo 8th and 16ths patterns above. A true hybrid groove in 70s dance tradition.
Melody

Hook after hook construction. Each section is alternated and repeated in "Hokey Pokey" style (do it to the left, do it to the right). Each following section is written with a contrasting melody and phrasing. The hook is is short and repetitive in contrast to the longer and repetitive verse pre-hooks and additional sections.

Harmony
Harmonically,the chords are diatonic minor seventh chords iv7 v7 and i7 repeated in a loop. They help to form an urban R&B sound especially when the melody hits 9th above them.
Structure
Signature Verse Prehook Chorus Verse Prehook Chorus Chorus Signature Chorus mixed Chorus and Signature
Signature
A cappella vocal intro gives the song a unique setiup.
Production
Expert groove work by Jam, Harris and Jackson make this recording a dance classic. The rhythmic sexy vocals keep the fun vibes going strong.
Predicted Longevity
It was number one for several weeks and will remain a part of the dance repertoire for a while. However, there is not much of a song here beyond the hooks. So I don't expect much of a long life here beyond the dance floor.

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