Comments on: The Spectrum Of Great Songwriters https://tonyconniff.com/the-spectrum-of-great-songwriters/ Songwriter, Producer, and Coach, based in New York City. Fri, 07 Sep 2018 02:32:24 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: Tony Conniff https://tonyconniff.com/the-spectrum-of-great-songwriters/#comment-7468 Fri, 07 Sep 2018 02:32:24 +0000 http://tonyconniff.com/?p=3919#comment-7468 In reply to Michael Eric Stein.

Great points as usual, Michael!
Thanks,
Tony

]]> By: Michael Eric Stein https://tonyconniff.com/the-spectrum-of-great-songwriters/#comment-7467 Fri, 07 Sep 2018 02:15:13 +0000 http://tonyconniff.com/?p=3919#comment-7467 That’s a great post. I’d put the Boss more in the Stevie Wonder/Prince category – he’s a hell of a Tin-Pan-Alley type tunesmith who started out doing jazz-related stuff and has experimented along the lines of his folk orchestra (although I guess he didn’t write the songs for that.).

Also Bowie in that category. I now realize, after all these years, and after seeing the Brooklyn Museum exhibit, that Bowie, even more than our beloved ‘60s bands and performers, is my favorite. Why? He lasted so long, and it was mostly great: Blackstar at the end was a masterpiece. His songwriting was so beautifully varied, it manifested everything from American soul to his friend and one-time collaborator Lou Reed to those years’ electronic music influences (like Brian Eno) to…I always suspected it…Anthony Newley. He did it all: writing, producing, performing, design. And he brought theater and serious film (including his acting) to rock.

]]> By: Tony Conniff https://tonyconniff.com/the-spectrum-of-great-songwriters/#comment-7466 Fri, 07 Sep 2018 02:07:36 +0000 http://tonyconniff.com/?p=3919#comment-7466 In reply to Daniel McBrearty.

Daniel,
True… you can never be sure which songs are going to ‘stick’. Certainly it usually has to do with the song working in different grooves and formats as styles evolve.
Thanks for reading and for your comments!
Best wishes,
Tony

]]> By: Daniel McBrearty https://tonyconniff.com/the-spectrum-of-great-songwriters/#comment-7465 Thu, 06 Sep 2018 16:06:39 +0000 http://tonyconniff.com/?p=3919#comment-7465 I think it’s worth stopping to think about what makes a “great song”. For me one of the criteria is a song that seems to just keep on coming back, generation after generation, perhaps in a variety of musical styles. For me that is a sign that a song has somehow found it’s way into our mass consciousness in some way.

There unexpected examples from all eras, and this perhaps makes Anon the greatest writer of all. Think for instance of Whisky In The Jar! Gershwin’s Summertime is an obvious one. And there are some unexpected ones too : ever hear Richard Thompson sing “Oops I Did It Again”? It really works, and makes me think that this one might stay the course.

]]>