Penn's Picks: Clapton Turns 70
This Penn’s Picks Playlist features 10 cuts that span the first two decades of Clapton’s career, which is arguably his greatest. From The Yardbirds to Mayall to Cream and beyond, we feature a combination of studio and live gems that showcase the extraordinary talents of…
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Q1 Hit Songwriting Trends
Our latest Hit Songs Deconstructed Trend report takes a look at the compositional characteristics that defined the 20 songs that charted within the Billboard Hot 100 top 10 during the first quarter of 2015, and how these characteristics have changed, or remained the same over…
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Hit Songs Deconstructed Music Charts – Month In Review: May 2015
After a first quarter in which Pop ruled, the month of May saw R&B/Soul take over as the top primary genre. Hip Hop/Rap was on the rise too, while Rock’s influence continued to be negligible. Choruses came early and love/relationships remained the dominant lyrical theme.
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Uptown Funk Deconstructed
Uptown Funk has been a global sensation for over four months. In this article we look at some of the core characteristics that helped to put it over the top, including it’s retro influences, MTI level fluctuations and an abundance of clever elements and WOW…
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Top 10 Deconstructed
Our Top 10 Deconstructed Report explores the what, how, and why behind all of the songs that land within the Hot 100 top 10 each quarter. This article spotlights a few of the many characteristics found within the report, including backing & “creative” vocals, payoffs,…
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MTI – Uptown Funk (Momentum/Tension/Intensity)
Taking the listener on a dynamic journey throughout a song is of paramount importance. See how this is put into effect with stellar results in this excerpt from our Uptown Funk Deconstructed report.
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Penn's Picks: B.B. King
Blues legend B.B. King passed away on Thursday at the age of 89. Known as “the king of the blues,” this guitarist’s guitarist, who possessed a voice equally powerful, brought the blues to the masses for seven decades and inspired many of today’s greats, including…
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Then & Now
A lot can happen in the course of a year, especially when it comes to hit songwriting. Some of the most notable shifts compared to this week last year include the shift in primary genre from Pop to R&B/Soul, the change in primary instrumentation from…
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Hit Songs Deconstructed Music Charts – Week of 5/23/15
This week, Retro remains atop the Sub-Genre/Influencer chart for the sixth week in a row, accounting for 60% of songs. Late 70’s and early 80’s influences are still by far the most popular. Amongst the category’s representatives are Love Me…
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