 |
SONGU SEMINAR TRANSCRIPT: PITCHING SONGS
© 2004 Craig Bickhardt Permission must be obtained before quoting, copying, or disseminating any part of this document. |
TOM S: "I draw from every source I can, Lyrically How can I make the Good, Better and Better to the Best?"
CB: "Some people have a high pain threshold, Tom. They are the ones who can dig into a lyric 6, 7, 10 times if necessary. Other writers need to get it done quickly while they're still hot on the idea. If you're ADD, work on three lyrics at once, skip back and forth between them every twenty minutes. Be uncompromising. Be willing to tear your lyrics apart and turn them inside out. Strive for absolutely true statements. Settle for nothing. It sometimes takes me weeks to get a lyric tight. Making the Better into the Best is really beyond the craft. Great songs are gifts, as clichéd as that sounds. You can work forever on a lyric idea and never make it great. In my experience the greatness actually comes built into the idea when the inspiration takes hold. I usually still have to bust my ass on it, but sometimes they come out very quickly. You have to be patient and alert for great ideas."
GEOFF K.: "What do you mean by absolutely true statements Craig?"
CB: "Weigh them against the reality of your own experiences. Say things people really feel."
SONGU: "In other words be honest with your writing?"
CB: "As honest as you're able."
GIL: "What do you mean tight lyric?"
CB: "A lyric that when I read through it I don't stop and say wait what does that mean. It flows seamlessly without distractions"
TASHA P:"When you write do you have a particular genre in mind or do certain genres just gravitate to your writing style?"
CB: "I think they phased out my genre in 1974. Now it's coming back, so I've been lapped by fashion and musical styles. I'm currently writing lyrics for a guy who's an edgy young alt rock artist. We just placed a song in the new Showtime TV Drama called Huff. For edgier types of lyrics it's a different thought process, less lineal, more associative leaps, more attitude. When I'm writing for my own CDs I like metaphorical lyrics and symbolism. My newer melodies are more atmospheric, so that dictates the style. Versatility is a good thing. I get easily bored writing the same kinds of songs all the time.
SONGU: "I'm a big fan of versatility too...once you know your craft you can usually apply it to other genres."
CB: "Yes. You'll find that many lyrical or musical ideas already have an optimum genre built into them. If you are a bit of a musicologist, if you research and study, you'll recognize these things."
GEOFF K.: "What is an atmospheric melody?"
CB: "Buy my CD and find out."
CASSANDRA K.: "How did you get your publisher?"
CB: "Remember the movie Shawshank Redemption? When Andy crawled through that 300 yard long sewer pipe full of filth? I think my pipe was a little longer! I wrote a lot of songs with a lot of people. I moved to LA, lost everything in a house fire, moved back east, dragged my butt all over the East Coast in a van doing gigs, opened for Bruce Springsteen, Stephen Stills, and others. Pitched songs, wrote more songs, showcased in New York. Eventually a couple of my songs got recorded and a New York publisher at EMI noticed me. It actually only took about two weeks worth of lucky breaks, but there were ten years of unlucky breaks before that."
SONGU: "10 years to overnight success?"
CB: "Immediately."
GIL: "Was it worth it?"
CB: "Every minute of it."
SONGU: "I think most of our members are aware of this but it's always good to remind people that you have to do this because you love it and can't live without doing it. Any other reason for doing it is not going to be enough to keep you going through that pipe."
RONNIE G.: "Was it a Publisher that approached you or a song plugger?"
CB: "It was a vice-president of EMI."
RONNIE G.: "Awesome."
SCOTT C.: "As a new song writer, what is the industry standard for pitching new songs in terms of full orchestration of music, packaging, lyric sheets, etc., and things of that nature?"
CB: "There are standards of professionalism, but there's a lot of latitude. The word compelling is often used to describe a great demo. Instrumentation and production are one aspect of it, but so is that indefinable je ne sais quoi, the cool factor. I try to make compelling demos, not radio clones. Use enough instrumentation to sketch out the record. Make it sonically interesting, capture the essence of the song. Be creative. I've had cuts from demos where I slapped my knees for percussion. The competition is intense. Your stuff needs to stand out and be different somehow. You need a professional looking pitch package, lyrics and a CD with contact info. My SongU course on pitching might help you."
SONGU: "That's a great course by the way."
CB: "Thanks Danny."
GIL G.: "Does sending my professionally recorded demo tapes with multiple instruments through an attorney give me any better chance to get songs listened to by publishing co's, A&R, etc.?"
CB: "Yes, but you'll pay $300 an hour for that better chance. You can buy some of the people some of the time, but Lawyers can be bought all of the time. That makes them willing helpers, but it drives up the cost of business. If you establish a rapport with a good music attorney, use it to your advantage. Some have clout and good ears, some don't. They won't pitch songs for you, but they might find you a publisher if they see some legal fees coming in on the back end. That means you have to be talented. Look, it really isn't hard to get someone to listen. It's hard to get someone to DO something after they've listened. That completely depends on your talent and your motivation, not on connections. Are you or your songs worth the trouble? As brutal as it sounds, that's the whole ball game."
GIL: "I hear you have to find a fan at a label."
SONGU: "You need a lot of fans, Gil, your publisher plugger etc."
LABHRIUNN D.: "I Lived at the back of beyond, on a farm, 420 people in my village, how is it possible for someone like me to get my tunes heard? I have at least one hundred new tunes. The only way I'm a singer is if you say Bob Dylan is a singer. I can play, but I only have a crummy tape deck to record any demo on. It's impossible, right?"
CB: "Well, first of all I think Dylan is a singer without peer in the folk-rock genre. Secondly, you have the makings of a very cool story song. It's called At The Back Of Beyond. Get to work! There are two aspects to your question: logistical and psychological. Logistically you can pitch on the Internet or hire an independent song plugger to do your dirty work. If you sing your songs with conviction and write in a style that suits your voice you might make compelling demos on your reel to reel." Psychologically, I think you have the potential to become exactly what you believe you are. I'll tell you the truth, If I were a guy from a village of 420 people and sang like Dylan I might have been even more successful. I was somewhat of a Philadelphia street kid when I got to Nashville so they held it against me. Let me add...You have to be resourceful. Think creatively about your goals. Be daring. Stick your neck out. I had no idea what I was doing half the time but I always volunteered for the job when it involved writing."
MOCHA SPICE: "I am 21 and an aspiring Vocal R&B performer and songwriter who does not belong to any songwriter organization at this time in my life. Since i have never had a song played over the radio i do not meet BMI organization requirements yet. My Father (who is not my legal guardian) is apart of BMI and is an established songwriter in Nashville. He has offered to allow me to Co-write for him so i can be apart of BMI and have my songs copyrighted. He has a degree in music business and is so much farther ahead in the politics than me. Due to my lack of knowledge of the music business i am cautious and want to avoid being used for my music in the long scheme of things. My question for Craig Bickhardt is: What are the risks that i would be taking co-writing for him? Could i ever have an individual membership within BMI if taking this risk? For a beginning songwriter is this a opened door Advantage or a dead in road leading to trouble? I know this seems like alot but this is a very crucial thing for me to know."
CB: "It sounds like your concern is for your creative independence. Maybe you need to make your feelings clearer to yourself and to your dad. Strictly in the business sense, there is no down side to breaking into the business this way. His non-guardian status doesn't prohibit a contract if you're 21. Writing for him is only a risk if it inhibits you creatively. If you believe he has your best interests at heart you should be fine. If he’s willing to offer help take it and then help others in turn. Talent is a conduit. You can bring other people into your career who deserve a chance too. You'll be entitled to full individual BMI membership when you get a cut no matter how it comes out. This kind of nepotism happens all the time in the music business. I got my own daughter onto a CD compilation last year. I figure I've paid enough dues for everybody in my family."
SUSIE C.: "Do you have an absolute favorite song that you have written?"
CB: "I always hope it's the next one. If I answer this question all my unloved songs will gang up and kill me in a fit of jealous rage!"
SONGU: "Well, we can't have that now can we"
CB: "Writing is linked so closely to life that it's sometimes hard to separate the two. I tend to love the songs that were written during periods when something meaningful was happening in my life. I have a song I wrote with my closest friend, F. C. Collins, called Brother To The Wind that Tony Rice recorded. F. C. died last year, so that song is like a talisman. I wrote a song that Don Williams recorded called Donald And June that I love because it was written about my twins, Jake and Aislinn, on their first birthday. This Old House is a favorite because so many people have written to me about it, and because it's one of the best songs I've been involved with. A few of my favorites haven't been recorded yet so it's pointless to name them."
ANTIONIO B.: "When you have finished recording a song (if not using a publisher) how do you get the stuff heard?"
CB: "If it's something I love, I perform it as much as possible. I give copies to my industry friends. I have a couple of Independent songpluggers who pitch my best material. If I've co-written the song, I depend somewhat on my collaborator and his or her publisher to pitch it. I stack up IOU's as much as possible. When I can't get somebody to listen I pull out the IOU and say; hey, it's pay day. People just get tired of music sometimes, that's all. You have to remind them why they like you. I'm trying to find more creative outlets these days. I'm working on a project that involves prose and songs together. I use my website to pitch mp3s to industry people sometimes. I also use traditional methods with A&R meetings, but they have gotten depressing due to the downturn."
PATPAL: "Hi. I just wanted to say hi to everyone and ask Craig what do you write first lyrics or music? Or in other words what is your first inspiration music or words?"
CB: "It happens both ways. Neither way is easier."
MANDODAVE: "where or how do you find your inspiration to start a song?"
CB: "I'm usually moved by something I feel. It can be a melody that gives me chills or a title or concept that seems full of possibilities."
GIL: "I'd like to come to Nashville and meet the good folks at SongU If that's okay what would I do the rest of the time to pitch songs? Where would I go? What would you do on your first trip?"
CB: "If I were you I’d begin with ASCAP BMI writer Reps. I’d go to places where songwriters performed and try to get a few minutes of their time. I’d probably be using my songs as calling cards for better co-writing opportunities."
TRUDY: "Craig how you STAY inspired? Once you've started a song how do you stay on track to finish it? Also how do you get out of a slump if you are feeling UNinspired?"
CB: "You have to be clever about it. There are times in the natural course of things that you will feel uninspired. Don't be defeated by that just go with it and be patient. The inspiration will return. To get out of a slump try something you haven't tried before; a new genre poetry or prose. Just write."
DEE: "Craig on my few trips to nashtown ive heard that if you write what you hear now on the radio you are behind the times?"
CB: "At least nine months. That's why you have to follow your own Muse."
SONGU: "I was hoping you'd say that. If you imitate what you hear you'll just be an imitator..."
DEE: "yeah i agree aint nothin like going with whats inside."
CB: "You have to turn everything off when it's time to write and go where the song wants to go."
MELISSA: "Would you talk about a process of taking a REALLY sad situation and creating a song?"
CB: "Yes. First don't try to make it have a happy ending. Commiseration is a powerful healing agent. My song Where I Used To Have A Heart had not a ray of hope in it, but Martina tells me people come up to her and thank her every time she sings it on stage."
MELISSA: "Commiseration amongst whom?"
CB: "You and the listener. He or she feels less alone."
KENNY: "How do you keep your individual voice" in Nashville if it's always about co-writing and everyone's going to the same songwriting clubs and workshops and co-writing with everybody. It just all seems so incestuous!"
CB: "Very difficult...Go to my website and read the excerpts from my songwriters journal dating back twenty years. It has lots of material on that subject."
RONNIE: "Read it."
SONGU: "great stuff there."
CB: "Thanks."
BRIAN P.: "Do you write from the heart on every song or do you try to write songs that you think might become"hits"...in other words, does the commercial needs of the market change the way you write songs?"
CB: "If I tried to write songs I thought were hits I'd be selling shoes by now. None of my successful songs were written for any reason other than me thinking I was writing something I couldn't wait to get onstage and sing for people. Writing from the heart and soul means literally loving what you're doing. Sometimes a fun little groove wants a fun little lyric but you still have to get down into that groove to the point where you absolutely love what you're doing, where you think it's a totally cool idea. You can't fake it. A great song is the final goal, and a great song is usually a great CD cut so I don't differentiate at all. I never write anything with the attitude that it's just a piece of crap for the radio. You'll get nowhere that way. If you hate what's on the radio, just write better songs. The commercial market changes nothing for me. I don't care what's going on. I only care about what I'm loving today. I have dozens of songs that were written while some completely contrary musical trend was happening. In one case the song was recorded ten years later. Write your best songs."
SONGU: "Our screeners tell us that one of the biggest reasons their songs don't get forward for a Spin N' Pitch is because they sound like they're trying to write a hit rather than just writing a good song."
CB: "Yes!"
NOBLEF C: "If "The Dance" had been written in a log cabin in the mountains and never heard by more than two people, would it still be a great song? Why? Who decides what a great song is? What do they base that upon? Are the criteria skewed toward popular appeal? Is it possible to judge a song (other than in your Sunday School Class) without using SOME A&R criteria? I know, I know, those are more than one question, but the subject is facinating and central to why we are out here writing songs. I am NOT some curmudgeon out to spoil everyone's fun. I consider myself a serious songwriter, and I have had some commercial success, but I am really seeking a deeper understanding of the creative process for myself and others. I want Me and others to be honestly content when we hear The Muse and respond - whether we are successful in sharing it or not. And I want to know WHY that's OK."
CB: "Well, we should suck up to our Muse because that's the part we can control, isn't it? The rest is a crap shoot. The creative process is sacred. There's a Native American saying: Honor the Sacred. Whether people ignore us or throw money at us, we should do this out of a love for the gift. We'll lose the gift otherwise. Greatness and commercial success are two different things. There are absolutes in both, and some common ground between them. The Dance, in fact, was a great song when only a few of us in Nashville had heard it. The validation of success didn't change the intrinsic nature of the song. Unless you train yourself to recognize greatness you'll rely too much on the unqualified opinions of the masses, who DICTATE what the A&R people think. Their criteria are valid only as an assessment of popular trends, not quality, and they are not visionary. Recognizing and pursuing your best is what this is all about. If you have skills that allow you to write commercially successful songs, great. If not, you can't shake hands with the devil and change that. Be at peace with who you are."
GIL G.: "What advantage is there to working with a melody writer from a Nashville company like say (witheld)?"
CB: "I'm not familiar with the specifics of (their) deals, so I'll say this: there are no shortcuts to success. There are rip-off services that promise all kinds of impossible things. If you were an artist under pressure to find a number one song where would you start looking? Songwriting has to be done legitimately. There are some advantages to allowing certain companies and individuals to participate in the process of writing and publishing your songs. But be careful you don't do this at the expense of your creative freedom and your ability to write a great song. Don't relinquish total control of the outcome of your work. Don't consign yourself to a song factory or a menial labor mentality. Don't whore into any project for money, because you can't buy back your integrity."
GIL G.: "Can you talk more about writing by using your feeling in a song verses just trying to write words that sound good together and follow whatever story your telling."
CB: "Use a kind of method acting approach. Get in touch with the feeling by stimulating it from recalled experience. Follow that feeling as you fool around with the melody. Let the melody ride the emotion, let it peak and dip with the gradation of the feeling. Do the same with words. Find the center of the feeling, don't think from your head, feel from inside."
CARLOS C.: "I struggle with getting passed an original melody and/or the song structure even when I know something is not right. So my question is: how do you wipe the slate clean" or put an original idea aside when working on your re-writes?"
CB: "Sleep on it. Sleep erases short term memory. It gives you new perspective."
DEE: "Craig, do you think a good song recorded with just a good guitar /vocal can still get a listen to by publishers in Nashville?"
CB: "Dee yes absolutely. Many would prefer to hear it that way."
MILLIE: "What if your voice is so so...should you get a good vacalist to demo your songs before sending them to Nashville?"
CB: "I'd have to hear you sing to know for sure. So-so isn't very good. You might want to try another singer just to see how YOU feel about the interpretation."
KENNY: "Do you ever write alone?"
CB: "I write alone all the time. I prefer it now that I'm more confident about what I know."
GEOFF: "Craig what was the most SURPRISING lesson you had to learn before you started getting cuts?"
CB: "That I was wrong most of the time."
GEOFF: "Yikes"
CB: "You'll maybe write an handful of hits if you write 800 songs."
ItzScott13: "In a pitch package is it too much" to include a treatment for a video . . . often times when I'm writing I "see" the song as much as I hear it so does it do any good to try to create a visual image of the song in the listener's mind with a treatment for a video?"
CB: "Way too much. Nobody cares."
ItzScott13: "Gotcha. Thanks!"
GIL: "I have never written with anyone else. I love early morning writing cup of coffee etc....Does looking for co writing in Nashville as much about contacts as anything....Although i am very open to working with professionals."
CB: "Yes, there's politics involved in the beginning. You need a team to become successful...a team of people you write with and people who pitch and help you. Use the morning time to create ideas and fragments you can share with your co-writers."
CAL: "Is shorter better than lengthy for a song title?"
CB: "Makes no difference. It should be intreguing."
MANDODAVE: "How did you go from feeling wrong about your writing to feeling right?"
CB: "I'm still wrong most of the time. I have learned what I do best. I've eliminated some needless experimentation with collaborators who didn't work out. I'm older and more resourceful...I know what I know. I write more for my Muse now."
SONGU: "I'd like to thank Craig for a fabulous and insightful chat."
GIL: "This was great....Thanks CraigB"
MELANIE: "yes thank you very much!
TRUDY: "Thanks for your time and great advice Craig"
Makin2nz: "Craig, appreciate your giving back"
BAN: "Thanks Craig! Very inspiring in-depth and insightful!"
CB: "Thank you everyone!"
Copyright © by Craig Bickhardt and SongU. All Rights Reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part in any form or medium without express written permission of SongU LLC is prohibited.
SongU.com
top
