Don’t Give Away Your Chorus Before Its Time
This post is about avoiding something that I think can hurt a song – I…
The Importance Of Being Picky… Very Picky
I’ve written various posts related to how important it is to write without judgement… to…
By Now Hip Hop Has Influenced All Songwriting – Even Country
It’s no secret that by now Hip Hop has influenced every kind of popular songwriting…
Coldplay’s ‘Viva La Vida’ – The Art of Generating Momentum
Coldplay’s 2008 hit, ‘Viva La Vida’ is an intense, rousing, and satisfying song. It combines…
Bowie – A Songwriting Look Inside ‘Young Americans’
Today it only seems right to look at a song of David Bowie’s; let’s make…
Iron & Wine – The Indirect Style And Sound Of Sam Beam’s Songwriting
Iron & Wine is singer/songwriter Sam Beam and whichever musicians and singers he decides to…
Easy To Sing Is A Damn Good Thing: ‘Let It Snow’ Part 2
While scribbling away on our pads or pecking away at our iPads, as we write…
How Adele Sets Up A Great Chorus
A big part of why understanding song structure is so important is that listeners bring…
The Most Dangerous Word In Songwriting
Rarely does a songwriting workshop session go by when I don’t find myself talking about…
When In Doubt, Try Taking It Out
I was thinking about Pre-Choruses – about how many times, in songs of mine and…
Writing The List Song – Part 2
I’ve been listening to the classic blues song, ‘You Can’t Judge A Book By Its…
13 Ways To Access More Songwriting Creativity
Here’s a good block-breakin’, stimulatin’, new-idea-creatin’ songwriting tool: Ask yourself ‘What If…?’ For example –…
A Good Title Needs A Specific POV In The Lyric
It is a truth universally accepted (sorry, Jane) that a song with a good Title/Chorus…
Can You Teach Someone To Write A Song?
Even when I’m ‘teaching songwriting’, I never think of it this way. I believe you…
Cutting What’s Not Essential Strengthens What’s Left
‘If it can be cut, then CUT IT OUT. Everything non-essential that you can eliminate…
In Songs, ‘I’ Is Usually Better Than ‘We’
Even more than most of these posts, this is just an opinion. But my opinion…
Singing Helps Get The Lyric Right
In preparing for a recent gig I was, as usual before a show, singing my…
Bridges Are All About Momentum
In a Verse/Chorus song, Bridges usually happen a minute and a half to two minutes…
How To Keep Your Focus In A Lyric… Or Not
Recently I heard some talented students record a song that I’ve always liked, and still…
A Big Part Of A Lyric’s ‘Meaning’ Is Its Sound
Two very different lines from very different songs recently caught my attention for the same…
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