The Parts of a Song and What They Mean To a Drummer

Every drummer eventually hears the joke about how many people in a band: 3 musicians and a drummer.  Or how to confuse a drummer: Put a sheet of music in front of them.  Our goal as drummers should be to play as musically as possible so we can laugh at these jokes knowing that we are skilled in our craft and are on the same musical level as other musicians. One of the ways for a drummer to play musically is knowing a song’s structure and adjusting your drum beats for each part of a song. We’re following a plan to play drums in 4 weeks and this is Lesson 7 of 12.  See the complete Plan by clicking here.

Most popular songs these days (and in the past) have a basic structure that is very similar. Even though songs are played with very different styles (such as, indie, hip-hop, emo and rap), the structures of the songs are essentially the same.

The basic parts to a song are:

1. Intro:  This is the first part of a song and acts as an introduction for the rest of the tune.  This song part is usually played with instruments only (that is, no singing).
2. Verse: This is usually the first time you hear vocals (someone singing).  The verse tends to tell a story leading up to the chorus.  There are typically at least two verses in a song with each verse having different words but the same musical structure.
3. Pre-Chorus: Not all songs have a pre-chorus.  It is an extension of the verse and is used as a transition to build between the verse and the chorus.  A pre-chorus is very similar to a verse: the words will be different but the musical structure will be the same for each pre-chorus.
4. Chorus: This is the part of a song that we tend to hum.  It is also called the “hook” because it is what hooks us, like a fish, into enjoying the melody and words of a song.  The chorus usually has the same words and music structure and is repeated after every verse or pre-chorus.
5. Bridge: Not all songs have a bridge.  It is usually played only once and acts as a bridge between a chorus and the next verse.  The musical structure of the bridge is different than the verse, pre-chorus and chorus.
6. Solo: This is the part of the song that features an instrument (like a guitar or saxophone) soloing over the music.  Not all songs have a solo.  The musical structure of the solo can be the same as the verse, pre-chorus, chorus or bridge.
7. Coda (pronounced “code–uh”, rhymes with “Yoda” from Star Wars) or Outro: This is the end of the song.  Often times it is the same as the chorus and gets repeated over and over while the music builds or fades.  You’ll learn more about codas when you start to read music.

A typical song structure is Intro-Verse-Chorus-Intro-Verse-Chorus-Bridge-Chorus-Outro. There are many other variations but this is the most common. A song writer is always trying to create tension and release combinations so it makes sense for the verse (usually softer) to create tension that gets released by the loud, melodic chorus.

Let’s break down the song “Free Fallin’ by Tom Petty” (time references are in parentheses):

1. Intro (The beginning until 0:15 – 15 seconds into the song):  Guitar only.  If you count on each beat and count to 4 repeatedly from the beginning, you’ll find that there are 4 measures (4 times of counting to 4) in the intro.  See “Your First Drum Beat (No Drums Required)” for a refresher on how to count a song.
2. 1^st Verse (0:15 – 0:37):  Starts with the words “She’s a good girl.”  The word “good” lands on the first beat of the verse.  Lasts for 8 measures (or “bars”) until the drums come in.
3. 2^nd Intro (0:37 – 0:43):  2 bars (or measures) long.
4. 2^nd Verse (0:43 – 1:06):  Starts with the words “And it’s a long day.”  The word “long” lands on the first beat of the 2^nd verse.  Lasts for 8 bars.
5. 1^st Chorus (1:06 – 1:29): Starts with the words “Now I’m free, free fallin’.”  The first “free” lands on the first beat of the 1^st chorus.  The chorus lasts for 8 bars.
6. 3^rd Verse (1:29 – 1:51): The song goes immediately from the 1^st chorus into the 3^rd verse (no intro in between). Starts with the words “Now all the vampires.”  The syllable “vam” lands on the first beat of the 3^rd verse.  The verse is 8 bars long.
7. 2^nd Chorus (1:51 – 2:14):  Same musical structure and words as the first chorus.
8. 1^st Bridge (2:14 – 2:37): This part of the song transitions between the 2^nd chorus and the 4^th verse.  8 bars long.
9.  4^th Verse (2:37 – 3:00): Starts with the words “I wanna glide down.”  The word “glide” lands on the first beat of the 4^th verse.  Lasts for 8 bars.
10. 3^rd Chorus (3:00 – 3:23):  Same musical structure and words as the first and second choruses.
11. Solo (3:23 – 3:34):  This could also be considered a 2^nd bridge section because the guitar is playing a simple riff (a guitar picking pattern) and not playing a screaming solo.  It lasts 4 bars.
12. 4^th Chorus (3:34 – 3:45): This chorus is half the length of the other choruses; 4 bars.  It’s interesting to note that the combination of the Solo and the 4^th chorus would form a complete chorus structure (8 bars).
13. Outro (3:45 – end): The chorus musical structure is repeated and the song fades.

Now try breaking down your favorite song into separate parts and note the number of measures in each section.  Make sure you know where the intro ends and the verse starts.  Where does the verse end and the chorus begin?

As you’re listening to your favorite song, notice what the drummer plays during each song part.  Great drummers will play different beats at different volumes during each section, such as, playing one beat at a softer volume during all the verses but a different, louder beat during all the choruses.  This makes the song sound more interesting to fellow band members and to listeners as well.  As you learn to play songs, think about how you can change your volume and drum beats for each part of a song.  You’ll be playing more “musical” and you won’t have to listen to those bad drummer jokes anymore!