so you think you are a songwriter

[Flash Harry]

Arrangement can either breathe life into a song or kill it stone dead. Song writing is only the start of the process.

Good recording and production add to the song too. There are some absolutely dreadful songs out there that are 'successful' in terms of air play, revenue etc..

There's a debate around what is a good song. 

[Jarle]

...if a song moves you, then its a good song. In my eyes, if you write songs - then you are a songwriter. No judgement or scale applies. If it moves one person, then it is a good song. Commercial success is a different matter of course, - and yet most commercial songs these days are written by formula and rote, and have no soul. What a funny world we live in.
B

I agree with this.

Alot of the songs on this site has touched me in different ways, so I'll say there's many good songwriters here.

[bruno]

when i started this thread it was a dig at myself. occasionally i think myself a songwriter    then i hear examples as above and fall back to earth with a bang.

however songs like those give me something to aspire too, tho i don't expect to ever reach those heights. better to aim high and fall short.

You ARE indeed a songwriter, and a bloody good one at that. So there!
B

[bruno]

Arrangement can either breathe life into a song or kill it stone dead. Song writing is only the start of the process.

Good recording and production add to the song too. There are some absolutely dreadful songs out there that are 'successful' in terms of air play, revenue etc..

There's a debate around what is a good song. 

Totally agree. How many times has an lesser known original been re-recorded to massive commercial success by a different band. The basic song remained the same, only the production is different - it didn't suddendly become a great song, it just wasn't presented in the right way, at the right time!
B

[IanR]

Yes, I think that we are getting to the point now - we are all:

• songwriters
• musicians
• singers
• arrangers
• studio designers
• producers
• recording engineers
• mixers
• masterers
• and some of us are samplers
• and some of us are live performers - promoters, roadies, live mix, managers
• etc

Most of us do our songs by ourselves and in a limited DIY situation with fairly basic equipment and in very limited spaces - cupboards, cars, bedrooms, etc.

All of the people in Jim's list of great songwriters would have help and play in great locations.  My bet is that if if some of us (maybe not all of us) had the same level of help in the form of professional expertise, then our songs would sound great - just like theirs do.

cheers,

Ian

[bruno]

Yes, I think that we are getting to the point now - we are all:

• songwriters
• musicians
• singers
• arrangers
• studio designers
• producers
• recording engineers
• mixers
• masterers
• and some of us are samplers
• and some of us are live performers - promoters, roadies, live mix, managers
• etc

Most of us do our songs by ourselves and in a limited DIY situation with fairly basic equipment and in very limited spaces - cupboards, cars, bedrooms, etc.

All of the people in Jim's list of great songwriters would have help and play in great locations.  My bet is that if if some of us (maybe not all of us) had the same level of help in the form of professional expertise, then our songs would sound great - just like theirs do.

cheers,

Ian

Yip - that just about sums it up

[T.C. Elliott]

Some of my favorite songs are from on-line songwriters such as those from here and over at FAWM and the like. I still LOVE the mix of songs I got from FAWM 2008 (just before I found this place.) Every song is awesome. Some in super raw states (even the first time played all the way through for some of them) and some are better produced.

There is a huge difference between a well written song and a well produced song. We are seldom lucky to get both. Songcrafters don't have professional studios and professional musicians and professional budgets. But I'll take this music over most of the crap on the radio any day.

[Oldrottenhead]

this thread inspired a song about my approach https://songcrafters.org/community/index.php?topic=20254.0