So I'm explaining to Cathy 3/8 3/8 2/8 = 4/4 and...

[Hawk]

Actually we were listening to an oldies station and the song, "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)" by Three Dog Night.

And this guitar (or electric piano) was playing one note on beat one of a constant 3/8 time signature over a 4/4 time signature.

So I'm telling her, "Listen to that, he's in 3/8, just listen to that part" as I play in sync with it. AND SHE LAUGHS LIKE HELL. Like, "I don't care". I say, "that's my life as a drummer, to feel that mixed time signature". She says, "I don't know what you're talking about. I can't believe we're even having this conversation", followed by more .

I tried to further explain that George Harrison used this formula a lot. 3/8 3/8 3/8 3/8 2/8 2/8 equals two bars of 4/4. That ended our time signature conversation as she couldn't stop .

So in my quest for understanding, has anyone ever noticed in the studio version "Mama Told Me Not To Come" has anyone ever noticed this peculier 3/8 rhythm in the verse ?

[nakedtwister]

I'm sure Tim will try and explain it at practice.

[PStl]

nice!
but I think it's all 3's, during the verse.
At first I thought I would have to defer to my southern rock brothers, this is a staple of the southern rock gtr solo (often in harmony) but I do think that the unison riff (5:50)in Styx- Rockin' The Paradise, fits.
start at 5:26 at the gtr solo.
Not as funky a feel at the faster tempo.

[mjb]

thats funny bill cuz i can picture that conversation with cathy in your car

my wife is the same way, i'll be like " oh man, did you hear that?! rewind it so she can, knowing that she could care less! but, i do it anyway.it's like you get goosebumps and the hair is standing up on the back of your neck, and they feel nothing. poor them!

[DirtySanchez]

! rewind it

[slackin@dabass]

yea... it's like when your a bassist and you hear an awsome bass lick and ask anyone else if they heard it, and of course they say no, cause no one ever hears the bassline.


i do, however, also feel the same things hawk was saying about... and usually, if i'm talking to my old lady, she could give a shit less. it can be frustrating, though, i know what you mean, hawk, i really do!

[PStl]

So in my quest for understanding, has anyone ever noticed in the studio version "Mama Told Me Not To Come" has anyone ever noticed this peculier 3/8 rhythm in the verse ?

I never figured it out until today, and sorry about reading more into your question than what was there.
What a great song, and the spoken part during the verse even makes the beat even more ambiguous.

[FrigoRecording]

It's times like these that I feel very fortunate that both my wife and I are recording engineers. We can completely relate on any musical topics! It doesn't mean we always agree, but at least we're speaking the same language and understand each other, and appreciate one another's points of view!

And we do listen to bass lines!

[orangekick]

Anyone around me knows that I'm always picking music apart. It gets to the point where it probably doesn't even seem like I enjoy music anymore, but that's just where the fun starts. I find that throwing 3's over 4's can be awesome. It can be used to move a song along or make it feel like it's heading towards collapse.

[RobTheDrummer]

We do 3 over 4 in a few of our songs. It just creates a nice groove.