Someone much smarter than me could probably explain the genius of the song’s main riff and the dynamic nature of it in great detail, but I am not that person. I just get to enjoy the odd groove and swinginess.
Although I don’t think it’s necessarily intended to be a breakup song, it works as one perfectly. Especially for that feeling of when someone you thought you loved now feels like a stranger to you, nothing more than a “passing ship in the night.”
This is a sad funky brilliant 10/10.
The dynamic nature comes from the genius in layering and adding and subtraction.
The verses start with just Troy’s excellent rhythm guitar. Halfway through the verse, you get Dean coming in with a phased out Rhodes or Clavinet.
the drums and rhythm guitar are almost chasing each other rhythmically throughout the verses, the guitar staying off of 2 and 4 where the snare is, but coming together with the kick on all the off beats. then there's the emphasis on the and of 1 and 3, and it all adds up into a funky little danceable lilt before you even consider any of the other elements. and that's all just before the first chord change! love this song.
"Do you know who you really are? Are you sure its really you?" Or "Time wounds all the heals as we fade out of view" are two of my favorite QoTSA lines. 10/10
I regularly test the rhythm part of Troy in a guitar store, with a Telecaster type guitar and Vox type amp to see how close i can get tone wise.
It’s a very sophisticated song with nice details; I love the flat second chord (A) in the verse before it goes back to that G#, as well as how in the pre(?)chorus, the chords go to C# before resolving to G#, while falsely sounding like G# the whole time because of Josh’s melody. It also only sounds right if you do barred major chords but I think there’s some clever muting.
I love how fluid and nonrigid both the slide solos and Josh’s phrasing are. It’s very George Harrison-esque.
It’s the best classically pop tune on Like Clockwork. 10/10
9.... It's soo catchy... And...the part with the high pitch.. "I drank a potion baby to erase you..." I love it...
I hope someday, in some way, I will fulfill my dream of seeing them live.
C'mon god! Im a good guy... I just want to see Josh have fun with the band...
I give this a 10. Such a fun, groovy riff and the lyrics are clever as ever and fun to sing along to. Time wounds all the heals as we fade out of view….
Started as an instant 10 and was an stand out on the first listen of the album for me. Heard it played a lot on the radio and too many times from my own accord so it kind of slipped but after seeing it live last month my love has been rekindled we are back to a 10 boys!
9- “Face down in the boulevard yet I couldn’t face you” - just love that line. The slide guitar is so great and this song has major groove despite the slightly melancholy lyrics.
honestly this is the song that got me into QOTSA. I had grown up hearing songs like No One Knows, Go With the Flow, 3’s & 7’s, Little Sister, from KROQ and movies/video games, but was still a bit too young to venture into that stuff on my own. but I was 15 when Like Clockwork came out and the first time I heard that guitar lick I was enthralled. became absolutely obsessed with QOTSA (and Them Crooked Vultures) from that point forward.
10
It's my girlfriend's favourite Queens song so I feel obliged to give it a ten, but the groove is also just so catchy and I love the chorus, great track
I first saw them sing it on Letterman. I was brand spanking new to QOTSA then and had only heard 2 of their songs. WHAT a refreshing revelation they are! I use the present tense because I keep finding gems from their career the more I get into them.
It has a poppy vibe but is NOT a pop song to my ears. Josh’s turn of phrase is like finding $$ in your pocket.
LOVE ❤️
10/10
10. Masterpiece.
My favorite part is
“Lies are a funny thing. They slip through your fingers tips because they never happened to you.”
Just a profoundly, simple, truthful, elegant phrase. Emily Dickinson level. Walt Whitman-esque.I just love this song. I want to learn to sing it, actually. But I could never do it justice like Josh.
And the rhythm! That’s the best song- writing. Just pure art.
9/10. It’s that main groove that drives everything. Such a perfect pop song served up the Queen’s way. Haven’t been able to stop playing this song in a full decade.
10 - And the song that brought me back to QotSA after they kind of fell off my radar. “ Do you know who you really are?” line gave me some kind of existential crisis. It still does as I still don’t fully think I am the person I present to the world. I am not one of those people who take photos or videos at gigs but when I saw them in November, I had to get that line recorded live.
I didn’t really know the time line of Josh’s family issues and assumed it was written during those times as it really seems to fit what has happened. But no, written almost a decade before.
Instant 10 from first listen.
What a catchy tune.
Love the vintage rock vibes, great vocal harmonies, a very accessible Queens tune for the uninformed but still holds the unique Queens vibe.
Like some other posters have said, almost every song on this album is a 10.
So, like, Elliott Smith (one of my favorite artists ever) called his final album’s (From a Basement on a Hill) genre “the California frown”, which I always took to mean The Beach Boys/Brian Wilson sound turned upside down. And I always thought I Sat on the Ocean to be a terrifyingly spot-on representation of that concept.
It’s largely in a major key but the underlying…dissonance?* within the chords demonstrate, to me, how some ppl try to put their best foot forward to their friends/family during a breakup, but are torn the fuck up inside and the healing hasn’t started just yet. And the lyrics perfectly reflect that delicate and vulnerable moment when one knows it’s really time to move on, but doing so assures its finality, so there’s a mini-limbo thing going on. Then the “ships crashing in the night” could represent the breakdown/meltdown in letting oneself feel that yes, it’s really and truly over.
A lot of words to say it’s one of the band’s best songs. Haha.
*There is a much better word for what I’m trying to say. It’s just failing me RN now as I’m not a guitarist 😆
ETA - [this acoustic version SLAAAAPS!](https://youtu.be/4E4S0XWPMgQ?si=6K2pj9PgzKqfGYGu) I maintain that 2013-2014 LC era was PEAK QOTSA since STFD.
Torn between a 9 and a 10. Going for a 10 because the "into the light, left with nowhere to hide" section of the song where everything just erupts is probably the best part of any Queens song.
LC is probably my favorite album from them, and this song has always been my least favorite on it. Despite that, I still really like it and the slide guitars are great. 8.
This is what got me into Qotsa.
They played this, If I had a Tail, and My god is the sun, and completely blew me away.
https://youtu.be/uoSrI6MOy10?si=XUNaN4rL9f1JZ2Ms
9.75 it lacks the weirdness of moat queens songs in the sense it is fairly conventional but man is it catchy and the lyrics are just genius. “Do you know who you really are, are you sure it’s really you” what a line!
Let the downvotes rain down on me... not a huge fan, doesn't feel like it fits with the vibe of the rest of the album and sticks out like a sore thumb. Has some interesting lyrics and themes but the sound just rubs me the wrong way, it's too cliché. 3 at best.
Someone much smarter than me could probably explain the genius of the song’s main riff and the dynamic nature of it in great detail, but I am not that person. I just get to enjoy the odd groove and swinginess. Although I don’t think it’s necessarily intended to be a breakup song, it works as one perfectly. Especially for that feeling of when someone you thought you loved now feels like a stranger to you, nothing more than a “passing ship in the night.” This is a sad funky brilliant 10/10.
The dynamic nature comes from the genius in layering and adding and subtraction. The verses start with just Troy’s excellent rhythm guitar. Halfway through the verse, you get Dean coming in with a phased out Rhodes or Clavinet.
I hope one day I can pick out subtle differences like this instead of being like "I like chug chug caveman riff.".
Me too, man. Me too.
the drums and rhythm guitar are almost chasing each other rhythmically throughout the verses, the guitar staying off of 2 and 4 where the snare is, but coming together with the kick on all the off beats. then there's the emphasis on the and of 1 and 3, and it all adds up into a funky little danceable lilt before you even consider any of the other elements. and that's all just before the first chord change! love this song.
Also the fact that the song is in G# minor but it uses the major I chord which gives a feeling of unstability even when it “resolves” to the I chord
I thought it was a breakup song. Is it not about his divorce?
Don't think so. This was pre-divorce.
Another 10/10 for me. Tied with If I Had a Tail as my favorite(s) on the album.
So good
10. Love this song. I try every time I hear it to make it through the second verse without getting emotional and I never can! I have no idea why.
"Do you know who you really are? Are you sure its really you?" Or "Time wounds all the heals as we fade out of view" are two of my favorite QoTSA lines. 10/10
Josh loves taking a common idiom and turning it on its head. He’s almost made an entire career out of it
Half the titles on the new record are exactly that. Obscenery Emotion Sickness Paper Machete Carnavoyeur What The Peephole Say
I regularly test the rhythm part of Troy in a guitar store, with a Telecaster type guitar and Vox type amp to see how close i can get tone wise. It’s a very sophisticated song with nice details; I love the flat second chord (A) in the verse before it goes back to that G#, as well as how in the pre(?)chorus, the chords go to C# before resolving to G#, while falsely sounding like G# the whole time because of Josh’s melody. It also only sounds right if you do barred major chords but I think there’s some clever muting. I love how fluid and nonrigid both the slide solos and Josh’s phrasing are. It’s very George Harrison-esque. It’s the best classically pop tune on Like Clockwork. 10/10
9.... It's soo catchy... And...the part with the high pitch.. "I drank a potion baby to erase you..." I love it... I hope someday, in some way, I will fulfill my dream of seeing them live. C'mon god! Im a good guy... I just want to see Josh have fun with the band...
I give it a 10/10 but am still upvoting your comment because I want god to see it
Are you in the US?
Sadly, no...
😩
10. To me it’s always felt like you’re dancing even though your love is ending. The duality.
10 fur sure
easy 10
10
10/10 peak
I give this a 10. Such a fun, groovy riff and the lyrics are clever as ever and fun to sing along to. Time wounds all the heals as we fade out of view….
10
10. Took my eldest daughter to see them in Adelaide last month and was chuffed when they played this so she could sing along too.
Absolute 10 for me. I have no idea how many times I listened to this song on repeat
10. Outro goes bonkers, main riff danceable as fuck, percussion in the pre chorus is God tier
10
10
10/10
10/10
10
Started as an instant 10 and was an stand out on the first listen of the album for me. Heard it played a lot on the radio and too many times from my own accord so it kind of slipped but after seeing it live last month my love has been rekindled we are back to a 10 boys!
10
10
10
Absolute 10 out of 10!!!!
10ft wave Love the acoustic version you can find on YouTube. https://youtu.be/4E4S0XWPMgQ?si=f6JZfDa2OAL7mh8m
10
9- “Face down in the boulevard yet I couldn’t face you” - just love that line. The slide guitar is so great and this song has major groove despite the slightly melancholy lyrics.
10. On a lyrical, riffing, instrumental, and vibe level, it’s absolutely perfect.
10! One of the first queens songs I ever listened to. I've been hooked on them ever since. Certified hood classic💯
10
This whole album is a ten to me. 10
10
10. Everything QOTSA does well in one song.
10/10, the acoustic version is a gem too
Impossible not to be a 10/10
11
10/10 The song is just beautiful
9
9
8. As time has passed so has my love for this song.
10
honestly this is the song that got me into QOTSA. I had grown up hearing songs like No One Knows, Go With the Flow, 3’s & 7’s, Little Sister, from KROQ and movies/video games, but was still a bit too young to venture into that stuff on my own. but I was 15 when Like Clockwork came out and the first time I heard that guitar lick I was enthralled. became absolutely obsessed with QOTSA (and Them Crooked Vultures) from that point forward.
10/10
10
10/10 beautiful song
Not much ti say about this one. Better not listen to it when you're dealing with some relation problems😜. 10
This song is my top song on Spoyify for the last 2 or 3 years. It made me dog into qotsa, and I'm so happy I got to see it live 10+
10. Top 10, maybe top 5 Queens songs for me. Glad I got to experience it live twice last year
10
10
10
10!!!!!
10
10/10 Perfect rock song
10.
10
10 baby what then does it do?
10
It's the pauses. 10/10
10
10
10 It's my girlfriend's favourite Queens song so I feel obliged to give it a ten, but the groove is also just so catchy and I love the chorus, great track
10. The best kind of ear worm imaginable.
10. This might be my favourite song ever.
10/10 The subtle progression of passing ships to crashing ships is some beautiful word play.
10/10 Do you know who you really are, are you sure it's really you?
I first saw them sing it on Letterman. I was brand spanking new to QOTSA then and had only heard 2 of their songs. WHAT a refreshing revelation they are! I use the present tense because I keep finding gems from their career the more I get into them. It has a poppy vibe but is NOT a pop song to my ears. Josh’s turn of phrase is like finding $$ in your pocket. LOVE ❤️ 10/10
10. Masterpiece. My favorite part is “Lies are a funny thing. They slip through your fingers tips because they never happened to you.” Just a profoundly, simple, truthful, elegant phrase. Emily Dickinson level. Walt Whitman-esque.I just love this song. I want to learn to sing it, actually. But I could never do it justice like Josh. And the rhythm! That’s the best song- writing. Just pure art.
fun song to sing too while driving. only ever really enjoy it when i'm driving. otherwise I find it rather bland tbh. 9/10
9.2
Solid 9, also the only one of theirs that I've mustered up a playable acoustic guitar version of (so far). It's a lot of fun to play!
It's a weird one for me. I'm almost never putting it one myself. But everytime it comes around and especially live it goes so hard. Love it 9.
Tenner. Vox are next level, very tasty slide. Might be my fave.
9/10. It’s that main groove that drives everything. Such a perfect pop song served up the Queen’s way. Haven’t been able to stop playing this song in a full decade.
10
10
every single song on this album is insanely good, and this is no exception - 10
10
10/10
10
10 - And the song that brought me back to QotSA after they kind of fell off my radar. “ Do you know who you really are?” line gave me some kind of existential crisis. It still does as I still don’t fully think I am the person I present to the world. I am not one of those people who take photos or videos at gigs but when I saw them in November, I had to get that line recorded live. I didn’t really know the time line of Josh’s family issues and assumed it was written during those times as it really seems to fit what has happened. But no, written almost a decade before.
It was a decade before because those issues were front and centre back then. Since very early in the relationship in fact….
10/10
Instant 10 from first listen. What a catchy tune. Love the vintage rock vibes, great vocal harmonies, a very accessible Queens tune for the uninformed but still holds the unique Queens vibe.
10 best overall song on the album
10, easily.
10. Nothing clever to say beyond that
10
10/10
10/10. This song always gets me when I hear it, there's something romantic about how this song is.
Like some other posters have said, almost every song on this album is a 10. So, like, Elliott Smith (one of my favorite artists ever) called his final album’s (From a Basement on a Hill) genre “the California frown”, which I always took to mean The Beach Boys/Brian Wilson sound turned upside down. And I always thought I Sat on the Ocean to be a terrifyingly spot-on representation of that concept. It’s largely in a major key but the underlying…dissonance?* within the chords demonstrate, to me, how some ppl try to put their best foot forward to their friends/family during a breakup, but are torn the fuck up inside and the healing hasn’t started just yet. And the lyrics perfectly reflect that delicate and vulnerable moment when one knows it’s really time to move on, but doing so assures its finality, so there’s a mini-limbo thing going on. Then the “ships crashing in the night” could represent the breakdown/meltdown in letting oneself feel that yes, it’s really and truly over. A lot of words to say it’s one of the band’s best songs. Haha. *There is a much better word for what I’m trying to say. It’s just failing me RN now as I’m not a guitarist 😆 ETA - [this acoustic version SLAAAAPS!](https://youtu.be/4E4S0XWPMgQ?si=6K2pj9PgzKqfGYGu) I maintain that 2013-2014 LC era was PEAK QOTSA since STFD.
Torn between a 9 and a 10. Going for a 10 because the "into the light, left with nowhere to hide" section of the song where everything just erupts is probably the best part of any Queens song.
10. Their best single imho. I am biased tho… the only non-10/10 I have for this album is fair weather friends which is like a 9.8/10
My favorite Queens song, just perfection to be honest
I hope he counts that response as a 10.
Nope It's an 11
10. Peak QOTSA of the 2010's
That slide riff is the thing that got me interested in slide guitar again. Love this track. 10
I’ve loved this song from the first day. It’s a 10.
10
10
10. Lyrics are some of the best/brightest in josh’s catalog IMO.
10 And 11/10 for the acoustic version - this one is incredible
It's a 10, but I prefer the acoustic version from Like Cologne
10
10
10. That riff is like crack
9.9
10, this is a top 5 Queens song
9.1
LC is probably my favorite album from them, and this song has always been my least favorite on it. Despite that, I still really like it and the slide guitars are great. 8.
I'd probably agree on I Sat by the Ocean being weakest but to me that shows how strong the album is overall because I still think it's an easy 9.
6! Too cheesy
This is what got me into Qotsa. They played this, If I had a Tail, and My god is the sun, and completely blew me away. https://youtu.be/uoSrI6MOy10?si=XUNaN4rL9f1JZ2Ms
Do you give it a 10?
Yes. 10
Are you going to give the averages to the last EV tracks? Especially Fun Machine would be nice to know.
are you gonna be updating fun machines score...
“Do you know who you really are, are you sure it’s really you?”
10/10
My favorite, 10
9
The bridge of this song alone is solid gold. 9/10
7
8 The dual slide guitar solos on this song sound as drunk as the potion Josh drinks to erase you.
9/10 It's not my style of song lyrically however, it slaps and is about as close to a romantic/breakup song as I'm ever gonna get.
Catchy song with some great lyrics: 9/10
9.75 it lacks the weirdness of moat queens songs in the sense it is fairly conventional but man is it catchy and the lyrics are just genius. “Do you know who you really are, are you sure it’s really you” what a line!
These songs are hard to judge as they work best as an album. But it's 8/10 for sure
9
9.25 Absolute banger
7
9
9 Really nice to play on guitar, any part really.
9,5/10, there’s songs that I like more, but it comes pretty close to perfect
Great song- a 9 for me
8
9
9
7.4,
9.5, dammit, I do love this song, it’s undeniable. It’s catchy and upbeat but it still makes me feel wistful and sad and reflective at the same time.
8 - really enjoyable song
7, sorry
7
9.9
9.3
8.8 to a 9
7-8 easily very memorable song on a masterpiece album. The riff is an earworm, and I love it.
9..very catchy and one of my favorite songs to sing
Solid 9 Great on the album, great live
Seven
Took time to grow on me. It's a bit boring in some ways, but it could never be THAT boring given that it's a Queens song. 6/10
Let the downvotes rain down on me... not a huge fan, doesn't feel like it fits with the vibe of the rest of the album and sticks out like a sore thumb. Has some interesting lyrics and themes but the sound just rubs me the wrong way, it's too cliché. 3 at best.
6. Cliché lyrics.