Songwriting Nashville Style My Friend The Songwriting Guru
Have you ever read one of those ads where some songwriting guru claims he can teach anyone how to write a song? Let me share with you what I really believe is the reality of that scenario. While it may be true that anyone with half a brain can learn the mechanics of songwriting, only those with a certain gift can write those great songs we all know and love.
The elements that produce great songwriters are much like the talents that create great athletes or painters. Many of each have the basic talents, but it’s the development of those talents that make the difference between the great ones and those sitting on the sidelines dreaming for the rest of their lives. You must go out and do it.
When it comes to songwriting, you must somehow get into the thick of things, either by moving to a major music capital or somehow plugging into a professional system somewhere. You must seek out, find and learn from those who are already successful. A very, very few are successful without moving to where the action is. And more times than not, those few had a very good “in” with someone who was already successful. As a wise songwriter once said. You must be present to win.
Let me briefly share my own story with you in hopes it will help you understand . I did move to a major music city, Nashville Tennessee to try my hand at the music business. When I first moved there, my goal was not to be a songwriter, even though I had been writing songs since I was a teenager. No, originally, I wanted to be a star. I wanted a record deal and immediately upon arriving in Music City, I set out to try and get one.
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I won’t bore you with the whole story, but after realizing that, even though I had a good, some said a great voice, I didn’t sound at all like a country singer and at the time there didn’t seem to be any options to stay on the course I was on at the time.
That’s when I decided maybe songwriting was what I needed to do. Besides, singers usually only have a few years at best at the top, even if they make it, but songwriters can stay active the rest of their lives.
I came to Nashville with a hand full of tapes containing all the songs I had written up to that time. I set out finding publishers to pitch them to in hopes of finding success. From that point, it took me the better part of 2 years to begin to get songs signed, published by Nashville Music Publishers.
It happened little by little. First I got a few songs signed. Then I began to get songs put on hold. For those of you that don’t know what a hold is, it is a gentleman’s agreement between the artist, producer or record company and the person pitching the song, usually a publishing company. It means that the publisher will not pitch the song to anyone else until the artist decides whether they will record the song or not.
Back to my story. I began to get songs put on hold. One of these holds was by Country Superstar George Jones. When that happened I felt like I may have actually learned my craft and felt great. It gave me a lot of confidence. Then I got as job working for Patsy
Lynn, daughter of Country Legend Loretta Lynn. I played bass and sang with her and was made her band leader a short time later. She eventually heard some of my songs and recorded 2 of them on one of her projects.
Well enough of my story. For those of you in the early stages of learning to write songs, do everything you can to learn as much as you can about the craft. For it is a craft and you must master it before you can write great songs. Go online, read books, go to workshops. If you get the chance to get to Nashville, rub elbows with every songwriter you can and steal as much as you can from them. Little by little it will begin to happen just like it has for me. I am still on that journey. I write everyday. I re-write everyday which is very important. Keep your eyes on your dream and never give up.
Now about those songwriting gurus that claim they can teach anyone to write a song. Is there someone out there who can teach anyone how to be an NFL quarterback, or teach anyone how to be an Olympic Champion, or another Micky Mantle. I think you get my point.
Joe Russ is a songwriter, singer, musician and Internet Marketer. You can read more of his articles on his blog Songwriting Nashville Style. He is also a featured writer on the new informative songwriting website Songwriters Marketplace.
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