[MycroftJones]

I don't think he is tone deaf. I have a good ear for pitch, but I'm not a trained musician. I could hear minor differences in most of those songs, but the difference was minor, not dramatic.

When I'm listening to music, and it shifts between minor and major modes, I can tell right away.

I suspect the cause is that there are emotional cues in the human voice, and even changing from minor to major doesn't alter those emotional cues. Also, prior expectations can dull the perception of difference.

TBH, I was surprised at how similar the major mode versions of those pieces sounded to the originals.