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Section 1—

Songwriting Methods

ABBREVIATIONSRoman numerals I VII

indicate chordrelationships within a key.

m maj minormajor

Song sectionsbr bridge :

c ch codachorus

hk i introhook

pch v versepre-chorus

Most of the chord-sequence examplesare standardized for comparison

intoFamous songs referred to in C or A minor. C major

orthe key of the original recordings A minor are not necessarily in.

What's involved in writing a song?
A song has four basic elements: words (the lyric) are sung to a tune (melody) that is supported by chords (harmony)
and played to a certain combination of beat and tempo (rhythm).

a song = lyric + melody + harmony + rhythm

In different styles of music the balance of importance between these elements will change. In recent dance music the
lyric is often reduced to a line or two, sampled and repeated; melody and harmony are also simplified, but rhythm is
everything. Rap dispenses with melody and significant harmony but emphasises the lyric. MOR music stresses
melody and a non-dissonant harmony but downplays rhythm. Rock and soul stress rhythm but not necessarily at the
expense of the other elements. If you have been writing songs for a while, you may feel stronger on some of the four
elements than others.
Even famous songwriters are often better at certain things than others. Bob Dylan's early music was harmonically
conservative, coming as it did out of the American folk tradition, and his style of singing is hardly conducive to
bringing out the contours of a beautiful melody, yet the attitude of his vocal style and his lyrics revolutionized
popular music.

Where should I start?
There is no set way of writing a song. You do not have to do things in any fixed order. Some writers have a
preference for working in one method, while others find that songs arrive in many different ways. John Lennon liked
to put a lyric sheet on a piano and poke around on the keys, looking for a chord sequence. Paul McCartney has
related how 'Yesterday' – the most covered song of all time – came to him in a dream. If you are lucky, you can
sometimes have an original song come together in your mind, with words, melody, chords and rhythm.
A song can be composed in any of the following ways:
1—
Start with a lyric and then set it to music.
Some people prefer this method because the subject matter may suggest certain things about the mood of the music.
The rhythm of the words can evoke a tune. Some find it easier to have words to sing instead of humming or using
nonsense lyrics when constructing a melody. It's good to keep a book of lyric ideas, even if