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Study the Hits!
You can easily keep up to date with the techniques that are being used by today's hit songwriters. Just check out recent hits you like and figure out what makes that song appeal to you. It's an essential skill if you want to write songs that are competitive and expressive, and it's a lot of fun! Hit songs can be full of surprises and can inspire you to try new ideas in your own songs .
by Robin Frederick
(c) 2010-2011 All rights reserved.For those of you who have my book, "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting," I've referred to the Shortcuts that can tell you more about the ideas discussed here. If you don't have my book, you can click on the book image in the upper left-hand corner. It will take you to the Amazon.com page where you can buy it.
HIT SONGS:
"Dynamite" - Taio Cruz (Genre - Dance/Pop)
"When You Loved Me" - Richard Marx (Genre - Adult Contemporary)
Film & TV songs by the Weepies (Genre - Singer-Songwriter)
"Grenade" - Bruno Mars (Genre - Pop/R&B)
"King of Anything" - Sara Bareilles (Genre - Pop)
"Smile" - Uncle Kracker (Genre - Pop & Country/Pop hit)
"Hands Tied" - Toni Braxton (Genre - R&B)
"The House That Built Me" - Miranda Lambert (Genre - Country)
"Why Don't We Just Dance" - Josh Turner (Genre - Country)
"Fallin' For You" - Colbie Caillat (Genre - Pop)
"You Belong With Me" - Taylor Swift (Genre - Pop/Country)
"Come On Get Higher" - Matt Nathanson (Genre - Pop/Singer-Songwriter)
"Sounds Like Life to Me" - Darryl Worley (Genre - Country)
"Sound of Madness" - Shinedown (Genre - Mainstream Rock)
"Waking Up In Vegas" - Katy Perry (Genre - Pop)
"Crush" - David Archuleta (Genre - Pop)
"One In Every Crowd" - Montgomery Gentry (Genre - Country)
"If I Were A Boy" - Beyoncé (Genre - R&B)
"Gotta Be Somebody" - Nickelback (Genre - Pop/Rock)
"Here" - Rascal Flatts (Genre - Country)
"I'm Yours" - Jason Mraz (Genre - Pop/Singer-Songwriter)
"DYNAMITE" by TAIO CRUZ
(Levin/McKee/Martin/Adetayo/Onile/Gottwald)
Buy this song at iTunes
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut numbers refer to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting" ("Hit") and "Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV" ("Film/TV". Both are available at Amazon.com.
This song is available at iTunes, Napster.com, Rhapsody.com, etc. The lyrics and chords are on the Internet. The Shortcut numbers refer to specific chapters in my books "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting" ("Hit") and "Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV" ("Film/TV"). Both are available at Amazon.com. (Richard Marx/Matt Scannell)
I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the new single, "When You Loved Me," from 1980s megastar Richard Marx and compare it with the huge hits that propelled him to million seller status a couple decades ago. How will a successful singer-songwriter of 25 years ago adapt to the current music market? What can YOU do to update some of your older songs?
(Deb Talan/Steve Tannen)
You might not have heard of a duo called the Weepies but they've had dozens of placements in today's hottest TV dramas. Shows like Life Unexpected, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill, Brothers and Sisters, and Greek have all used their whimsical, simply-produced, acoustic-based songs. Why does The Weepies' music have such strong appeal for music supervisors? Could you add some of that appeal to your own songs? Let's take a look. (Wyatt/Levine/Lawrence/Mars/Kelly/Brown)
Here's a Pop/R&B gem with an irresistibly hummable melody and a raw, emotionally over-the-top lyric. It's also an interesting blend of styles: a contemporary, driving melody with classic R&B elements in the chorus and singer-songwriter style lyrics. (Written by Sara Bareilles)
This song has been used in two TV series - The Medium and Life Unexpected - and it had a long run on the AC radio chart. It works well in both markets! (Jeremy Bose, Blair Daly, J Harding, Matthew Shafer)
I really love the feel, the energy, and the emotion of this song. I guess a lot of other people do, too, because it's a platinum-selling single that's been at the top of both the Top 40 charts and the Country charts. And I'll bet you that music supervisors are falling all over themselves trying to get this song (or something like it) into films and TV shows. This song was a bit of a sleeper when it was first released in 2009, but came back with a roar in 2010. Just goes to show: You can't keep a good song down! (Heather Bright, Warren Felder, and Harvey Mason, Jr.)
STRUCTURE (Tom Douglas and Allen Shamblin)
There are many reasons why this is an unlikely hit song and yet it found it's way to the top spot on the Country charts and gives no sign of leaving anytime soon. The song itself sounds more like an album cut than a hit; while the chorus has a beautiful payoff line at the end, it lacks the huge hooks and big emotional release that usually drives a song to #1. So let's see what it has that makes people want to hear it over and over. (Singleton / Beavers / Brown)
Josh was looking for Country hits for his new album and found this one through a Nashville publisher. I know a lot of songwriters who pitched for this so it's interesting to hear what the artist finally chose.
Robin Frederick has written more than 500 songs for television, records, theater, and audio products. She is a former Director of A&R for Rhino Records , Executive Producer of 60 albums, and the author of "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting." Robin currently oversees the A&R Team for TAXI, the world's leading independent A&R company.
GENRE
"Dynamite" is a Club Dance track that crossed over to the Pop/Dance charts big time! Writing for this genre requires a hot, hot HOT demo! The melody and lyrics ride on top of a solid, rock-steady groove along with compelling synthesizer and loop-based chords and riffs, which are often very repetitive. In this genre, the lyrics and melody together are referred to as the "top-line." The top-line is usually written after the instrumental track is roughed out or even completed. A good track producer will make sure that the top-line writer has a clear verse and chorus structure to work with. A few artists who are successful in this genre are Taio Cruz, Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, and David Guetta.
STRUCTURE
This is a great example of a verse / pre-chorus / chorus structure in a Dance hit. The verses ("I came to dance, dance, dance...") start on a low note and circle around it for three lines. There's a simple, rising two-line pre-chorus ("'Cause it goes on and on and on..."). The melody hits the highest note at the top of the chorus ("I throw my hands up in the air..."), followed by the catchiest lines of the song ("Sayin' Ayo. Gotta let go.) Everybody remembers the "ayo" line! I'd call that the hook, for sure, even though it's not the actual title.
The chorus develops further after the first four lines, which is a little bit of a surprise. Maybe a short, four-line chorus didn't offer enough energy and release for the dance crowd, so they kept it going. Notice that this song, like many dance hits, lists several people (six) as co-writers. In this case, the list includes Dr. Luke, one of the hottest producers working today. He would never let this song settle into a second verse without making the chorus work HARD!
The chorus ends with the title, before swooping down an octave to start the second verse immediately. No four-bar instrumental break here! Try this in one of your own songs to see if it works: Go straight from the chorus into the second verse without stopping.
This song has a vocal bridge at 2:04 that sits right in the mid-range notes and sets itself apart from the chorus with a smoother, more sustained melody and a very different set of chords. The majority of today's mainstream hit songs have vocal bridges. The listener wants the singer to remain front and center! If you've got a killer guitar player, save the big instrumental breaks for the album version of your song. Release a radio edit as your single.
MELODY
Melodies for this genre require a solid hook in the chorus. It's gotta be something catchy and instantly memorable. In this song, Cruz sings a line that almost sounds like a nursery rhyme, it's so easy and predictable ("Sayin' Ayo. Gotta let go.) The verses have plenty of rhythmic interest, so the chorus can afford to do something obvious like this. You might want to try a rhythm twist in or near the hook—add a pause where we don't expect it or drop it on an unusual beat, maybe even an upbeat—to keep listeners involved. But keeping it simple and catchy comes first. (For more on hook melodies, read "Hit" Shortcut #83.)
LYRICS
Lyrics in the this genre tend to feature "get out on the dance floor" imagery (for obvious reasons), party themes, or "girl, you're lookin' good" lines. It's tough to write this type of lyric and sound original! In "Dynamite," the writers got around this by using fresh rhymes and repeating words we don't expect ("brands, brands, brands"). Lady Gaga rewrote the book on Dance lyrics by using unique images ("Poker Face") and featuring stories that have some social significance ("Born This Way" and "Just Dance') rather than the typical dance floor stuff. Consider taking a look at her songs for ideas on how to approach lyrics in this style.
PITCHING DANCE SONGS
If you're going to pitch a song in this genre, it needs to be something the producer and artist can't write themselves or haven't thought of. Aim for an upbeat feel with a fresh approach to your theme and a powerful, catchy melody/lyric hook. If you're an artist in this genre, look for a way to establish a unique identity with your lyrics and voice. (See Shortcuts #49, #53, and #54 in "Film/TV.") Vocals can be auto-tuned but the tuning needs to be handled as part of the music/rhythm of the song itself, not just pitch correction. ("Dynamite" provides some excellent examples.)
The film and TV market needs dance tracks for club scenes and party scenes! A strong hook with a party or good time twist can be very useful in this market. LMFAO's "Party Rock Anthem" has already been used several times. And the Black Eyed Peas 'I Gotta Feelin'" is the party song that keeps on giving! (For more on film and TV uses of this type of song, see the interview with Crucial Music founder Tanvi Patel in "Film/TV." It's Shortcut #109.)
The top-line writer (lyric and melody) usually splits the writer royalties with the music producer since both production and top-line are essential to the song. In other words, in this genre, the melody and lyrics alone do not constitute a complete song. The track writer/producer is at least an equal partner. Collaborations are very common in this genre. You'll frequently see five or six co-writers on these songs. If you're thinking about getting into the Pop/Dance field, look around for a track producer who understands the value of melody and lyrics, especially the importance of a great hook! Or... try the trick in the Do It Now section below.
DO IT NOW!
You don't have to wait around for a collaborator before you can have a good time writing in the Dance genre! Check out this truly deep web site and create your own danceable, beat-driven track. Then record your vocal on top:
If you have a music software app on your computer, chances are you have a library that includes loops of all kinds. After studying a few Dance hits, try creating a loop-based track, then work up a top-line.
Copyright 2011 Robin Frederick
"WHEN YOU LOVED ME" by RICHARD MARX
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut numbers refer to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting" ("Hit") and "Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV" ("Film/TV.") Both are available at Amazon.com.
GENRE
"When You Loved Me" is currently in the Top 20 at AC (Adult Contemporary) radio. The AC radio format appeals to listeners between the ages of 25 and 54, many of whom will be familiar with Marx's huge Power Ballad hits, songs like "Endless Summer Nights," "Right Here Waiting," "Hold On to the Nights," and more. Back then, Marx was known for big productions that built to a giant climax at the end. He had the vocal range to handle these big ballads and could be counted on to deliver a well-crafted melody and lyric.
For starters, there's a big change in production style! "When You Loved Me" is an acoustic guitar/vocal track with some live string embellishment! No bass. No drums. No synthesizers. Nothin'! His voice is mixed with almost no reverb/echo and he's singing close to the mic—the overall effect is intimate and present. Play this track back-to-back with "Endless Summer Nights" and you'll hear the difference from the first note. This is a more contemporary Singer-Songwriter sound and very important to updating his style so it will compete in today's AC genre.
Note: Film and TV loves this dry, intimate recording style. Try recording a simple guitar/vocal track in this style to see how you sound. If you've been slathering reverb on your vocals, stop now! (See "Film/TV" Shortcut #75 and #79 for more.)
STRUCTURE
Richard Marx has always been careful to give his hits the kind of structure that listeners love. "When You Loved Me" is no exception. You'll hear a perfect example of a popular, proven song form:
Verse / Chorus / Verse / Chorus / Bridge / Chorus
There's an effective jump up in note range into the chorus ("I close my eyes..."). The bridge rises even higher ("I try to wish you away...") and adds a peak emotional moment to the song that ends in a sigh of futility ("...won't let go, won't let go.") Very effective (See "Hit" Shortcut #54 to find out about making your bridge a peak moment.)
MELODY
In his hits of previous decades, Marx was already using many of the melody writing techniques we use today, especially the idea of starting phrases on a variety of beats, and mixing phrase lengths to create interesting patterns. Today's solo male singer-songwriters, like John Mayer and Mat Kearney, tend to push the rhythms of their melodies a lot harder but the phrase starts and phrase lengths aren't all that different.
So how is Marx giving this song an updated vibe? Collaborating with Matt Scannell (of Vertical Horizon), he gets his song up to date by giving the lyric a fresh relationship to the melody. The lyric phrases don't always match the melodic phrases. Sometimes the melody will finish a "thought" when the lyric doesn't, a pause will occur in the melody forcing the lyric to pause in a place we don't expect. There are some good examples in Verse 2: "Had every / word perfect" and "But standing / here now I..." You don't want to overdo this but it can really help break your lyric/melody out of a predictable relationship and make listeners hear it in a new way. It's pretty common in today's songs but we didn't do it much back in the 1980s. Lyric and melodic phrases are tightly in sync in "Right Here Waiting," and "Endless Summer Nights" giving these songs a somewhat more predictable feel than today's AC style likes to hear. (For more on melody phrases, read "Hit" Shortcuts #90 and #91.)
LYRICS
Right from the start "When You Loved Me" uses plenty of simple, but effective emotional detail to set up the situation and the singer's emotions. The opening lines: "I'm back on the corner / where we said goodbye" tells the listener a lot in a short, concrete image. Verse 2 ends with "All I want to say / is written on my face," a strong, emotional image; you've probably seen someone whose feelings are written on their face—or felt that way yourself.
There are no ultra-poetic lines in "When You Loved Me", yet the lyric gets the singer's feelings across. We believe him. He seems real and honest. The whole thing is grounded in a real person. In contrast, a song like the 1987 mega-hit "Endless Summer Nights" is filled with vague, abstract lines that require the listener to fill in a lot of the emotional details: "All at once I looked and you were gone," "Searching for a way that we can be like we were before." But how were we before? He never told us, made us feel what he felt. The opening line of the chorus ("And I remember how you loved me") has the same problem. This type of general, abstract lyric was acceptable in a hit song in 1987 but isn't likely to work today unless an artist already has an enormous fan base.
Today's hit AC style needs more punch, energy, images, and details. The more emotional details you add, even simple ones, the more personal and real the song will feel for listeners. Go back through some of your own lyrics and make sure you gave your listeners enough vivid emotional details. (For more on using emotional details, see "Film/TV" Shortcuts #52 and #53.)
DO IT NOW!
Well, I've rambled on long enough. I'm not putting down Richard Marx's hits of the 1980s. "Right Here Waiting" is a beautiful song that still stands tall. But it's interesting to compare those hits with "When You Loved Me." The differences are sometimes small but important and it's a great exercise for your producer ears as well as your songwriting skills!
Copyright 2011 Robin Frederick
FILM & TV SONGS by THE WEEPIES
Buy The Weepies songs at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut numbers refer to my book "Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV" available at Amazon.com.
DO IT NOW: Go to iTunes, Napster.com, Rhapsody.com, or wherever you listen to music on the Internet, and listen to the Weepies. I suggest "Can't Go Back Now," "How You Survived the War," "Lighting Candles," and "World Spins Madly On."
STRUCTURE
Many of the Weepies songs are in the simple song form:
Verse / Verse / Bridge /Verse
They don't use big, attention-grabbing choruses. Instead, there's a simple but emotionally effective refrain line at the end of each verse. Sometimes that line is repeated in each verse, other times it's just a single line. The end of the song usually has a "tag" a section where the refrain is repeated several times with some small variations.
These songs are short by today's 4-minute radio hit standards. Many of them are around 2:30 (Shortcut #27). Try writing a song of your own that uses this structure. Be sure to use a strong, memorable refrain line at the end of each verse.
THEMES & TITLES
The Weepies' songs all deal with shared, common experiences: Growing up. Overcoming obstacles. Yearning for love. Making a relationship work. This is very important in the film & TV market because these are the themes that the majority of TV shows (and films) deal with. The challenge is to avoid taking a predictable, familiar approach to these themes. Listen to The Weepies' songs to hear how they get around the problem. It may be a twist on a phrase ("How You Survived the War") or an intriguing title line ("They're In Love. Where Am I?"). Or they might try an unusual way of looking at something; instead of simply saying "I'll be there for you" - a phrase that's been used a lot - they write "I'm gonna add my effort to you." ("Add My Effort") Look for new ways to convey familiar, universal themes in your own songs to strengthen their potential for film and TV use (Shortcut #48).
Also important for film and TV pitches: Be sure your title puts across the content of your song. For example, The Weepies' "They're in Love. Where Am I?" suggests the bittersweet yearning of loneliness. "Can't Go Back Now" could probably be used in any scene in which decisions have been made and there's no turning back. These titles give a music supervisor a fairly clear idea of what the song is about and the type of scene in which it could be used. The song itself fulfills the emotional promise of the title, making it both easy to find and use when a music supervisor has a tight deadline... and they always do! (Read Shortcut #46 for more on this idea.)
MELODY
There are tricks to writing an easy-on-the-ear, catchy melody that doesn't sound overly predictable and familiar. The Weepies' songs provide great examples. For instance, lines that go on longer than listeners expect provide forward momentum, drawing listeners in; the opening lines of "Can't Go Back Now" do exactly that. The refrain lines emphasize unusual beats. "Walk on, walk on" begins on Beat 4. The title line "Can't go back now" begins on Beat 3; this is another good way to spice up a simple melody. Try playing and singing some of the Weepies' songs to get a feel for this simple yet catchy melody style.
LYRICS
The lyrics in these songs are an effective mix of conversational language, relaxed rhymes, and poetic images. Nothing ever feels forced or unnatural. In "Lighting Candles," for instance, the direct, emotionally-revealing opening line ("Trying not to hope too hard for what I want") draws listeners in, gradually leading them toward more abstract, feeling/tone lines later in the song, like "Love's a train to city lights / Where someone knows you." (A great description of an emotion!) Inviting the listener into the song with vulnerable, direct statements creates a sense of trust. The listener is likely to remain open to the more poetic, less transparent lines later in the song.
There's a childlike, whimsical tone to much of what The Weepies write, but the underlying emotions are serious. Work on developing your own "lyric voice" as you move forward with your writing. How do you feel comfortable expressing emotion and experiences? What sets your style apart from others?
DO IT NOW!
Listen to songs by the Weepies. Notice the common, shared situations in the themes, the simple production with featured vocals, (Shortcut #75), the catchy, easy-going melodies and identifiable lyric voice. Play and sing a few of their songs. Write a song of your own in this style and record a simple guitar/vocal or piano/vocal demo that puts the emotion across.
Copyright 2011 Robin Frederick
"GRENADE" - RECORDED BY BRUNO MARS
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
STRUCTURE
A perfect example of the VERSE / PRE-CHORUS / CHORUS song form with a bridge after the second chorus.
• Vrs / Pre-Cho / Cho
• Vrs / Pre-Cho / Cho
• Bridge / Cho (with a repeated last line and a "button" ending)
TRANSITIONS: Ever have trouble finding a new way to get from your verse or pre-chorus to your chorus? It seems like we write the same transitional chords and melodies over and over. This song can give you some new techniques to try!
=> Transition 1. On the final line Verse 1 ("Why were they open?"...), this song uses a very familiar retro chord progression and melody but adds a rhythmical twist to the melody -- a pause followed by a very short phrase. It grabs attention and sets up the pre-chorus.
=> Transition 2. The end of the pre-chorus ("'Cause what you don't understand is..."), again uses a familiar chord turnaround and melody but creates a lot of forward momentum by running straight into the chorus with no hesitation, no pause.
=> Transition 3: The final line of the chorus ends early. We expect him to finish the phrase "But you won't do the same..." with the words "for me." But he doesn't go there. The line is left hanging, surprising listeners once again, before falling into the set up for Verse 2.
These are easy tricks you can try with your transitions. For more, read Shortcut #32.
MELODY
VERSE: The verse melody opens with a phrase that keeps going and going and going! ("Easy come, easy go...But you never give") Try singing that line yourself -- it takes a lot of breath to get through it! This mind of line pulls listeners deep into the first verse while the lyric sets up the situation between the singer and "You." This is a great way to get your listener involved in your song before they even realize it.
Second half of the verse melody seems like it will just be a repeat of the first long line but it fakes us out at the end. "Fake outs" -- setting the listener up to expect one thing, then doing another -- are an essential part of a compelling, contemporary Pop melody (Shortcut #94).
CHORUS: Notice how each chorus melody line starts in the middle of a bar so that the important word (the rhyming word, the vivid image) lands on the strongest beat of the bar, Beat 1 ("gre-NADE" "BLADE" "TRAIN"). There's plenty of repetition here, too. The first four lines of the chorus are essentially the same with just a slight variation on lines 3 and 4.
Then, something unexpected happens, On line 5 ("I would go through all of this pain...") the melody and chords shift from today's repetitive style to a more classic R&B style. (You can just hear just hear Smokey Robinson singin' this!) The progress stops being a repeated and instead the chords begin to follow the melody line. This is one of the big differences between the contemporary music style of Pop/R&B and the Classic style of the great Motown hits. For more on this, check out Shortcut #108.
LYRICS
IMAGES: This lyric is all about three extraordinary images and I'm sure you know what they are:
"I'd catch a grenade for ya"
"Throw my hand on a blade for ya"
"I'd jump in front of a train for ya"
These vivid, physical, over-the-top images are both a throwback to the Classic R&B style ("Ain't no mountain high enough...") and today's extremely emotional Singer-Songwriter style. They certainly communicate the singer's feelings in a way that listeners can understand and experience. Some listeners have told me they find these images too graphic. This is a choice that's up to you as a songwriter. Choose the images that you're comfortable with. The technique itself (emotions expressed in vivid, physical terms) is one that you definitely want to explore (Shortcut #57 & #58).
STAND-ALONE CHORUS: The chorus lyric clearly sums up the heart and soul of the entire song. The singer would do anything but "you" won't. The verses take us deeper into the singer's thoughts and attitudes as he struggles to deal with his emotions but you don't need them to understand the chorus.
This is the type of song that can work well with a film or TV scene. The situation is fairly common and the big chorus and button ending offer a peak emotional moment for the end of a scene, where most songs are used.
DO IT NOW!
Try reworking a song you've written using one or more of the transition techniques between sections listed above OR write a chorus that expresses a single emotion in vivid, physical images. Good luck!
Copyright 2011 Robin Frederick
"KING OF ANYTHING" - RECORDED BY SARA BAREILLES
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
STRUCTURE
This song has a bit of an unusual structure. Each verse feels like a double verse with plenty of repetition of the melody as the lyrics change. Verse 1 is followed by a pre-chorus ("I hate to break it to you..."), then a chorus ("Who cares if you disagree..."). However, the song never returns to the pre-chorus. Instead, the second verse goes directly to Chorus 2, followed by a bridge, then back for a couple repeats of the chorus to end the song. Possibly the second pre-chorus was cut to increase the momentum of the song.
MELODY
There's a variety of line lengths in the verse - long phrases mixed with short ones - and plenty of contrast between choppy and smooth lines, especially when the melody moves into the pre-chorus and the bridge. The chorus has a surprising interval jump up on the first word ("Who...") which grabs attention. Try that in one of your own songs! The phrases begin on different beats throughout the entire song giving it an unpredictable feel and a very conversational flow - this is the melody of speech... exaggerated! If you're interested in giving your melodies a contemporary twist, try learning to play and sing this song. It will help you embed many of the techniques used by today's most successful singer-songwriters! (Shortcuts 76, 89, 90, and 93 can help you write a melody like this.)
LYRICS
"King of Anything" is a title that has plenty of appeal. The complete title/hook line - "Who died and made you king of anything" - has attitude and energy while still sounding natural and conversational. It's just the kind of thing you'd say to someone who always seems to know what's best for you! And that's exactly the context in which it's used in this song. The lyric encapsulates a peak moment, when the singer finally says what she really thinks. (One of the great advantages of being a songwriter - we always get the last word!) The situation and the singer's personality come shining through in a lyric that's part sarcasm, part humor, part anger.
The lyric is well crafted, with lots of energetic language; it's filled with both everyday expressions as well as wonderful phrase twists like "ride off into your delusional sunset." It mixes poetic phrases and imagery with direct statements, maintaining interest while ensuring that listeners always know what's happening (Shortcut 60).
Film/TV note: In this song, the chorus lyric can stand alone as a complete emotional statement. That's a technique that works well in the film and TV market where the chorus is often featured at the end of a scene. The verse lyric may be buried under dialogue but if the chorus stands alone, that's all the audience will need in order to feel the impact of the song (Film/TV Shortcut 46 and 56).
DO IT NOW!
This is another one of those songs with a simple, repetitive chord progression that works because the melody relates to the chords in unusual and surprising ways. Try learning this song, then use a simple, generic chord progression - such as C | G | Am | F | G - to write a syncopated melody and lyric that addresses "you." Tell "you" what's on your mind and have some fun with the language!
Copyright 2010 Robin Frederick
"SMILE" - RECORDED BY UNCLE KRACKER
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the Internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
STRUCTURE
Here's yet another excellent example of the VERSE / CHORUS / VERSE / CHORUS / BRIDGE / CHORUS hit song structure with a catchy, emotionally uplifting chorus, peak moment in the bridge, and verses that lay out the situation. Don't shy away from this structure in songs of your own and don't worry that you'll end up sounding like someone else if you use it. There are a million ways to make it your own. In this case, Verse 2 is shorter than Verse 1, cutting off the repeated melody at the beginning of the verse. The second chorus leads right into a fun, Beatles-style bridge with no pause at all and the bridge releases into a final chorus with a drop in the production that adds plenty of attention-grabbing contrast. (Use the Layout Sheet for this song form in Shortcut #29.)
MELODY
And speaking of contrast!!! How about that melody! The verse is in a low note range, building just a little toward the end, the releasing into the opening notes of the chorus with a big jump up in note range. It stays right there until he's ready to let you come back down to earth on the payoff line "Oh, you make me smile." A great roller-coaster ride of a melody.
The verse sounds pretty simple and straightforward but look at the variety of line lengths. It starts with a short line, then a longer line, and a third that keeps going and going. Then he fakes us out by starting the pattern over again but going somewhere else, somewhere that will lead the us right to the big, repetitive chorus melody!
The first chorus kicks in at :40 seconds - nice and early! There's plenty of catchy, memorable repetition in the melody while the lyrics change rapidly over it. The melody emphasizes Beat 1 and Beat 3 creating a hypnotic, rocking feel that's irresistible. This melody is well organized with a lot of easy-to-remember patterns in it. And that's a good thing because it has a very complex, wordy lyric. If the melody were complicated, listeners would quickly get confused and lose interest. This is where repetition can be a useful ally.
LYRICS
The lyric starts with a simple statement: "You're better than the rest" and the rest of the lyric sets out to prove it! It's a cascade of wonderful images that make listeners feel what the singer feels in a refreshing way. Lines like "cooler than the flip-side of my pillow" involve the senses and say something universal in an original way (Shortcuts #59 and #60). The list of things the singer does because of her is fresh and funny: "You make me smile like the sun, fall outta bed" and "Spin like a record, crazy on a Sunday night." it's a wonderful way to take an abstract feeling and make it real and concrete, communicate it so listeners feel it, too. That's exactly what good songs (and hit songs) do!
DO IT NOW!
Learn to play and sing this song. Notice where the melodic phrases start in the verse and where the emphasized notes are in the chorus. Try writing an upbeat song that expresses a sense of fun, joy, and love as this one does.
Copyright 2010 Robin Frederick
"HANDS TIED" - RECORDED BY TONI BRAXTON
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
Here's a perfect example of the VERSE / CHORUS / VERSE / CHORUS / BRIDGE / CHORUS hit song structure! The repetitive verse builds rapidly to a HUGE chorus with tons of catchy hooks and a wonderful payoff line at the end that keeps going and going and going... only to fall right into the start of the second verse. Try that trick in a song of your own: extend the last line (the payoff line) with repetition or by stretching out the words until it leads right into the next section (Shortcut #32).
The bridge (at 2:25) is working well enough but I was wondering why it didn't offer more of a peak moment... until the final chorus came rushing in with the kind of beautiful, soaring note (at 3:02) that can give you chills.
MELODY
The verse opens with three lines that are basically just repeats made interesting by the rhythm of the words. These are followed by a resolving line ("you can't be serious"). This is followed by three repeated lines that have the same melodic rhythm but are higher in pitch, starting to build tension very early on in the song. You could call this section a pre-chorus but it seems to me to come in a little early, so I'm treating it as part of the verse. There's no hard and fast rule about what to call things. If you want to call it a pre-chorus, be my guest!
The chorus itself is massive. It's eight lines long and filled with catchy, singable, easy-to-remember lines. But wait! Just try singing along with this thing... it's REALLY hard! Why? Because the lines begin earlier than we expect, don't pause where we expect, and are longer than we expect! In other words, while the melody itself sounds familiar, the way it relates to the underlying beat is totally unusual! This is the GREAT TRICK of writing memorable melodies in today's R&B genre (Shortcut #91 & #92). Learn to sing this chorus melody and you'll be taking a master class in R&B hit songwriting for an artist of Toni Braxton's stature.
Notice how much repetition there is in this melody; it's very well organized which helps to keep listeners feeling like they know where they are even as the melody nearly obliterates the familiar anchor that is the first beat of the bar. (Where IS beat 1?)
LYRICS
Let's start with that title: "Hands Tied." Unusual. A strong image. Physical. Immediately it makes you ask: What's this song going to be about? The lyric absolutely has to answer that question and it does! (Shortcut #57). It's a twist on a cliche that gives it a fresh approach, a sensual undertone, and a sense of playfulness, too. Remember, it's alright to use a cliche if you make the listener hear or see it in a new way (Shortcut #67).
Take a look at the tight triple rhymes in the verse, rhymes like "had / intact / that." They're fresh, they occur rapidly one right after the other, and yet the lyric never loses it's conversational, believable tone.
DO IT NOW!
To write for the R&B genre, you need to be able to play with melodic rhythm as this song does. Learn to sing this chorus and sing along with the record. Keep the beat by clapping or tapping your foot while you sing. If you really want to embed this style, learn the chords and play it while singing. Try writing your own lyrics to the chorus melody just to see how it sounds.
The Pop genre has been incorporating more and more of this kind of rhythm/ melody interplay (Check out Kris Allen's "Live Like We're Dying") and even Rock is catching the fever, so it doesn't hurt to get a feel for it if you write in either of those genres.
Copyright 2010 Robin Frederick
"THE HOUSE THAT BUILT ME" - RECORDED BY MIRANDA LAMBERT
Buy this song at iTunes.
Lyrics are available on the internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
THEME
This song explores an emotion we've all felt: a yearning to go back to the place where we grew up, to reconnect with the sense of security or simpler times we once knew, especially when our lives are troubled. There's tremendous appeal in this theme and it's handled well here. We're right there with the singer as she knocks on the door, talks to the people who live in the house, and describes the things that happened there as she grew up, all the while hinting at the troubles that have driven her back home to try to heal.
STRUCTURE
While it's possible to look at this as a VERSE / CHORUS / VERSE / CHORUS / BRIDGE / CHORUS form, it doesn't sound like that to my ear. What might be called the chorus ("I thought if I could touch this place...") feels like a continuation of the verse. Although the melody jumps up to a higher note range, as many choruses do, it doesn't really release the emotions. Instead it seems to create an emotional peak of greater urgency that gradually works its way back down to a long slow release in the final lines ("Won't take nothing but a memory / from the house that built me.") In fact, it reminds me of Kenny Chesney's hit "Better as a Memory." The song form is VERSE / VERSE / BRIDGE /VERSE (Shortcut #24). A big #1 chartbuster in this song form can only happen in the Country market. I'm glad they're still around!
Listen to this song and notice how the beginning of the chorus doesn't have the catchy, hook-driven release that characterizes most big hits, it just seems to peak and then fall away.
LYRICS
This is a well-crafted Country lyric that walks a fine line between cliche and revealing honesty. It starts out with just the sort of thing we all say: "I know they say you can't go home again ..." and the rest of the song fills in the kind of history that gives a childhood home that dreamlike glow in memory. Even if we didn't grow up in a home quite this homey, we wish we had! That's the deep well of emotion these songwriters have tapped into.
Notice the conversational tone of voice. Never for a minute are we reminded that Lambert is singing someone else's carefully crafted lines. The rhymes are simple but, by using a casual approach to rhyming (feel it / healing), they don't draw undue attention to the rhyme scheme (Shortcut #64).
It's interesting that the singer doesn't tell us exactly what the "brokenness inside me" is that she needs to heal. The bridge offers the insight: "I forgot who I am" but still doesn't really answer the question. It allows the song to apply to many situations but left me feeling just a little unsatisfied. The bridge could have pushed deeper for a Country hit song.
MELODY
The verse circles around just a few notes, adding to the impact of the sudden jump up in note range on "I thought if I could touch...". The melody emphasizes the line "I thought that maybe I could find myself" by stretching out the words "find myself" which are at the heart of the singer's need. After that the melody settles down to a long three-line resolve that feels both wistful and resigned. Notice how the rising and falling arc of the melody underscores the singer's feelings, rising in intensity and then backing away.
DO IT NOW!
The film and TV market has trouble using Country songs. The lyrics are often too specific. But I'll bet this one would work well in a number of scenes that have to do with returning home. If you write in the Country genre, choose a theme that has universal appeal, as this one does. For film and television uses, try to keep your lyric general enough that the song could be used in a variety of scenes. This song form, with it's rising and falling arc of melody, also appeals to the film and TV market.
Copyright 2010 Robin Frederick
"WHY DON'T WE JUST DANCE" - RECORDED BY JOSH TURNER
Buy this song at iTunes
.
Lyrics are available on the internet.
Shortcut # refers to my book "Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting."
RHYTHMIC FEEL
I want to start this song analysis with the underlying rhythmic groove of this song. It's a shuffle. (Count 1-and-uh, 2-and-uh, 3-and-uh, 4-and-uh.) This is an old-fashioned groove you just don't hear in today's hit songs. Mid-tempo shuffles have a laid back, down-and-dirty feel. The lyric says, "Hey, let's just dance" and, with this beat, you get the idea that the dancing is probably on the sexy side.
Grooves are essentially physical things; they "speak" to the body. Try dancing along with this track and feel how it makes your body move. This is an important aspect of the song that we're not consciously aware of but makes a big difference in how we experience it.
It's a great idea to write your songs to a groove. Try playing a rhythmic feel on guitar or playing a rhythm loop while you write your song to keep the physical feel with you.
STRUCTURE
This is a very interesting structure and you wouldn't hear it in a hit song in any genre but Country. There's clearly a pattern but the sections are functioning a little differently than normal. The song opens with two verses, each one ending with the title line. That sets this song up to be a Verse / Verse / Bridge / Verse song. At the end of the second verse, though, the melody goes straight into a little four-line section that ends with the title line again. It feels like a tag that extends the second verse than a separate bridge section.
This is followed by another verse with the tag, then an instrumental section and finally the last half of a verse. I don't know what to call this structure but it's clear where the sections begin and end and there's enough repetition and variation to keep listeners anchored in the song and still interested. That's what structure is all about. It's not a rule, it's a tool!
LYRICS
The lyric supports the sweet and sexy shuffle feel. It's never overt but paints a picture of two people enjoying each other and a little private time. Notice how the lyric paints a picture of where these people are: There's a TV, a couch, a small living room. You get the idea that they may not have much money but they've got a lot of love for each other (Shortcut #57).
The rhymes are so relaxed they're almost non-existent in some places (off/on, much/couch); in other places the rhymes bounce just enough to add a touch of fun ("two left feet 'n' / our two hearts beatin'"). This song has a very believable, conversational tone, letting the rhymes happen naturally (Shortcut #64).
MELODY
The melody has a good mix of line lengths. The first two lines are long phrases ("Baby, why don't we just..." and "315 channels..."), followed by a series of short phrases that run together ("Well, it might be me..." through "...gone crazy.") This pattern is one that listeners love to hear and it defines the verses clearly (Shortcut #78).
LYRIC AND MELODY TOGETHER
Here's where this song takes an interesting turn. With the old-fashioned shuffle feel in the track and a basic bluesy chord progression, the songwriters needed to do something to give the song a modern twist. Notice how the words of the lyric are emphasized in odd places depending on where they fall in the melody. In the second line of the song, for example, the phrase "315 channels" is delivered in a way that doesn't sound the same as it would when spoken. This little phrase grabs attention then quickly settles back into a more natural speaking style for the rest of the line. Something similar happens on the word "crazy" - the second syllable receives much more emphasis than it normally would.
These little shifts in emphasis give what would otherwise be a familiar sounding, traditional shuffle blues enough of a twist to draw today's listeners in and keep them interested. If you want to try something like this, start playing around with your lyric lines, fitting them to your melody in different ways. Add a word or drop one out, shift where the rest of the words fall in the melody. See what happens when you sing it. Keep what you like and throw out what you don't. You don't want to overdo it in the Country genre, though. A little of this goes a long way.
DO IT NOW!
Write or play a traditional 12-bar blues song. Play with the way the lyric fits the melody by adding or dropping a a word, extending a line, and varying the phrase lengths.
Copyright 2010 Robin Frederick
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