This is a revised version of an article I wrote that was featured on various websites a few years back, before my computer died and the link was destroyed. Since I wrote this article, I have received two degrees in music (a BA in Jazz Studies and a MM in Commercial Music), played a few hundred more gigs, wrote a few more songs and have released a couple more CD's. After more years of growing and studying, my ideas of songwriting have remained the same.
To me, songwriting is a very spiritual, personal thing. Every "expert" has their own opinion on the process. I personally do not believe in songwriting classes, books, or anything else written on the how-to or how-not-to rules of writing that "hit" song. As a Commercial Music major, I did take songwriting as a requirement. My professor was excellent and I have to admit her classes were interesting and informative, but nevertheless, my philosophy stays the same. A true artist, one that creates from the heart and is not a work-for-hire, does not need to consult the advice of others. All the songwriters that have influenced my world never consulted a book on what to do (Joni, Jimi, Zappa, SRV…). I think these tools teach someone else's idea of how a song is supposed to be written. The songs I love the most break all the so-called songwriting rules. Following rules for songwriting in my opinion is an oxymoron. How can one create AND follow rules at the same time? Rules such as "…got to have a 'Hook'"; "the structure of a good song is verse, chorus, verse, bridge," ad naseum. Many songs have no bridge and some have no chorus (Zepplin proved over and over that a great song does not need one).
In the writing of this article, I had to analyze my own approach to writing a song and discovered the only rules I follow are these "Non-Rules."
1) Non-Rule number one: GET A LIFE THAT DESERVES BEING WRITTEN ABOUT. Do you have any experiences, feelings, revelations, pain, joy, anger, ANYTHING that causes an emotion or a need to express yourself? If not, then you MUST create a life that has some depth and meaning. Let me be didactic for a moment. Everyone has a different idea of "meaning," so don't model your life after anyone else. The point is to make your OWN individual life that you WANT to write about. How do you go about this if you feel you need to? Have some guts, take some chances, FEEL something, LOVE someone, get hurt, do something that scares you to death (playing a show solo, learning something new even if you suck at it, etc…) anything and everything that challenges you and causes you to feel something and grow. Friend, fellow bandmate and revered songwriter, Mr. Jeff Buckley, was always taking huge chances in his life and his art. These experiences are poignantly reflected in his songs.
2) Non-rule number two: Don't, under any circumstances, follow any rules about songwriting. Write what YOU like. Make sounds that sound good to YOU. Write words that make sense to YOU. Many "songwriters" will curse me for saying this. It's probably not a "professional" attitude (whatever that is) to have about writing a "hit" song. But the beauty, and honesty, of being an artist is to be YOU. If you want to write according to what someone ELSE will like and/or not like, why not just get the nine-to-five and make a hecka lot more money climbing the corporate ladder? Of course, the money will probably be spent on therapy for ignoring what you really should be doing but don't have the guts to - be an artist. Most of the world is content with doing something that requires no risk taking. If you want to be a songwriter but don't have the courage to bare your soul, or if you don't have one to bear, than writing a song with someone else's likes or dislikes in mind is probably what you'll end up doing. I became a musician/songwriter so I wouldn't have to follow any rules, but rather, make my own. Definition of the word artist: "One who CREATES works of art." Who did Van Gogh or Picasso consult when they were making their art? Did anyone say, "that's not the RIGHT color," or, "that face is out of proportion" when they were creating? Songwriting should not be any different than any other art.
3) Last Non-Rule (and the most important one of all): APPROVE OF YOURSELF. Invent your own "rules." Don't take what I say to heart. These are MY non-rules. Obviously, I'm not a conformist and I don't have a problem saying what I feel. I don't believe in "trying" to write a song. I write when I am inspired or have the NEED to express myself. That's why I don't write a song everyday. But who cares what I think? Who cares what anybody thinks? You can't care if you are going to write because everybody on the planet will have a different opinion of your work. The only opinion that counts is your OWN when it comes to judging your work. If you take someone's advice (record companies, friends, songwriting "experts"…) and make changes to your music, all of a sudden it's not "you" anymore. Isn't the point of being an artist to have the freedom to be who you are? I think so.
