A Songwriting Starter? (Here's an idea...)

A Songwriting Starter? 

Friday February 2nd 2024

I went to my first songwriting workshop this week. I had an expectation, fledgling songwriters with half a chorus, a beautiful riff, or a bad case of the dreaded writer’s block, looking for a bit of inspiration, maybe. I went because I’m aware I’ve developed a writing “method”, but it’s clearly not the only method, so I was interested to try and find out how everybody else works it all out.

As with so many things, it didn’t turn out how I expected. It never does. I’m not going to go into the full story, but what I found fascinating was discussing everybody’s backgrounds, and their motivations for attending. A lady called Akiko had friends and family who had been affected by the Noto Earthquake in Japan on New Year’s Day, and she was so upset, she wanted to write a song to comfort them. A classically trained vocalist, she sung what she had written so far to us, it was beautiful. I hope she finishes it. In her own words, what she had composed had required little thought, she just “did it” - she sat down at a piano, and the lyrics just flowed.

Being so emotionally inspired to write is brilliant, but clearly if you want to write more than a few songs, you probably need a method that’s thankfully a bit more everyday than a Shindo level 7 earthquake. So…. how do you write a song when you have no idea where to start?

One potential answer could lie in the homework suggestion of the workshop leader, Alex. Take an old folk song, (so as not to incur copyright) and to update or modernise the lyrics. So take the chords, and the melody, and make it your own. This might seem like somewhat of a cheat, but there’s a lot of sense in it if you don’t feel ready to create everything all at once.

Traditionally, folk songs and melodies were passed down through the ages by repetition. Somebody heard a performance and they tried to copy it, but probably didn’t quite manage it. Lyrics got twisted, regionalised, verses added and cut. All these variations didn’t get written down, and they certainly weren’t recorded to be regurgitated on command by a talking air freshener, (sorry Alexa). You trying this as a songwriting kickstarter isn’t really doing anything different.

Paul Simon didn’t essentially write ‘Scarborough Fair’, elements of the song can be heard in the Scottish ballad ‘The Elfin Knight’ which dates back to 1670. Try comparing it ‘The Girl From The North Country’ by Bob Dylan, the similarity is hard to deny. I hate to break it to you, but if it’s good enough for Paul Simon and Bob Dylan, it’s probably good enough for the rest of us. Give it a go, if only to say you

tried, but I guarantee you will have learnt something.

Guitar Playing 101 (Getting realistic about getting started...)

Guitar Playing 101

Tuesday November 28th 2023

It only seems fair that one of these earlier blogs talks a bit about playing the guitar. It is basically what I do with my time, and by that I really mean, playing it, working out how to play it, working out how someone else can play it….you get the idea. How I got to this point is perhaps a story for another day, but right now, in this cold, hard, social media, everything NOW kinda world you probably want facts, so…..

Tip #1 : Find A Tutor…

Of course I’m going to say that, I’m a tutor! Although there’s half a million people offering a free opinion on YouTube who claim to have all the answers, they can’t tell you what you’re doing wrong. Success at the guitar is measured in millimetres…. A stray note here, a buzz there, it’s all very disconcerting. Not to mention a good tutor will find a way to teach you in a way that you understand. Everybody learns differently. Some people can do it on their own, no doubt about it. If I think back and I’m honest though, I did get some guidance on my first attempts from a friend at college who had actually received lessons. A knowledgeable person such as this can also help with the next tip….

Tip #2 : Get A Guitar…

You’d be surprised, (or perhaps you wouldn’t), how many times I’ve encountered somebody who wants to learn to play the guitar, but doesn’t have access to a guitar. Special shout out to that family I went to one time who thought their son could use his Guitar Hero controller…. What’s actually most typical is the young budding, rock guitarist is handed Uncle George’s classical guitar, that’s been delaminating in the attic under some soggy Christmas decorations for fifteen years. Or the mature gentleman who’s spent £5,000 on a salmon pink, Hank Marvin signature model Stratocaster they saw him play on the Royal Variety Show. 

Funnily enough, neither is the ideal starter guitar. Choose something simple, not the cheapest, but an affordable instrument you can hold properly and you like the look of. Get the guitar shop to make sure it’s set up correctly. Ideally, take your tutor (or significant, knowledgeable other) to the shop with you to help you choose. For beginners, I’d always say start with an acoustic, rather than an electric guitar. Contrary to popular belief, I don’t think an electric guitar is “easier” - there’s more to worry about, more gear required and more moving parts. Get a basic guitar bag, a selection of plectrums of different gauges to experiment with, and a tuner, or download a smart phone app. If your guitar’s not in tune, you don’t stand a chance.

Tip #3 : Be Realistic…

Chances are, there’s going to be a disconnect between what you see yourself playing, and what you can do at first. That whole myth about practising a little every day being the key to success, isn’t a myth. For most people, it’s gonna take time, a whole lot of precious time, it’s gonna take patience and time, to do it, to do it, to do it, to do, to do it, to do it right child. George Harrison said that, and he was in The Beatles. The good news is, if you’ve followed tip #1, you’ll spend less time in this initial limbo period thinking the whole adventure was a terrible mistake.

Now I know none of these three pointers are going to get you shredding by next Tuesday, but there’s a lot of wisdom in the whole “right tool for the right job” idea. It’ll stand you in good stead for “Guitar Playing 102”.....

Record Time

This week’s musical share is the first album by little known Manchester group, Oasis. It’s called “Definitely Maybe”. Now I’m not the biggest Oasis fan ever, but I do appreciate and respect Noel Gallagher as a songwriter. The album came out whilst I was taking my first few steps with the guitar. I liked the simplicity of some of the songs, like “Columbia” and “Live Forever”....so I went and bought the songbook from HMV in Tunbridge Wells, and I sat in my bedsit and played along. Finding something to play along to that you find inspiring is a powerful thing - hopefully you can find yours!