I agree that songwriters who can sing/play their songs for an audience (that is actually listening to them) can get instant feedback that can be extremely valuable on many levels, but that type of venue is difficult to find in many areas.

Even if you are lucky enough to have an outlet like this available to you there are still a lot of factors at work that have to be taken into account. People listen, appreciate, dislike songs for as many reasons as there are people.

I have played for hundred of audiences in many different types of situations and even when it wasn't necessarily called for I usually managed to sneak in some original material, for my own enjoyment if for no other reason. I agree that those of us who can do both absolutely should but I also think that writers who can't or won't perform their own material will usually find ways of getting their songs heard/critiqued that we don't necessarily take advantage of.

There is also the case of the songwriter that writes in many different genres/styles and can't perform in them all. (or any)

Like so many other artistic endeavors, songwriting requires a certain amount of skill/ability but the art element means that there is no right or wrong way to do it. The concept of getting paid for it is what forces us to look for the approval of as many people as possible.

Last edited by Vocalchords88; 12/26/07 09:58 PM.
Michael