#music, #songwriting

Songwriting with Warts and All.

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Songwriting is a strange pastime. I tend to have melodies pop into my head, pick up the iPad to access the MOTIV audio app and either sing very badly into the iPad microphone to capture the melody. Or pick up the guitar and play strumming enquiries to see if a song can develop. I can easily forget the little nuances of what develops at times. So if they are there and present in even the worst form, warts and crashed notes do not bother me. I know the results will change as progression of an idea gathers pace. Hopefully to see better days down the line.

I have been watching The Beatles ‘Get Back’ film on Disney (6 hours length made in 3 two hour blocks). Seen it three times now. Lots of insights in how they were rushing to get their ‘Let it Be’ album out. It is a fascinating watch. Inspirational too. I also have The three double CD releases of The Beatles anthology albums too. Their songs stripped down to basics when being written. Also listen to YouTube ‘Bass and Drums only’ recordings of their albums.

I like to exchange the whole process of how songwriting works for myself to others. Also, not bothered in presenting the ugly process at times. I am a Bass player with a small amount of skill. I am also pretty basic on the acoustic guitar too. I can provide rhythmic skills to how I play though. That helps enormously. I play the guitars as I would play the djembe drum. Patterns develop of a ‘beat’ nature. Whatever the recordings outcome when capturing an idea? It doesn’t matter. It is so pleasurable to be able to ‘have a go’ at this interest.

I have a very old cassette recording I found of a song called ‘Judy’. From 1978. Dave, the guitarist, was singing main verse. The XCerts, having just written this over the day, got it down on one of those old four track tape machines. The cassette is really ropy. But it shows how a song comes together over a day when there were three of us involved. Wish I had people around me now. Flying solo is so frustrating at times!

JUDY by the XCerts. A cassette recording found recently.

Also, even though truly basic and rough as houses, I have included below a couple of ‘muck about’s’ of simple strumming for ideas from end of November, last year. They are a nice example of songs that are currently revisited and being changed. I have a new verse tune for ‘Always so Blue’. The ‘And you….Always so Blue’ bit stays the same, but more controlled melodically. I do tend to drop in and use old lyrics at times just to give words to tune ideas. ‘There’s a million with shotguns’ is a very old lyric from the 1970s. They can be nuanced vocally. A word adds a treasure for emotional inclusion. ‘Giving it Time’ came out of the blue here. I’ll keep that. But I haven’t worked on anything more with it yet. When singing La La tunes because of lack of ideas, it become very tedious. They only sound like a thought for an instrument inclusion tune like a saxophone, guitar lead/riff or similar.

‘GIVING IT TIME’ AND OTHER STRUMMED MEANDERINGS.

‘ALWAYS SO BLUE’ IN ITS INFANCY.

A TINY LITTLE IDEA LAST WEEK TO GET AT A BASS RIFF WITH A LITTLE TUNE WHISTLE.

An add to:

You get the picture when you have a song finished and just blister into the song for real and the energy explodes.

SATISFIED.

Afterthought:

Thank the stars for a Bass Guitar and a bunch of self written songs. Ongoing dipping in and out of various lyrics and melodies to get at completion of the new songs.

The rain over the last few months means hunkering down indoors mostly. So songwriting, listening to others’ music and reading books have been essential pastimes.

The weather is changing now hopefully. A bit more sunshine developing in the sky. So suddenly a new adventure can spring from this.

20 thoughts on “Songwriting with Warts and All.”

  1. I’m geeking out on these recordings. I especially love the sweet chord shifts on giving it time. you play so elegantly on this track. it’s brave to share all of these while they’re still forming. please know they are all emotionally wonderful songs.

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    1. Cheers cookie. I don’t know how you yourself find chord structures and sequences. I tend to strum and see what happens in the moment. Maybe it’s limiting in that I don’t really study chords other than the basics. The Bass is a pick up and play to write ideas for tunes in very many cases. Also, slapping a djembe drum beat.

      As I said to Shep, I don’t mind sharing the weird naive beginnings. I suppose it’s having decades of history where I can hear the songs at fruition. In my XCerts and Team 23 days it was a spookily fast situation of writing really for the need of getting out there playing live for gigs. Now? I really need to get the songs recorded this year to get out onto the internet. My guitarist brother Steve and John the drummer are essential for this realisation. We are living 100’s of miles apart though. So no easy physical access to get together regularly.

      You are a fantastic inspiration in what you are achieving in this recording arena cookie. Just getting on with it and producing your lovely work for people to access. So thank you. All the best.

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      1. I hear chords and see colors when I say particular words out loud or even just see the words in my head. often I begin with only the words. that’s where I am now with a batch of new songs.

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      2. Very interesting cookie. I don’t see any colours or images (Aphantasia condition). But I can understand that your colour presence gives your individual songs their resonance. Rather like an aura colour surrounding a person. A ‘one off single word’ of amazing individual nature too can hold a beautiful melody inherent. I like your blog insights into seeing scenarios outdoors and developing your lyrics. I tend to hear rhythms in the world out there. And then produce a tune against them. A domestic washing machine cycle for example. Or train track rhythmic noise.

        I was thinking about telling you of the singer/songwriter/guitarist Richard Hawley. It’s worth a quick YouTube visit cookie. I have all his albums. Beautiful songs. Thanks for sharing your insights cookie. Much appreciated.

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  2. Where to start?👏🏻 👏🏻 Thoroughly enjoy hearing your songs develop. Love your warts (and your all), Gray. Don’t undersell yourself mate except perhaps your whistling, but I love that bass riff and melody. BTW if you need a whistler my son’s available. Also I’m crap at it, but I’m looking more and more like a banjo player – that’s my excuse. Do you know how to compliment a banjo player? Nice tooth. Weather’s turning here, but the other way round. Last month we had 5 1/2 mm of rain (average for March usually 80) and now just over half way for April we’ve had 118 mm (av for April also 80). Good for playing records and blowin’ the misery whistle. Cheers the Harp Hound

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    1. Cheers Shep. Had to laugh re: whistling. I just can’t do it anymore either. I do have a full set of my own teeth too. 😊 I feel that songs are nice to capture in infancy. As said, with warts and all. I don’t care about bum notes. I’m always amazed when the little gentle ramblings I have written over the decades become a more driven rockier song too. The melody is what I want to capture really. If I can sing an idea later, over the ensuing days, and it doesn’t grate on the mind, then I reckon it’ll do.

      When I get to future recording on the hoped for buying of the Apple Mac, I’ll airdrop some tunes and vocals to you that have guitars and drums added. You can maybe spread a bit of faerie dust in the form of a harp on a track or two. How much do session musicians charge nowadays. 😊 Steve, my brother, loves harmonica alongside his guitar. That little Bass riff was an idea for Giving it Time. It sprung in my head when I listened to this upload here a week or so back. Not quite right for the melody yet though.

      Actually, whistling on songs is a great inclusion. I remember Bryan Ferry saying he crossed his fingers when singing live that the whistle to one of his songs wouldn’t dry up. Trying to remember the song as I type! Cheers for your ever welcome support Shep. Priceless.

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      2. Roger Whittaker was the whistling phenomenon wasn’t he. Jealous Guy! That’s the one. Cheers for that. Our old guitarist in Spain has just seen the band Nine below Zero at a local bar. I looked at YouTube to see what they were about and their harp player is phenomenal. I have a strong suspicion you know of this guy. I’ll check out your link here Shep. Cheers.

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  3. I smiled at the words “…exchange the whole process of how songwriting works for myself to others.” I love how open you are to share your process and progress with your songwriting, Gray.
    We don’t have Disney+ currently, but my daughter has it, so when we move in a few days we hope to watch the 6 hours Beatles show. We have watched the movie, Yesterday, many times (fictional though). I have always suspected that bass players and drummers write the best songs because they both lay the foundation of a song (think going back to our tribal beat roots).

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    1. Cheers Sheila. I replied to cookie and Shep with what you have nicely observed. As you are aware yourself, if you have gotten to the end of the journey in releasing songs and can see the final result? The process is a nice insight. Warts and all. You will love the Get Back film Sheila. And YouTube have uploads of the triple Anthologies releases. They are definitely worth a listen. In the book Utopia Avenue, Griff the Bass player is a fantastic songwriter in the story. Gives Bass players hope. 😆 All the best.

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  4. Gray, loved Judy and Satisfied – it will get an audience on its feet, it got me up on mine. The bass riff is promising, I am not into the whistle. but it is your song and it is a development process run with it. The Beatles documentary Jackson made simply blew my perception of their song development process.

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    1. Cheers Danny. Those two old songs were included just to add the songwriting themes process. Satisfied was an opener and did get the audience dancing. Judy never reached live playing. One of those ‘let’s see if this works’ songs. I loved singing that chorus though. Pushed the voice a bit! 😊

      I’m currently scouring the internet for an Apple Mac. The ones that allow home recording for music. M1 or M2. M3 is massively expensive and aimed at Gamers. It is eye watering how much they cost even second hand. 16 Gb minimum and 1 TB SSD needed pushes prices up massively. And laptop or desk top with monitor and keypad additions. Technically things are changing day to day it seems. Once I find one it will be all systems go for recording. These little ditty uploads are part of the story. They will appear again in the future to compare alongside finished songs. Got to have an aim in life Danny.

      The whistle isn’t intended at all. I had the riff in my head and needed to get it down quickly. Good job too. That bass riff works really well with a song called ‘November, the Stereo and You….My Friend’. I’ve been developing it this afternoon.

      Peter Jackson’s version is amazing. I think Disney are releasing the original early film of the roof top gig and the Beatles dynamics around it. It’s supposed to be very negative. Jackson’s film showed that to be not the case. It’s good you can see how those songs progress in a matter of weeks too. They were geniuses. All four of them.

      Thanks for your positivity. All the best Danny.

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    1. Definitely Pascal. I have a few at hand. Written words in pen and ink provide the opportunity to cross out, add rethinks and also doodle little images too. This brings a song to life as much as the tune and lyrics themselves. All the best.

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