Hi folks. I have a query. I've noticed the single version, album version and 12' headbangers version are at slightly different pitch/key....not being a musician I'm unsure of the correct term. Has anyone else noticed this? Personally I prefer the single version as it is at a slightly higher pitch, or at least Freddie's vocals are. It's not possible to time the different versions due to the extension of the differing versions. Am I imagining this or can anyone spread any light on which version(s) play at the correct pitch? Thank you in advance.
I've always noticed Hammer to Fall is played a bit lower than in 'A'. This has always made it a bitch - or impossible without retuning - to play guitar along with it. I guess I've never tried using the single version. I'll give it a go and hope it's in the proper key.
They're all playing in the same pitch, however quite often some Queen songs (or even albums) have been found to play half a semitone faster. The human ear doesn't notice the change in pitch, but it makes it a bitch so play or sing along, because you'll be off-key. It does give songs a better kick so to say, gained from the speed.
I'm not familiar with the case of Hammer To Fall though.
Nitroboy wrote:
They're all playing in the same pitch, however quite often some Queen songs (or even albums) have been found to play half a semitone faster. The human ear doesn't notice the change in pitch, but it makes it a bitch so play or sing along, because you'll be off-key. It does give songs a better kick so to say, gained from the speed.
I'm not familiar with the case of Hammer To Fall though.
Speak for your own ears Sir, a semitone to some is VERY noticeable. I dare anyone to consistently sing along with Hammer To Fall (or any other song for that matter) at a semitone higher. Playing along on guitar is a different matter altogether of course.
Nitroboy wrote:
If you read what I wrote, I wrote HALF a semitone ;)
True. Still quite noticeable to trained or gifted ears. Half a semitone is still more, much more, of a difference than the difference between, say, equal temperament and just temperament, a difference that most people, even untrained people with average pitch ability, will hear.
The trouble with an entire album running half a semitone up or down is that you have no reference material. You might notice something odd early on, but quickly, you adjust to it, because all notes shift by the same amount. If, on the other hand, you'd put two tracks side-by-side with half a semitone pitch difference, I'm fairly sure most people by far would hear it.
Hammer to fall 7" and 12" are not different pitches. I bought them on vinyl when they came out in 1984.
I think you have perhaps downloaded them and that is why the pitches are different, one obviously a bad source.
If the two versions would have been different pitches in '84, then one of them would have been at right pitch and the other one not, (obviously) which would mean the speeds would be different. There was no way, back in those days to time stretch a piece of audio thus keeping the origional pitch. Now you can time stretch a song to virtually anything. But not then.
Also, half a semitone, is noticeable, very noticeable.
I have The Works album version on cd, The box of Tricks 12' version cd and Classic Queen single version on cd. All of the cds are original and not downloaded. There's a very noticeable change in Freddie's pitch between the single version on Classic Queen to the album and 12 version. I wanted to make a hybrid version of the single version and the 12 version but couldn't match the two together due to the change in pitch. Could do with protools that Brian uses, lol.
Brian wouldn't have a clue how to use pro tools.
But I do have a solution for you. The problem will be with the USA album, which I never bought. I am a musician too and use all the latest stuff that is out there. I even corrected the single bum piano note Freddie played in DSMN, that was using a programme called Melodyne Editor. But it won't work for this idea of yours.
Go to Izotopes website and download RX3. It is fantastic and available as a stand alone version. It's for clearing up and repairing bad audio. You can download it for free as it is on a 10 day trial demo. But it is the fully functional version. There is a time and pitch plug in, in it. That will fix it. I have used it to create a backing track somebody did for me to sing, which I thought was too slow. I used that to speed it up by 20BPM, which sounded fantastic when it was done. I was also amazed that it worked too.
If you struggle with it, it is difficult, but that part of it isn't especially with it being so minute, I will do it for you, or upload it somewhere for you.
thomasquinn 32989 wrote:
Wait....you dug up a topic that has been dead for over five and a half years, just to indirectly praise yourself for your musical hearing?
Haha.
AOBTD is the most egregious example of sped/pitched. It's mixed down slightly sharp.
Old topic or not. I wish there were confirmation from producers about things like that.
No-One But You is at halfway between C and C# (although, just for the record, had been originally written in G). Brian himself mentioned back in the day that it was made in purpose. He said that it sounded right that way.