Songs that use the Mixolydian mode

Mixolydian is probably the most commonly used mode beyond Aeolian and, of course, Ionian (the major scale itself!) Mixolydian's unique blend of major and minor gives it a mellow yet powerful sound that is ideal for pop and rock music.

And, an extra special thanks goes to Vidad Flowers, Ivan Pang, Waylon Fairbanks, Jon Dye, Austin Russell, Christopher Ryan, Toot & Paul Peijzel, the channel’s Patreon saints! 😇

0:00 Introduction
0:26 "Clock" by Coldplay
1:06 "Bitter Sweet Symphony" by The Verve
1:42 "Royal" by Lorde
2:19 "Sweet Child O' Mine" by Guns 'n' Roses
3:09 Mixolydian is less directional
4:33 I - bVII - IV - I
6:43 "Cars" by Gary Numan
7:36 Mixolydian is a mode
8:26 "All Blues" by Miles Davis
9:08 "All Night Long" by Lionel Richie
10:40 "Norwegian Wood" by The Beatles
11:21 "Burn The Witch" by Radiohead
12:35 100% Mixolydian piano outro

[vanlopes]

- Beatles example ✅
- Radiohead example ✅
- "What would it sound in a different mode, like major" example ✅

[MashupKing]

Me in science class: The mixolydian is the powerhouse of the scale

[jacksondavies]

Bitter sweet symphony in major is something I wish I could unhear

[sleepyjean]

Changing the scale to major like you do with a couple of these examples really helps untrained ears like mine “hear” the mixolydian sound! You always do a fantastic job making these videos accessible to casual listeners.

[linceed]

The ending of hey Jude is the best use of myxolidian I have ever heard, that chat quality at its best

[pelman]

Mixolydian seems to be the go-to mode for the old storytelling songs of the 1970s. Gordon Lightfoot's "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald", and Harry Chapin's "Taxi" and "Cats in the Cradle" all use the Mixolydian mode's missing Giant Magnet That Pulls You To The Root - because the story isn't finished yet when they land on the root. I describe it as flying an airplane with the landing gear stuck in the Up position. The song wants to keep going and going because the VII chord is major instead of diminished. So the end of each musical phrase sounds like it's ending with a comma instead of a period and the listener wants it to just keep going - else it would be incomplete. I think that "soft ending" we get with the flat 7th note is why rock music played on the radio tends to loop endlessly and eventually fade out instead of getting to a strong ending chord/note.

[oliverlp]

I never knew the midochlorian scale could be so interesting

[Reliquancy]

He went too far into this without mentioning Radiohead. I was worried.

[ArielHarto]

Here, in Brazil, we have a musical genre called "Baião" and "Forró", from the northeast part of the country. There is a lot of music in Mixolydian. Also, there is a scale called "escala nordestina", that is almost equal, but can have it differences. It's incredible how many cultures can use the same ideia, but for different styles. Abraços!

(Sorry for writing any english mistake. I'm not used to write in english haha)

[alexkail]

I’ve always wondered why Sweet Child of Mine was in D when it had chords from G major, when in reality it’s in D Mixolydian. It seems like some sort of magic to me as to why it sounded so good. This video has just unlocked the mystery in my mind with modes. For that, I must give you a huge thanks!!!

[OnTheShouldersofScience]

Because the bagpipes only have one scale of notes to play, most bagpipe songs are in Bb mixolydian. It's a long way to the top (if you want to rock 'n' roll) famously has the bagpipes, and no surprise, the song is in Bb mixolydian.

By the way, the notes on a bagpipe from lowest to highest are G, A, B, C#, D, E, F#, G, A. But to complicate things, over the years, what 'A' means to bagpipers has slowly raised in pitch, meaning that what a bagpiper calls A is actually closer to a Bb. So a classical musician would refer to the notes on the bagpipes as Ab, Bb, C, D, Eb, F, G, Ab, Bb. And Bb (what bagpipers call A) is usually the root note of the melody being played, making it Bb mixolydian. The drones on a bagpipe (the 3 long tube things sticking out of the bagpipes) actually continuously drone a Bb note (again, what bagpipers call A) which is why most songs conform to having a Bb root. But if Eb is the root note (what we bagpipers call D), such as in Amazing Grace, then the song is in Eb major.

[davidcantwell]

Why do I listen to most all your videos when 75% of what your talking about goes right over my head, because every now and then I hear something I can actually wrap my brain around and say "well I'll be damned." Thank you, from a lover of most all genre's of music.

[peach_total]

it seems like you’re using more examples and “what it would sound like if it were which i really appreciate

[Toto.Reyes]

A David Bennet video is never truly complete unless it has a Beatles and Radiohead example of whatever he is explaining

[AimeeNolte]

Great video David! Hearing that “Cars” clip with the raised 7th made me want to run out of the room screaming.

[MVboys]

- Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin" is in E mixolydian and "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" is in B mixolydian.
- Lady Gaga's "Born This Way" is in F# mixolydian.
- Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Sweet Home Alabama" is in D mixolydian.

[lysanderskyj]

E Major Sweet Symphony is the most cursed sound my brain has ever eaten

[badusername]

I’ve really been loving the kind of end credits music you play at the end, it’s a really nice and unique touch to your videos

[JemmyGrove]

This is the best treatment of modes and modal scales I've seen on youtube. As a music theory teacher I'm constantly looking for useful examples and helpful tools, and David covers it incredibly well. Highest recommendations.

[FernandoGabriele]

I think David Bennett is the best music theory teacher in YouTube. I love the way he describes the mood and tensions of each mode - it's like "seeing" music, not only hearing it. I wish I had access to those videos 45 years ago, when I started playing the guitar using chord charts from magazines... Being 55 years old now, and until recently totally unaware of scales and modes, the learning path seems overwhelming, but David has surely flattened the curve for me.