The Circle of Fifths: Never-Fail Chord Progressions

Get FANTASTIC RESULTS! – Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle and START WRITING GREAT SONGS! __________________ Successful hit songs are a balance of predictable and innovative musical ideas. New hit songs will be largely patterned on what the writers already know works. They tend to be mostly predictable, but at least some aspect of them […]

Good Melodies Usually Come With Chords Implied

It may feel natural to some to consider that once you’ve created a melody that you really like, your job is to set about finding chords to harmonize it. But in reality, most good melodies already imply the chords that make that melody work. Another way of saying this is: good melodic structure strongly hints […]

Creating Good Chord Progressions: See the Big Picture

Your songs missing something? Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle, and get back to writing great songs! _______________________ When you’ve got a melody that you’re wanting to harmonize, the usual way to proceed is to first establish a pulse (i.e., get your foot tapping). For most hit songs (more than 90%), that […]

Good Key Changes that Startle the Listener

Your songs missing something? Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle, and get back to writing great songs! _______________________ If you know Derek and the Dominos’ “Layla”, you know that it contains a key change between the chorus and verse that comes out of left field and surprises the listener. After all, you’d […]

Avoiding the Tonic Chord: A Subtle Energy Builder

Get FANTASTIC RESULTS! – Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle and START WRITING GREAT SONGS! The overall energy map of a successful song is a line that looks like a stock market chart: over time, lots of ups and downs, but hopefully mostly in an upward direction. Music where the energy constantly builds without the […]

The Relationship Between Tempo and Chord Changes

Download “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6-book bundle, and learn to write killer songs! How frequently your chords change in your song is called the harmonic rhythm. In general, there should be a consistency with this throughout each section of a song. Chord progressions help to establish the feel and mood of your song, and […]