Hal David, one of the greatest lyricists of all time, always believed it was essential for writers to stay as objective as possible about their lyrics. He stressed the importance of being able to step outside of yourself and hear the song from the listener’s point of view.
“One thing a lyricist must learn is not to fall in love with his own lines,” David once remarked. “Once you learn that, you can walk away from the lyric and look at it with a reasonable degree of objectivity.”
A common mistake among many new lyricists is their failure to take a step back and recognize when they are using over-elaborate imagery and ‘poetic’ lyrics that just don’t work with the song. Far from being impressed with how clever and creative the lyricist is, music publishers and A&R executives are more likely to see unnecessarily flowery language as a sign of inexperience.
Trying too hard to be ‘different’ and artistic can often result in lyrics that simply sound pretentious and self-indulgent. If your lyrics don’t come across as genuine, listeners may find it hard to connect with your song.
And some lyricists may not realize that they are in danger of boring listeners by simply pouring out fact after fact as they tell the song’s story. You have to paint a picture in the listener’s imagination so that you can reach him or her on an emotional level and stimulate a response.
To make it easier for listeners to remember your lyrics, it’s important to keep them simple and conversational. Hal David was a master at conveying what he wanted to say in the most concise way possible, despite the complexity of some of Burt Bacharach’s melodies.
In the 1960s and early 1970s, Bacharach and David wrote some of the most enduring pop songs of all time. Their classic hits included ‘Raindrops Keep Fallin’ on My Head’, ‘This Guy’s in Love with You’, ‘I’ll Never Fall in Love Again’, ‘Do You Know the Way to San Jose’, ‘Walk On By’, ‘What the World Needs Now Is Love’, ‘I Say a Little Prayer’, ‘The Look of Love’, and ‘Anyone Who Had a Heart’, amongst many others.
“In writing, I search for believability, simplicity and emotional impact,” Hal David once explained. “Simplicity is often the hardest thing to achieve.”
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
Co-writing and building relationships with more experienced writers is one of the best ways to grow as a songwriter, says British singer-songwriter Jake Bugg.
He topped the UK album chart in 2012 with his platinum-selling debut album, Jake Bugg, which was largely co-written with established songwriters Iain Archer, Matt Prime and Crispin Hunt.
Bugg has recently been working on tracks for his second studio album with legendary producer Rick Rubin. The new album will again involve collaborations with seasoned songwriters, including some of the top writers in Nashville.
Bugg, 19, recently told the UK’s Daily Star newspaper: “I’m still very young, and I believe I should soak up what I can learn from people with more experience. I’m taking it all on board, so I can step into writing on my own eventually.”
There is no doubt that collaborations can help you to learn how to write better songs much faster. Working with a co-writer with talents that complement your own can help to take you and your songs to a much higher level. As Brian Eno once put it: “Every collaboration helps you grow”.
An experienced songwriting partner can also help to keep you focused. He or she may question your lyrics when you’re under-achieving, and introduce fresh ideas and new chords that may take your songs to new places.
And if you’ve got a great idea for a song but you just can’t seem to finish it, an accomplished co-writer may be able to listen objectively to what you’ve got and come up with the missing link. He or she may introduce lyrical or melodic ideas that would never have occurred to you while you’re still honing your own skills.
As Robbie Shakespeare of long-time reggae duo Sly and Robbie recently remarked: “If you have two sets of ears, you can hear more.”
Jake Bugg’s latest single – produced by Rick Rubin – is a re-recording of the haunting song ‘Broken’ from his debut album. Bugg co-wrote the track with Crispin Hunt.
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
Listening to the same things over and over again can kill your creative process, warns Taylor Swift.
“I think you need to change up your influences,” she recently told USA Today. “I think you need to be inspired by different things than you were inspired by before.”
Swift, who is about to start working on new songs for her next album, revealed that she often scraps new ideas if they sound too familiar to her. “I may like it, but if it’s going to sound like the last record it is going to get thrown away,” she said.
She also confessed that her songwriting is often spurred by anxiety. “When the anxiety starts, the writing happens right after, usually,” she said.
Many leading songwriters agree that is important to seek inspiration by listening to plenty of new things – even genres that you haven’t considered before. It can help you to start thinking differently about your own songs.
For example, Taylor’s good friend Ed Sheeran recently revealed that his follow-up to his 2011 debut album is likely to include a broad mix of influences. In an interview with MTV News, he even hinted that it could feature some hip-hop and rap-metal songs. He recently recorded a track with rapper and hip-hop star The Game.
“I’m actually writing very specific songs to genres at the moment,” he said. “I’ve got a whole album of one genre and enough to make another of another genre.”
US singer-songwriter Ben Harper also feels it is important to listen to other kinds of music. “That’s how new ideas come,” he said, “and how musical inspiration is passed on—through other music and other brilliant artists. Listen to whatever pulls you in different musical directions so that you don’t start copying yourself.”
Critically-acclaimed British songwriter and guitarist Richard Thompson once told Innerviews magazine: “Someone very wise said ‘Copy everyone except yourself’. Looking at other people’s ideas and twisting them to fit your own style is a good thing.”
He added: “It’s important to keep searching and not go for the obvious idea.”
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
In an earlier story, we asked How many songwriters does it take to write a hit song? According to US singer-songwriter Ke$ha, it only takes a pair!
She recently told US TV chat show host Conan O’Brien that it’s her breasts that write most of her hit songs.
When Conan asked Ke$ha to explain how she writes her songs, she revealed that her latest songwriting technique involves turning off the lights, lowering her boobs over her piano, and bouncing them on the keys to create a melody.
“I just let them tickle the ivories,” said Ke$ha. “It started as like a joke, but it seriously has produced some of my favourite songs on my new record.”
So, another songwriting duo for Songwriters Hall of Fame chairman Jimmy Webb to consider for an award.
And another songwriting team to add to that prestigious list that includes George and Ira Gershwin, Bacharach and David, Lennon and McCartney…
Watch Ke$ha explaining her new songwriting process HERE…
What titles would you suggest for some boobs-written songs?
Photo: Becky Sullivan
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is now available from Amazon’s Kindle Store for only US$7.22 or GB£4.78.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA) and HERE (UK).
Also available from Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music).
The urge to express yourself is one reason why many songwriters start writing in the first place. And if you can also touch other people’s emotions by writing about a personal experience that they can relate to in their own lives, then it’s usually the sign of a good song.
Katy Perry has revealed that she takes this a stage further by pouring out her darkest secrets and concealing them in her songs. Many of her songs actually contain cryptic truths about her life and relationships, she says.
“They all stem from the truth inside me,” the 28-year-old singer and songwriter recently told OK! magazine. “Maybe I’m not so specific with names, but that’s my lockbox, where all my secrets go.”
Katy also revealed that she initially struggled with songwriting because of her conservative Pentecostal upbringing. In fact, having had very little exposure to mainstream pop music in her strict childhood, she started out pursuing a career in gospel music as a teenager. She didn’t start to open up as a writer, she said, until she met Glen Ballard, her mentor and producer.
“I was at that point in life where I was scared to write about certain subjects because I was still virginal,” she said. “I remember I wrote a song called ‘Nothing Like the First Time’ and I was really scared to present it because it had some risqué lyrics.”
She added: “Glen was like, ‘You can write about anything, anything you feel, just write them.’ I was so free by him allowing me to do that.”
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
David Bowie’s typically enigmatic decision not to do any interviews about his latest album, The Next Day, meant people were left to put their own interpretations on the album’s unusual lyrics and surreal imagery.
Author Ricky Moody—who writes for the literary magazine The Rumpus—recently asked Bowie to explain his thinking behind the new songs. “I wanted to understand the lexicon of The Next Day,” said Moody, “and so I simply asked if he would provide a list of words about his album, assuming, like everyone else waving madly trying to get his attention, that there was not a chance in hell that I would get the list.”
To Moody’s surprise, Bowie responded by sending him a list of 42 words which supposedly provided the framework for the critically-acclaimed album. Here they are:
Effigies
Indulgences
Anarchist
Violence
Chthonicum
Intimidation
Vampyric
Pantheon
Succubus
Hostage
Transference
Identity
Mauer
Interface
Flitting
Isolation
Revenge
Osmosis
Crusade
Tyrant
Domination
Indifference
Miasma
Pressgang
Displaced
Flight
Resettlement
Funereal
Glide
Trace
Balkan
Burial
Reverse
Manipulate
Origin
Text
Traitor
Urban
Comeuppance
Tragic
Nerve
Mystification
Still confused?
Maybe the answer can be found in a 2008 interview with Bowie. In it he described how he often comes up with interesting lyric lines by employing the ‘cut-up’ writing technique used by postmodernist author William S. Burroughs in his controversial novel Naked Lunch.
‘Cut-up’ is a literary technique designed to add an element of chance to the creative process.
It involves taking a finished line of text and cutting it into pieces—usually with just one or two words on each piece. The resulting pieces are then rearranged to create a brand new text.
The cut-up concept can be traced back to the Dadaists of the 1920s, but it was developed further in the early 1950s by painter, writer and sound poet Brion Gysin—and then popularized in the late 1950s and early 1960s by Burroughs.
David Bowie explained: “You write down a paragraph or two describing several different subjects, creating a kind of ‘story ingredients’ list, I suppose, and then cut the sentences into four or five-word sections; mix ’em up and reconnect them.
“You can get some pretty interesting idea combinations like this,” he said. “You can use them as is or, if you have a craven need to not lose control, bounce off these ideas and write whole new sections.”
This technique is also said to have influenced Kurt Cobain’s songwriting. And Thom Yorke applied a similar method on Radiohead’s 2000 album Kid A. Yorke reportedly wrote single lines, put them into a hat, and drew them out at random while the band rehearsed the songs.
Here’s Bowie explaining his cut-up technique in the 1975 BBC TV documentary Cracked Actor …
So there you have it … If you want to get all Bowie-esque and create some unusual and intriguing lyrics, simply reach for your lyric notebook and a pair of scissors – and start cutting and pasting!
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A 5-star rated book at Amazon, “How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a US paperback, UK paperback and as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store. It is also available from Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music), Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, and KoboBooks.
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“How [Not] To Write Great Lyrics! – 40 Common Mistakes To Avoid When Writing Lyrics For Your Songs” is available from Amazon as a US paperback, UK paperback and as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store. It is also available from Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music), Barnes & Noble’s Nook store, and KoboBooks.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA) and HERE (UK), HERE (Australia) and HERE (Canada).
“SURPRISING RHYMING” – The Alternative Rhyming Dictionary for Songwriters and Poets – is available from Amazon as a US paperback, a UK paperback, and across Europe. It is also available as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle store in the United States, the UK and Europe, as well as Apple’s iTunes Store, Barnes & Noble’s Nook Store and Rakuten’s KoboBooks.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA) … HERE (UK) … HERE (CANADA).
Music publishers and A&R executives often talk about how important it is for new singer-songwriters to create their own unique style. But what they really mean is they simply want you to sound original.
In reality, your songs should not be completely different from anything music industry execs have ever heard before. Ideally, they want something that develops what is already out there – not a sudden leap that will leave a huge gap between you and the audience.
For your songs to be commercial and marketable so that they will sell (which, at the end of the day, is all that record companies and publishers are really interested in), your ‘unique’ songs still require a hint of familiarity so that people will be able to relate to them.
In other words, listen to what is currently being played across lots of different music genres – then carve your own niche by adding something new of your own.
One of the finest current examples of this approach is British singer-songwriter Laura Mvula.
One magazine has described her as a “musical magpie”; another reviewer referred to her musical style as “Nina Simone sings the Beach Boys”; while another even coined a brand new genre – “gospeldelia” – to encapsulate her soulful vocals and vivid soundscapes.
With a degree in composition from Birmingham Conservatoire in Birmingham, England, Laura Mvula has created her own distinctive sound by taking inspiration from many different genres – including choral baroque music, George Gershwin, Björk, the gospel-soul of Jill Scott, Erykah Badu and Lauryn Hill, and the pop of Amy Winehouse.
She has created something fresh by taking elementary melodies from each of these genres and turning them into complex five-part harmonies and emotional vocals.
“I’ve always enjoyed bringing really simple elements together to make something that’s bigger or more interesting,” said 26-year-old Laura in a recent interview. “I’m just into things that circle round and round. It’s how my brain works.
“I drew on the soul icons I loved when growing up – Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Lauryn Hill. But I’m not a wordsmith, so I tried to be expressive with my unashamed first love, harmony.”
Listen to ‘Green Garden’ from Laura Mvula’s Top 10 album Sing to the Moon HERE…
And you can hear her latest single ‘That’s Alright’ HERE…
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
Many producers of artists who don’t write their own songs are finding that the best way to consistently generate hits is to use the American TV ‘writers room’ model – with large numbers of pop writers working in teams.
But what is the optimum number of writers required to create a hit song?
English boy band phenomenon One Direction had an average of five songwriters per track on their hit 2012 album Take Me Home. Now, Britney Spears is going two better with her new track, titled ‘Ooh La La’, which will be featured in the upcoming Smurfs movie, The Smurfs 2.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, ‘Ooh La La’ is the result of a seven-way collaboration between Lukasz Gottwald, Joshua Coleman, Henry Walter, Bonnie McKee, Jacob Kasher Hindlin, Lola Blanc and Fransisca Hall.
You can watch Britney’s official video for ‘Ooh La La’ HERE…
The song will play over the end credits of The Smurfs 2 when it is released in cinemas this summer.
The film’s director Raja Gosnell said: “I am very excited that Britney is joining our smurfy adventure. ‘Ooh La La’ is the perfect Smurf-party song, and the perfect button on the film for audiences around the world.”
Britney added: “I always loved The Smurfs as a kid and now my boys are the biggest Smurfs fans ever. I wanted to surprise them with a song in the movie. I know they’ll think it’s Smurftastic!”
The royalty split agreement between all of the writers and music publishers involved in ‘Ooh La La’ should also make Smurftastic reading!
Also busy collaborating right now is Katy Perry who is co-writing tracks for her third album with hitmakers such as Max Martin, Dr. Luke, Greg Wells, Sia and Bonnie McKee. The album will be the follow-up to Teenage Dream which spawned five Hot 100 Number One singles.
“Max and Luke push me the most,” said Katy, giving an insight into how she works with her co-writers. “As a team we have certain strengths. With Max, it’s melody choices, Luke is production and I’m topline and melody.”
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK) or HERE (Australia).
A new US TV commercial for Diet Coke shows Taylor Swift writing her latest single ‘22’ – supposedly being inspired by the can of Diet Coke that the Grammy-winning singer-songwriter is seen enjoying throughout the ad.
Filmed in Nashville, the TV ad – titled ‘Music That Moves’ – also features performances by Taylor’s fans singing and dancing along with the new song.
“Taylor is a true artist, deeply involved in the full creative process, from writing to production to release,” says Stuart Kronauge, general manager, Sparkling Beverages, Coca-Cola North America.
“The ‘Music That Moves’ ad shows Taylor in her natural element – penning lyrics that one day will speak volumes to millions of fans the world over … all while sipping on a Diet Coke. The commercial serves as a peek behind the curtain at an extraordinary day in the life of a true American superstar.
“Whether you’re writing a hit song like Taylor, or simply singing along, Diet Coke helps you Stay Extraordinary.”
You can judge for yourself HERE…
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“How (Not) To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is now available from Amazon’s Kindle Store for only US$7.22 or GB£4.78.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA) and HERE (UK).
Also available from Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music).
For a song to become a great song, it must be able to reach out and touch listeners and stimulate an emotional response within them. It should take them on a memorable and emotional journey. It should make them feel something.
That’s why Amy Grant, the Nashville-based Christian singer-songwriter, believes the greatest compliment a songwriter can receive is to have someone tell you that your song captures exactly what they’re feeling inside.
“The challenge of a songwriter is to articulate – in an accessible way – things we go through, if what you are trying to do is to make people feel connected to their own life, ” says Amy. “I’m inspired by specific situations and try to capture in a song what people feel.”
On May 14, the six-times Grammy award winner will release her first full album of all-new songs in 10 years.
Titled How Mercy Looks From Here, the new album was produced by Marshall Altman and includes guest vocalists James Taylor, Carole King, Sheryl Crow, Will Hoge, and Eric Pasley (who wrote the only song on the album not written by Grant). Amy’s husband, Vince Gill, also makes an appearance.
Watch the official video for Amy Grant’s 1991 hit ‘Good For Me’ HERE…
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“How [Not] To Write A Hit Song! – 101 Common Mistakes To Avoid If You Want Songwriting Success” is available from Amazon as a US paperback, UK paperback and as an eBook from Amazon’s Kindle Store, Apple’s iTunes Store (Books/Arts & Entertainment/Music) and Barnes & Noble’s Nook store.
Read a FREE sample of the book HERE (USA), HERE (UK), HERE (Australia) and HERE (Canada).
SONGWRITING: THE HIT FORMULA 