Classical Composer Analyzes Don't You Know (Snarky Puppy & Jacob Collier) | The Daily Doug (Ep. 266)

#SnarkyPuppy #JacobCollier #DontYouKnow
In this episode of #TheDailyDoug, I'm going back to listen to the very first song by Snarky Puppy that I personally heard. Don't You Know is a funky and groovy fusion tune featuring Jacob Collier. When this many Grammy winners assemble in one room to play, great stuff happens. I hope you enjoy!
Reference Video: • Snarky Puppy feat. Jac...
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[@Proghead88]

Just one correction: This song was written by Jacob Collier, not Snarky Puppy. I hope you react to more JC! Moon River is incredible and you would appreciate it a ton since it is choral heaven.

[@jamesc5801]

Great to see the correction. Definitely a Jacob song!

[@MawcDrums]

Jacob is a glimpse into the mind of a true genius. The scale of his projects and his unreal understanding of harmony is only dwarfed by his actual creative imagination with what to do with it all. His cover of Moon River is still one of the most astounding things I've ever heard.

[@brankolocanetto5047]

Once you get to know about Jacob Collier, things are different

[@Bobbias]

His cover of Moon River is honestly one of the most beautiful pieces of music I've ever heard, and probably the most complex, considering all the crazy stuff he does involving alternate tunings. I mean who else would write a whole section where each note is microtonal, as the entire tuning shifts from 432 to 440... That is something I never imagined I would ever hear, let alone hear in such a beautiful context. So often microtonality creates dissonance, but Jacob manages to use it in a way where the untrained ear (and even some trained ears I'd bet) won't even notice.

[@LynnDavidNewton]

This is simultaneously one of my all-time favorite Jacob Collier tracks and all-time favorite Snarky Puppy tracks. That was such a powerful groove they had going about 3/4 of the way through. It was ecstatic. And yes, since I first saw videos from Snarky Puppy doing these sessions in a large studio where people sat among them wearing headphones, I've felt jealous that I was not one of them.

[@FonZ4590]

I would love to see you react on Moon River by Jacob Colier, its an amazing creative piece he even won a Grammy award for. Please make a video on that if you consider listening to this song :)

[@BearBettermentSchool]

When you give us that knowing look… Yeah, we’re definitely hearing it too!

[@sigepcane]

I think Doug needs to listen to some Vulfpeck!

[@deadsightsx]

I love Jacob Collier! I actually really like his live version of this where he played alone and used a bunch of loop tracks that he sets up live. Such a fun song. My guitar professor shared it with our guitar ensemble some years back

[@PhilBot4OOO]

You know you're good when you got Cory Henry on support

[@chitlun]

It would be an understatement to call Jacob a force of nature! I’ve been listening to and playing music for 45 years and I’ve never encountered anything quite like him. Zappa is probably one of the very few others who have the same intelligence and pure instinct when it comes to composition. Outstanding! Those Snarky Puppy lads ain’t too shabby though eh… Great episode man, peace ✌️

[@Proghead88]

well said! 100%

[@PeterFnPorker]

I swear it's like god is talking to us directly through Jacob.. no interference at all

[@brooos]

J.C. never ceases to amaze me. There are dozens of excellent vocal harmonizers in a range of price & quality. When an electric instrument is plugged in, they harmonize based on the chord that you're playing. There are usually several standard harmonies to choose from and are limits on the number of voices that you can have. Considering Jacobs amazing vocals, I'd think his harmonizer would need to be multi-polyphonic and allow him to have any vocal harmony he plays on the keyboard. Sounds like a job for MIT. Impressive.

[@Proghead88]

It samples the note he sings in real time and assigns a copy to any key he presses with nearly instantaneous pitch shifting. I think he also has control over things like portamento and can have the notes glide up or down more slowly, creating wild effects at times when mixed with loop and "freeze" pedals (his live shows really explore this to the max).

[@ralphmunn1685]

I'm likely older than you, Doug, but I'm sharing your excitement about modern music. When I hear (MANY) people my age say that "Today's music sucks," I'm reminded of my parents saying that the Beatles "aren't music, that's just noise." The truth is that the BEST music today has progressed LEAGUES beyond what the majority of people are listening to. Keep bringing us your "take" on the best of modern music, Bro - your understanding of the nuances deepens my appreciation of it!

[@MrSlimfinger]

Doug, you should know... 🙂 The song is actually written by Jacob, you can listen to the original on his first album.

[@morell3426]

Hiromi Uehara and please king crimson indiscipline or starless 🙏

[@geofflock7408]

I discovered Jacob Collier during the pandemic and I was instantly hooked to his genius. It was like wow... you know? Like WOW. As a committed Zappa freak since the 60's i can truly say that Jacob Collier's musicianship is equal in my estimation to FZ. Amazing genius. Check out his rendition of All Night Long or Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic. Talk about pimp my ride.

[@ericfrancais2963]

This has been my very favorite song for the past two years. It's rich, brilliant, and lyrical beyond anything. I cannot spend a single day without listening to it at least once. Just absolutely amazing. Thanks for playing it on your show which I enjoy every time. I found it very interesting to hear your reactions to such various choices of music, coming from a classical background. Try an old friend I just re-discovered: Sparks, This Town Ain't Big Enough Of Us (the original 1974 version). It's pop, campy, quite original and strangely engaging. Try it out and keep up the good work!

[@PodCaspar]

sheer awesomeness

[@mortenrl1946]

I feel like the organ really makes this ascend. Just a few notes here and there really ties it together. Super smooth sounds.

[@DumblyDorr]

This is an underrated track by SP & JP for me - the piano solo is amazing. The very impressionist colorations in the context of jazz-fusion - and with the vocoder... I love it!

[@Proghead88]

You should hear the original song by Jacob Collier. This was on his first album "In My Room". Plenty more where that came from ;)

[@tranquilitybase6417]

The penultimate combination of artists. Amazing!!

[@BearBettermentSchool]

I don’t think you know what penultimate means, but it’s a super common mistake and I agree with your intention!

[@thage7729]

JC admitted this is actually ‘A love song in 14/4.” JC’s version of this song is on his album “In My Room”. Jacob & M. League collab’d on this expanded arrangement. About that keyboard, the main engineer at MIT who collaborated with JC to create that keyboard was JC’s road manager for the first tour he brought that keyboard along… assumably to qualify how it handled the rigors of touring… and because he was probably the only human on the planet who could fix it if it went down.

[@joannalewis5279]

I forgot how amazing this was too, thank you

[@chadmarx7718]

Do Reptile by Periphery, it's a 16 minute epic prog metal song!

[@EixtremeDrummer]

Thanks, Doug, apreciate the good nowadays music too

[@maurodibenedetto6808]

great videos Doug! I would love to see more videos about Jacob Collier! thank you!

[@viktor4174]

English it not my native language but it sounds a little like are saying that the song is composed by someone in Snarky Puppy, but I'm fairly certain Jacob wrote it himself. But perhaps I understood wrong. Great content by the way and it's always nice to videos about SP and JC! 😊

[@digibirder]

The magic and the joy for me of this is, I can never hope to play or sing along here. But, it still takes me along on a great journey. Everything just works so perfectly in a way I could never fathom, yet still enjoy. Jacob Collier and Snarky Puppy play together like they've been at it for years.

[@claytonl5820]

That was wildly fascinating.

[@arpeggioblues5924]

I just watched that Jacob Collier video you recommended.. about emotional reactions to certain chord progression, tension/release.. really good. .this guy is really on-it'

[@Marklar3]

Check out the "Hear Between the Lines" channel. They talk about how those types of harmonic concepts apply to microtonal music, but the concepts they talk about are universal to harmony.

[@TheLivirus]

This is the kind of music that is probably more enjoyable for the musically educated. I mean, it's groovy and stuff, but not my cup of tea... at least yet.

[@rmr5044]

The more you listen to this kind of stuff, the easier it gets. Before I listened to alot of prog music, stuff like this was so confusing. Now, having listened to prog for years, I can get into most music like this. In fact, standard 4/4 oriented mainstream music becomes quite boring in comparison. Try to push your musical boundaries! Most people just default to a state of only wanting to listen to what they already know. That's often not a good thing, both when it comes to music and life in general. Explore!

[@nikelodeon6852]

Props for atleast recognizing that its a higher level of music and not calling it "pretentious" like most uneducated fools lol

[@louisb8718]

@@nikelodeon6852 you have a huge brain bro

[@nikelodeon6852]

@@louisb8718 Thanks bro. Can't say the same for u tho..maybe study more and practice and you'll get a big brain too someday😊

[@alexandredfcorreia]

Please check the curtain by snarky. It’s amazing you won’t regret

[@0babul0]

I second Moon River! Also In The Bleak Midwinter is pretty sick, both a'capella arrangements.

[@diogosimao]

Please..do a react of Rumpilezz ... it's a brazilian orchestra and is ridiculously awesome... I think you would like to listen. I would suggest "O samba nasceu na Bahia"...it's a really cool piece.

[@OffTheWallAgency]

I really wanna see your opinion on Second Life Syndrome by Riverside.

[@snowglade]

Stupid puma by Don Caballero. Its in 5 4 and is blissfully mesmerizing. Mostly in E. Love your vids bro

[@gordonsneddon5914]

This was my first encounter with both Jacob and Snarky Puppy several years ago…I thought this was something from another planet at the time. It opened an amazing musical seam for me and has me glued to KZbin as a result!

[@petertoal371]

Totally agree Doug, for me, about to turn eighty, it's like starting a new journey having enjoyed mid to late fifties big bands through to sixties and so on. I think there's been some blank spots (reggae, punk and rapp of course) however, I've been re-energised by the great young musical talent showing up all over the World. Believe me, this new generation has raised the bar mega high. Love your work.

[@dimitriid]

Curious: Do you listen to other Jazz bands that are not contemporary like Snarky Puppy or not really? Because I'd love to hear your thoughts on many more Jazz pieces but perhaps too off topic to go back to 40s and 50s music for the kind of channel you have but hey, maybe fodder for a second channel if that's in your thoughts.

[@hdcd1]

I’ve thought the same. Would be a great idea for a second channel.

[@maddma]

Hey Doug, how about some Brain Salad Surgery? Toccata? Karn Evil 9, 1st Impression, 2nd or 3rd?

[@daicullinane7746]

Parts of the vocal melody remind me of Crosseyed and Painless by Talking Heads.

[@worduser899]

One of the keyboardists here, and in Snarky Puppy, is Bill Laurence. His solo music is fantastic. kzbin.info/www/bejne/n5KcgX-wjZaFi68 This song would make for a great reaction. You'll enjoy it, and hopefully feel like checking the rest of the project out.

[@listonheinz9103]

You really should do “Partita for 8 voices” by Caroline Shaw. That’s an incredible piece of work.

[@gundaetiapo]

I agree, that's a nice one for Doug.

Do one of Becca Stevens, she is an amazing composer who used to be a member of the Jacob's Band, she also played with Michael League.

[@iainjosper]

Hey man, awesome channel! An absolute must if we're going down the avenue of symphonic rock is Kamelot (when Roy Khan was leading). Check our the whole Live in Norway songs. Roy Khan has a beautifully clean voice, but I've never heard a voice that tells a story as well as his. If you listen to Elizabeth 1,2,3 it's literally like your dad doing the voices for you in a story. It's just.... too good.

[@thomasdavis442]

they try to hard to sound different ...like centle giant ,,,,later giant .....nice but ,,,yo complex,,,,yuck with all due respect

[@fahrfromrunnin]

I'd be curious to see your reaction to Adrian Belew, and his album 'E'. He has played with King Crimson, David Bowie, and Many others... He's very interesting, very mathematic I think. Would be interested in your take.

[@jeffwolinski2659]

Or Belew era King Crimson!

[@kevelliott]

I thought Jacob's piano solo showed some Eldar Djangarov influence here? Not taking away, to actually pay homage to Eldar is genius-level jazz already; but his solo made me think he'd been listening a lot.

[@soocool78]

if I may suggest...watch the QuarterMaster song from the Barry2TheB channel....the amount of funk and live grooving happening is unreal

[@kracine9582]

Please more Jacob Collier. I love his song Little Blue Live (Mahogany Sessions). It is fantastic.

[@eszterjakab6082]

Please, make more reactions of Jacob Collier! He is really unbelievable for me (and as I can see also for the other and you). I really like those videos from JC, when only he do all the music stuff (home concerts for example). I really like how you react, you point out things which is hard for me to hear, but it is good to hear from you - I am trying to learn that why these music sound so good. Just go on with these awesome reaction videos!!!

[@flagsabbath6483]

I know this isn’t a mastodon video but could you please do a reaction to their song Last Baron. It’s on the same album as Oblivion. Please and thank you!

[@antonisarvanitidis4397]

Manowar-Heart of steel (with orchestra or not)

[@ron6927]

I'm looking forward to this one. Snarky Puppy i am unaware of but have heard Jacob Collier before. I did not enjoy it one bit, perhaps Doug can change my mind.

[@Doug.Helvering]

challenge accepted...

[@ron6927]

@@Doug.Helvering Thank you. I get that he is talented, my experience of his music is that he overdoes it all the time.

[@Doug.Helvering]

@@ron6927 I agree...he needs an editor.

[@ron6927]

@@Doug.Helvering I'm not a trained musician just a keen music fan. The music was great, his piano playing also real nice. For me, it's the voice that i'm not enjoying. I do enjoy your explanations and enthusiasm tho so thanks for that. I'd like to mention 2 songs i think worth checking; Robert Wyatt's 'Garbzadegi' (?), and The Walker Bros The Electrician.

[@wannabekunok]

@@ron6927 Maybe you'll like his cover of "fix you" kzbin.info/www/bejne/rqizn4aJbJVlhdk&ab_channel=JacobCollier Dough, would be fun if you check it out too.

[@jean-michellafontaine4549]

Wow! This is new to me and I am glad I discovered this! Thanks y'all! :)

[@davemilnes1147]

So glad you did this one - I was listening to this the other day and found myself wondering what Big Doug would make of it...and here you are! I imagine there to be a sanitorium somewhere full of ex Snarky audience members...in quiet rooms with huge smiles on their faces...

[@frankpratte8358]

Jacob wrote this not Snarky Puppy.

[@robertakerman3570]

Thanx 4 the "beat count". It really helps My where-withall.

[@JohnLRice]

I think many fans of Snarky Puppy might really enjoy the band "Thank You Scientist"? They sort of combine jazz (big band/fusion), rock, metal, alternative, middle eastern folk, funk, prog, etc, etc and are all outstandingly great musicians! Some of my favorite cuts are: Psychopomp kzbin.info/www/bejne/g4u4m5tuid-EhcU Rube Goldberg Variations kzbin.info/www/bejne/Zn-ZiIyFqJd5bqM Mr. Invisible kzbin.info/www/bejne/hoXQioWVl9aIjMU

[@matthewdalessandro5975]

I'd love to see you do more Snarky Puppy! No matter what they put out, it's always the best!

[@rk41gator]

A jazz band that is SO impossibly funky. We lucky.

[@billebs]

Hey everybody!

[@vitchr]

What a discovery. Thank you

[@sethkaicer319]

Doug instructed the snarky Puppy that soon it would become a yuppie.

[@scottdavis7730]

This song makes me break out my air Sousaphone.

[@bengif.8376]

This is such a beautiful peace! Love it so much. Great that you have it on your channel.

[@suewilkinson9518]

Quincy Jones thinks Jacob is great!

[@edelcorrallira]

Honestly Doug, what a wonderful series this has and continues to be :)

[@sordel5866]

Given that your a choral composer, Doug, I'm surprised that you are happy with the artificial timbre that comes with pitch-shifted voices. I really dislike what Collier does here ... give me a choir any day!

[@Marklar3]

The harmonizer is actually a very expressive instrument. Sure it pales in comparison to a choir, but so does every instrument. Instead of comparing it to a choir, think about comparing it to a piano. From the piano, it limits you to homophony, but introduces more timbre control and more flexible dynamics (notes on piano can only decay). Piano already tries to imitate choirs and in some ways the harmonizer does it better. Check out Jacob's version of Danny Boy on the harmonizer. If anything could convert you into a believer of the harmonizer (aside from playing one) it would probably be that.

[@sordel5866]

@@Marklar3 I'm afraid that I've heard his "Danny Boy"! For my money the harmoniser pollutes everything it comes close to but of course that's a matter of the personal preference of the listener. I think's it's a shame that someone who knows as much about harmony as Collier has tied so much of his creativity to this gimmick. It's rather like Messiaen with the Ondes Martinot.

[@Dmlsej]

I agree 100%. I really don't like the sounds it produces. I would take his regular singing voice any day!

[@rioseptiano1245]

Hey Doug, you should check out The Groove Project they released a song called Spellbound By Two, it's a relaxing saxophone instrumental music. Check it out!!! :)

[@MatheusManzano]

Awesome stuff! Wow!!! Doug, have a listen on a progressive band called Unitopia, especially a song called 'Tesla', from the 'Artificial' album (2010). A nice mixture of progressive with jazzy and symphonic elements.

[@darrenkoglin3423]

Have u ever considered listening &reacting to elvis presley live from Hawaii performing an American trilogy,this whole concert was the first concert televised live throughout the earth its accompanied by full band 2backing vocal bands and full orchestra Elvis was the pioneer for this type of pop concerts

[@davep8221]

Spotify(™) introduced me to a very beautiful song: Lunatic Soul, _The_Passage_ It’s a compositional masterpiece. It focuses on evolving the melody, instrumentation, mood, tempo and dynamics, rather than sounding like the guitarist is doing exercises and scales and the drummer trying to set an olympic record in the 100yd dash. It’s all done by one guy, Mariusz Duda. The main instrument is an electric piccolo bass (looks like a Rickenbacker.) I’ve never heard of one, but it is sounds beautiful. He has a video where he talks about it -- and how he uses it in the song -- here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/bnKbeKecnJ2HqJI It’s in Polish, but there are English subtitles.

[@tullfan2560]

When you do stuff like this, it makes me think about what great musicians The Police were. Roxanne - kzbin.info/www/bejne/aYWUlGp9oN-Fh7M

[@paulhoyle4452]

The next time you play a Snarky Puppy track, please play Skate U from Tell Your Friends...simply amazing. This was the first track of Snarky Puppy I ever heard.

[@listonheinz9103]

No one can deny that these incredible musicians are doing impressive things. I feel a bit sad that this kind of music does nothing for me, I’m completely indifferent. I’d like to feel some emotions but I just don’t.

[@SolarMumuns]

Yes, it is more cerebral than emotional. You don't have to like the former, that's okay. For a lot of people, music and emotion are synonymous.

[@kingfaicl]

@@SolarMumuns There's a lot of interesting things to discover if one goes into details of harmony and rhythm but to lots of people this performance simply moves the body.

[@markwalker2951]

This clip is all over the place and I dig it!! I have a couple suggestions of bands that should be HUGE but are tragically underrated - "The Road of Bones" by IQ and "A Night on the Town" by The Dear Hunter. I am really enjoying your breakdowns and you got a subscribe from me :-)

[@BongoBaggins]

8:02 that beautiful, achingly beautiful little drop, harmonised perfectly on the sousaphone. This is why I love music

[@RageToOverCome]

Please do Dimmu Borgir "Progenies of the Great Apocalypse"

[@affectingmandela9839]

Love your reactions and honest takes on everything you watch. Your understanding of music itself is so fun to watch while you're reacting to whatever the song might be. I know you're a huge fan of his, as am I, but I highly recommend The Death of Music, Live at the Royal Albert Hall by Devin Townsend. It showcases almost everything you can get from Devin in just one song. It has a tribal feel, and has five different parts if you look at it from an emotional response to trauma standpoint. kzbin.info/www/bejne/d5-nl6SPobithNU

[@stratcat3216]

nastay!

[@stmserio]

FYI, saw Jacob doing his one man band concert and he said he wrote this song on the way to the session in New Orleans and it is in 7/4 and 5/4 … he thought he would challenge Snarky Puppy, but he said it didn’t even phase them … great song …

[@Iriscal]

I think you would get a kick out of A Treatise on Cosmic Fire by Todd Rundgren.

[@mrsimoncote]

You may like that one too - Snarky Puppy - Lingus (We Like It Here)

[@Lux_cian]

Where is Opeth?

[@2giantmonsters]

Jacob through that thing reminds me (slightly) of what Michael Patton does.

[@dougitoonsdesigns]

Have you checked out one of their other keys players, Shaun Martin on the Talk-box? This is Sleeper kzbin.info/www/bejne/aZ_EpqKdgduSfbs

[@trailrunner919]

Great reaction video of this amazingly talented band. I'm going to see them next month and can't wait to see these guys live!!!

[@denfinch5694]

Doug, l very much enjoy your analysises of the tracks you've chosen, especially from YES. Your musical expertise is quite astounding! But what is it with Amaricans that have to say, "Y'all"? There are oodles of other Americanisms that butcher the English language and I wonder how they've become in vogue?...Keep up the brilliant work, despite my pompous, Englishman comments! :)

[@Doug.Helvering]

For me, using y’all is an intentional choice…it’s a non-gender second-person plural pronoun.

[@jamesgoodwin9829]

Jacobs solo at about 8:00 is very gershwin-esk

[@edphaze6550]

I’m so glad you got around to this one, Doug! Love your channel!🤘🏻🔥

[@vprajapa]

This is great. Now when are you doing more Radiohead?

[@metalmark1214]

Doug got a puppy and named him Snarky

[@timbaker7238]

Good pick Doug! Thanks!

[@QuentinRichardson-supersnail]

Makes you smile Makes my eyes leak

[@jeanninedoyle9523]

A lot of musicians

[@Engenification]

This is going to be interesting 🤔

[@user-ov5nd1fb7s]

Jacob Collier knows a lot and i can't possibly dislike his music more. He always has some element in his music that makes it into a circus. For some reason, he sits in that Frank Zappa world with the redicilous voices and noise. I just can't take him seriously, as an artist. If i want to listen to serious jazz, i listen to Chick Corea, Wayne Shorter, Gary Burton etc.

[@nikelodeon6852]

Its not for the simple minded and just like Frank Zappa he's a genius pushing past "boundaries" of conventional music.

[@Zavala1]

I love every about Collier other than the timbre of his voice. It's like he's made a Faustian pact: he got once-in-a-century musical skills but gave up any degree of interest or emotive connection in his voice. Every syllable sounds like it starts in his soft palate.

[@Marklar3]

You don't have to like his timbre, but if you don't hear any degree of interest or emotive connection, I suspect you may be blinded (or deafened) by bias. His phrasing is fantastic. I'm a bit of a novice in vocal technique, but I can tell he does use a variety of timbres as well. You might be interested in vocal teacher/author John Henny's reactions to Jacob's music. Maybe if you hear what he likes about Jacob's singing you'll be able to enjoy it as well.

[@Zavala1]

@@Marklar3 Of course I'm biased. I'm me and I said it. He has preternatural ability in almost everything he turns his hand to. I simply don't enjoy the timbre of his voice.

[@Marklar3]

@@Zavala1 That's fine, but I'd encourage you to attempt to overcome your bias because there really is a lot to like about his singing, and being able to enjoy more things is generally good.

[@Proghead88]

technical characteristics and emotional intent are two completely different topics... he puts plenty of emotion in his voice. Sometimes, it functions like an instrumental layer and everything in between. I understand if you don't connect to it, but he definitely has seemed to have great interest in learning to express himself through singing since he was a young kid. He just uses his voice in diverse ways and "emotion" really becomes an extremely flexible (and personal) thing, whether technique itself is preferred one way or the other.

[@primitivealien]

More camel

[@uniculsandel]

Vulfpeck next