The Craft & Business Of Songwriting
Song craft – melody, lyrics, structure -plus pitching and publishing your songs, Braheny covers it all well.
Tunesmith
As much an autobiography of a great songwriter as it is a manual of craft and inspiration.
Songwriters On Songwriting
62 great interviews with hit songwriters. Learn from the pros!
Songwriting And Inspiration
by Robin Frederick (author of “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting”) Most songwriters sit down to write when they are going through an emotional time, when feelings are running high. Many great songs — many hit songs — have been written from a songwriter’s private life – the joy, love, grief, and anger of the writer’s own relationships. So, what happens when a songwriter who has been writing solely from personal experience begins to (or wants to) earn a living from their writing? Let’s say you’re a singer-songwriter with a record deal and you have to write ten new songs for an...
Start Your Song With A Universal Theme
by Robin Frederick, author of “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” Some songwriters spend a lot of time waiting. Waiting for inspiration. Waiting for an idea. Just waiting. Well, I don’t want you to wait. I want you to start doing, writing, creating. Now. One of the things songwriters most often seem to wait for is an idea that will launch them into the deep emotional waters of a song. Not only is it unnecessary to hang around hoping an idea will magically appear, it can lead to repetition and stagnation of your creative muscle. It’s funny how, once an idea has...
Study Hit Songs To Learn Your Craft
by Robin Frederick, author of “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” Most hit songs demonstrate at least three or four techniques you can use to broaden the emotional impact and commercial appeal of your own songs. That’s why it’s a great idea for aspiring songwriters (and even successful pro’s) to study recent hits! It’s important to study songs you admire, not the ones you can’t stand! Look for those hit songs that move you, the ones that appeal most to you, and then ask yourself what that song is doing that draws you in. Of course there are times when I go...
Give Your Song A Memorable Title
by Robin Frederick, author of “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” The title of a song is almost always a featured line in the song itself, often the first line or last line of the chorus, making it the line that listeners remember long after the song is over. A good title is intriguing, evocative, and memorable. The best titles sum up the heart and soul of a song, recalling the whole experience for listeners, making them want to go back and listen again. Keep it brief. Long titles can work but may be difficult for listeners to remember. These longer titles may...
Keep Your Listener By Your Side
by Robin Frederick, author of “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” When I’m coaching songwriters, they often give me a lyric to read while I listen. This is useful because I like to make notes as the song goes along but I have to be careful to remember that the average listener won’t have that lyric page in front of them. Sometimes I grasp the meaning of a song only because I’m reading the lyric or because the songwriter has told me something about the song before playing it. But when that song is played on the radio, the writer won’t be...
Write A Universal Lyric That’s Exciting And Fresh
Have you ever noticed how some people can describe a simple everyday occurrence and make it sound hilarious or tragic or just plain interesting, while another person can tell the same story and have you snoring with boredom in an instant? If the language you use is vivid and fresh even a familiar event or idea can come to life but if it’s trite, overused, and predictable–in other words, if it’s filled with clichés–even the most exciting story can become dull. People often speak in clichés.It’s an easy form of shorthand that doesn’t require much thought and ensures that everyone knows...
Get The Most From Simple Chord Progressions
by Robin Frederickbased on “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” available at Amazon.com Current hit songs in all mainstream commercial genres tend to stick to a few basic chords and lean heavily on repetition. For accomplished musicians there’s a real temptation to overwrite. You may be better off if your chord palette is limited to C, D min, F, and G! You can hear this type of chord progression in big four-chord hits like Kris Allen’s “Live Like We’re Dying” where the basic approach works best. So, how do they make that work? The secret to the success of today’s repetitive chord progressions...