erikb wrote: Do you hear a gear change (not an artful change of key, but a gearchange) and think "Great! That song needed something, and that really fits the bill!"
No, I don't think that. But it does add a tiny bit of energy. Look I'm not saying it's a great thing or anything, I just don't know that it's egregious enough to warrant a big huge thing about it.
The Breeders Cannonball has no right being on that list; the bass hits a Bb (or something) at the beginning and then the song kicks in in B. That is most definitely not a Manilow modulation as JoS so eloquently put it.
REMs Stand, on the other hand seems to revel in it's Manilowness
...except in 'stand' the lyrics change after the keychange, instead of "stand in the place where you work/live" as earlier, it's now "stand in the place where you are" and the higher, brighter accompanying music seems to accentuate the new broader perspective given from here to the end of the song. it is not employed (in my opinion) for the purpose attributed to a "trucker gear change".
also, good point about 'cannonball', since i'm pretty sure the first couple notes would be written out as accidentals and certainly not an actual key-change in the first bar of the song. pbbtp .
.