Originally Posted by Al David
I think you pretty much hit the nail on the head. In so many words, play nice in public and be honest in private...just be honest in a respectful way. As always, sage adevice from you.


Originally Posted by Dan Sullivan
MAB is absolutely right. It's something I learned a long time ago but occasionally forget. Praise should be shouted from the rooftops. Correction should be done in private.


Originally Posted by Bill Robinson
What do you do? Read the lyric and if it is badly written, has terrible meter, and full of overused cliches, do you say Good job? Wonderful lyric, you need to go spend a few hundred bucks and get it demoed? It's bound to be a hit?


Originally Posted by Mark Kaufman
I'm with Bill when it comes to critiques...a board that is specifically meant to critique songs should include pros and cons, strengths and weaknesses. If my song sucks, I NEED people to say it sucks...ideally in a respectful way.


I can't see any reason to be private when the song appears on an internet forum. To me the moment you perform you masterpiece for an audience of any size and they sit there like they just smelled an elephant fart is far worse than any critique. Getting an honest critique before that moment could save you a lot more pain down the line. Ever read "The Emperor Has No Clothes?"

At the same time, critiques are hard to give and hard to take. It's much easier to simply love a song than it is to tell the creator the problems with his baby.

I do think the idea of the writer posting his intentions are good. If they want a critique, don't give it.

As for me giving critiques, how the heck do I know anything other than what I like? I will never understand how the song "I Got A New Girlfriend" became a number one hit. Likewise I'll never understand why "I'm Moving On" isn't the biggest hit Rascal Flatts ever had.

When I give critiques, which I don't do here very often, I always hear it as I would have written it. I get hung up on little words. I can do it on other people's songs much easier than I can on my own. I try not to rewrite a song because I hate that but I do offer suggestions while at the same time admitting a lot of it is just writer's choice.

If I know the writer is new, I'm more apt to be gentle and comment on general conventions of writing. If I know the writer has Nashville success in mind, I'll be tougher. If they're in Nashville, I don't worry about cutting them no slack. I generally don't comment on songs unless they move me in some positive way. Just because they move me in a positive way though, it doesn't mean I won't critique it. I could probably find something in any song except Sunday Morning Coming Down to dislike.

I remember one time telling someone their song was probably the best I've ever heard from "internet writers." The discussion continued and the writer was criticizing every negative comment so I gave a few negative comments of my own. They thought I was lying when I said it was probably the best. I wasn't lying, I was just so impressed with it that I the positives outweighed the negatives. It was so good and commercial IMO that the only ones really eligible to offer suggestions on improvement were publishers and pluggers in Nashville. But I also feel if you put it up and don't tell people not to critique it, don't get angry when they do. Never get upset with a critiquer unless they systematically diss your songs simply out of spite.

One more thing, if someone says the song has some especially personal meaning to them, I don't ever critique it harshly.

One of these days I'll post a song here and if you tell me it's bad I'll either (1) whip yall's u-no-wot or (2) cry like a baby.