Stuck In Lyric Paralysis? Just Say It.
Many of us find completing a lyric to be difficult at times. There can be…
Using The Title To Write The Verses
When writing a Verse/Chorus song, say I’ve got the Title and Chorus. When it comes…
‘The Elements Of Style’ – In Songwriting
The Elements Of Style, Strunk and White’s classic and still magisterial book about written English…
Joni Mitchell: The Power Of Subtlety And Restraint
Joni Mitchell’s song ‘For Free’ is a superb example of storytelling in a song. It…
When THAT Is In Your Song’s Title
If you’re going to use the word ‘that’ in a song’s Title, it’s usually a…
Are You Giving Your Song The Steady Groove It Deserves?
Pardon the oversimplification, but people tend to respond to songs three ways – emotionally, intellectually,…
What’s the REAL Title Of Your Song?
You can call your song anything you want. You can use a word or phrase…
The Title: To Rhyme Or Not? And, If So… Where And How?
In a song I wrote recently I was puzzled, not for the first time, about…
Places To Find Songwriting Inspiration – And Ways To Use It
It’s no surprise that artists get inspiration from other artists, both in their field and…
When Songs DON’T Rhyme – Leonard Cohen’s ‘Suzanne’… and Others
The useful, musical qualities of rhyme are many – though that’s not the subject of…
What Makes A Song A ‘Song’?
Why do songs need structure… and why do they have the structures that they do?…
Songwriting: There Are No Rules
I’m a musician and songwriter who for over a decade has also been facilitating Songwriting…
Take Apart ONE Song
Here’s a way to get deeper into the craft, the nuts and bolts, of songwriting:…
In The Era Of Oprah, Most Good Songs Are Still About Trouble
In this era of therapy, Oprah, ‘having a positive attitude’, affirmations, ‘the secret’, even ‘the…
We Respond To Songs Primarily As SOUND
When working on a song and concentrating hard on the component parts – lyrics, melody,…
Think Out Of The Songwriting ‘Box’: Drop A Bar!
We’ve all heard tens of thousands of songs. If a song is extremely predictable, most…
Returning To My List Of Song Titles
Some songwriters won’t even start a song without a Title they feel good about. I…
‘Write it down, no matter how dumb it seems at the time.’
I wrote a note to myself the other day – ‘Write it down, no matter…
Let The Words Change The Melody Sometimes
A very common songwriter’s dilemma is to have a melody line and a lyric for…
One Quick Way To Start Writing a Song From Scratch
Here’s one quick way to get started from scratch on writing a new song: Take…
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