Counting Stars — OneRepublic (2013)

Why it's in this book

"Counting Stars" comes in March, when you have already played "Zombie", "Despacito" and "Bailando". It is here because it uses the same four chords as those three, but starts the loop somewhere else: in class, A minor, C, G and F, instead of A minor, F, C and G. That is called rotating the loop, and it proves that a chord is not a fixed place: it is a function, and its role changes depending on where you put it. Its rhythm of stomps and claps, the stomp-clap, can be done entirely with your body, so in the room with no instruments the song sounds complete. In the ukulele room you play the four chords, and in the music room the drums copy the feet-and-hands pattern and the ukebass comes in. The record is in C sharp minor, an awkward key for ukulele: in class we bring it down to A minor.

Why this song

Stand up. Stomp, stomp, clap. Stomp, stomp, clap. Keep it going at a good pace and sing the start of the chorus on top. If you have ever heard it, your body already knows which song this is.

The question on this page is: how can a song about not being able to sleep make you want to move so much?

Historical context

OneRepublic are a band from Colorado, in the United States. Their singer, Ryan Tedder, is also one of the most in-demand pop songwriters in the world: he has written songs for many stars.

Tedder started "Counting Stars" in summer 2012, in a house rented by Jay-Z and Beyoncé. He thought about offering it to Beyoncé, but felt it did not suit her. He kept it for his band. He said the idea came from a very obscure folk song he heard around that time.

The song is about something very ordinary: lying awake at night worrying about money and whether your plans will work out. Instead of counting sheep, the person who cannot sleep counts stars.

Foto: Keenman76, CC BY-SA 4.0, vía Wikimedia Commons

OneRepublic in Toronto in 2017, four years after "Counting Stars". The lights and the arena are pure pop; the idea behind the song came from folk.

It was number 1 in the UK and number 2 in the United States. In Spain it reached number 4. Its video, filmed in New Orleans, was the first by a band to pass one billion views on YouTube.

Musical characteristics

Four rotated chords. On the record the song turns on C sharp minor, E, B and A. In class, transposed, they are A minor, C, G and F. These are the same four chords as the chord loop in "Zombie" and "Despacito", but starting from another point and in another order. In "Despacito", in class: A minor, F, C, G. Here: A minor, C, G, F. Changing the order of a loop without changing its chords is called rotating the progression.

Why it sounds different. The first chord is the same, the minor one. But the second is no longer F: it is C, a bright major chord. That is why "Counting Stars" sounds less dark than "Zombie", even though they share the chords.

Feet and hands. The rhythm of the song can be played with your body: stomps and claps. This style is called stomp-clap. It was very popular in pop songs of those years. What matters most is the beat: a steady pulse, like a clock, that never speeds up or slows down.

Folk inside pop. Listen to the acoustic guitar at the start. It sounds almost like a campfire song. Then drums, bass and backing vocals join in, and it becomes stadium pop. That mix is what Wikipedia calls folk pop.

Hard facts: C♯ minor on the record and A minor in class, 4/4, 122 beats per minute, 4:17. The form: intro, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, twice; bridge and final chorus.

Guided listening

Play the music video. In the intro, count the instruments you can hear. Are there drums yet, or is the guitar keeping the beat?

In the first verse, tap the beat with your foot. When the percussion comes in, check whether your foot and the song are still together.

When the chorus arrives, start your stomp, stomp, clap. Notice that it still fits, even though the song is now full of instruments.

In the bridge, notice what changes and what stays. Are the same four chords still there?

Then play eight bars of "Zombie". Play them on the ukulele in the "Zombie" order and then in the "Counting Stars" order. Same chords, different order.

Trivia and curiosities

• Tedder nearly gave it to Beyoncé. If he had, it might not exist as we know it.

• The video shows the band playing in a basement while, upstairs, a religious service with singing and dancing is going on. At the end the ceiling caves in.

• In September 2023 the band released a new version, slower and with a different backing. Same song, another tempo: compare them.

• In Canada it took 34 weeks to reach number 1. It was a record for a slow climb.

Classroom activities

• Stomp-clap. In the room with no instruments, standing up: stomp, stomp, clap, at 122 beats per minute. First without music, then with the record. Once it works, the verse chorus in unison and the chorus with a third above.

• Rotate the loop. Ukulele: A minor, C, G, F, one chord per bar. Then A minor, F, C, G, the "Despacito" order in class. Which sounds brighter?

• Band. In the music room: the drums copy the stomp-clap (bass drum for the feet, snare for the claps), the ukebass plays the main note of each chord, and everyone else plays ukulele.

• March recording. Record the whole song and listen back in the next lesson. Did the beat speed up in the chorus?

Key vocabulary

• Chord loop — bucle armónico
• Rotating a progression — rotar una progresión
• Stomp-clap — base rítmica de pisotones y palmadas
• Beat — pulso
• Folk pop — folk pop: pop con aire de canción popular

Resources

Official music video — Filmed in New Orleans: the band in the basement, a service upstairs.

Ukulele tutorial — Ukeplayalongs. A play-along in A minor: the same key we use in class.

Guitar tutorial — JustinGuitar. An easy, step-by-step lesson.

Piano tutorial — Atlantic Notes. Easy version.

Drum tutorial — DRUMMATE. The pattern with the score on screen.

Body percussion — La Clave de José. A listening map with body percussion, in Spanish.