Words and Music

I recently wrote an article about collaborating with professional lyricists, and how it can improve your songs and your time management, for the TAXI A&R monthly online magazine. I thought that I might share the article here also. Thank you TAXI ! Link to the actual article on TAXI's website -  Eight Reasons to Collaborate With a Lyricist Article as in TAXI Newsletter:  Eight Reasons to Collaborate With a Lyricist  I recently asked some of my co-writers why they liked working with a lyricist so much. The following eight reasons are a summary of their responses. These aren’t my ideas, they are the reasons that successful TAXI composers and songwriters gave me for preferring to collaborate, rather than write the lyrics themselves. Remember, a good lyricist also understands music, how and why it creates an emotion, how a singer sings different sounds and stresses, as  well  as being able to write words. To collaborate well we need to understand each...

I belong to a wonderful Facebook group called GYAWS - Get Your A$$ Writing Songs. It's just about the most supportive and fun group I belong to, although I have to admit that FAWM comes a close second. Each week the group writes to a theme which has been selected by a group poll.  We don't critique each others work, unless someone asks something specifically.  We encourage each other to actually write and record every week, which is the purpose of the group. GYAWS has it's own SoundCloud account, called GYAWS Music .  Every week, I compile a GYAWS SoundCloud Parade playlist of the songs submitted that week, and that the writers have agreed can go 'public'.  It's an eclectic and interesting playlist each week, with amazingly high standards, considering that these are not finished projects, and often just recorded as a one take into a phone ! So this week I decided to include the playlist in a blog post, as the theme was a favourite subject of mine 'Oc...

When you are working on your lyrics, have you ever wondered why it's so hard to think of a good way to say what you want to say, without it sounding boring or clunky or awkward ? Are you sometimes not happy with the lines you have written, and would like to say the same thing only in a more powerful or unusual way ? I think all songwriters and lyricists come against this from time to time, and as a friend recently asked me for help with some lines he wasn't happy with, I thought that I would share the way that I personally try and overcome this when it happens. It's pretty simple, I brainstorm, with myself, alone, on paper.  Yes I know, I'm old fashioned. How I brainstorm: *   I write the offending line, or pair of lines, at the top of the page. *   I then write every conceivable variation of how I could write the same thing using different words and phrases, that I can think of.  No matter how silly, daft, weird or over the top sounding they may be. ...

A 'Taxi friend', Dave Walton, asked me last year if I'd like to write some lyrics for his daughter's wedding, to be precise the father/daughter dance song for the wedding reception.  Naturally I said yes, as I am ever the romantic and this was a wonderful gesture. The song grew and developed, and we asked Steve Collom to collaborate with us on melody and to sing the song.  Eventually the finished track was used at the wedding - so romantic ! Post wedding, we have tweaked and edited a bit, and are now ready to let the track loose on the world !  It has been purposely written to suit romantic contemporary  film & tv uses, rather than a radio friendly hit song. It's currently still non exclusive, and all licensing inquiries are welcome. Listen to Blanket Of Love on SoundCloud HERE or here...

The following is an article written by Diona Devincenzi , a songwriting acquaintance of mine I met through the A&R company TAXI.  It is taken from her website blog, which can be found HERE.   I wanted to share it as I feel it's not only practical and informative, but well written and inspiring. OPPORTUNITIES IN MUSIC LICENSING Part 1 Five platforms where music can make money PLATFORM #1:  Film & +TV There are five platforms where songwriters can make money with their music. In Part 1 of this series, we’ll explore the first platform:  Film & Television. The following is an excerpt from my e-book,  How To Explode Your Income By Licensing Your Songs .  You can download the complete book  here . Let’s look at some of these opportunities in a little more detail. MAJOR NETWORK TELEVISION These are the dramas, comedies, reality shows, entertainment, sports, news programs, news magazines, daytime soap operas, infomercials ca...

''Accepting the world as imperfect, unfinished, and transient, and then going deeper and celebrating that reality, is something not unlike freedom.'' Author: Richard Powell, author of 'Wabi Sabi Simple: Create beauty. Value imperfection. Live deeply' (2004)

If you are a professional songwriter or musician, you will know that there are far more low periods than high peaks in your career. And it's those long, low valleys that sort the men from the boys, so to speak.  Sorry ladies for the sexist analogy! Today I happened upon the  following article , which talks about this sea-saw effect, and how to hang on and not give up. Navigating the Tough Times as a Songwriter  - an article on a  blog from Educated Songwriter Hope you find it as encouraging as I did.

I wrote this poem, called 'The Outsider' in January 1999, whilst living aboard my boat in West Cork, Ireland. When you live on a boat at sea, people, in general, make almighty assumptions about you - who you were, who you are,  where you came from, you must be weird, you're homeless, you're a dropout, you're totally nuts, and far worse. Others never really know the truth about us, which in my case was that I felt this way  before  I left land to float away.  Living on the sea gave me freedom and taught me to survive, no matter what life threw at me...  and it threw with a vengeance. The Outsider There are worlds of people everywhere, A life that is not mine. I’m swimming through the mud and dirt Of life’s floor Feet heavy Head high Alone. Trees are my conversation, Whispering mass sweet nothings in my ear And shouting out so loud that They are alive. The sky holds me in Keeps me grounded, The pale blue ceiling of my life. The air cleans and freshe...

Music is what feelings sound like... This is why I love to write lyrics for film and tv. I can make the listener feel what I am feeling, or what I want them to feel...  deep down inside themselves where it is real, for a moment, where it brings back a memory or a feeling or a thought, and makes it real again for a minute or two... Well I try !

"You're my love, you light the sky when angels sleep at night You're my light when morning dawns, bringing sun into my dreams You're my life, my love... My first breath in the moonlit pre dawn light" (Copyright @ Amanda J Anderson 2014) What do you do when you have the makings of a chorus you love, but the verses don't want to come out of the closet ? Do you force the door open ? No.  Whenever I try doing that I end up with something that sounds 'constructed', rather than flowing and natural. In the case of the above four lines, which I am very happy with, I have decided to just keep them on the side table until I know the moment is right.  Then the rest will flow as easily.  I hope ! When I say that I am willing to put something aside 'until the moment is right', I may have created an inaccurate image of how I normally write. Most of the time when I am writing, I feel inspired.  I have a very clear process that works, for me, 95...

“The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt”    -  Sylvia Plath. I find the above quote incredibly powerful. And personally life changing. To doubt yourself unduly, is like living in a negative bubble.  You will never have that sharp point of self-confidence that can burst the bubble, letting your true creativity out into the wider world.

Just about the biggest part of my songwriting education has been through TAXI, a Californian A&R company whose attitude towards its clients in simply incredible. Not only do they have extremely useful feedback on all songs submitted and $20 complete song critiques for members, but they have several facilities for non members too - all free.  This includes a well run forum and  the amazing TAXI TV . The forum is extensive and the people using it very friendly, and so willing to help new members and each other. As long as you take part and contribute, you will get as much help as you need or want.  The experienced songwriters and musicians on that forum have helped me in more ways than I can count, and continue to do so. And the icing on the cake....  TAXI TV  , which is amazing !  It's on every Monday night at midnight BST (UK & Ireland), in the USA that's 4pm PDT or 7pm EDT.  Each week there's a different topic, many are client based, wh...

Songwriting is a muscle that needs to be constantly worked in order to stay strong. Quote from the  Educated Songwriter blog So stretch it daily !

If you like extremely sad songs, this one is for you... It's about divorce or a long term relationship breaking up, and that final moment when all the papers are signed and you're walking away, when you realise that this is it, there is nothing else and you are never going to have those good times with the person you loved so much, ever again... But you still know you have to walk away for your own sanity. Or something like that. I initially wrote the lyrics, without Michelle in mind as a composer, for an online songwriting group I belong to which has weekly themes to write and record to.  It's called G-YAWS - Get Your Ass Writing Songs.  Once the words were written, I asked Michelle if she'd like them and she accepted (she also belongs to the group).  She then composed the music and shared her ideas with me the next day. After a slight bit of re-writing, the first master recording was finalised, with the whole process taking only 5 days.   Michelle herself ...

One of the very first musicians I started to collaborate with was the wonderful  Michelle Lockey , from Maryland, USA.  We met in an online songwriting and recording group which originated from a group of Taxi members/friends. A few months ago the weekly theme was 'Creepy Lurker', which created some very unusual songs !  It was for this theme that I wrote the lyrics for 'In The Dark (A Tale of Love)'.  Michelle picked them up and created the amazingly creepy melody that suits the words so well.  Her voice drips of ghost stories in the dark and horror movies where you hide behind a cushion!  Perfect. We are aiming the song at the  film/tv market .  I have visions of a rapist stalking his victim, talking to her in his head and creating a (false) romantic relationship in his mind.  The stuff nightmares are made of... In The Dark (A Tale of Love) LYRICS Verse 1 I'm the shadow you catch in the corners of your mind, and you think ...

'Why Can't You See' is partly drawn from my own life experiences, and partly from my endless observing of others - the same as all writers I suppose... It's about the longing and helplessness that surrounds someone who loves another so much, but who's love is invisible and isn't reciprocated.  Unrequited love at it's most painful. It is a collaboration between  Nathan Nasby  and myself.  When I gave Nathan the lyrics, I did not expect the song that came back to me.  Nathan is an extremely talented musician, with the most sublime, yet strong, voice, and composing skills second to none.  I was blown away with the beauty of his music. Why Can't You See Copyright @ Nathan Nasby & Amanda J Anderson 2014 Lyrics :  Amanda J Anderson Music, vocals, piano, production :  Nathan Nasby LYRICS Verse 1 I watch you sit and stare Listless eyes chasing rainbows As the wind combs your hair, just a little I know your heart doesn't see Me ...

"Songwriting is a muscle that needs to be constantly worked in order to stay strong." Quote from the  Educated Songwriter So stretch it daily !