"I'll Go Crazy"

I listened to The Magnificent Moodies this evening, and then I figured out some of the piano in "I'll Go Crazy."  I also compared it to James Brown's original version.

The piano in the verses of the Moodies' version is something like:

In Brown's version, it's played on guitar, something like:

It starts an octave lower (and it's in a different key), but what I thought at least fairly interesting is that the Moodies change the relative position of the second series of triplets.  Compared to Brown's version, it's shifted down an octave.  This avoids playing the same note twice in succession when the second series of triplets goes back into the first (the last note of the second measure and the first note of the third).

"Lean on Me (Tonight)"

I listened to Keys of the Kingdom yester-day and noticed a couple small things about "Lean on Me (Tonight)," specifically about the lines "The Northern lights / The Southern Cross / I'll give to you."

Because "Northern" and "Southern" describe opposite ends, there's a sense of the range of things that the speaker/singer is willing to give.

"The Northern lights" is sung to the notes G A B A, and "The Southern Cross" to the notes F G A G, so even musically, north is above south.

"No More Lies"

I listened to Sur la mer this evening and noticed a small thing about "No More Lies," specifically about the first line:  "I need you like you need me."  There's a chiasm with the first and second person pronouns (I... you / you... me), so the structure mirrors the sentiment of reciprocity.