Composition
The song's central guitar riff is immediately recognizable and frames the central lyrics:
In the final verse the intention of the narrator and his relationship to the wild thing is revealed. A young man who has viewed his loves desire from across a crowded dance hall. The song is in fact an internal narration of the events that are unfolding in their dance. It is theorised due to the intensity of the "shake it" lines that they are perhaps dancing to Buddy Holly.
The song is in the key of A major, and is based around the chord progression (I - IV - V - IV), which is the basis for the main riff. Also the instrumental parts during the chorus are in key with the rest of the song. However, the guitars are not strictly tuned to middle C in the Troggs' version and the slightly sharp tuning causes the chords to actually be midway between A and Bb. This has mystified many guitar players trying to play along with the record. It has been suggested that The Troggs did this as a joke. As a side note, the middle eight was originally someone whistling, but in The Troggs' version this was replaced by Colin Fretcher, musical director, playing an ocarina.
Read more about this topic: Wild Thing (Chip Taylor Song)
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