JPF Home Page Forums General Messages Mentor Questions Forum 10 Most Common Questions?

Judy, I’ll try. I expect, though, that I’ll just be providing a starting point for others to talk from. What I say will reference country music, too, because that’s what I write. There are other genres, and some of the rules are different. You should also take what I say with a large amount of salt, because I am not famous by any means.

There are music-industry experts who will tell you a country music song should follow the pattern of verse/chorus/verse/chorus/bridge/chorus. I think that’s c**p. You’ll find most good songs ignore that format. I pay attention to it only when it’s convenient (which is not often).

I am interested more in conceptual structure. A country music song tells a story, framed in concrete terms—real things happening to real people. I insist my songs be a complete thought, with no loose ends. I also impose time limits on myself. I want that complete thought expressed in 3-1/2 to 5 minutes, with and without a lead break; the numbers are mostly arbitrary (though there are a lot of song contests that will not accept material longer than 5 minutes), and simply force me to be economical with words.

Beyond that, I also insist on being different: I want to either be saying something new, or saying something old in a new way. If you want to be noticed, you have to provide a reason to be noticed (which I suppose is another argument for staying away from that Official Nashville Song Structure thing).

As far as where to learn, a lot depends on how you learn. Some folks learn best from books, others from organized classes; some like the “immersion therapy” of songwriting camps. Myself, I learn best from watching other people. One of the best resources I’ve found is here at JPF. Read lyrics—lots of lyrics—and what other people say about them; try to get a handle on what people consider “good” and why. JPF is one of about half a dozen writers’ groups I subscribe to. Lot of good writers here, who are real helpful with advice.

I look for famous songwriters whose work I consider good, and try to puzzle out what they’re doing with words that makes it good, and apply those tricks to my own writing. And not just songwriters: anyone who works in the “oral tradition”—words that are meant to be spoken, not just read—is fair game. People like Cicero, Churchill, Vergil, Homer, and Dr. Seuss.

And on the rare occasion when I end up writing something audiences consider good, I try to find out why they think it’s good.

That help? Hopefully, some experts will chime in now.

Joe

P.S. Brian, I noticed Al’s last “I’m still working on the list” post was seven months ago. Is he okay?