On Song-Writing

Lindsay_holds_her_Guitar

It all starts with....

Hmmmm.

There are many ways to begin writing a song.

Some days, I pick up my guitar and noodle around... Eventually hearing a satisfying  melody and  (hopefully) some random and enticing poetic line blasts out of thin air, and off I go! These compositions can take a long time to work out, but there are rare moments when a song comes along in its entirety, and fast.  

Sometimes, I have  to really work at getting into 'song-mode' and there has to be a ritual of sorts...everything has to be 'just right' so I have to clean the house first! I might then light some incense (Nag Champa) and light some candles, hoping to create the ultimate ambience for tapping into that 'precious musical flow.'  Composing a song is very connected to moods. Some days, I have to inspire myself to write, and I have to change my mood to get myself psyched to create, so a hike is great for that! It helps get my heart beating, my blood pumping and my brain flowing away from  the un-necessary, and into the right direction. At times, I really don't want to play at all, but I have to. I must practice and prepare but  have no desire to start. No desire to get the ambience in line, no desire to get outside for some fresh air for that new perspective...Sometimes I got nothing and have to start anyway.  But usually, within fifteen minutes of 'just doing the act itself' I find myself back in the groove of things and all is right with the world, musically. Yep, that's it, you just have to pick it up and there you are, right back where you left off.  

I usually come up with  a melody first. Things can get pretty dreamy up here and out here in the Music Stream. I start fiddling around unplugged (guitar fiddling around) and when I think I have something good, I'll plug in, turn on the reverb and from time to time, kick in some harmony vocals with my Harmony Singer Pedal, (This pedal somehow magically finds the right notes above and or below the note I am  singing and somehow 'hears' what the guitar is playing and  really comes up with some beautiful stuff!) I Love jamming out (rehearsing) in my own space, because the sound is set 'just right.' The sound outside, in a new room or music venue can be wonderful, but more often than not, it isn't and there's not much that can be done about it. Mostly, I have to stop being so critical of myself and let the flow FLOW! (don't we all!!)

With regards to lyrics. On one side, lyrics are extremely important to the music and on the other side, seemingly not so. For years I knew every word to my favourite songs, and it wasn't until much, much later that I would process just what those words actually meant. I can sit through an entire concert, never processing the lyrical content. The music, if it's good enough (to me) will just take me over.  That said, I still put value into each word that finds its way into one of my songs. Every word counts and every one is placed with exacting thought. The "the's" the "at's" the "too's" every one! Let's face it, a song with BOTH brilliant lyrics AND melody can be life changing, inspiring and profound. (I am working on it.!)

There most certainly is no "right" way to make music and/or to write a song, and truly no "one" fail safe method. Unless you count writing from the heart. If you write from there and from yourself; from that place down deep,  you will find a brutal honesty that  actually does prove to be fail safe. Now,  add a little melody (make it good) and write/sing/play about whatever you want. There is most certainly a freedom to music, never let anyone tell you differently. But make it good. Make it great!

Upon re-reading and editing what I have written here, I find myself thinking of Bob Snider's book on how to write a song called "On Songwriting" which you can find HERE. I read this book a few years ago and in it you will find all sorts of rules that were meant to be broken! It really is awesome and funny, just like himself and his music.

On another side note, a couple posts ago, I posted my newest song "Shut Eye" and in one post before that, a post to BONO you can hear the first song I ever wrote on guitar "Wide World"... Just scroll down if you like! 

Love,

Lindsay xo

Birth of a Song

There are over a billion scraps of paper, hiding in various corners, under couch cushions, in drawers and jeans pockets, showing in plain sight on dresser tops, change bowls and dash boards. These various little notes may contain a prophetic lyric that could change your world, or they could stay crumpled forever; these are the poetic scraps that we song-writers collect over the course of our life-times. "You never knows" just sitting there, folded waiting for the perfect melody.

Some_notes_a_book_and_a_guitar

Who knows if some of these notes will ever be read again, or used. How many notebooks can one person have anyway? There are notebooks in every corner of my house, and scraps of paper with dreams and ideas in most of the bags I own,  perhaps they are there for when lyrics come no more. Maybe the act of writing, is in and of itself the only point. To use or not to use, might not be the question at all, but rather to write to write and to write some more.

In times of technology, like today, an Iphone is very handy, when the combination of pen, paper and or napkin can not be found. Again, my notes section is filled to the brim with lyrical sentiments, and the recording device has at least a hundred started musical ideas. Some days when I am on a train to the next performance I just listen to the songs, erasing ones that have no real effect on me. So many ideas deleted without another moment of thought. On the rare occasion that I find something that I deem true and worthy, I will sit with it and my guitar and work it out. Mostly though, I sit with my guitar and a brand new song is born. from scratch, with no help from torn up pieces of paper or half ideas kept hidden in a tiny machine.

Lindsay_and_her_guitar

One of the most common of questions for a song-writer is "What comes first, the melody or the lyrics?" or "How do you write a song?" Most would agree that when a song comes, it usually comes in one long whoosh, from a magical place unknown. To be sure, there is no absolute way to compose a piece of music, there is no perfect equation that will work every time. Some songs come in moments, and some take hours, months even, to "complete." I put complete in quotes because every song can be changed up a bit. Perhaps one time you start out with the first verse, sometimes it feels better to start out with the Chorus. One band will add a catchy keyboard riff in the middle 8 (or bridge)  and another might replace the keys with mandolin, changing the sound entirely. Of course we song-writer's do have certain styles, but again nothing is 100%, so where I usually add a bridge (or middle 8) in a song, I do not always find the perfect spot for one. And that is okay.

Some years ago, I had the rarity of meeting Bono of the band "U2" in Ireland, at a hotel in the middle of nowhere, where he was attending a friends wedding. We talked about music, I had only just written and recorded my very first song and conveniently had it with me, to share. He was very kind and gave me a moment of his time and a few words of advice (which I had asked for.) One thing that always stuck with me was that the bridge of a song should stand out apart from the song and that it should actually be the best part of the song, even better than the chorus. So yeah, I really like to add one, but I always have his words in the back of my mind. If I can not find something extra-ordinary, I will not add one at all. 

Which brings me to my next point... Co-Writing a song can also be an amazing experience. I highly recommend getting out there and finding someone to write with. Two heads are better then one in most cases, so if the opportunity comes up to do this, I encourage you to do it! Brock Zeman and I wrote this song "Ships" together and it could be the most universally liked song that I have ever performed. It was a great writing session with Brock and way easier than I had ever thought it would be.

We lost a troubadour singer & song-writer on the weekend, Ron Hynes from Newfoundland, Canada. He was also called "Man of a Thousand Songs." And what a writer indeed. I remember playing on the same stage as Ron, at The Newfoundland Folk Festival, as part of a song-writers circle...I mean how lucky could a girl be, sharing a stage with a legend like himself. It was sad news for many people out there, who have all lived lives to the soundtrack of Ron's music. Most would know him for "Sonny's Dream." It had been months since I wrote a full song, some might say writer's block, but I am not so sure... In any case, I will leave you all with my new song, a tribute to Ron. "The Likes of You." Ron, I thank you.