Schlesinger was 52 years old.
From Pitch:
That Thing You Do! Is a Testament to the Power of One Great Song
Adam Schlesinger, who later found fame with his power-pop group Fountains of Wayne, was just starting out with a music publishing deal for PolyGram when friends at the entertainment company urged him to submit a demo to a movie looking for a Beatles-inspired, ’60s-pop tune. The pitch referenced post-British Invasion American bands like the Knickerbockers, but Schlesinger—a lifelong Beatles freak—bypassed the imitators and created a hybrid of early Fab Four hits alongside his friend Mike Viola (who sings lead on the track). “There’s a little bit of ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ when it goes to that minor chord, which I think is the best chord in the whole song,” Schlesinger later said. “I tried to do that a little bit [in ‘That Thing You Do!’], where the song’s in E and then it goes to the C sharp minor.” Paired with the song’s harmonizing vocals, that minor-chord shift is catnip to ears raised on Lennon-McCartney compositions; the faint hint of sadness endures even after “That Thing You Do!” is eventually polished to a surf-rock sheen
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Adam Schlesinger, who later found fame with his power-pop group Fountains of Wayne, was just starting out with a music publishing deal for PolyGram when friends at the entertainment company urged him to submit a demo to a movie looking for a Beatles-inspired, ’60s-pop tune. The pitch referenced post-British Invasion American bands like the Knickerbockers, but Schlesinger—a lifelong Beatles freak—bypassed the imitators and created a hybrid of early Fab Four hits alongside his friend Mike Viola (who sings lead on the track). “There’s a little bit of ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand’ when it goes to that minor chord, which I think is the best chord in the whole song,” Schlesinger later said. “I tried to do that a little bit [in ‘That Thing You Do!’], where the song’s in E and then it goes to the C sharp minor.” Paired with the song’s harmonizing vocals, that minor-chord shift is catnip to ears raised on Lennon-McCartney compositions; the faint hint of sadness endures even after “That Thing You Do!” is eventually polished to a surf-rock sheen
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