At a minimum, most songs these days will use a verse-chorus or verse-refrain structure. Songs might be constructed of verses and nothing else, such as Amanda McBroom’s “The Rose”, made most famous by Bette Midler. Many old 12-bar blues songs are basically a verse and nothing else, though many will use a repeating refrain to […]
If you’ve been writing songs for a while, you’ll know that lyrics change in character as a song progresses. To generalize, you’ll notice the following: VERSE LYRICS: Verse lyrics set the stage, recount details of a story, describe characters, etc. It lays out the narrative, the storyline or general song topic. “Hooks and Riffs: How They […]
When you take a cursory glance at verses and bridges in most pop songs, you see certain similarities: Verse and bridge melodies often display a more wandering quality than a chorus melody. Chorus melodies tend to be rather “hooky” in quality, repeating a concise idea rather than going on a musical journey. Verses and bridges tend to be more elaborate, […]
I’ve just published a new songwriting video today, “5 Reasons to Include a Bridge in a Song’s Design“. It’s based on posts I’ve done in the past on this blog about the bridge section, and looks at five situations that arise in a song that can be dealt with by including a bridge. In truth, […]
One of the most important principles of songwriting (and in fact, the most important part of musical composition whether writing songs or symphonies) is the notion that all elements of a song partner well together. In other words, the melodies, lyrics and chords all support each other, and all work together to reveal and enhance […]
Not all songs use a bridge — that short section that typically follows the second run-through of the chorus. In the earlier days of rock & roll, it was normal for that section (if it existed at all) to be 8 bars in length, hence the alternate term “middle 8.” These days, a bridge need […]
