Members GAS Man Posted November 20, 2010 Members Share Posted November 20, 2010 I was watching VH2 the other night while wasting time on der PC here, and they had a show on about "One Hit Wonders". It was a pretty enjoyable show. It featured this little beauty from the late 80s (1989) Martika singing her biggest hit "Toy Soldier". Apparently they were marketing her along the lines of a "Madonna" Any case, love the song, wanted to strum along found some tab, but I can't get the fourth chord (Bbm) to work at any point in this song, yet I'm having a hard time finding one that works for me. I figured some of the more talented "play by ear" folks here might be able to resolve this one and others can have fun with a bit of 80s pop nostalgia and a beautiful face as well. [YOUTUBE]LvdLovAaYzM[/YOUTUBE] Here's the troubling chord tab http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/tabs/m/martika/toy_soldiers_crd.htm Let me know if what you think about that Bbm. (or maybe it's within that chord but there's some notes to avoid?) A bit of Trivia Martika , born 1969 "Marta Marrero", in Whittier, California, entered mainstream show business in an uncredited role as one of the orphan girls in the 1982 motion picture Annie. This led to her being cast as Gloria on the long-running kids show Kids Incorporated as one of a group of neighborhood kids who rise to local fame by singing staged productions at a corner malt shop. (Wiki) She also later collaborated with Prince on another single.Interestingly, as the VH2 show mentioned, on "Kids Incorporated" one of her costars was a young Jennifer Love Hewitt (born 79) who sings in the backup vocals on Toy Soldier Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Posted November 21, 2010 Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Wow, a long time since I heard that song - I didn't remember it being that strong. Hmmm... I think the progression is about right but I like Bbm7 a little bit more there - seems like it transitions to the Amaj7 a little smoother. I actually dig that change - more complexity than you see in so much mainstream pop today... Not really a fan but that was cool - thanks for posting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Posted November 21, 2010 Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Oh yeah, and it might be obvious but I like the verses in barre chords (5th fret A, 9th fret C#m) and the chorus at 1st position E and open Amaj7, etc. Oh, and a little slide from the Amaj7 up to an open Bmaj7 instead of B on the way to 4th fret C#m7. Love the late 80;s production. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted November 21, 2010 Author Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Oh yeah, and it might be obvious but I like the verses in barre chords (5th fret A, 9th fret C#m) and the chorus at 1st position E and open Amaj7, etc. Oh, and a little slide from the Amaj7 up to an open Bmaj7 instead of B on the way to 4th fret C#m7. Love the late 80;s production. Thanks. I was finding that sometimes I was making the Bbm come close to working and that must have been when I was avoiding the G string, because that does seem to work much better as a 7th chord. I played a bit with the Bmaj7 and I think you're on to something there too. Thanks again I know I'll burn out quickly on this song, but I'm going through a little :love: phase with it right now. I love the sound of the song and Martika is not only a beauty to look at (at the tender age of barely 20), but the force she puts into it is also compelling. The song is an anti-drug song for those passing through. Dude tried to string out the little Catholic girl. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted November 21, 2010 Author Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Part of what is fun for playing this song is to be able to strum those big long sustaining guitar chords that transition into other singular chord strums. Kinda like an exercise in minimalism, but yet, as you said, it's got some really cool chord changes in it. But I'm also working on an arpeggio version. The mood of that song reminds me a bit of these two songs [YOUTUBE]VXheubQtmJs[/YOUTUBE] [YOUTUBE]t_xqI8NSlkA[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Presto1202 Posted November 21, 2010 Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Whoa. This song hasn't even come to mind since 8th grade. lol Memories... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members GAS Man Posted November 21, 2010 Author Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Whoa. This song hasn't even come to mind since 8th grade. lol Memories... Yeah, well I'm afraid I would have been more like 1 year before my first marriage broke up at 32 , but time zipping by can always mess with your head at any point in time. To think that young beauty in that vid would now be 41. But I'm sure she's still babe. I did check into some of her other music though and found that this was the only one I could listen through. The rest were just too pop or not original enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Preacher Posted November 21, 2010 Members Share Posted November 21, 2010 Wow, that Madonna track (and the Carly Simon) sure are a nostalgic trip back to the mid-80's... I'm sure part of it is nostalgia and these songs are not the foremost examples but there's something I find fascinating in the progressions and melodies that seem like they could only exist in that specific era. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.