What I Got Wrong About Sweet Child O' Mine

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Last week I started on a quest to correct the mistakes of my early analysis videos, and this week I figured I'd continue that with a look at the next couple songs in the series, starting with Guns N' Roses' Sweet Child O' Mine. Honestly, it wasn't a bad analysis, but there's definitely some things I missed then that I can see now with my more mature theorist eyes. Plus, since we're talking about Sweet Child anyway, I share the full story of the hilariously fraudulent copyright claim this video got. Trust me, it's good.
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Last: • What I Got Wrong About...
Original Sweet Child video: • Sweet Child O' Mine An...
Original Blackbird video: • Blackbird Singing In T...
Original Somewhere video: • Somewhere A Place For Us
Sideways West Side Story video: • Why West Side Story is...
Script: docs.google.com/document/d/17...
Huge thanks to our Elephant of the Month Club members:
Susan Jones
Jill Jones
Duck
Ron Jones
Howard Levine
Brian Etheredge
Gabi Ghita
Khristofor Saraga
Elaine Pratt
Ken Arnold
Len Lanphar
Paul Ward
Benjamin DeLillo
Love2Learn
Mitchell Fund
William (Bill) Boston
Owen Campbell-Moore
Anton Smyk
Chris Prentice
Jack Carlson
Dov Zazkis
James Treacy Bagshaw
Christopher Lucas
Hendrik Payer
Andrew Beals
Thomas Morley
Jacob Helwig
Duncan Dempsey
Patrick James Morley
Tyler Leite
Cattus_ex_Machina
David Rapoport
Braum Meakes
Derek Parnell
And thanks as well to Corvi, Henry Reich, Gene Lushtak, Eugene Bulkin, Logan Jones, Abram Thiessen, Anna Work, Oliver, Jc Bq, Adam Neely, nico, Michael Fieseler, Rick Lees, Ben LaRose, Justin Donnell, Dave Mayer, Thomás, rhandhom1, Davis Sprague, Paul Quine, Alex, Harold Gonzales, CodenaCrow, Nikolay Semyonov, Arnas, Sarah Spath, Skylar J Eckdahl, Marc Himmelberger, Chris Borland, Caroline Simpson, Daniel Gilchrist, Michael Alan Dorman, billy roberts, Elliot Burke, Alex Atanasyan, Alex Knauth, Greg Borenstein, Tim S., David Tocknell, Elias Simon, Nathan Petchell, Blake Boyd, Trevor, Michael McCormick, Lilith Dawn, Dmitry Jemerov, Ian Seymour, Charles Gaskell, Luke Rihn, Rob Holton, Elliot Jay O'Neill, Elliot Winkler, Tom Evans, Jerry D. Brown, Fabian, Ohad Lutzky, Kurtis Commanda, James A. Thornton, Benjamin Cooper, Kevin, Max Wanderman, Ken Bauso, Brian Dinger, Hape Company, Stefan Strohmaier, Adam Wurstmann, Kelsey Freese, Shadow Kat, Adam Kent, Matt Giallourakis, JH, Lee Rennie, Richard T. Anderson, Angela Flierman, Paul Grieselhuber, David Conrad, Jake Lizzio, Mark Feaver, Kevin Johnson, Brian McCue, Stephan Broek, ml cohen, Sylvain Chevalier, Darzzr, Roger Grosse, Rodrigo Roman, Francois LaPlante, Jeremy Zolner, Rowan Fox, Paper Coelacanth, Britt Ratliff, Eddie O'Rourke, Ryan, Jon Bauman, John July, Volker Wegert, Danny, Matthew Kallend, Patrick Callier, Joshua Gleitze, Chris Chapin, Emilio Assteves, Alex Keeny, Alexey Fedotov, Charles Hill, Valentin Lupachev, Joshua La Macchia, DSM, Ben in RI, Gary Butterfield, Niko Albertus, Luke Wever, Elizabeth von Teig, Steve Brand, Rene Miklas, Connor Shannon, max thomas, Jamie Price, Kennedy Morrison, Red Uncle, Todd Davidson, David Christensen, Doug Nottingham, Paul Guziewski, Scott Howarth, Barendo, Smackdab, Nicholas Wolf, Ben Phillips, Alex Larking, Greg Hodgdon, Scott Nystrom, Douglas Anderson, ZagOnEm, Robert Beach, Peter Leventis, Lamadesbois, veleum, Kevin Boyce, Blake White, Michal Mikolaj Maslowski, Phillip D Neal, Aaron Epstein, Chris Connett, Scott Frazer, Aaron Zhu Freedman, Hexa Midine, Nicholas Steicke, John Polgreen, Tuna, Mathew Wolak, Mark Sibly, Killian Hackenschmidt, T, Lincoln Mendell, Vincent Engler, Noam Fields-Meyer, Luke, h2g2guy, Kenneth Kousen, James, Skyler, W. Dennis Sorrell, Mordredd, salman karout, Carsten Lechte, Sam Rezek, Lucas Augusto, Matt McKegg, Dominic Montanez, Marcus Doyle, Beth Martyn, Caitlin Olsen, Taylor Martin, Melvin Martis, NoticeMK, Natalie Ferraro, Hubert Ulber, Hikaru Katayamma, Adeline Mueller, Sarah Sutton, Doug Lantz, Evan Satinsky, Strattara, Stephen Shephard, Anna, Brian Cohen, James Little, RaptorCat, Professor Elliot, Lake Howieson, Jozef Paffen, Larry Siden, leftaroundabout, Jigglypuffer, Jens Schäfer, Mikely Whiplash, room34, and Austin Amberg! Your support helps make 12tone even better!
Also, thanks to Jareth Arnold for proofreading the script to make sure this all makes sense hopefully!

[@12tone]

Try Dashlane here: www.Dashlane.com/12tone Get 10% off now with my promo code: 12tone

[@johndecicco]

Good info, thanks. Do you have a comparison between Dashland and Lastpass?

[@corwin32]

I really respect that you’re willing to go back and say, “Let’s talk about what I got wrong/wasn’t clear on last time”. Few people would be willing to.

[@oliverhees4076]

probably also partially to attract more viewers (reupload a video but a bit fresher and to a bigger subscriber base), but also it's good to be able to reflect

[@benmckinlay1902]

Guitar players were trying to say it was in the key of D? Really? Wow. I apologise on behalf of all us guitar players out there. I play around with tunings quite a bit but would never declare I was in a specific key based on the fretting positions I'd use if it was in E standard. That's just confusing and unhelpful

[@rod9785]

except that it is important to know the tuning because many guitar parts rely on the open strings, so key of D has most of the open strings in play and key of Db has none of them.

[@james.randorff]

Yes, it is important to know the guitar tuning, but that does not change the concert key of the song. It only changes the hand/finger positions for the guitarist, in the same way a direction of scordatura would do for a violinist.

[@brianmiller1077]

Is it like noting on the tablature that a capo is used? It doesn't change the key of the song, it just makes it easier to play.

[@rod9785]

​@@james.randorff I might aswell ride this pedantic excerise to the end - that is not correct, it is often impossible on guitar to replicate the open strings with alternative fingerings :)

[@iurigrang]

@@rod9785 The fact that it's now impossible to play is irrelevant to the key of the song. If I digitally transpose a song originally played in D minor half a step down, it's now in D flat minor irregardless of weather it's actually possible to play it on the instrument without changing its tune. The key is determined by the notes that are played, by their frequencies. Not on how that fingering would sound on E standard.

[@mrkrunch4340]

5:41 - so you could say they used their illusion? I'll see myself out...

[@JeremyModjeska]

Actually, some band has got the rights to that title, so I’m thinking like Use Your Illusion 2.

[@iantaakalla8180]

Isn’t that the also the name of another of their albums?

[@ellaser93]

In regards to the copyright takedown attempt: You may want to contact Leonard French (of Lawful Masses on KZbin fame.) I'm sure he'll become "your favorite copyright attorney."

[@MisterAppleEsq]

I know that 12tone has worked with LegalEagle, another KZbin lawyer, on Nebula.

[@lumen-saxty-sax]

Thank god there is finally someone intelligent enough about law to fight the false copyright claims. I congratulate you for your bravery and intelligence, keep on doing what you are doing.

[@DannyGast]

I just imagine Slash of Izzy watching this and be like... "Yep, that's exactly what we were goin' for!"

[@jesuschrist4185]

They actually watched this video

[@enricopersia4290]

Hermione Granger: "It's actual D, not a D flat" When people say shit like that of the D tonality just because they read the tabs, you understand that they've never played it for real.

[@ddm1912]

Lol Hermione Granger 😂

[@james.randorff]

Speaking of admitting things gotten wrong… I have been playing Sweet Child o’ Mine for over a decade and just now heard the D5 chord passing up to the E♭m guitar solo. We always just played that beat as a solo drum hit. #TheMoreYouKnow

[@cryptopsy13]

Analyzing in Background

[@TheMysteryman32]

5:58

[@variousthings6470]

5:58

[@Arakiel9]

I came here to say this.

[@LukeLantern]

@12tone *_YES!!_* Been so excited for more analysis of this song. Thank you, 12tone, and thank you for continuing to enlighten music enthusiasts such as myself with so many wonderful and eye opening revelations about our favorite songs. We truly appreciate you.

[@nettocxxx]

P.S. Total interest and respect for you going back to update and refine your previous videos. Good show! :-)

[@orochimaruginju6868]

This has to be my favorite thing you do on this channel. Thank you for sharing your musical journey!

[@nikolabegonja5490]

I love how you analyse rock music and make it seem like it's all clever and stuff, but most rock musicians just thought "lol that sounds good" and went with it. I'm amazed with how much you got out of Enter Sandman.

[@estel-randir]

I love these revisit / correction videos; keep them up!

[@arsalan7986]

I love rhythm chords in the sweet child o mine solo, they're so badass and makes solo more kickass. Izzy 🤘

[@evanayars8612]

Hey! I would LOVE to see an analysis video of "Heaven Is A Place On Earth"

[@Rand_Althor1966]

great work man. love to see you break down something by Rush, la villa strangiato

[@jamietaylor8663]

Ah yes my favorite lead guitarist, Slosh.

[@captainalex8003]

You mean Slash.

[@kjl3080]

Alex Harshegyi slosh

[@AstronomyDomine]

Please do a theory about 21st Century Schizoid Man by King Crimson :(

[@kjl3080]

Fabulous John Cleese he’s gonna get fripped

[@xelic1996]

Hey I know it's a long shot but I think you should check out the song "This Life is Mine" by Jeff Williams from the show RWBY. I think you would find a surprising amount to pick apart especially with its wide tone shifts. A lot of the music in the show is worth exploring but that song alone is definitely worth your attention.

[@Natibe_]

On one hand, I’m absolutely impressed that we’ve finally gotten AI good enough to recognize songs just based on single instrument midi recreations. On the other hand, the fact that YT is so desperate to appease advertisers that it allows blatant abuse of copyright protection protocol with such programs is appalling. Why are you using that kind of program, WC, since by definition it flags things which are fair use? Is it money? (It’s money.)

[@aislingoda6026]

Don't blame KZbin, blame the EU. Article 13 now holds websites like KZbin and Google accountable for allowing content that abuses the copyright of others, and requires that if they don't review every piece of data that goes through their site in person, that they have an AI automatically do so. This is required if they want to supply their service to countries of the EU without being fined.

[@pinchecookie]

I love this "What I Got Wrong" videos. Wanted to let you know is all.

[@kassemir]

I would say I'm shocked they issued a take down notice on a video without having properly reviewed it. But... With all the abuse of copyright in the system and cases of them issuing copyright notices to videos that played no music, but simply mentioned the title of a song. It sadly isn't that shocking at all. But, good to hear you were able to scare 'em off like that.

[@playgroundchooser]

I read a little too fast and thought we were getting some breakdown of Sublime! A boy can dream.

[@MisterAppleEsq]

I think the second/ninth is slightly more dissonant than the sixth in the pentatonic scale, but that's just my opinion and it's not like either are particularly dissonant.

[@jaschul]

Agreed

[@raulazurduy5407]

Wild Mewtwo Appeared! 3:27

[@geometrydashjowinator1936]

Hey! This is a question that really has bothered me for a while and i haven’t been able to figure it out myself: what if you applied the process of creating chords in a mayor scale (using the first, third and fifth note to create a chord and so on) on the chromatic scale? What chords would you get and how could you actually use it (i mean like writing progressions and melodies over it)? Hope that can inspire you in making a video and maybe answer my question in the process!

[@keymaster430]

12tone, I like your insight and explanations of music and progressions. I also noticed a little after the 1:00 mark, you drew the elephant reading another book. You draw him often. Who is he/she? What are they reading? Is it the same book, or a different one?

[@diamondpython8034]

Is there any chance you could cover Louis Cole's "F It Up"? The mixture of styles really interests me from a music theory standpoint, and I'd love to hear your take on it!

[@raulazurduy5407]

Wild Zubat Appeared! 1:53

[@Adam05082011]

Sweet. Jesus. I was just trying to find how I could try to get the tone of this song and stumbled on this. Props to you guy, but wtf are those notes. The right to left. The Pokémon scattered everywhere. I want to punch my phone watching this, and yet, I cannot stop. No idea what you’re talking about 😂

[@edelcorrallira]

Amazing video, its unsurprising that Guns is a little copyright aggressive. After all, Axl did stage dive to get unathorized film equipment ... And Metallica were Also main players in stopping Napster back in the day (that is once their cretive peaks had passed them) That said, I absolutely love their better efforts, abstaining from the newer releases (Guns is great live though, saw in 93 and 19 each was a blast) Anyway excellent video

[@Painted_Owl]

Someone's excited for Sword and Shield. I see those Pokémon drawings

[@tiffanypierson9262]

Just wanted to tell you that my 4 year old loves your art 🥰😁

[@baronvg]

I suppose all the dissonance was there for me to notice but honestly, it must’ve gotten lost under all the distortion lol because I barely thought of it (and mostly only after I looked up chords and sheet music).

[@phenylmusic]

5:58 analyzing in background

[@Petch85]

more than 2 years on, and the original video finely got the number of views it deserved. It was a slow star, but maybe a take down helps. :-) And now you can probably add 50k on this video. I still love the original, but i like the addition. Thanks for sticking with it.

[@Mustafa-ou8qs]

Anybody get what was the split second thing at 5:58 ?

[@TorstenSeemann]

"analyzing in background"

[@RubyNemesis]

It's cause the camera angle shifts slightly.

[@mattslater167]

My favorite thing about "Sweet Child O' Mine" is the internal assonance in the lyrics. The use of long E, I, and A has to have been intentional.

[@nettocxxx]

I love your channel! Great content! Do you dare: Zappa? :-)

[@RubyNemesis]

Is that Mewtwo at 3:30? If so it's just off model enough that I think it looks hilarious in a way that I can't further articulate.

[@gibberishname]

I like that you made a video because your grandma likes a song. 🙂

[@boshi3698]

Do you take request on what songs you review or do just do songs that you like?

[@flo5146]

Could you please do a video about shine on you crazy diamond?

[@KlassicLoL]

🤷

[@muddyg1553]

That intro is actually 3 diff variations of 1 riff

[@phnxcmx]

Analyzing in background

[@noneofyourbusiness460]

well its in Gb (Db mixo.)

[@goldmantis5850]

5:58

[@oravlaful]

i like the zubat reference

[@parodypaul]

Do a video about beyond belief by Elvis Costello

[@shadowlucario7125]

Lol that zubat

[@BrandonRideout135]

Where is the revisitng of stairway?

[@joelypoly4699]

I watch so many of your videos and I just now realized you’re left handed... which is bad because I’m also left handed

[@将軍九八.彁]

Have you broken down the Pirates of the Caribbean theme?

[@newton21989]

You should do some Steely Dan.

[@diegodurdon]

Anyone else noticed a zubat?

[@lumen-saxty-sax]

Nice zubat man

[@captainalex8003]

I'm pretty sure "Somewhere" is in Eb, not E.

[@Skip6235]

I see your Zubat reference ;)

[@FlesHBoX]

So from time to time I start thinking whenever watching music analysis and theory stuff, "this is all super interesting, but do we know that the writer was thinking these things and not just playing what sounded right to them?".. i.e. when analyzing music, does it matter whether the artist had a strong grasp on the theory involved in the music they created? With that in mind, I would LOVE to see some analysis for music from Hunz (mostly stuff from When Victims Fight or Thoughts That Move albums), someone who openly admits that he has no idea what he's doing, and just plays around until he gets something that sounds good to him. I suppose, the implication being that the theory behind music could be intrinsically part of it, even when a musician doesn't even realize it.

[@theclinger]

It's not intrinsically part of music so much as it's intrinsically part of the western music framework. The associations that a non-classically trained musician makes are there because it's part of the music they've been exposed to their whole lives. 12 tone isn't so much injecting hidden meaning where it might belong, so much as explaining the grammatical framework that is there, and then giving the explanation of how the choice of chord works in the framework the music was developed in. His interpretation only works if the music was developed in the framework which it has been developed in.

[@EpicStuffMan1000]

chances are that slash just went "that note doesn't sound like it did on the other chord, sounds wrong. I'll change to *whatever note*. Yeah that sounds better" But knowing exactly why it sounds better is fascinating

[@brianmiller1077]

Paul McCartney had little or no formal musical training, but he grew up around a lot of music.

[@keymaster430]

Agreed. Especially in THIS case. Slash has actually admitted several times that he hates the song (which, a lot of artists feel the same about some of their own iconic songs, for different reasons). He's said in interviews how he came up with the riff as just a joke. He said it sounded like a carnival song to him, only Izzy and Duff liked it, so they played along with it. So, basically it was written "by accident".

[@vadlasletta]

OK what you got wrong this time is the claim that Slash Plays the same riff over and over in the intro over izzy`s chords. It is kinda the same riff, but the first note in the riff is a chord note from the chords being played by izzy

[@Beastintheomlet]

Notification squad.

[@jlsagely6892]

Wait, if it’s a “half” step, it’s E flat, or D#....

[@aceof8S]

*_ANALYZING IN BACKGROUND_*

[@kostyac6411]

Why would you even bother commenting something along the lines of "No, the band tuned down their guitars so it's in D." Ugh. On behalf of anybody who ever held a guitar in their hands, I am truly sorry.

[@hadiiiiii6_9iiiiiiiii45]

good video though.

[@wojciechanzel7319]

you nasty tricky man! suuch talking about "B" band alltime claimer in a GnR video! nice touch! :D oh and BTW. do you think, they (GnR) were thinking all those scale nuances (you go through) while they were composing it? or was it "naaah just strike Db there!" ?? ;) cheers

[@JSXSProductions]

Imagine listening to GnR when you could be listening to Witherfall

[@weepingscorpion8739]

I might be overinterpreting this but, that final chord before the Db in the transition/interlude. Is it too much of a stretch to call it an Absus2add11/Gb (or I guess you might just call it an Ab11/Gb since IIRC the 3rd is often left out in an 11 chord) and thus interpret it as a dominant chord resolving into the Db? Possibly but I just noticed it right now.

[@carminemartino1197]

Wait. I thought the song was in Eb minor

[@Baboonfromdatoon]

It's not in Db. It's in Db Mixolydian.

[@BirbTwig]

why does it still say 1 view I refreshed

[@slightlyinsaneartisticmeme5875]

BaseWarden it still says 1 view and 70 likes lol

[@UnleashedProPlays]

Same

[@Ssarevok]

Tom Scott explained quite nicely: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iIrCY5p7odlmiaM

[@Markle2k]

@@Ssarevok and Tom was only repeating what Brady Haran had had an actual KZbin engineer explain several years earlier.

[@Ssarevok]

@@Markle2k *goes look for Brady's video*

[@beersnarkunbleached5660]

Analysis on Giorno's theme when

[@ATumbleOfTheDice]

not sure everyone knows Il Vento D'oro, which is a shame because I'd totally watch that

[@tylerthom338]

I just now realized that you are left handed

[@Markle2k]

Kind of ironic for a video series about careful observation and analysis.

[@tylerthom338]

@@Markle2k Sometimes you have to look past superficial observations and think more about the information being presented

[@james_subosits]

This'll mess with you - watch the intro. That hand isn't left-handed, is it?

[@tylerthom338]

@@Markle2k I'm just kidding, you're right

[@eialzorn9284]

h

[@RockStarOscarStern634]

@UCTUtqcDkzw7bisadh6AOx5w They tuned their instruments down a half step to make the high notes less of a strain on their singing voice.

[@benvasiljev2602]

I like these videos but the synth guitar just sounds unbearable

[@milanmilacic9311]

I would also like to say (not that anybody cares) it's D flat not D

[@matthewspino1653]

Ok. So it’s in Db... because those are the frequencies of the notes. Then... what key is AC/DC’s TNT in? Spoiler alert:they are tuned somewhere in between the standard notes. ?

[@Squingle09]

It's probably in a microtonal key, a half sharp or half flat. Don't know which one, because I am not the most knowledgeable.

[@rmaplayz8272]

Probably around a half flat

[@keinname1896]

Nothing bugs me more than guitarists who tune their instrument down and start thinking of it as transposed, whilst being smug about it. You're fingering ist not the centre of the musical universe, thank you very much. If you're tuning down or playing with a capo, you're playing in a different key and if you want to think of it as transposed, so that you don't have to rethink chord names, that's fine, but don't get in other peoples faces about it, because you are not playing what you're naming. I've had to explain this way to often.

[@aaronclift]

Yes! I’ve had the same problem as you with some guitarists.

[@wes4439]

+

[@unclestinky6388]

You cannot know that your use is considered Fair Use. Fair Use is a defense you would use in court and a judge would determine if your use qualifies as Fair Use. The best you can do is to take steps to decrease the likelihood of losing a court case.

[@smiggy1968]

These videos are hilarious. I very much doubt than any of these songwriters had any of this theory in mind when thy wrote these songs.

[@jlsagely6892]

Miss the point much?

[@UnleashedProPlays]

Early

[@MuzikBike]

huh.

[@maeamian]

Fourth

[@lucianodebenedictis6014]

Typical of a guitarist, not knowing what note they're playing

[@SinkMan434]

U wanna get confused Ok.... Watch 12 tone

[@gojoe36]

You naturally write or draw from RIGHT to LEFT....so either your Jewish or of middle eastern decent.....is this correct?

[@enochliu8316]

He is left handed,so it is natural for him to write/draw this way.

[@djadj_]

Analyzing in background

[@HoneyGoatStudios]

Analyzing in background