505 by Arctic Monkeys

505 was released in April 2007 by Arctic Monkeys. Written by front man Alex Turner and produced by James Ford and Mike Crossey, Turner has sited this song as Arctic Monkeys' first proper love song, written about him meeting his former girlfriend. It is debated as to what 505 actually is. Some theorise that 505 is the hotel room he went to visit his girlfriend in. Another theory is that 505 is a reference to the bus route in Sheffield (where the band are from).Others argue the number '505' represents someone caught up in a love/hate relationship which is clearly referenced in the lyrics.

Turner expresses a deep need to return to '505', expressing he will get there whether it's a "7 hour flight or a 45 minute drive", implying he desires this time/place/feeling (depending on your interpretation of '505') so much he will do anything to get there, disregarding the time and energy this will take. This disregard for his own wellbeing is later referenced in the build up of the song in the line "I crumble completely when you cry", implying when his partner cries, he loses his strength to stand up for himself.

The instrumentation compliments the sad themes in the lyrics with sustained synthesised minor chords. As the emotion builds up, so does the instrumentation: starting with just piano and vocals then a single strum of the rhythm guitar on the first count of every bar followed soon by a soft drum beat and later a bassline. Furthermore, the lead guitar comes in with a sort of counter melody, complimenting Turner's vocals.

At the climax of the song, the intensity increases notably: this is most clear in both Turners' delivery of the lyrics and the increase in the bands dynamics. The lead guitar riff becomes more complicated and repetitive in the song and the drums begin to incorporate more symbols (likely a crash symbol). Finally, the song ends with only the synthesised chords and a variation on the guitar riff and the tempo slows. This could represent the build up of his emotions in his relationship as he finally lets it out.

Download the Chords

Download the lyrics and chords from Ultimate guitar. You will need to use the transpose -1/+1 to change the chords to D and A. It will need a capo on the 2nd fret to maintain the original sound.

Official Video

1. https://www.nme.com/news/music/alex-turner-tells-us-about-arctic-monkeys-505-going-viral-on-tiktok-3333522

2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MrmPDUvKyLs

3. https://www.radiox.co.uk/artists/arctic-monkeys/where-is-505-in-the-arctic-monkeys-song/

4. https://www.songfacts.com/facts/arctic-monkeys/505

5. https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/tab/bruce-springsteen/born-in-the-usa-chords-148158 (Use transpose feature to change to A & D chords)

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