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The track begins with a distorted guitar chord strum from which emerges a rhythmic organ/synth solo for about 30 seconds. The solo is a true solo in that there are no other instruments for this section. The EQ of the synth is modulated from bright to dull and back again. The synth/organ part is a consistent element of the track, present for the whole 8 and a half minutes, although not always with the EQ modulation, as this destabilises its place in the mix.

The intro comes to an end with the return of the guitar with another burst accompanied by bass and drums. Sporadic drum fills build up the intro and then a section of just drums and organ before the lead vocal arrives for the beginning of the song proper.

The guitar essentially plays power chords with occasional flourishes while the bass is very busy, playing a lot of notes for each chord change. There is an acoustic guitar just noticeable on the left, more noticeable in the second verse. It too is playing choppy power chord riffing. The overall effect is the organ is filling in space in the mid to high range but in a constant quarter note rhythm, while the bass fills in the bottom end but with lots of melodic detail while the guitars play a more rhythmic function, just punctuating the sound at key points. This also frees up the drumming from a strictly time keeping role, allowing for all the fills and busy flourishes.

The first verse begins and then leads directly into the chorus. There are some vocal harmonies underneath the lead vocal in the chorus, which ends with a break in the playing for the delivery of the title line.

There are some hand claps in the first instrumental break. The middle section, which is a key change, features some lead vocal doubling.

In the second instrumental break which features the electric guitar solo, the EQ modulation on the organ is more noticeable allowing for the sudden emergence of synth through the mass of guitar/bass/drums.

This is followed by another section of synth solo. This section is different from the song’s intro in that the acoustic guitar is present at first. Also the reappearance of the rest of the band starts with the arrival of the drums first, with scream/guitar/bass arriving together. This is essentially an outro as there are only two lines of vocal. You can really hear the vocal double on the lead vocal in the last line ‘Same as the old boss’.

Overall, it’s a big rock production made unique by the distinctive synth/organ part. The overall effect is much like a live band sound. The guitar overdubs and vocal doubles are used sparingly, just subtly reinforcing certain elements but without breaking the illusion of a rocking live band. Similarly effects are used sparingly – stadium reverb on drums and vocals but not overt.