Don’t get us wrong, great music is made deliberately. However, occasionally, a mistake or accident comes around that creates something a musician could never think of. This is exactly what happened with Billy Corgan and The Smashing Pumpkins on their alternative song “Mayonaise.”
If one is familiar with Corgan and The Smashing Pumpkins, they know that the band is all about experimentation. They are not looking for that perfect sound, but are looking for that sound that is new, innovative, and unfamiliar. That being so, when Corgan and the band recorded “Mayonaise,” they embraced the “problem” that took place in the studio.
Videos by American Songwriter
The Smashing Pumpkins and the Whistling Guitar
If you listen to “Mayonaise” you can hear a bellowing and piercing whistle embedded between every pause of the song. As deliberate as it ended up being, it did not start that way. Rather, Corgan had to work around a guitar hardware malfunction, and needless to say, he did so exceptionally well.
In an interview on Apathy Video, Corgan explained the nuance behind the whistling malfunction and how it led to the unique writing process behind “Mayonaise.” “The origin of the squealing high note was, I bought this guitar for $65 and it’s such a cheap guitar that every time I’d stop playing it would make that whistle.” “So when we wrote the song, you wrote in these parts that would stop,” stated Corgan. “The whistle became part of the song because every time I’d stop it would whistle” and “then we started using the whistle to our advantage,” added Corgan.
Other than this being a cool piece of Smashing Pumpkins’ trivia, the story is also an example of how a great musician is not defined by their instrument. Instead, a great musician is defined by how they work with any given instrument. Billy Corgan and The Smashing Pumpkins are an ideal example of that notion, and their alternative rock single proved that to be true.
Released in 1993 on their second studio album, Siamese Dream, “Mayonaise” remains a staple in The Smashing Pumpkins’ catalog. There are certainly a vast amount of reasons behind the song’s positive public reception. However, the whistle’s novelty is surely a part of its decorated nature. There are only a couple of bands that could turn a problem into a pro, and of course, Billy Corgan and The Smashing Pumpkins are one of them.
Photo by Paul Bergen/Redferns
More Behind The Song
-
Left to right: Robert Plant, John Paul Jones and Jimmy Page, of British heavy rock group Led Zeppelin, performing at Earl's Court, London, May 1975. The band were initially booked to play three nights at the venue, from 23rd to 25th May, but due to public demand, two more concerts were later added, for 17th and 18th May. Total ticket sales were 85,000. (Photo by Michael Putland/Getty Images) -
Portrait of country singer Eddie Rabbitt in Memphis, Tennessee, May 31, 1981. (Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images) -
LOS ANGELES – FEBRUARY 22: 31st Annual Grammy Awards. Broadcast February 22, 1989. Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California. Pictured accepting award is Bobby McFerrin. His song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male. Also Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images) -
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 03: Singers Mike McGuire (L) and Marty Raybon of Shenandoah attend the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 3, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Rick Diamond/ACM2016/Getty Images for dcp) -
Photo by Tim Mosenfelder/Getty Images -
The three founding members of Talking Heads on a Manhattan rooftop, US, 1976. (Jerry Harrison would join the group at the beginning of 1977.) (L-R) Bassist Tina Weymouth, singer-guitarist David Byrne and drummer Chris Frantz. (Photo by Linda D. Robbins/Getty Images) -
Patty Smyth of Scandal at the Poplar Creek Music Theater in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, June 3, 1983. (Photo by Paul Natkin/Getty Images) -
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images