Ira Gershwin called it the “Vest.” It’s that little piece of material between the coat and the shirt. The coat and the shirt are two major and indispensable pieces of clothing. The vest is a sort of connector. If you want to see how it’s used by a master, the library has books of Gershwin lyrics.

In the interest of economy of language, which can add immeasurable power to a lyric, I try to avoid using a Vest unless the melody demands it — and that’s because the emotion in lyric is going through a transition. So my advice is, Be wary of any new kind of section in a lyric that doesn’t have a substantial name. A name of substance indicates usefulness, function. If it’s called a pre-anything, it’s probably not necessary. Learning to cut will make you feel more powerful as a communicator. And you can always save the previous version on your flash drive in case it turns out to be the one you like better.

Jason,
Great point! Personally, I’ve never had much luck with this (like sometimes happens with an organ transplant, the new song seems to reject the ‘foreign body’), but I know other writers who have.
The great songwriter Tamara Hey responded to this post with: ‘As one of my teachers used to say,
“If it’s not working it should be fired, but you can always hire it back in another song.”‘
Best wishes,
Tony

Thanks, Andy. Happy Thanksgiving to you!