What Do You Love About a Good Melody?

Last week I wrote about the similarities between classical and pop music, and what today’s songwriters can learn from the classics. Today I want to look specifically at song melodies, and see to what extent the structure of a pop melody resembles that of a classical work. There is a book that is in great […]

It's Still Rock and Roll to Me

Verse-Bridge-Verse Songs: Getting the Structure Right

The great thing about various possible song designs is that they usually work for any genre. It shouldn’t matter if you’re writing pop, rock, country, folk… the principles that make a formal design (verse-chorus-bridge, for example) work apply to any and all genres. And not just genres… you find them used in practically any era as well. That means that […]

Neil Young

What Makes Music Memorable?

As a songwriter, your hope is usually that once people have heard your song, they want to hear it again. That usually translates into sales, so the more clicks your songs generate, the more potential there is for monetary reward. It’s unlikely that anyone will want to listen to your song again if there’s nothing […]

It’s Magic, Isn’t It?

Your audience can afford to believe that your music is magical. You can’t. ______________ Take your songwriting to a new level of excellence. Buy “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 10-eBook Bundle, written by Gary Ewer. And get an 11th eBook FREE, “Creative Chord Progressions” Time to become the best songwriter you can be! Read more.. ______________ A psychologist could probably […]

Making Your Songs Immediately Appealing

What do you do to make sure your target audience feels compelled to keep listening to your music? ______________  Looking for good songwriting content for your iPad, Kindle, laptop, desktop, or other PDF-reading device? Gary Ewer’s eBook Bundle, “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting”, will show you why good songs are good, and how to apply […]

8 Questions and Answers On Writing Song Hooks

Hooks can be important contributors to good song structure. Here are 8 commonly-asked questions about hooks. As you know, a song hook is any catchy bit that represents the most memorable part of a song. It’s often found in the chorus (“Born in the U.S.A.”), but can also be a song’s intro which then keeps […]