JPF Home Page Forums General Messages Songwriter Message Forum When an "Identity Rhyme" is acceptable

Hi Michael, so good to see you. You are to be commended for taking such good care of your aging mother. In a world where there is so much selfishness, it is not as common as you think to look after our loved ones, so God bless you!!

Ahhhh rhymes! You hit on a subject near and dear to my heart! Remember rules are "tools", nothing less, nothing more, nothing else. Concerning identical versus soft (I love both) it all depends on the total lyric and the genre and the melody. If I am writing a song that sounds like it's from the 50's and I want it to, identical rhymes are the standard, acceptable, and expected. If I write in traditional country that would probably apply as well. If I write in modern country, soft rhymes are preferred but not required, or atleast have a mix of both leaning preferrably to more of the soft rhymes. If I write a children's song one would expect to find identical rhymes. If I am writing a jazz song I think identical and soft work. If I am writing in the adult easy listening genre, again both types are welcome though the lyrics may be more sophisticated. So much depends on the totality of the lyric. If a "perfect" rhyme seems like a natural fit and not forced, by all means use it!!!! If someone hears a great song because the melody just takes thems right in, they will not be discussing the ratio of identical to soft rhymes, trust me. Again the totality of the song is the focus w/the melody being key (pun intended).

I love the hard, crisp, distinct sound of identical rhymes, but I also love the surprising and natural rhymability of soft rhymes and how in the sing of a song two words that don't sound alike somehow do when they are sung. When I write or rhyme I don't think hard about it at all, I just write(to my detriment or betterment).

Another example of a fool's rule. We've heard that yoda speak is taboo and should be avoided, BUT here is a link to a hit song sung by Bruno Mars (85 million hits) whose very hook is yoda "Everyday It Will Rain" as opposed to the normal way of saying it will rain everyday.

http://youtu.be/W-w3WfgpcGg

Rules are tools
But rules can be broken
When it comes to a song
Best to keep options open

Best to you,
Lynn