Merry Christmas, all! Sorry for the quiet weeks on the blog. It's been a busy time for my Christmas band, Bah & the Humbugs. We just posted four new songs, including two that I wrote, on the band's website, http://bahandthehumbugs.com.
Bah & the Humbugs are appearing in a live radio concert today, December 24, at approximately 4 p.m. US Eastern time, on radio station WXPN in Philadelphia. You can listen online from anywhere in the world; see the website for details.
I'll be back in the new year with more songwriting insights.
Thursday, December 24, 2009
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
7♥ Start fresh in a new space
7♥ Seven of Hearts in The Rock Songwriter’s Deck: 52 Ways to Write a Song
Seven of Hearts invites you to remind yourself what it's like to be a beginner. As a beginner, you can bring a fresh, brash, and naive attitude to your songwriting. In contrast, if you work in the same songwriting idiom for years, your work can become fussy, self-conscious, and formulaic.
Audiences love the fresh energy that a newcomer brings to the stage, and they can easily forgive a few technical shortcomings or other flaws. At the same time, no amount of technical skill and cleverness can make up for the dreariness that a long-experienced performer brings to the stage after he starts to get tired of his own work. As a creative artist, you must do whatever it takes to keep things fresh for yourself.
This week, become a beginner again. Start with a musical instrument and/or a performance style that you don't usually play. Practice for a while until you just barely start to get comfortable with this new instrument or new style. Then, let something emerge — a new song — that's the natural expression of this new musical format.
Seven of Hearts invites you to remind yourself what it's like to be a beginner. As a beginner, you can bring a fresh, brash, and naive attitude to your songwriting. In contrast, if you work in the same songwriting idiom for years, your work can become fussy, self-conscious, and formulaic.
Audiences love the fresh energy that a newcomer brings to the stage, and they can easily forgive a few technical shortcomings or other flaws. At the same time, no amount of technical skill and cleverness can make up for the dreariness that a long-experienced performer brings to the stage after he starts to get tired of his own work. As a creative artist, you must do whatever it takes to keep things fresh for yourself.
This week, become a beginner again. Start with a musical instrument and/or a performance style that you don't usually play. Practice for a while until you just barely start to get comfortable with this new instrument or new style. Then, let something emerge — a new song — that's the natural expression of this new musical format.
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
6♠ The moral of the story
6♠ Six of Spades in The Rock Songwriter’s Deck: 52 Ways to Write a Song
The Six of Spades invites you to write a song based on a message or moral lesson. This is a tricky assignment, because people instinctively stiffen and back away as soon as they sense that you're trying to teach or preach or sell them something. Yet there are many well-loved songs that are built around a moral lesson.
Look at your own music collection and find some message-based songs. How did the songwriters do it? And how did you react to the song's lesson?
Here are three tips that will help you avoid sounding preachy:
The Six of Spades invites you to write a song based on a message or moral lesson. This is a tricky assignment, because people instinctively stiffen and back away as soon as they sense that you're trying to teach or preach or sell them something. Yet there are many well-loved songs that are built around a moral lesson.
Look at your own music collection and find some message-based songs. How did the songwriters do it? And how did you react to the song's lesson?
Here are three tips that will help you avoid sounding preachy:
- Keep it light-hearted. Use a light, easy touch.
- Keep it personal. Tell what you know and believe from personal experience.
- Tell an engaging story, one that perfectly illustrates your message.
- Don't be late. Don't keep people waiting.
- You must follow your heart, even if people don't understand.
- It's worth an extra effort to make love last.
- Let's all stop global warming.
- Your choices have consequences that you have to live with.
- Hatred and violence are bad.
- You'll do better if you're realistic about your situation.
- Everyone has the potential to be a star.
- Don't burn the bridges after you cross them.
- Spending less money boosts your bottom line just as much as earning more money.
- Don't wait for something fun to happen. It's up to you to make it happen.
- Everyone deserves a second chance.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
3♣ Use up some ink and paper
3♣ Three of Clubs in The Rock Songwriter’s Deck: 52 Ways to Write a Song
When writing a song -- or creating anything -- we naturally want the results to be great. Why set out to create something average? But the pressure to produce great stuff is a burden on the creative process. It's hard to be inventive when you need guaranteed results. At worst, you might find that you can't write anything at all, for the fear that you might create something that isn't good enough.
The Three of Clubs gives us an antidote to perfectionism and writer's block. Start with several blank sheets of paper, and keep writing until you have filled them up! Your new goal isn't to create goodness, it's to end up with a page full of stuff -- new stuff that you just wrote.
At worst, you'll create something bad, and you can throw it out. But if you persist, you will eventually, without even trying, come up with a brilliantly fresh idea. Those ideas are hanging around, waiting to come out -- but they can only emerge if you're actually writing, and only while you're not paying full attention to what you're doing.
Paradoxically, it can be easier to write ten songs than it is to write one song. When you're writing one song, that song alone carries the weight of all your hopes and ambitions, and your writing gets bogged down. But if you're going to write ten songs, there's less pressure on each of them, and you can speed through the process.
Take on the Three of Clubs' challenge. Empty out your pen, and fill up the page with new songs. Are they good songs? It doesn't even matter! You can decide that later -- right now you're busy writing.
When writing a song -- or creating anything -- we naturally want the results to be great. Why set out to create something average? But the pressure to produce great stuff is a burden on the creative process. It's hard to be inventive when you need guaranteed results. At worst, you might find that you can't write anything at all, for the fear that you might create something that isn't good enough.
The Three of Clubs gives us an antidote to perfectionism and writer's block. Start with several blank sheets of paper, and keep writing until you have filled them up! Your new goal isn't to create goodness, it's to end up with a page full of stuff -- new stuff that you just wrote.
At worst, you'll create something bad, and you can throw it out. But if you persist, you will eventually, without even trying, come up with a brilliantly fresh idea. Those ideas are hanging around, waiting to come out -- but they can only emerge if you're actually writing, and only while you're not paying full attention to what you're doing.
Paradoxically, it can be easier to write ten songs than it is to write one song. When you're writing one song, that song alone carries the weight of all your hopes and ambitions, and your writing gets bogged down. But if you're going to write ten songs, there's less pressure on each of them, and you can speed through the process.
Take on the Three of Clubs' challenge. Empty out your pen, and fill up the page with new songs. Are they good songs? It doesn't even matter! You can decide that later -- right now you're busy writing.
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
J♠ Your brand, your song
J♠ Jack of Spades in The Rock Songwriter’s Deck: 52 Ways to Write a Song
The Jack of Spades pulls us into the realm of marketing and image-making. Though it might seem strange to think of a rock recording artist as a brand, that is exactly what successful music marketing people do. A recording artist is a product line with a brand and image just as much as pizzas or televisions are.
If you've never done a branding exercise, here's the short version: What are some of the qualities values, and images that you (ideally) want people to think of in connection with you as a famous rock star?
Bruce Springsteen has (among other things) New Jersey and working class; ZZ Top has beards and classic cars.
What are your things? Make a short list, and then write a song about one of them.
If it seems cynical and wrong to let marketing considerations guide your songwriting, let me suggest that you think about it in exactly the opposite way. Let your artistry expand beyond songwriting and performing to encompass image-making and marketing. Use your inspiration and your creative process to create yourself as an artist and public persona. Your songs should fit that persona, because they come from the same creative wellspring.
So take up the Jack of Spades' challenge: write a song this week that's perfectly matched to your branding.
The Jack of Spades pulls us into the realm of marketing and image-making. Though it might seem strange to think of a rock recording artist as a brand, that is exactly what successful music marketing people do. A recording artist is a product line with a brand and image just as much as pizzas or televisions are.
If you've never done a branding exercise, here's the short version: What are some of the qualities values, and images that you (ideally) want people to think of in connection with you as a famous rock star?
Bruce Springsteen has (among other things) New Jersey and working class; ZZ Top has beards and classic cars.
What are your things? Make a short list, and then write a song about one of them.
If it seems cynical and wrong to let marketing considerations guide your songwriting, let me suggest that you think about it in exactly the opposite way. Let your artistry expand beyond songwriting and performing to encompass image-making and marketing. Use your inspiration and your creative process to create yourself as an artist and public persona. Your songs should fit that persona, because they come from the same creative wellspring.
So take up the Jack of Spades' challenge: write a song this week that's perfectly matched to your branding.
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Chord phrases in 11 other popular keys
Not every song is in C major or C minor. If you need help transposing all of this week's useful chord phrases into other keys, use the Chord Transposition Tool. It works online and on paper.
Friday, November 13, 2009
120 useful chord phrases in C minor
Yesterday we gave you 200 chord progressions — or chord phrases — in C major. Today it's C minor's turn. And the minor key always gets the short stick. There are only 120 chord phrases in this list. But don't worry — with a little ingenuity you can invent plenty more.
Copyright note: These are commonly used chord phrases, so there are no copyright issues to keep you from using them to create an original song. But please don't copy the entire list and post it somewhere else online. Link back to this blog post instead. Thanks!
- Cm - - -
- Cm - E♭ -
- Cm - Fm Cm
- Cm A♭ Fm Cm
- Cm E♭ Fm Cm
- Cm Gm Fm Cm
- Cm B♭ Fm Cm
- Cm Gm A♭ Cm
- Cm B♭ A♭ Cm
- Cm B♭ A♭ E♭
- E♭ - - -
- E♭ - Fm Cm
- E♭ - A♭ Cm
- E♭ B♭ Fm Cm
- E♭ B♭ A♭ Cm
- Cm - Gm Cm
- Cm - G7 Cm
- Cm - B♭ Cm
- Cm - B♭ E♭
- E♭ - G Cm
- E♭ - B♭ Cm
- Cm - Fm -
- Cm A♭ Fm -
- Cm E♭ Fm -
- Cm - A♭ -
- Cm E♭ A♭ -
- Cm Gm Cm Fm
- Cm B♭ Cm Fm
- E♭ B♭ Cm Fm
- Cm Gm Fm -
- Cm B♭ Fm -
- Cm Gm A♭ -
- Cm B♭ A♭ -
- Cm E♭ B♭ A♭
- Cm E♭ Gm Fm
- Cm - Gm -
- Cm - G -
- Cm - B♭ -
- Cm Fm Cm Gm
- Cm A♭ E♭ Gm
- Cm B♭ Cm Gm
- E♭ B♭ Fm Gm
- Cm Fm Gm -
- Cm Fm B♭ -
- Cm A♭ Gm -
- Cm A♭ B♭ -
- Cm E♭ Fm Gm
- Cm E♭ Fm B♭
- Cm E♭ A♭ Gm
- Cm E♭ A♭ B♭
- E♭ Fm Gm -
- E♭ Fm A♭ Gm
- Fm - - -
- A♭ - - -
- A♭ - Fm -
- Fm Cm Fm -
- A♭ E♭/G Fm -
- Fm E♭ Em -
- Fm Gm Cm Fm
- Fm B♭ Cm Fm
- A♭ A♭ Cm Fm
- A♭ Gm Cm Fm
- Fm Gm Fm -
- Fm B♭ Fm -
- Fm B♭ A♭ -
- A♭ B♭ Fm -
- A♭ B♭ A♭ Fm
- Fm - Cm -
- Fm A♭ Cm -
- A♭ - Cm -
- A♭ Fm Cm -
- Fm - E♭ -
- A♭ - E♭ -
- A♭ E♭ Fm Cm
- Fm E♭ Dm7-5 Cm
- Fm Gm Fm Cm
- Fm B♭ Fm Cm
- A♭ B♭ Fm Cm
- Fm Gm Cm -
- Fm B♭ Cm -
- A♭ B♭ Cm -
- Fm B♭ Gm Cm
- Fm - Gm -
- Fm - B♭ -
- A♭ - G -
- A♭ - B♭ -
- Fm Cm Fm Gm
- Fm E♭/G A♭ B♭
- Fm E♭ A♭ G
- A♭ Cm A♭ B♭
- Gm - - -
- G - - -
- Gm - G7 -
- B♭ - - -
- Gm - Cm Gm
- B♭ Cm Gm -
- Gm Fm Cm Gm
- B♭ A♭ Cm Gm
- Gm - Fm Gm
- G - A♭ G
- Gm A♭ Fm Gm
- Gm - Fm -
- Gm - A♭ -
- B♭ - Fm -
- B♭ - A♭ -
- Gm Cm Gm Fm
- B♭ Cm Gm Fm
- B♭ Cm B♭ Fm
- Gm Cm Fm -
- B♭ Cm Fm -
- B♭ Cm A♭ -
- B♭ E♭ Fm -
- Gm - Cm -
- G - Cm -
- B♭ - Cm -
- Gm Fm Gm Cm
- G A♭ B♭ Cm
- Gm A♭ G7 Cm
- Gm Fm B♭ Cm
- B♭ Fm B♭ Cm
Copyright note: These are commonly used chord phrases, so there are no copyright issues to keep you from using them to create an original song. But please don't copy the entire list and post it somewhere else online. Link back to this blog post instead. Thanks!
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