“Never Make Predictions, Especially About The Future”
A few weekends ago I had a plan to write on Saturday and Sunday afternoon,…
Allen Toussaint – A Musical Giant
On November 10 of this year one of the twentieth century’s American musical giants, Allen…
Writing Is A Streetcar Named Desire
I recently finished John Lahr’s powerful biography, ‘Tennessee Williams: Mad Pilgrimage of The Flesh’. It’s…
How Adele Sets Up A Great Chorus
A big part of why understanding song structure is so important is that listeners bring…
7 Reasons To Join A Songwriting Workshop
Though Songwriting workshops aren’t for everyone, a lot of writers find them useful. After having…
6 Things To Consider Before Talking To An Artist About Changing Their Song
The piece below is an article I wrote, published this week in Sonic Scoop magazine…
The Most Dangerous Word In Songwriting
Rarely does a songwriting workshop session go by when I don’t find myself talking about…
6 Things To Remember When You’re Looking For A Producer
Most of what’s below involves communication and teamwork – the job of both parties. But…
Don’t Expect Writing A Good Song To Be Easy
“The vast majority of the time, I get a verse, or a chorus, and that’s…
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 –…
On Writing A ‘Genre’ Song
Recently I had an idea for a new song… and I kept trying to dismiss…
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…
You Can Start With A Bass Line… Here Are Some Who Did
With some songs all you need, musically, is a melody and a bass line. The…
It’s Blues – Even When You Don’t Realize It
By now there must be millions of songs that use the incredibly durable and adaptable…
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…
Songs, Like Pixar Movies, Have To Be MADE Good
Over the last few years I’ve listened to more than a few podcast interviews with…
In Songs, ‘I’ Is Usually Better Than ‘We’
Even more than most of these posts, this is just an opinion. But my opinion…
Watch the ‘Ask Tony’ Videos
