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Writing better lyrics (notes on Pattison’s book)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Books, Lyric writing — 2 Comments ↓

This blog entry is a set of notes that I made on the book: Pattison, Pat (2009) Writing better lyrics: the essential guide to powerful songwriting, Writers Digest Books, Cincinnati. I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, there is a wealth of great advice, based on solid experience, and despite the significant reservations I am about to voice, I strongly encourage people to read this book because it is packed with wisdom. On the other hand, I emphatically disagree with a number of Pattison’s arguments, notably: his claims about near rhymes (many of which are not rhymes at all in my view, and do not fulfil the basic function or sonic effect of a true rhyme); his definition of prosody, which strikes me as a bizarre deviation from how any academic or dictionary authority might use the term; his attempts to present a theory of how rhyme, stress patterns, line lengths and numbers of lines interact to create different effects (in which he seems either vague, or wildly inconsistent, subjective and unsystematic); and his suggestion that co-writers should never discuss technique, or critique each other’s work or ideas.

The notes I have made here are not a comprehensive executive summary of the book. Rather, they record the ideas that I find useful, sound, and even inspiring. I have also set out those ideas of Pattison’s that I find problematic; in square brackets I have outlined my objections. Also in square brackets, I have included my own thoughts that arose, and theories that I began to formulate, stimulated by reading Pattison’s book. In this regard, I am grateful to Pattison for getting me to think. Read more ›

If You Want To Write (notes on Ueland’s book)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Books, Creativity & Craftsmanship — No Comments ↓

Brenda Ueland (1891-1985) was a journalist, editor, freelance writer and teacher of writing. She seems to have been a highly creative, generous-hearted, free spirit. Amongst her accomplishments, she was knighted by the King of Norway, and set an international swimming record for people over 80 years old. Ueland wrote a book in 1938 that was ‘re-discovered’ in the 1980s, and has since done the rounds of the self help movement, and creative writing courses. In If you want to write: a book about art, independence and spirit (B N Publishing, 1938/2008) she wrote, “Everyone … has something important to say.” Carl Sandburg wrote that it is “the best book ever written on how to write.” It is, undoubtedly, inspiring, but there are also major flaws in it, so read these notes with a critical eye … Read more ›

The Escaped Lyric (Radio 4 series)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Documentaries, Lyric writing — No Comments ↓

5 episodes of 11 minutes each – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b082bk15/episodes/guide

From teenage alienation to middle-aged loss and regret, lyrics from popular music can escape their song to become an anthem of our youth or a lifeline through loss and solitude. Nick Berkeley speaks to song writers and musicians about how the words of a three minute pop song can come to have such impact on us all. He dissects the craft of the song in a quest to understand the alchemy that converts seemingly simple words into thoughts of great impact and meaning. From Noel Coward to Kylie Minogue, seminal folk songs to outsider hip hop, there are words and phrases that the music fan can cling to, and remember, forever.

Monday 12:04 – Solitude – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b080r362
Tuesday 12:04 – Family – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b081b2w3
Wednesday 12:04 – Vulnerability – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b081b2y1
Thursday 12:04 – Lust – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b081jm0b
Friday 12:04 – Absence – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b081b3wx

Melody 01: Melody writing made simple(r)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Music writing / Composing — No Comments ↓

whistling_smiley7:15-9:30pm, Wednesday 26 October 2016

Sign up here.

In these sessions, we’re rotating a number of core topics on songwriting. This is our first on writing melody. We’ll look at:

  • the musical properties and potential of different scales, intervals and melodic shapes
  • structural and non-structural notes in a melody
  • managing rhythm and phrase lengths
  • tips on vocal range, hooks, riffs, and use of silence in melody writing

As always, it’s an opportunity for:

  • learning some (non-scary) theory & technique
  • doing songwriting exercises
  • learning from analyzing successful songs
  • getting reading lists & detailed handouts
  • meeting other songwriters & potential writing partners

Cost: £12

Sign up here, or get in touch with me through the contact page as quickly as possible.

Our previous meetings covered:

  1. The Songwriting Pentagon and Oxford Songwriting Syllabus, and
  2. Finding a Big Idea to focus your song – working on Big Ideas and Titles.

Finding A ‘Big Idea’ To Focus Your Song

Posted on by alexander Posted in Lyric writing — No Comments ↓

Starting in August 2016, about once a month, I have been leading an evening workshop for Oxford Songwriters Meetup. We are gradually working through some of the main topics in my Oxford Songwriting Syllabus. The meeting on 25 Sept 2016 was called ‘Finding a ‘Big Idea’ to focus your song’. We divided the evening into two sections:

  1. What is a Big Idea? (And how does it effect how you write your song, as well as the impact on the listener?)
  2. What makes a good Title? (And how does it relate to your Big Idea, songwriting process, and impact on the listener?)

These are the teaching notes that I gave out that evening. If you were there, these notes should make complete sense. If you weren’t at the workshop, I hope you still find these notes useful – and you could always come to our next meeting! Read more ›

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Analysis of ‘And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda’ (Eric Bogle)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Song Analysis — 2 Comments ↓

Analysing other people’s songs can teach us a lot

This is the second song analysis to be posted on this blog. As I said I have said elsewhere, a song does not have to be good, or one we like, for us to be able to learn a lot from it about the craft of songwriting. This is a set of teaching notes that I created for a songwriting workshop at Wallingford Bunkfest (3 Sept 2016) and the Oxford Songwriters Meetup (25 Sept 2016). For those who came to those workshops, hopefully these notes will make sense straightaway. For those of you reading this song study of ‘And the Band Played Waltzing Matilda’ for the first time, I’d like to encourage you to work through my notes, with the lyrics open on another page, and stopping and starting the June Tabor video as you go. You need to set aside at least half an hour to do this, but it’s worth it. My analysis is organised according to categories in the Songwriting Pentagon, and the Oxford Songwriting Syllabus. Read more ›

Analysis of ‘Hell No’ (Ingrid Michaelson)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Song Analysis — No Comments ↓

Why should we study other people’s songs?

We can learn a lot about songwriting through close study of other people’s songs. It doesn’t matter whether the song is ‘great’, mediocre or terrible; a song will always teach us something about the craft if we keep an open mind and study it for long enough. It’s also good for us to analyse songs that we don’t like, or that are in styles we would not normally listen to. This can improve our critical faculties, widen our musical palette and lyrical imagination, and is therefore likely to make us better songwriters.

This is a set of teaching notes that I created for the Oxford Songwriters Meetup on 24 Aug 2016. For those who came to the workshop, hopefully these will make sense straightaway. For those of you reading this song study of ‘Hell No’ for the first time, I’d like to encourage you to work through my notes, with the lyrics open on another page, and stopping and starting the video as you go. You need to set aside at least half an hour to do this, but it’s worth it. My analysis is organised according to categories in the Songwriting Pentagon, and the Oxford Songwriting Syllabus. Read more ›

Poets of Tin Pan Alley (notes on Furia’s book)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Books, Lyric writing — No Comments ↓

This blog entry is part of the series on book summaries. It is the notes that I made as I read through: Furia, Philip (1990) Poets of Tin Pan Alley: a history of America’s great lyricists, Oxford University Press, New York. It may be that, as they are my personal notes, not everything here will make sense to the general reader. However, I hope it will prove useful, and perhaps encourage you to get the book and work through it. Furia does some brilliant and useful dissections of famous song lyrics, to show why they work so well – a songwriter could learn a lot here! It’s also worth keeping a browser tab open on YouTube, and another on a lyrics website (or Google search), so that you can listen to the songs that Furia refers to, and read song lyrics in their entirety. A songwriter needs to study the masters – reading and listening – and Furia has given us a wonderful way in to do this. Read more ›

Lyrics Checklist – good writers re-write

Posted on by alexander Posted in Lyric writing — No Comments ↓

In The Craft of Lyric Writing, Sheila Davis writes: “Good writers are generally good editors, Any serious writer wil tell you that plays, novels, and poems aren’t just written – they’re rewritten.” (p.293) Here are some ways to analyse lyrics – other people’s or our own – to find out why they work, or why they need rewriting. Read more ›

The lyrics of American Pie (Don McLean)

Posted on by alexander Posted in Lyric writing — No Comments ↓

Don McLean’s iconic song ‘American Pie’ has a fascinating set of lyrics. These days, it might seem a strange and obscure collection of references and images that don’t speak to later generations. But he captured the hearts and minds of people who lived through the social, political and cultural upheavals of his generation. The video below cleverly reveals with images what the song is actually all about – brilliant!

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