Larry
"Uncle Larry"
I'm trying to get you guys to share your personal songwriting process here. No wrong answers can happen.
Here's mine, not that I wrote many songs.
I have to have a strong reason to write a song. Something I want to say. Say I want to write about a guy (for instance) who works physically hard 7 days a week. Then I try and figure out the mood of the song. Is it angry? Is it from a place of acceptance? Is it a surrender type of song? Who is this guy? I have to figure this stuff out before I actually work on writing something. I think first I'd take a stab at the lyrical content. That would dictate what I want to say. Then I would select a time signature, then from there, a basic song structure. I should have an idea where I want to go, what I want to say, and what my reason is for writing a song. I also am aware that the song has to have a peak. I go through a lot of..."what am I trying to convey here?". I have to crystallize that in my mind first.
I've had an idea for a song for years but I haven't started on it. I even have a title for the song which I can't share. I do know certain things I want to do with it, musically speaking. I know exactly who I'm stealing from. On this song I haven't written yet, I'm stealing a trick from Charley Patton's "Spoonful", where he substitutes a slide guitar figure anytime the word "spoonful" comes around. (except for the very first time he says it) I always thought that was brilliant. Well I'm stealing that for this song. I know what I want to say. I just have to get down to it.
So have any of you gone down the songwriting rabbit hole? Care to share?
Here's mine, not that I wrote many songs.
I have to have a strong reason to write a song. Something I want to say. Say I want to write about a guy (for instance) who works physically hard 7 days a week. Then I try and figure out the mood of the song. Is it angry? Is it from a place of acceptance? Is it a surrender type of song? Who is this guy? I have to figure this stuff out before I actually work on writing something. I think first I'd take a stab at the lyrical content. That would dictate what I want to say. Then I would select a time signature, then from there, a basic song structure. I should have an idea where I want to go, what I want to say, and what my reason is for writing a song. I also am aware that the song has to have a peak. I go through a lot of..."what am I trying to convey here?". I have to crystallize that in my mind first.
I've had an idea for a song for years but I haven't started on it. I even have a title for the song which I can't share. I do know certain things I want to do with it, musically speaking. I know exactly who I'm stealing from. On this song I haven't written yet, I'm stealing a trick from Charley Patton's "Spoonful", where he substitutes a slide guitar figure anytime the word "spoonful" comes around. (except for the very first time he says it) I always thought that was brilliant. Well I'm stealing that for this song. I know what I want to say. I just have to get down to it.
So have any of you gone down the songwriting rabbit hole? Care to share?
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