Improve Your Songwriting

By Rob Gates

Whether you want to go solo, be an active writing member of a band or simply be a pure songwriter you'll need that vital ingredient - good tunes. A few tips on how to write your first smash hit.

Get in key

Initially; if you are thinking of performing the song yourself, you should think about what key you are going to write the tune in. You'll be much better off writing a song in a key that's comfortable for your voice and the style of music you want to play.

The very fundamentals of a song are the chord structures and you'll need to find a decent chord pattern. If you are just starting out then a good way of exploring chord structures and how the top writers work is to simply dissect a song and see how it has been put together.

Alternatively just buy the printed music or songbook of your favourite tune. Of course the age-old question is music first or lyrics first? That is entirely up to you and how you work.

Wax lyrical

Lyrics are probably the most often neglected skill with those embarking on a career in songwriting. You probably think you're there when you've come up with a great chord progression or storming guitar riff. But you've only just begun - you've got to put words to it unless you're thinking of writing a Vangelis instrumental opus.

It is often true that many fall into the trap of simply bunging a few words together on the back of a matchbox. You know - "wanna love you all night". Sit back and think about something you've seen or that has happened to you or someone you know. Treat the lyrics like story with a beginning, an end or with a point you want to put across.

Naturally you will want to come up with a big sing-a-long hook for the chorus that is instantly memorable. Some good guides to writing lyrics are a dictionary, rhyming dictionary and a thesaurus.

Arrangement

Think carefully about how the drums, bass, guitar and keyboards are going to fit in your track. The main point is you don't want your hit tune swamped by layers of grinding guitars and banks of swirling keyboard pads. You want to be minimal to get the best effect and to let the song breathe. We've all been guilty of adding a bit too much when we get carried away but try and be disciplined to retain clarity.

Structures

Try and get into the song quickly rather than plump for an overbearing one-minute intro. This is for impact as well as for the possible ears of record company bosses.

Think about how you want your song to go - whether it be verse, chorus or if you want to sandwich a pre-chorus or bridge in between. You might want to commit to a double verse before hitting the chorus.

Also think about a middle eight - does the song need one? Many top chart hits don't necessarily have a big change in the middle. Middle eights were championed by the Beatles when many songs at the time simply rotated along the same chord structure.

Influences

Try and listen to as many types of music as possible to check out the variety of songwriting techniques. Listening to music and then writing your own is not stealing - as long as you don't copy whole passages. Rather let other people's music inspire you to write your own

Solitude

Many people have various techniques to approaching songwriting. On the whole many find solitude the best way - many top stars shut themselves away in remote farmhouses to write their next hit album. That was certainly the case with Abba. The boys Benny and Bjorn would hideaway in a small holiday home on a remote and tiny island. Obviously you need some peace and quiet to concentrate so a motorway service station is a bit of a no-no although you might get some inspiration from something you see there!

Themes

Decide what you want to write about - sex, love, relationships, violence war, politics or even Manchester United FC. But don't try and write about something you know nothing about or you have never experienced just because it appears hip. The end result could be embarrassing as well as disappointing. You would be betraying your own background, upbringing and experiences if you start writing about something totally alien to you so stick to what you know.

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