Category: Songwriting

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Songwriting

Recording Your Own Songs

So, you’ve written a great song using prosody, and you even wrote the music for it or had a friend join you on the guitar or piano. You want to copyright it, but you need to record it to do so. Also, if you make your recording high enough quality, you may want to consider sharing it with the world. If you’re new to the music world, I’m going to share some basic ways to help you record your material. The digital age has made recording so affordable and so simple, that even the basic novice has the ability to make a decent record.

Making a recording on your phone

When I’m writing a song, the first thing I do is record a demo version for myself on my phone. There are a number of phone applications that will let you do this. I currently carry two: GarageBand, and MTSR (Multitrack Song Recorder.)

GarageBand gives you a variety of instrumentation to experiment with. However, it is not as simple and user friendly. If you are old school like me and remember the analog days of recording on reel-to-reel tape, you’ll probably prefer MTSR.

MTSR uses only one face, and you just layer track over track, adding instruments one at a time. Since I play everything in a band and don’t use digital instruments, I prefer the simplicity of MTSR. I’m sure there are better applications out there, but since I’m not planning on letting anyone hear my phone recordings but me, it works fine. It allows me to lay down guitar, lay down vocals, and then try an option of guitar leads, bass, mandolin, harmonica, etc. with the ease of pressing record. The best part about it is that it’s free. If I wanted to use one of those tracks, exporting to a wav file is simple. And yes, you can use the recordings you’ve made on your phone to send in for the copyright if you wanted to.

Making a DIY studio recording

Once I get an idea of how I want my song to sound for the public to hear, I usually go to my real, home studio. While there are recording studios available for hire in pretty much any major city, a decent one will cost you a pretty penny. If you’re not aiming for a professionally produced studio recording with Lauren Daigle quality, and you’re willing to learn the tricks of the trade, you can produce a decent recording to sell or share with your friends right at home. I used to spend thousands of dollars on recordings at good studios back in the day, and yet the sound can’t compare to what my little studio produces today. It is a matter of educating yourself and learning the art of recording. There are YouTube videos and tutorials at sites like Lynda.com. Even the software sites have tutorials.

The first piece of hardware you need is a decent computer that can handle multitracking. Most modern computers can. I used to be a PC guy, but now that I’ve switched to Mac, I will never go back. I currently use a MacBook Pro.

The next thing you need is an audio interface, which is an input device for your microphones or instruments. For home recordings, what’s hot right now is the Universal Apollo. You can get it to connect via USB or Thunderbolt. If you don’t want to start with the best and want something more affordable, there are a number of other options, such as the Focusrite Scarlett or the M-Audio MTrack. I chose the M-Audio interface because it is easy to use, affordable, and came with Cubase software. Most of these interfaces come with a software key.

The next thing to look at is software for recording and mixing—and one that is compatible to your audio interface device. What’s hot is always changing. Today’s most popular software becomes uncool in five years, while something else takes the trendy lead. When I started, Cubase was the top software. Then, ProTools became the hot industry standard. I learned both. Shortly after, it was Logic, and now it’s Ableton Live.

In my honest opinion, I would say, don’t follow the trend, follow what works best for you, personally. If you are an audio guy who used to work on live soundboards, ProTools or Cubase is going to feel a lot more comfortable to you. But in all reality, it truly depends on your audio interface. Some interfaces only work with certain software, so I would suggest researching what interfaces and what software you are interested in.

Other hardware you’ll need to include is a microphone for singing. There are several kinds of vocal microphones, but you truly only want to choose between two: dynamic and condenser. Condenser microphones need power, but your audio interface should provide that. Condenser microphones are usually better with home recordings. You’ll also need a cable that goes from the microphone to the audio interface, called an XLR cable. If you are going to plug instruments directly into the audio interface, you’ll need a quarter-inch instrument cable, but I often use the condenser mic for instruments as well. And don’t forget a microphone stand.

Your final piece of the puzzle is a way to listen to your work. You can’t rely on the built-in speakers of your computer. You either need to get studio headphones that completely cover your ear, such as the Audio Technica ATH-M30x, or buy studio speakers, which will run you 3x as much.

If you are new to recording and want something truly affordable, there are a number of turn-key starter packs for home studios available, such as the Focusrite studio pack that comes with the audio interface, microphone, cable, and headphones. The only thing needed is the mic stand. If you live close enough to a major chain music store such as the Guitar Center or Sam Ash, they have qualified sales reps who will direct you to the right studio gear, and sometimes they’ll even have studios set up to sample.

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a coffee addicted, sleepless, Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or novels rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, musician, double, or stand-in. He holds an MFA in Creative Writing. His album, Overcome, releases Spring 2019.

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Songwriting

The Business Side of Songwriting: Protecting Your Work

From prosody to melodic prose, I have shared a lot about the craft of songwriting over the year. Today I will be discussing the business side of it. Songs and song ideas get stolen all the time. This was especially true before the digital age. Today’s technology allows writers to protect themselves a little better. However, every artist still needs to take every precaution and protect their work. There are two ways to do this, but only one is mandatory if you don’t think your song will receive airplay.

Your first step is to finalize your song arrangements—this includes the lyrics and music, and recording it in some fashion, preferably digitally, using recording software (we will talk more on this next month.) Then, you want to copyright your song to protect it. Copyrighting is simple, but it can be costly if you don’t do it wisely. It can also be time consuming. If you plan on creating an album of music, it is best if you record all of your material first, then apply for copyright with just one fee to copyright the entire album. Otherwise, you will be paying a fee to copyright each individual song. Even if your material is a “work for hire,” you need to copyright it.

Life is a little different than it used to be, musically speaking. The standard was to put out a demo (3 to 5 songs) or an E.P. (extended play, 5 to 7 songs), or a full-length album (10 to 14 songs). Digital technology has drastically changed the rules in the last decade, where albums are rarely sold in comparison to individual songs. Formats like iTunes and Amazon have made it possible to buy single songs versus entire albums. And artists are releasing albums with a variety of song numbers, with famous artists such as David Crowder and Taylor Swift dropping standard albums just shy of 20 songs each. This would be considered a double album back-in-the-day and would cost consumers twice as much. But the over-abundance of music available on the internet has devalued albums and art, making costs much more affordable with less financial benefit to the artist. However, the payoff is more exposure for smaller artists. Because of this, many artists have given their music away in hopes to sell more concert tickets and reach a bigger fan base.

Once you have your album ready (it doesn’t have to be in its final mastering glory), you can apply for the copyright at www.copyright.gov. The site can be a bit overwhelming. Don’t let it overwhelm you. For audio songs, simply go to the tab for Law and Guidance, scroll down and select Forms. Under Basic Forms, you will select Form SR, for Sound Recording. For detailed information on how to fill out the form, you can get guidance from the site or search various Youtube videos. If you only want to copyright the lyrics before adding music, you can use Form TX. However, this may cause you a headache when re-copyrighting with the musicians or song owners. You will have to work out copyright percentages, etc. as well.

Once you have quality recordings of your songs and you have applied for the copyright, your next step is to apply for a performing rights organization membership, if you think it will receive any type of airplay. There are two main organizations: BMI and ASCAP. Before the days of internet radio and humongous loopholes in the law, radio stations, television, film, restaurants, and any other public venue had to pay rights to a performance rights organization to play music in the background or receive heavy fines. These performance rights organizations collected data on songs being played and paid their artists based on song plays. Then, they would mail out quarterly checks from those royalties. Today, internet radio stations began mimicking that concept, without the use of the P.R.O., but paying artists way less. A thousand plays on stations like Spotify and Pandora can leave an artist with just a few dollars. But those stations give great exposure to new artists which can lead to individual or album song sales. I am a registered BMI artist, but only a tiny percentage of my songs are registered with BMI. Again, it’s a waste of time if your song isn’t getting viable airplay. The songs I registered are those that received attention on radio or are played in television shows or movies.

If your songs are quality recorded and you have them copyrighted and you have registered them with a P.R.O., your next step is distribution, which I will talk about in my next article. Got a question about songwriting? Please write me at matthewhawkeldridge@yahoo.com.

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a sleepless, coffee addicted, Renaissance man currently working in the film industry while attending grad school for creative writing. His latest novel, The Pan: Experiencing Neverland, can be found on Amazon. His album, Overcome, releases June 1st.

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Songwriting

The Power of Prosody

When we think of songwriting, we often think of the lyrics—that is, the actual words spewing from our lips. Or, we may be thinking about the musical portion, if we’re a musician. But what makes a powerful song is not only the lyrics and the music, but the actual prosody of the song or even of the delivery.

Let us start by answering the question: “What is prosody?”

In music, prosody can be seen as the culmination of tone, pitch, meter, rhythm, tempo, loudness, softness, etc. in the delivery of the lyrics and music as a whole. How a person delivers the line of a song is just as important as the line itself.  The delivery of a word is just as important as the word itself. There is power in how a word is spoken. There is more power in how a phrase is sung. Whether we whisper something vengeful like, “I hate you.”  Or shout the words, “I love you!” The very tone, pitch, and loudness tell us something. It is through tone that gives our words believability. How a word or group of words is delivered is equally a part of songwriting as the actual written words or musical portion itself.

If someone is speaking to you sarcastically, you can usually tell by how they are saying their words, not by what they are saying. How you deliver words in a song is important. Imagine if you sang something with the same tone and pitch throughout the entire song (and sadly, I have seen this happen!) Imagine if you sang without emotion. It wouldn’t be a very interesting song, would it? If you are singing a sad ballad about someone dying, and yet, you have no emotion in your voice, the song wouldn’t be considered believable. But if the singer’s voice cracks and is close to tears, you may find yourself drying your eyes, overwhelmed with empathy.

But song prosody is more than that. It is also about how the lyrics marry the music. The way the lines are delivered and the tone of the content of the song must match the musical portion of the song, whether it’s in the key that is used, the tempo, the volume, or even the instrumentation.  If you have a song about being happy, you want your musical instrumentation to support that. What instruments make you think of happy? What would your tempo be for happy? It would be… happy, right? Probably fast-paced and upbeat. And you wouldn’t want your happy song to be sung in a minor key. The music would say sad and dark but the lyrics happy. It would be Frankenstein, and nobody would understand it because the lyrics oppose the emotional feel of the music. That’s bad prosody.

For happy, I would choose an upbeat tempo with drums, some brass instruments, perhaps even a trumpet to lead, and it would have to be written in a major key, like the song, “Happy”, by Pharrell Williams.

But if I want to write a song about emotional pain, I would probably choose a piano dripping in reverb with a slow tempo, written in a minor key, like the song “Angel”, by Sarah McLachlin. Or If I wanted the music to be harder, I could go grunge with heavy electric guitars chunking out chords.

Sometimes, we don’t hear lyrics at all. What we hear is how words fit together, mingled with how they are sung, reaching a certain pitch or note—mainly in the chorus. And if it’s done well, the song will stick with us for years and years to come. Think of the most memorable songs from your childhood. Now think about what lines stick out to you the most. It is usually because that particular line has a harmonious marriage to the music and reaches some sort of climatic peak that gives pleasure to the ears.

More than just the volume, meter, tone, or pitch of your voice, sometimes breaks without singing can speak volumes in the song. It’s not always what we say—sometimes it’s what we don’t say and taking a breath for a quarter or half note can tell part of the story. When The Supremes sang, “Stop in the Name of Love,” the producer had Diana Ross pause after saying the word, “stop.” That little break changed the song and made it memorable for decades. Another example of prosody is when Garth Brooks sang “Friends in Low Paces,” every time he said the word “low,” he sang it with a much lower note than the rest of the song.

By understanding prosody, you can enhance your songwriting from amateur to professional level. Just like writing a short story, the important key is to go ahead and write out what you want to say. Write your song’s first draft. Then, go back and take out words, replace words, and edit, edit, edit. Then, fine-tune your work with prosody in mind. What instrumentation and lyrics really sell what you are trying to say, and how can you marry the two? Can it be done by matching a word to a note, changing a rhythm pattern, or changing tempo? What else within the song reflects your theme?

Is there a future songwriting topic you would like to discuss? Would you like me to evaluate your songs? Please write me and let me know!

 

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a sleepless, coffee addicted, calico-cat hugging, Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or stories rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, double, or musician. He is a Creative Writing graduate student at Full Sail University.

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Songwriting

How to Defeat the Dreaded, Highly Feared Monster We Call Writer’s Block

I hate to admit it, but writer’s block is just as prevalent in songwriting as it is in fiction writing. In fact, I find myself fighting this nasty demon even more in songwriting. Perhaps because in fiction writing, you can always jump around from scene to scene. But in songwriting, you only have so many words you can write. The premise and theme have to be precise. You’re allotted three and a half minutes, and you already know your repeating chorus is going to take up most of those seconds. That doesn’t give you a lot of time. So how do you deal with writer’s block when songwriting?

I wish I had a clear-cut answer. The truth is I’ve been suffering from writer’s block, myself. I used to write a couple of hundred songs a year. Over time it became a hundred songs a year. Then fifty. Then twenty-five. And once I reached that twenty-five mark, I knew I was in trouble from writer’s block.

If you’re struggling with writer’s block like me, here are five ideas to help you.

  1. Create an audible library of snippets whenever inspiration strikes. Praise God for smartphones where we can take notes audibly and record our melodies, thoughts, ideas, and verbiage without writing them down on physical paper. Whereas, I may only have twenty-five completed songs in a year, I have hundreds of song pieces with melodies, themes, strum patterns, choruses, verses, bridges, and any other piece of a song I can muster up, saved to my smartphone via some recording apps. When I’m messing around on my guitar or the piano and I’m feeling inspired to create, yet, I can’t think of anything new to write lyrically, I often go and listen to these old song notes of mine to rewrite what I started or to formulate new ideas from them. What I recorded may never turn into a song, but it can inspire ideas for another new song. But if I didn’t record those snippets of inspiration in the first place, I would be starting at ground zero when I have writer’s block.
  2. Create a story. Sometimes, the best way to write a song is to start by writing a short story. I would suggest finding a painting or a picture and create a fictional character who is in picture. Who is this character? Write a back story on this character so that you know this character inside and out. Why is this character in this setting? Give her a conflict. What does she need to overcome her conflict? What would give her victory? Her victory should be your chorus or bridge. Is there an enemy or antagonist? After you write a rough idea or short version of your story, you can pick and choose portions of it and work on creating lyrics to tell her narrative. Who is she? The waitress with tear-stained eyes and an apron too tight? What is your setting? An old, forgotten diner on Route 42? Why is she crying? Her kids have the flu and their daddy left too? You get the idea.
  3. Hum melodies. Sometimes you’ll get an incredible melody idea in your head. Don’t worry about getting all the words down right away. Hum the melodies and write around it. Since you are smart enough to record the hummed melody to your smartphone, you can always come back to it. I usually will do this and just start singing words that come to my head, instead of forcing words. Sometimes something will stick that feels and sounds incredible, and then I write the song around that one simple line. Sometimes I’ll re-record that melody with different word options.
  4. Say what you want. Is there something you feel strongly about that you have wanted to say for a long time? What passionate issue pulls at your heart? Abortion? Child Abuse? God’s Love? Healing? Write a small editorial based on your feelings—and then cut out pieces of the editorial to formulate pieces of a song. Look at the theme and create a chorus around that. For example, if I were to write a song on abortion, I would try to make it personal and come up with a character. Let’s name her Annie. What about her? Well, she was supposed to be born, but her mother aborted her. So what now? Let’s talk about things she’ll never experience—the feeling of her mother’s touch, staring into her mother’s eyes. Her first steps. Her first day of school. Her first crush. Going to prom. Getting married. Having her own child. But Annie won’t experience those things, because she went to heaven a little too early. Now, how can we formulate these ideas into a song?
  5. Go for a walk. This is my favorite thing to do. For me, personally, I prefer walking in the city, observing everyday people in their everyday elements. The city has a vibe and will speak to you. What is it saying? What’s the temperament of the city? Is it fast-paced, business heavy? Is it littered with homeless people? Is it busting with young entrepreneurs? Is it an old town with out-of-date stores? Is it a crime-ridden area like Gotham city? Look a little closer and people watch. Take a notebook and start writing down ideas about the people you see. Your ideas don’t have to be factual—you can make up backstories: the homeless man with one shoe who holds an MBA from Harvard, the young business man drinking at the bar afraid to go home and tell his wife he lost his job, the girl selling herself on the street corner for drugs, the street musician hustling for money to pay for his daughter’s operation, etc. You get the idea.

If all of these fail you and you find yourself with writer’s block, my final suggestion is to get plenty of rest and exercise. Creativity seems to come when the mind is well-rested and the body feeling strong. Best of luck on your songs! Have an idea or a question for this column? Please leave a comment!

 

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a coffee loving, calico-cat hugging, Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or stories rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, double, musician, or stand-in. He is a Creative Writing graduate student at Full Sail University.

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Songwriting

Creation as a Collaborative Gift!

I have to be honest: I have worked with bands for years and years, and while nothing feels more exhilarating than to stand in front of thousands of people with a loud five-to-seven-piece band playing behind you, I learned in my early years that I prefer to work alone. I idolized men like Lenny Kravitz and Dave Grohl of Foo Fighters. On their earlier albums, they wrote all the lyrics and played all the instruments recorded. They were a one-man band. They only needed a band for live shows.

For years, I’ve become the one-man band on my recordings. While I can brag that I played every single instrument on my last few albums—from guitar to piano, mandolin, bass, harmonica, percussion, slide, organ, vocals, and more, the process became rather lonely.  And while I have improved musically over the years, I don’t feel I grew very much as an artist. I produced the music myself as well. I often ask myself: But what if?

I feel that my strength is in writing songs. What if I worked with a band again? What if I worked with a band all these years? What if I gave them freedom to play what they want to play? What if I told the drummer to create his own beats and the guitar player to start a riff off that, in whatever tone he wanted? What if I approached the songs as the music was the storyline and my lyrics and melody the protagonist? Sure, I’ve done this with bands over the years, only to discover one or two pieces of the puzzle didn’t fit—meaning, one or two of the musicians didn’t seem to gel with the team. Even as a worship leader, every single team I led had at least one player that was rebellious and gave the team a hard time.

The incongruency can become exhausting, especially during songwriting, when you hold that precious baby forming in your hands. I think of the movie, The Wonders, starring Tom Hanks and Steve Zahn, where the drummer hijacked the song at a competition and did his own thing. Lucky for him, it worked in the band’s favor. But that isn’t always the case. So, I started writing songs alone. Then I started recording them alone. Then I started playing all the instruments alone. And when I started doing it all alone, I felt alone.

I had to remind myself… Why was I creating music? Because I must. Because God put it within me. God blessed me as a musician and a songwriter. But why? Why do any of us have gifts? To touch the lives of others. To bless others. To lift others up. I had to rethink why I created music: To touch and inspire. To offer hope. To encourage. To draw people closer to God, perhaps. And God has blessed many musicians with talent and giftings. There’s not a short supply of talent (regardless of what’s played on top 40 stations.) It’s a known spiritual principle that when we come together in prayer in the name of Jesus, miracles happen. The same can be true musically. When musicians come together and lend their God-given talent to one another, something magical can happen. It is symbolic of life. There will be rough edges. There will be personality issues. There may be a slight difference of musical tastes and styles coming together, but when you’ve been playing with the same band and you’ve truly gotten to know one another, there’s an incredible intimacy created that is surely divine. You know and feel what the other musician in your band is going to do. You understand what they are feeling and thinking. You feel their vibe. And sometimes there’s that one musician that just never vibes with you… you may have to replace that person. But don’t give up.

What’s my point? I think, looking back at life and the giftings God gave us, we were never meant to hoard our talent for ourselves, and we were never meant to be a one-man show. Whether musically or relationally. God created us for friendship. He created us for relationships and community. He created us to love one another and be there for each other. And as introverted as many of us artists are, we have to learn how to break through that, share our gifts with one another, and work together to see what amazing thing God will create through us as a team.

Have you been writing any songs lately? My suggestion to you—grab a friend. Get some coffee. Sit down. Get a guitar, a piano, or even a Ukulele. Start writing down ideas together. Scribble anything down, because anything can be re-written. Laugh together. Laugh at each other. Laugh at your song ideas. Share ideas with each other. Don’t hoard them. Build a friendship…and out of that friendship, create some amazing songs to share with others.

I have to brag on myself a bit. I was recently nominated for a Native American Music Award for Independent Artist of the Year. Being that I played all of the instruments on the album myself and produced it in my studio, my joy lasted but for a moment when I realized I had no one to really share the joy and the experience with. Imagine if it was a collaborated effort, I would be celebrating right now with a group of friends and planning our trip to New York together for the awards ceremony. Instead, I’m celebrating alone…okay, I’m celebrating with my cat, so I’m not exactly alone.

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a coffee addicted, calico-cat loving Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or stories rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, double, songwriter, or musician. He was recently nominated for Independent Artist of the Year with the Native American Music Awards.

 

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Songwriting

Songwriting: Learning by Listening to The Masters

If you take a songwriting class, the first thing you will learn is to read the top 40 charts in your chosen genre, and then listen to the chart-topping songs over and over for analyzation and to get songwriting ideas. You will be encouraged to listen to similarities in all of the songs and watch for format.

If you are just starting out, there is nothing wrong with taking a shell of a song and then replacing the words with your own words. That is a great tool for learning how to write melodies rhythmically and formulating words together to fit a specific meter, but a bad idea if you are planning to publish the song—because you can get sued.

As a child, I learned by becoming a junior Weird Al Yankovic. I would take famous songs on the radio and change the words to something silly. And then I would perform them for my older sister and her friends and they thought I was hilarious. I dreamed of performing them for the world to see (too bad Youtube was not invented yet!)

If you are a musician, you start by learning theory, learning what chords go together, and then putting together a chord pattern to be a foundation for a lyrical melody. If you don’t play an instrument, you can guide your musical partner by verbally sharing your melody idea. A good place to start is by listening to songs in your genre and start dissecting the melody from the bare lyrics. What works? What doesn’t? As I mentioned in a previous article, sometimes it is easiest to start with a chorus, because that is what your song is about.

Like any bit of writing, you learn the most by watching others, dissecting their work to see why it works or why it doesn’t, and then implementing what you learn. Most recorded albums start from a pool of about thirty songs, and then are narrowed down to fourteen or less to sell to the public. And usually, the pool of thirty songs come from a songbook of about 100 songs scribbled in the writer’s songbook journal.

If you want to be a songwriter, write every single day. Keep a songwriter journal where you jot down your ideas, possible lyrics, melodies, themes, poems, etc. Your songs may suck at first. But writing every day is how you get better. Just like exercising your physical muscles, your growth comes from exercising your writing muscle. I usually write a notebook full of songs per year—most aren’t even complete. And sometimes I pull a Frankenstein where I take two or three songs I wrote and combine them.

When U2 wrote their hit song, Beautiful Day, they actually wrote another song using the exact same music, but with completely different lyrics and melody. Then they chose which melody and chorus they liked for the album best after listening to both versions over and over and over. The band Jars of Clay did the same thing on their If I Left the Zoo album. They made a bunch of demos with different melody lines and choruses. The final project was a culmination of taking the best part of the songs and re-writing the weakest part to improve the song or by creating Frankenstein, chopping up the best parts of two or three songs and adding them together to formulate one incredible song.

If you listen to Jars of Clay’s studio album, If I Left the Zoo, and then again listen to their limited demo album (if you can find it) called White Elephant Sessions, you will hear the same songs, but with different verses, choruses, or melodies. They are letting you in on their songwriting process. After the time slaved to write the physical songwriting portion and then playing the song at many rehearsals comes the recorded demo. Bands will listen to their demo a thousand times, get feedback, and then put the song in the hands of a polished producer to rewrite the song and record the final, polished version. Sometimes that version is an entirely different song from conception.

Whether you are writing songs, novels, or screenplays, the biggest key to survival is being fluid and giving yourself (and producers, editors, publishers, directors, agents, etc.) permission to let go and change what you have written to make it better.

Write it. Step away. Visit it again. Rewrite it. Step away. Rewrite it again.

Don’t marry your first version or first draft. That’s like marrying the first person you ever had a crush on, which may work, but more than not, it can be naïve and suicidal. I know both screenwriters and songwriters who lost a job because they wouldn’t give producers or directors flexibility to change their work.

Do you have a songwriting topic you would like me to discuss? Let me know at matthewhawkeldridge@yahoo.com! Get that songwriting journal and start writing!

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a coffee loving, calico-cat hugging, Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or stories rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, double, musician, or stand-in. He is a Creative Writing graduate student at Full Sail University.

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Songwriting

(Writing the) Bridge of Freedom

Last month, we discussed writing a song from a premise, and how our premise will dictate what we want the song to say in the verses and chorus. I shared how the chorus is the theme of the song. It tells us what the song is really about, and how the verses support that theme. That is why we will return to the chorus and repeat it, but not the verses.

There are plenty of songs out there with a great melody tied between good verses and a strong chorus. However, a good number of great songs contain a bridge of some sort, and this is where freedom comes in, because a bridge can go in any direction. The only thing that limits a bridge is that the entire song needs to be between three to four and a half minutes long for airplay.

If verses support the chorus, and the chorus tells us what the main theme of the song is about, then the bridge can act as another statement, either equally as important as the chorus, or as another group of supportive lyrics, encouraging the chorus theme from another angle, or it can usurp the chorus and be the true ultimate statement of the theme. This usually happens if the bridge is at the end of a song.

The bridge can also act as a place of reflection, allowing it to be a musical interlude with a different melody than the verses or chorus. Or, it can even be a statement that totally contradicts the chorus, as if the songwriter is conflicted in what he wants or believes. Add contradictory chords to an already contradictory lyric and you can create the conflicted chaotic mood the songwriter wants the bridge to have. Remember the emo days? I usually go to a minor chord if I’m creating conflict, or a positive sounding, full, major chord if I’m being climatic. I also play with instrumentation or pianissimo or forte’ to make my point stronger and have the bridge stand out. This is the beauty of the bridge! Do what you want!

Whereas most songs in pop culture follow a generic pattern overall, the bridge itself can be inserted in a variety of places. It can also be written for a variety of reasons—to either support the chorus, to be the final statement, to reflect, or to contradict. It can be any length (within reason) you want it to be. It can be a single line, a couple of measures, or hijack the end of the song. And sometimes songs can have two bridges in their short four minutes. However, the majority of bridges are extremely short, under a full stanza.

Let’s take a look at the chorus for of the song, I Won’t Let You Go, by the band, Switchfoot. If you have never heard the song, I suggest you listen to it.

Jon Foreman does a wonderful job interweaving two different bridges into the mix: the first one acting as a quick, reflective period, the second one coming at the end of the song and making a final, ultimate statement. Before we evaluate the bridge, let’s review the chorus.

Chorus:

 If you could only let your guard down / You could learn to trust me somehow /
I swear, that I won’t let you go /
If you could only let go your doubts / If you could just believe in me now /
I swear, that I won’t let you go / I won’t let you go

Without reading the verses, we can see the song is about someone telling us that they won’t let us go. The song is about trusting God to not let us go.

The first bridge starts at around 2:47 and is just one simple line before jumping back into the chorus for a third time.

Bridge 1

I’ll always be by your side…

It’s simple, short, and sweet, and makes a strong point: I’ll always be there for you. Nothing else needed.

After singing the chorus for the third time, the music takes an octane boost and becomes louder and stronger, which compliments the second bridge. These are the final words of the song and ultimately tells us that nothing will ever separate us from the love of God.

Bridge 2

There ain’t no darkness strong enough that could tear you out from my heart /
There ain’t no strength that’s strong enough that could tear this love apart /

Never gonna let you go / Never gonna let you go

 If you are writing songs, the bridge is what can add dimension and take your song up a notch. After writing the meat of your song, I would suggest playing around with trying different bridges. Strangely enough, sometimes the bridge is the hardest part to write because there is so much freedom. Happy writing!

What aspect of songwriting would you like to hear next? Feel free to contact me and let me know.

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a sleepless, coffee addicted, Renaissance man. When he’s not passionately penning screenplays or stories rich in musical history, he’s writing songs on his guitar or working on a film as an actor, double, songwriter, or musician. He is a Creative Writing graduate student at Full Sail University.

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Songwriting

Understanding Songwriting Structure

If you have been following my articles on songwriting, perhaps you’re ready to write your first song. There are a few guidelines I would like to show you to get you started. Much like a haiku or even a piece of flash or hint fiction, there’s a definite pattern to successful songwriting, and your verbiage is limited. One of the biggest amateur mistakes is to write a song over five minutes, especially if that song contains little structure or design. Sure, it has happened, but rarely since the 1800’s.

Let’s start with the premise of the song. What is your song about? What is it you are trying to say? What is your point? Without a premise, you lose focus of what you are writing or why you are writing it. Think about it, you only have a few lines of chorus to truly say what you want to say, and then a few stanzas of poetry to support that chorus. Your words have to be carefully chosen: much like a haiku: much like a twenty-five word hint fiction.

Our premise becomes our song’s logline. It’s a song about what? It’s a song about a sinner who finds Jesus?  It’s a song about a man who lost his wife? It’s a song about a father having a hard time seeing his little princess grow up and get married? Once you have your logline of a song, you can develop your chorus idea. You don’t have to perfect your chorus at this point. You just want the chorus idea down.

There are literally 3 parts to a great song. There’s the verse, the chorus, and the bridge. We’ve talked about the chorus. The chorus supports the premise or the theme of your song.  The verse is what gives us the story. The verse paints different pictures that give the chorus credibility. Most songs on the radio have one or two verses then a chorus, followed by another verse or two, then the chorus. Let’s take a look at one of my recent, favorite songs called All My Hope, by David Crowder.

Studying the structure of a song

As we can see in the first verse, David gives us an introduction to our lead character, in first person.

I’ve been held by the savior / I’ve felt fire from above / I’ve been down to the river / I ain’t the same—a prodigal returned

In four simple lines (most verses are four lines), we learn who he is. But we still don’t know the premise or theme of the song. These four lines lead to that, which is found in the chorus. So what is our song about? Let’s see what David wrote for the chorus:

All my hope is in Jesus / Thank God my yesterday’s gone / All my sins are forgiven / I’ve been washed by the blood

Ah! Now we understand what the song is about! It’s about being forgiven! It’s about erasing the past through the blood of Jesus! It’s about the hope in Jesus that makes it all possible! That’s the premise! Jesus washes away our sins so we can be forgiven!

But then he moves on to the second verse to give us a little bit more into the story and description. The first verse was an introduction to who he is. The chorus told us the premise. The second verse now tells us a little more about who he is. No more need for introductions, this is him, wide open.

I’m no stranger to the prison / I’ve worn shackles and chains / But I’ve been freed and forgiven / I’m not going back—I’ll never be the same

This poetic verse makes you want to clap for him, doesn’t it? It’s a proclamation. The first two lines tell us a little deeper about his sin, the second two lines reminds us of the premise, supporting the chorus! Now we jump back into the chorus, with even more gusto!

If we lay out our structure, we have an ABAB pattern. It’s simple. A is the verses, B is the chorus. David adds another B for emphasis. This song reads, ABABB. The total length of this song is just over three minutes. For playability on radio, songs must be at least 3 minutes, but under five minutes. The target is between three to four minutes. However, if you listen to praise and worship, that’s often not going to happen, unless they make a radio friendly version of the song. There have been album versions of worship songs that are over 10 minutes long, albeit, the actual lyrical portion was under five.

Next month, we’ll talk about a little more advanced songwriting—adding the bridge and the purpose of it. Is there a songwriting topic you would like to discuss? Please feel free to write me at matthewhawkeldridge@gmail.com

 

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a sleepless, coffee addicted, Renaissance man currently working in the film industry while attending grad school for creative writing. His latest novel, The Pan: Experiencing Neverland, can be found on Amazon. His album, Overcome, releases June 1st.

Categories
Songwriting

Songwriting 101 by Matthew Hawk Eldridge

If you read my previous article, I hopefully convinced you to try songwriting. There are a few basics to help get you started, if you’ve never written a song before. I’ve met a few people who tell me, “I want to write a song, but I can’t carry a tune or play a musical instrument.” That’s okay. Your job isn’t to sing or create the melody. Leave that to the musicians. But you do need to understand timing and rhythmic patterns. If you are working with a musician, they can help you with this. Your job is to create powerful, unforgettable, believable, inspiring lyrics. Your instrument is the pen. The instrumentalists will put the paint on the musical canvas. Your words will make the musical painting come to life.

So how do you start? If you don’t have any musical background, this can often be the hardest part. Do you start with the words or the music? It’s the chicken and the egg syndrome. Sometimes I write the music first. Sometimes I have words I want to put to music. I have been in a number of bands where I brought in a raw poem and someone already had an idea for a melody. In a simple hour or two we stripped and shaped that poem into an inspiring song. Other times, I brought in music I had with no lyrics, and someone added lyrics to what I wrote musically. I remember one specific night writing a poem called No Identity. Our keyboard player grabbed it out of my hands and right away started playing chords on the keyboard to match it, followed by developing a sweet lyrical melody. Although he and I both sang in the band, his musical version of my poem became his baby to sing. A few months later we were singing that song for thousands of people on a huge stage at a Christian music festival. Hands were raised all around the stadium as he belted out the chorus. “And I—I don’t know who I am, I have no identity in me. I’m laid bare with no more cares, I only know the face of the one who embraces me—in my mind…” This is the breakdown of No Identity that started from a simple poem.

Verse 1

I’m standing small / I start to fall down on my knees /

Begging please break me

I cry, I crawl / Beneath your grace in weakness I stumble /

My heart it crumbles

Chorus

And I don’t know who I am / I have no identity in me /

I’m laid bare with no more cares / I only know the face of the one who embraces me /

in my mind

Verse 2

So take the weight off my chest / the heavy burdens that steal my rest /

I’m trying desperately to see / Who are you to me /

And who I am to you / and Lord, what can I do to / For you bore my sin /

And gave me life within so I could win / you wipe the tears away / and all my pain…

Sing chorus again

Bridge

Never let me fall again / Never let my life be sin / Come and take this life away /

And give me a new name / Paint it in the stain / of the innocent blood you shed /

for I am dead, but alive in you—

repeat final chorus

The first step in songwriting is to understand the importance of the chorus. The chorus in songwriting is the plot to storytelling. It’s what the song is about. The chorus is often a theme or a point that you are trying to make. If you were to make a logline for your song, it would be obvious by your chorus.  So let’s come up with a logline for No Identity: The song (No Identity) is about a humble, broken man who has lost his identity and only wants to find it in God. Choruses are usually the only part of a song that is repeated to make that point.

While there is definitely not a “one-size-fits-all” way of songwriting, there are some simple guidelines that can help. There are definitely no “you can’t do that in songwriting” rules, although some people may try to tell you differently. When our band attended GMA’s (the Gospel Music Association) conference week, one of the top producers (Reed) in Nashville at the time said, “You can’t do that in your bridge… you can’t put a calypso rhythm in the middle of your song there. Take the bridge out, it doesn’t fit for radio.” Reed was polished, experienced, and older/old school. But we felt strongly about the bridge, so we ignored his advice. As we started playing that song out in public, show after show after show, we received letters from fans that told us how No identity really spoke to them. And several said the funky bridge lifted them up. In fact, we had more fan mail over No Identity than any other song.

My suggestion? Start writing. Don’t worry about rules. Be poetic. Be powerful. Listen to a lot of acoustic-based storytelling songs on Youtube for growth. Yes, there are a few guidelines—I will share some of those next month! In the mean time, think about your chorus—what is it you want to say? Build your song around that!

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a singer, songwriter, musician, film actor, and author, sleeplessly living in Atlanta, GA. His most recent works include playing guitar in Pitch Perfect 3, his novel, The Pan: Experiencing Neverland, and his album Overcome releasing March of 2018.

Categories
Genre Songwriting

Introduction to Creative Songwriting by Matthew Hawk Eldridge

When we think of creative writing, we often think of novels, short stories, poetry, or even screenplays. But perhaps one of the most memorable forms of creative writing is often forgotten: songwriting.

The art of songwriting is not just a style of writing in itself, but is an eclectic mix of lyrical forms or ideas. From the sad, descriptive country songs of the balladeer, to the urban hip hop crooning comprised of rhythmic angry poetry, to the raw, unprocessed, rebellious rioting of the rock and roller, to the religious melodic praise and prose of the psalmist, all great, memorable songs revolve around one thing: a remarkable lyricist.

I mean, sure, a great song is not a song at all until there is a melody put to it. Perhaps that’s what makes songwriting one of the most incredible, elevated forms of creative writing. An unforgettable song that connects with people and survives the decades is either a collaborative effort by brilliant people, each gifted on his or her own instrument (including the pen), or it’s the genius brainchild of someone who speaks both the languages of music and lyrics, such as Lenny Kravitz and Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters—talented multi-instrumentalists who also write with passionate lyricism.

Like a great novel, a carefully crafted song is not only memorable, but will speak to multiple generations for years to come. Bands like Aerosmith, that were popular during my father’s generation, impressively maintained their popularity with chart-topping hits during my generation, followed by my children’s generation as well. They’re one of the few bands who have a fifty-year span of incredible music. Their well-written songs are catchy melodic stories with deeply flawed characters who are hard to forget.

But, what gives a song lasting appeal? There have been a number of prevalent songs over the decades that have topped the charts with little longevity—songs that I would call trivial and trendy. Trendy songs often fit the sounds of the current culture, but lack lyrical substance. So why are they so popular? Is it because of a catchy hook? A mesmerizing melody? While these traits may help songs hit the charts, powerful, creative, lyrical imagery is what makes a song truly unforgettable.

Some of the songs I most cherish were written in the 1990’s, because the nineties were all about raw emotion—writing words with zealous fervor and honest passion. One of the most underrated lyrical storytellers of the nineties has to be Adam Duritz from the band, Counting Crows. I remember listening to their first album, August and Everything After, and being blown away by the mystical allure of Duritz’ lyrics. The way he fused his feelings to the music made them an instant treasured classic.

 Step out the front door like a ghost into the fog where no one notices the contrast of white on white / In between the moon and you, angels get a better view of the crumbling difference between wrong and right / I walk in the air between the rain through myself and back again / Where? I don’t know / Maria says she’s dying / Through the door I hear her crying / Why? I don’t know… 

The words alone to his song, Round Here, are so poetic, the music isn’t even necessary to appreciate the imagery involved. Add the warm, escalating sounds of the strings and the off-plucking rhythm of the electric guitar and the song becomes a well-rounded gem loved by people for almost thirty years.

So what are you waiting for, my creative writing friend? Are you ready to pen your first song? Perhaps you are reading this and saying, ‘But I don’t know how to play an instrument.’ But the truth is, there are people who are musically gifted but can’t write lyrics. And there are lyricists who are gifted at writing words but can’t play music. Your pen is an invaluable instrument in the songwriting circle, as much as the guitar, the piano, or the drums. Most drummers can’t play guitar or piano, and vise versa. I often think of the movie, Music & Lyrics, starring Hugh Grant and Drew Barrymore, where Grant plays a gifted has-been musician who can’t write lyrics. Barrymore, a poet, is drafted by Grant to help him write a song and they become a best-selling songwriting duo.

Find a friend gifted on the guitar and suggest a songwriting session. If you can’t sing, you can bring in a vocalist to join you as well. What a treat it is to hear someone else singing your words crafted on paper. So what are you waiting for, writer? Who knows, you may just have a gift for songwriting!

What aspect of songwriting would you like me to discuss?

Matthew Hawk Eldridge is a sleepless, coffee addicted, Renaissance man currently working in the film industry. His latest novel, The Pan: Experiencing Neverland, can be found on Amazon or at Barnes and Noble. Catch him playing guitar in the new film, Pitch Perfect 3.