What process do I use when I write?
Well, usually I pick up an instrument and start jamming a little, finding a little chord progression I like, and at the same time I'll just be mumbling words or phrases of whatever I'm thinking about at the time. If I feel like I have a particularly cool progression I'll turn on my little hand-held cassette recorder (Radioshack) to get the original idea and/or melody and/or cool lines on tape. My memory is horrible and I have a lot of ideas, so recording them helps me focus the original inspiration AND just plain remember it a day later. How many times have I played something that I thought was really good only to forget it the next day? Too many. That's why I got the tape recorder. Cell phones also come in handy if you have a good idea. Just call yourself and leave the idea.
Songwriters on Songwriting is a great book about this process from some of the greatest songwriters of the century. (I saw used copies for $1.97 at this Amazon link!!)
This book was great because all of these amazing songwriters (Dylan, Petty, Paul Simon, Randy Newman, etc.) wrote in different ways. Some of them had a daily writing schedule while some only wrote when inspiration hit. It was encouraging to see that these masters of the craft struggle with inspiration, boredom, frustration, and "the wall" that makes you feel like you'll never write another song again.
Back to my process. I guess I get the original idea, and then I attempt to flesh it out by taking the pattern created by my initial inspiration and using that pattern to finish verse 2 and 3 and finishing a chorus. I usually can make up one verse that I'm really happy with and the start of a chorus. I then decide if the song needs a bridge or any other parts that would make it more interesting. If I don't really like it, why would I expect someone else too? I have to be happy and then if someone else likes it icing on the cake.
There. That's not the only way I write songs, but it is one of my approaches.
3 comments:
My approach is pretty similar Steve. I usually come up with a chord progression and start to hum to it. Or sometimes a few lines will be "in" the chord progression.
Then I try to finish a complete verse and maybe a pre-chorus. Writing a good chorus has always been a bit of a challenge for me. Probably the best one I've ever written was for a song called This Time. It's very simple and catchy. Pretty much exactly what you'd like a chorus to be.
After I figure out what the song is about (I rarely know going in), I try to finish the second and/or third verses.
Although my guitar playing is not the best, sometimes I'll throw in a little instrumental break. Two examples of this can be found in my latest song "Rivers". The break and the ending are a bit different, but work with the musical theme.
Approaches I've not had much success with include:
-writing the lyrics first
-writing the music first
J
I HAVE had a few times where the song lyrics came first (Breathing Room on the Pushstart Wagon CD was one of these songs that was words first).
I've only written a few others like that that actually WORKED. I've tried it, but failed miserably.
And once or twice the whole song came out fully formed (at the link above the song "Mary" and "Los Angeles" came out fully formed, words, music, etc.)
But most of the time I pick up my guitar and start strummin' and hummin'.
:)
I almost always start with a line or a title and create the story from there. Most times the music just appears while I'm writing the lyrics but other times it comes later. I don't play the guitar well so I don't even pick it up until the end. Most of my actual music is just simple chords but I'm mostly a country/folk/ americana writer so that works well enough for me.
-Nice site, glad to be here :)
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