Oh boy. I guess I need help with this.

I hate collaborating on the music because my mind is already made up from the git go.
I bounce possibly cringe worthy lines and concepts off my dear wife who is the biggest music bigot I know. If something is marginally dorkey - oh she'll give me that look.

The last thing I ever want to do is look at the collaborator and go "oh no, no, no... that will never do" - as I maybe wrong as can be, but am uncompromisingly right in my mind, and now I've gone and upset them. So I just keep to myself load up the old musical shotgun with the best I could muster and shoot! each time trying to better my amo and aim.

That said. Country writers are my heros. I listen to the words and just wanna cry because they're so clever and good and I didn't think of that first.

And Marc, I left rock for the same reasons. I watched country players to all that crazy stuff while the grunge scene was all the rage, nobody really playing and crossed over Jordan.

ONE

You are asking how many it takes to WRITE the song. It only takes one, but, of course, you can have more.

If you asked Paul Simon, Jon Ondrasik, Ed Sheeran, Paul McCartney (despite the irony of it) or even Taylor Swift (and a whole lot more) how many songwriters it takes to write a great song/hit song they would say:

One.

YEP ONE....The Great Writers are one but a lot of Broadway writers there is a word guy and melody guy but not always. Look what that Lin guy did with Hamilton....B

When a thread gets this long... it takes me a little while to go back and see what's been said... and if I spouted off some of my articulate wisdom... LOL! For me, as previously stated, the number is ONE. Fewer splits if it makes a hit... fewer arguments between writers, etc., less waiting time... you get my drift. Nothing wrong with a good co-write but the Twang-Town Model is difficult because I like to start a song and "get-r-done" while the brain cells are functioning on all cylinders.

I've done quite a few co-writes but it seemed to take two or three times as long to get it into a completed song.

In the end, do what floats your boat. Most of all, if you don't enjoy song-writing... find another "hobby" 'cause that is what it has become. I still love it... but wish I had talent and some great contacts.

Once again, "Thanks, Marc" for attempting to lead us out of the wilderness. Some of us can't forget the Tarzan Syndrome... just a swingin'! ----Dave

The question should be how many people does it take to make a song a hit. Many sometimes. There is the song writer of lyrics and maybe another for the music. The producer/arranger, several musicians, the studio, the soundman, the mixer and of coarse the singer. Then the promoter, the label, the radio stations and the money man that pays the bills, bribes, etc. I'm sure I'm forgetting a few more. Oh yes the fans that buy.

"I still love it... but wish I had talent and some great contacts."

NOW you've actually found the primary reason for co-writing. THAT is how you GET the contacts.

Co-writing is always a difficult proposition. Dealing with other people's egos, stubborness,getting things finished, finding outlets.
What do you think the ENTIRE MUSIC BUSINESS IS ABOUT?

Anyone can write a song on their own. And yes, it only takes ONE. But today, if that ONE is not a young, hot looking artist, they might as well stick in their living room and put things on Internet, because that is pretty much the only places those songs are going. Co-writing is the WAY you build the contacts.

Let me ask you this. Think about YOUR OWN SONGS. How much work you put into them. Developing the ideas, taking, days, weeks and months, smoothing them out. Spending YOUR MONEY to get them recorded. Developing your own product, going out, building contacts, staying in touch with them, sharing time with all kinds of other people instead of your family, skipping the odd vacation or school function to do something related to your music. Wrapping your life up into your hobby which is as important to you as anything else in your life.

Now you get one opportunity to play your songs for someone like a publisher, producer, etc. How many OTHER people's songs are you going to put ahead of yours?

This is what you deal with when you are trying to find the "OTHER reasons" for co-writing.

It's always the things BEYOND the song that matter. Writing the song? Any one can do that. Getting it BEYOND the writer? Much more involved.

MAB

Everything in life is a trade off and a deal.
Bring back the ugly Radio Star..lol

The first thing we can control is writing a great song. That's not to say we ever will write a great song, but that is the first thing we can do.

From what I see, especially in the lyric section, is people writing down the first thing they think of, forcing it to rhyme, and then formatting it.

If you look at say..couchgrouchs stuff, you can tell he spends a great deal of time saying what he wants to say, and he knows the options he has, and has the will to write an extravagent lyric. You have to be willing and open to writing out of the box

Others aren't sure, and stick to safe ideas and familiar forms

Songs are work, occasionally something will fly out, but as somebody once said, songs aren't written, they are re written. I think that means both, songs are recycled ideas from previous artists, and physically not settling until your work is really good.

The other stuff like the business end, is a matter of being in the right place at right time, once you have honed your craft,

But then again, talentless people become very famous in music too, so who knows