How come songwriters get it so right?

reply to post by operation mindcrime

Didn't John Lennon only finish high school......

Worse He droped out.Lennon was a Juvenile delinquent who was headed down "a bad
road". Don't really know how the change came about but, I have read this
more than once.

No matter an education in literary art couldn't be a bad thing to ones career.
I think the positions in all show biz are given to folks who are the right blood. Have the right name related. There are no avenues, for a simple
commoner to come up thru, to gain a fortune and have influence.
Except on rare occassioon of a massive talent. Then TPTB have ways of dealing with any thing this life throws at them and it's always win win for them.
Already afluent people have the time to sit around and hone these skills.
It would be quite an advantage.



[edit on 1-2-2010 by randyvs]

Well Randy you have nailed this one. As you know im familiar with this topic, No not me, But my Son who has written some beautiful songs, and plays the acoustic and drums, And it never ceases to amaze me what he writes and how he has taught himself to play , And his absolute love of music, He is generally a quiet kid very modest, sees good and recognizes greatness in everyone but never sees it in himself . His very first song he had written , Was after heartbreak, His first love , I have named it Dignity, It tears at your heart, And another he wrote i have named The Serenade. He was never very academic , He was in special classes as a youngster for reading and had to work harder than most. But music all comes so easy to him , I cant believe the words he puts to music, or the music to his words ....yet he has a hard time putting thoughts in a standard letter at times. He has always had so many friends, And has always been for the underdog, His friends were all ages, all backgrounds, that never mattered to him, I have had many adults tell me i was lucky to have him, But I never needed to be told. So yes music is something very special indeed , It can make you cry and it can make you laugh, And it will most likely bring back a fond memory or one that will tear at your heart. It gets in your soul if you let it, Those who dont i feel for, The workaholics the high achievers that miss the good things ..... The small things..... The things that are truly music to our ears .

[edit on 1-2-2010 by femmefreud]

Everything we have developed over the last 100 years should be destroyed.
What are those sweet, dear things of the modern world that man would lose? They are: record statistics of suicides, panting competition, unemployment here, job stress there, renovations and insecurity in work life, alienation, desperation, mountains of psychological medicine measured in tons, the decline of body and diseases of the living standard, the unbelievable arrogance of the individual, quarrel, corruption, crime. What man would be left with: unhurried socialization between people, the endless spectrum of arts and hobbies: singing, music, dancing, paintings, sculptures, books, games, plays, riddles, shows; all of enormous museum activity, research of history, home region, dialect, family; the millions of biologist's themes, handcrafts, gardens; clear waters, virgin forests, marshland plains and fells; the seasons, trees, flowers, homes, private life - by definition: life.

uarrel, corruption,crime.

[edit on 1-2-2010 by femmefreud] Who knows maybe someday the world will get to hear his music and laugh and cry and relate too, This is what i want and see for him, The funny thing is Fame doesnt sit well with him, i guess i will never truly understand but thats ok, He has taught me in his modest way what is important in life , Im a reader of people it comes easy to me and he says he is a listener of people ...... The Source ..??

[edit on 1-2-2010 by femmefreud]

reply to post by learningtofly


I hate to tell you but most of the songwriters writing the music we hear everday have college degrees or better. Mick Jager has a degree in economics, The Who were part of the art school crowd. James Taylor's parent's were faculty at UNC (he was well educated at home even though he skipped college). Jimmy page went to an art college.

The list goes on and on and on. To believe college makes you less able to write music is ridiculous.

reply to post by MikeNice81


Thats not what i was implying, I apologize if it seemed so. Its like people who stutter, do not when they sing, Or some with turretts syndrome can sing beautifully without a tick. And yes alot of musicians are considered genius.. Thats the beauty of it............

reply to post by MikeNice81


What type of music do you listen too Mike ? Just curious... Many types ? Just one type, instrumental ?

reply to post by femmefreud


Now I get what you are saying.
second line.

Writing good songs is not bound to your education.. The thing that matters is passion, dedication and perseverance about songwriting. All successfull and acclaimed songwriters wrote huge amounts of songs before they got good enough to be noticed. The lyrics, melodies and harmonies come from your heart while the quality comes from your head. It's the perfect marriage, two important pieces of puzzle in one.

If someone writes about how smashed he/she was in a party and what stupid things he/she did, you can tell that is close to their hearts, while someone writes about the important and deep subjects like love, hate, nature, things about humankind etc.

p.s I write pop, rock and rnb songs, I'm also doing really well in music production. Songwriting is the most important thing for me because it filled the big space in my life that was reserved for it. The feeling that you are complete is divine.

[edit on 1-2-2010 by Michelin]

Originally posted by randyvs
Lennon was a Juvenile delinquent who was headed down "a bad
road". Don't really know how the change came about but, I have read this
more than once.

If he changed at all, I'd say he became "worse." A lot of artists went down the road you're talking about and it's where they drew their experiences and inspiration from. The world isn't a pretty place, and you have to fully realize that before you can really offer the kind of inspiration John did for humanity.

I have a good feeling John would have never looked at a "delinquent" and thought "criminal." At least not without a large amount of sympathy.

[edit on 1-2-2010 by bsbray11]

Do we search, search for war, or is what we're after, answer's nothing more,

Still we fight, regardless of, similarities in life, that make us, fit like glove's,

Into the world, we come and go, whether we come back or not, I guess we'll never know,

So i guess, it's up to us, the sage's and the one's, who write the word's that mean the most, to those who listen on,

In time, there will be answer's, the one's we're searching for, until then there's just emptiness, and that's what drive's us on.....

First of all thanks for the compliment.

Second, in the words of Kurt Cobain, "If you want someone to believe your lies, set it to music".

Conclusion. You may think that we get it right... i would say that you there is probably a couple of artists you agree with, and the rest get it wrong from your perspective (see Nazi punk)... Im more cynical about it all... but Ive been a round for a while.

Dave

Originally posted by femmefreud
reply to post by MikeNice81

 

What type of music do you listen too Mike ? Just curious... Many types ? Just one type, instrumental ?

I think we posted over eachother and I missed this originally.

I listen to so many forms of music it is crazy. Just some of the stuff from today:

'Round Midnight - Miles Davis
Hardcore (Instrumental) hip hop- DJ Shadow
Levon - Elton John
Good Ole Boys Like Me - Don Williams
Fugue For Organ in G Minor (little) - Bach
Cowboys From Hell - Pantera

I'm an audio engineer by trade and education.

I take the "existential" approach to music. To me it is all about a person's personal conection with the music. If the music means something to the listener then it is valid music.





[edit on 1-2-2010 by MikeNice81]

I don't think it takes education or studies to be good and creative. You need love and emotion, that you put in your art.

My guitar solos sucks when they are made "like that"... but when I think about them, feel great and I am really into it, they are pretty awsome

I think it's the same for songwriting!

reply to post by learningtofly


Here's a bazaar post listing quotes from songwriters regarding demon possession. What do you think about these quotes?


www.jesus-is-savior.com...

I don't know about you all, but music from the 90's is where its at for me. Probably since I grew up in that era. I'm 19 now, and listening to some songs from the 90s makes me feels so young again.

Some examples of my favorite artists throughout history that speak to me :
Bob Marley
Sublime
A lot of Reggae, too much to list.

But yes, sometimes you hear the words to a song, and it is so personal and relevant to you. It's a cool occurrence.

All what I can say here is: music is something you have inside you, it's something related to your soul.

I don't know how to really play a single instrument, but I can sing and write lyrics till today. I write when my soul says: Hey Cags, that feeling, this words, do it, NOW! and I take whatever i have at hand, a notebook, a napkin, word! and i just NEED to write it down.

The same with my designs (I'm a fashion student) or my tales (I also write prose), I was born with this gift, and it's here, just waiting me to have time to develop it well (my mom hated my musical talent because I got it from my dad, and she hates my dad =s. My father's family is full of musicians)

My apologies learnintofly, i have been away from ATS for a time and somehow read the author of this thread wrong,,, so my hats off to you. good question..

reply to post by SolarE-Souljah


OMG I FEEL SO OLD!!!

Excellent subject I'll post more tomorrow



Peace

i don't know that musicians always get it rite ..


but as a songwriter my self i thank you.
all i can say is the music i make is true real emotional expression....so everything in my lyrics is a spawn of my life observation and emotions.