Song writing

["Joe Ferguson" <joe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Subject: What about song writing?

Alright already.  We could name "great" songwriter's all day long.  We all
have
our favorites, regardless of genre.  But what makes a great song writer
great?
>What are the critieria?  What moves a song from filler to "best song on the
>album?"  Think of the component pieces of a song; lyrics, melody, rhythm,
>delivery, solos, what else?  How does this all come together to make a
>great song?  Is it all just divine inspiration?  How do great song writers
>approach writing a song?  I realize this is straying somewhat from our
>intended topic, the harmonica.  But it applies to harp songs just as well.
>Has anybody in Harp-L land actually written a song?  Tell us about your
>experience.  How did it happen?

I think honesty in the lyrics and music that supports the mood of the lyrics
is what I always try for. It just seems like those honest emotions makes the
song accessible to other people. I'm always turned off by the clichis that
are in so many blues and country songs. I have a song that I wrote several
years ago, but just recently recorded called "Day Job Blues". I wrote that
and sang it into my little MD recorder in just a few minutes at work one
day. The lyrics and mood of the melody just seemed to fall together to
exactly reflect the mood I was in at that time. I think that for the rest of
my life, each time I hear that song I will flash right back to that day and
the magical way that song seemed to come together. It was about 2 weeks
after writing that song that I got up the courage to quit that job, and I
think the process of writing the song really made the difference. That song
isn't on an album yet, but it is the #1 song in the blues category at
http://www.garageband.com right now.
Joe Ferguson
Joe's Virtual Music Shop
http://www.joesvirtual.com