music and lyrics
at the basis of all my songs is the guitar. it's the instrument i'm most proficient playing. some artists like to write songs by putting melody and words together in their head. others need an accompanying instrument to flesh out the harmonic backdrop. i fall in the second category. i have written a few songs without the guitar ("When I Get Out" from Friendly Fire comes to mind) but these ideas always seem less compelling to me. at the end of the day, the guitar puts me in the "mood" of songwriting and helps spur ideas forward.
about songwriting Willie Nelson said something i have taken to be a basic truth, "If you can't play your song from start to finish on the guitar [or piano], you don't have a song." i have added my own corollary to this- "Can you deliver your song ONLY on the guitar?" it seems to me essential for a singer/songwriter to be able to convey--at least in part if not entirety--the meaning of his song with a guitar/vocal performance. in truth i think this puts more pressure on the vocal delivery than the guitar playing. but i'll talk about all things voice in another blog.
in musical terms we call the "arrangement" the choice of instruments and music in a recorded work. on this project i want to keep my arrangements simple and spare- perhaps just a drumbeat, a keyboard and a bassline. and my reason for doing so is twofol: first to keep myself true to Willie's advice and second, to force my music and lyrics to be at the center stage of what is heard thus forcing me to write more compelling material.
it's the second part of that last bit that is the hardest part. in melodic songwriting, the most important thing is to be emotionally clear and available. while part of this embedded in the musical composition, it is mostly conveyed in the lyrics (and their delivery). i think my lyric writing tends to be obtuse, loaded with metaphors and addicted to the sound of words as opposed to the meaning. and honestly, i'm not a lyric listener. it's the last thing i hear of a song. so if i REALLY like a song, lyrics are still the last thing i hear. and more times than not, i'm often disappointed with what i hear. the same applies to my songwriting process- i write the melodies and phrasing first and the lyrics last. more often than not, i'm disappointed with my lyrics.
so my approach to my recent material has been to get a lot of feedback from friends/cohorts. they press me to find the emotional core in what i'm saying and say it in a unique and clear way. it is a continuous challenge. at the moment i'm wrestling with a battle-of-the-sexes piece i call "opposite members." the word "members" sings really well but is vague, phallic and otherwise unclear. my alternative, "opposite nature" doesn't sing as well but hits the idea on the head. i have several variations at the moment...but nothing completely satisfying to balance my artistic instincts with the need for clarity.
sometimes i wrestle for months over silly thoughts like this. i think the "opposite members" battle has been going on since last summer. and though i'm not in any rush to get it done, at some point i'll resign myself to my decision. and someone, inevitably down the road will say "that could have been better..." or "why didn't you try this..." oh well. in a lot of ways making a record is like your photograph in your high school yearbook, love it or hate it it's how you looked at the time :). click
about songwriting Willie Nelson said something i have taken to be a basic truth, "If you can't play your song from start to finish on the guitar [or piano], you don't have a song." i have added my own corollary to this- "Can you deliver your song ONLY on the guitar?" it seems to me essential for a singer/songwriter to be able to convey--at least in part if not entirety--the meaning of his song with a guitar/vocal performance. in truth i think this puts more pressure on the vocal delivery than the guitar playing. but i'll talk about all things voice in another blog.
in musical terms we call the "arrangement" the choice of instruments and music in a recorded work. on this project i want to keep my arrangements simple and spare- perhaps just a drumbeat, a keyboard and a bassline. and my reason for doing so is twofol: first to keep myself true to Willie's advice and second, to force my music and lyrics to be at the center stage of what is heard thus forcing me to write more compelling material.
it's the second part of that last bit that is the hardest part. in melodic songwriting, the most important thing is to be emotionally clear and available. while part of this embedded in the musical composition, it is mostly conveyed in the lyrics (and their delivery). i think my lyric writing tends to be obtuse, loaded with metaphors and addicted to the sound of words as opposed to the meaning. and honestly, i'm not a lyric listener. it's the last thing i hear of a song. so if i REALLY like a song, lyrics are still the last thing i hear. and more times than not, i'm often disappointed with what i hear. the same applies to my songwriting process- i write the melodies and phrasing first and the lyrics last. more often than not, i'm disappointed with my lyrics.
so my approach to my recent material has been to get a lot of feedback from friends/cohorts. they press me to find the emotional core in what i'm saying and say it in a unique and clear way. it is a continuous challenge. at the moment i'm wrestling with a battle-of-the-sexes piece i call "opposite members." the word "members" sings really well but is vague, phallic and otherwise unclear. my alternative, "opposite nature" doesn't sing as well but hits the idea on the head. i have several variations at the moment...but nothing completely satisfying to balance my artistic instincts with the need for clarity.
sometimes i wrestle for months over silly thoughts like this. i think the "opposite members" battle has been going on since last summer. and though i'm not in any rush to get it done, at some point i'll resign myself to my decision. and someone, inevitably down the road will say "that could have been better..." or "why didn't you try this..." oh well. in a lot of ways making a record is like your photograph in your high school yearbook, love it or hate it it's how you looked at the time :). click
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