Ideas and Advice for Real Songwriters (formerly songwright.co.uk)
Category
opinion
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08.22.10There’s this song…There's this song that I want to write. It's the greatest song you'll ever hear. The melody is captivating, the lyrics moving, the accompaniment inspired. The interplay of the different instruments is unique and bewitching. In short, it's the best song ever. It will take you on a musical journey you've never ever been on before. It's the song I'll be known for - people will sing its praises for decades. The problem is, I can't write it. I've been trying every day since I was ten to write this song, and I still haven't got there. I'm nearer now ...
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08.21.10What’s in a name? – Changing to IndieSongwriter.netSongwright.co.uk is dead. Long live IndieSongwriter.net. Yes, I'm changing the name of this site to Indiesongwriter.net after four years under the old name. There are a couple of reasons. Spelling 'Songwright' looks quite good on paper, but when you try and tell people the name of the site verbally, things can get very confusing. "It's songwright, but spelled like 'shipwright' or 'playwright'. Get it?" IndieSongwriter.net, on the other hand, isn't in any way ambiguous. You The second reason is while 'songwright' encapsulates something of what this blog is about - the craft of songwriting - it says nothing about you, the audience. Now, I've got a pretty good idea ...
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07.21.10Ben Walker – Technical SongwritingBen Walker, who I interviewed a while ago, has written a blog post asking the question 'Does technical thinking ruin songwriting?'. Here's a quote: There’s no such thing as a conceptual songwriter. As an artist you are free to choose from all sorts of funky media and part of the game is to work outside the box and provoke thought and criticism. Songwriting isn’t like that. Composition is like that, but songwriting isn’t. As a songwriter you’ve signed up to write songs, and the popular song isn’t a very flexible form. It’s not quite as restrictive as being a sonnetwriter, but it’s ...
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07.19.1010 More Tips for SongwritersOn Sunday 18th July, I was guest speaker at the London Songwriters Meetup. I spoke about 10 Tips for songwriters, and shared some of my favourite tips with the lovely songwriters in attendance. I also heard some fantastic songs and had a really good time. Here are the notes I wrote before speaking: 1. ( A tip from Edwin Songsville) Write bad songs Edwin says: It's more important to write lots of songs that it is to spend ages trying to make one perfect one. You look at all the good songwriters and you realise they've written hundreds of songs. That's how you get good ...
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07.15.10A Question – What Motivates Your Songwriting?I'm working on an article about songwriting motivation, and I could use your help: What motivates your songwriting? Why do you compose? Do you write songs to sell them? Do you write to express yourself? Do you write to get an audience singing or dancing? Do you write to praise a god? To attract the opposite sex? To make a point, political, moral or philosophical? Answers in the comments! (PS. Have you got your free copy of the ebook 10 Tips for Songwriters?)
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04.10.10Jeff Shattuck – Can an Artist be an Atheist?Jeff Shattuck, a regular contributor to the comments on this site, and a very good songwriter: Love & Hate (pre-release) by Jeff Shattuck ... Has written an interesting blog post about atheism and songwriting. I’m an atheist, I admit it. I used to say I was an agnostic, but as I’ve gotten older and read more and thought more about religion, I’ve decided that every one is humankind’s creation. I’m cool with my beliefs, but I wonder if society really is, especially among those who, like myself, think of themselves as artists. My uncertainty stems from the countless interviews I have read with ...
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02.21.10Is There Such A Thing As An Objectively ‘Good’ Song?Earlier today I was twittering a few random thoughts on future blog posts. I floated the idea of writing 'The Songwriting Crimes of Bob Dylan', and 'The Songwriting Crimes of Stock, Aitken and Waterman'. A couple of twitterers (tweeters? Tweetmates? Twitees?) raised an interesting opinion or two Marie Tueje said (I've paraphrased and edited a few tweets, purely to make it scan): Surely the major crime of SAW was being too successful? Their writing is formulaic, sure. Subjectively, a lot of it is bad, in the sense that I personally do not like it...but objectively I think it's difficult to argue that they wrote bad songs... Despite ...
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02.14.104 Reasons You Shouldn’t Write A Love Song this Valentines Day1. Everyone else will be, you don't want to follow the crowd do you? 2. Love is a cliché - songwriters have been writing about love for centuries 3. Love songs aren't moving - the shallowest of songs are the ones that say 'I Love You'. I don't know why it is that so profound an emotion should be so unconvincing when put into words, but I've never heard a love song that convinced me of the singer's sentiments 4. There are more interesting subjects to write about. Why not hate, or mystery? Why not a song about the sasquatch or the ancient ...
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01.14.10There is no excuse for lazinessThere is no excuse for laziness. There just isn't. Now, let's get a few things straight. 1. Songwright.co.uk isn't about the songwriting business. I'm not interested in whether a song makes money, I just care about the craft being done well. 2. Amy Winehouse has no redeeming features. She could never sing, she has never recorded an above average song, and she has apparently squandered the life she was so lucky to be given. She made some money for some people, but that doesn't stop her sounding tinny and unpleasant, or looking so vile and unwashed. 3. Copying has to be done well if you're ...
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11.21.09Random Songwriting ThoughtsWhilst watching performances by Westlife (I know, I know) and Jack's Mannequin, several songwriting thoughts occurred: If You're Following a Formula, Tweak It The Westlife song followed the pop ballad formula perfectly - short verses, soaring anthemic chorus, contrasting bridge, drop chorus then a key change chorus to finish. But it followed it to the letter. Result? Too predictable! There's nothing wrong with using a standard formula, but you've got to understand what you're using. Bonjovi's Living on a Prayer uses that formula too, pretty much. But when they come to the key change they skip a beat out of one bar, then ...
