Creating a hit that will hook.

C

Chuckschwandt

New member
Creating the hit song...hummmmm. Ever read
those books that claim there are enduring
characteristics to a hit song ? Ever wondered
why there are songs with generational durability;
they keep going and going like the energizer
bunny and never get old ? There must be something
there. Let's brain storm it....
 
Hmmm, let's see ...

Great tune, nice changes, lyrics that a lot of people can identify with, good vocalist, good players, great production. Seems simple enough, huh?

... or be really good-looking and have access to one of the 'puppetmasters' ;)

foo
 
An endearing charismatic persona, hootspah, a sense of humor, talent, connections, years of experience. AND, he can play the accordian.
 
i reckon writing hit songs is like shooting a film - film makers have what they call a cutting ratio - like they shoot 10 reels but the film is only one reel long - 10:1 I believe that for every 10 + songs you write only about 1 has the possibility of being a hit song - you've just gotta keep at it!!
cheers :D
 
People must be able to sing the chorus ONCE they've heard it. The shouldn't be able to get it out of their minds again. They should hum it in the morning after waking up and in the evening before falling asleep (and during work, of course).
That's it: a killer melody that gets stuck in the listener's mind...
 
If the 10-1 ratio is realistic for TV shows also then there must be some awful ideas in somebody's head that we never get to see! Anyway I think a lot has to do with us not getting serious with the marketing of our stuff because some of these songs I hear by youse guys are dadgum good. Maybe we just need to find the way to niche ourselves!
 
A great song is genuine. It tugs at you the first time and you can't quite remember it after hearing it just once(at least for me). The artist has something in mind that he wants the listener to walk away with. I'm not talking about the shiznit on the top forty. They seem really impulsive and short-acting. A great song isn't motivated by money. It says something fresh; even if the idea is old. The greatest songwriters in the world get paid to crank out tunes. Tunes that are well thought-out, but they don't mean anything if they aren't genuine.
 
Hi Gap,

Great point you made. I am guilty of not
pushing the market with my CDs. I get
excited about writing, recording, and performing,
but draw back on the leg work into stores,
radio, and etc. The marketing part is just
boring. The labels have the edge here. Staying
independent has its benefits and draw backs.

Chuck
 
Enduraning songs

Hi Prophet,

The top 40 stuff does fade fast, not enduring.
You believe the song must be genuine to endure.
I started to think about that a little. Remember
when Vietnam was coming to an end in the late 60s?
The songs that were written by Jimi Hendrix,
CSN & Young, Dylan, and others have endured well.
CSN& Young recorded "Ohio" when the college
students were gunned down. - I think you have made
a great point here for me. - Thanks...

Strumming,
Chuck


[Edited by Chuckschwandt on 08-16-2000 at 12:20]
 
Re: best 100 artists of all history

Chuckschwandt said:
I was watching VH1 last night with their
new best 100 artists of all history. They
were picked by the artist community, not the
general public. It was so interesting to
see who & why the top 10 were chosen. The
Beatles were number one and the Rolling
stones second. I thought, wow, the Beatles
broke up years ago and they are still considered
better than the stones, who still exist. Dylan
was in the top ten as well. All were revolutionaries,
standing for some historical sensitive issue.
I suppose that was key to making their mark
in time.

Chuck






Click to expand...
 
Weird Al ...

You can't be serious.

Weird Al's claim to fame is as a novelty act (albeit a good one)

He took very popular songs from the Hit Parade and parodied the hell out of 'em, and the video.

I'm sure you'll correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think he ever wrote anything, did he? Apart from (presumably) the lyrics? So he was a comedy act, not a music act, n'est ce pas?

... and anyway, he was good-looking enough to make it on his looks, he didn't need a puppetmaster.

foo
 
The guy is a freakin' riot! He makes me laugh almost every time I see a new video of his.The takeoff on "Beat It" is hilarious,especially the "smoking" guitar lead segment.I like him for the same reason I liked Zappa; he knows how to take the piss out of pompous posers and pseudo angst ridden alternatoids alike and I like some of his stuff better than the original song it parodies.
 
Chuck, you are what Rock n' Roll is. That's an excellent point. I would also like to say that not everyone is trying to be a milestone in music history. Some bands and artists aren't out for that and I doubt it happens if you are out for that. People really respond to what these greats you have mentioned were saying.

My mom once told me about the way a lot of people feel about country music. The understand what the singer is talking about. People respond emotionally.

Again, not every artist is out to conquer the world. At least the REAL ARTISTS aren't. That's not the point of music. It's about communication. Expression. People listen...
 
Hello, I'm a fan of Weird Al. I'd like to add that Weird Al is indeed an artist that writes a few of his own tunes every once in a while. His records are composed of about 60% parody and the rest his own. You could simply consider him a comedy act, but he writes too. A writer is not classified by his intention. If you considered only the comedic songs that the BareNaked Ladies have written, do you consider them a comedy act?
 
Bare Naked Ladies

Not familiar with any of their stuff.

Let me be more specific about Weird Al.

How many of the songs that he wrote were Top 20 hits?

I think that he became famous because of the parodies (which were good!)

Did he write anything that was successful on it's own - (and defining successful is Top 20, which is not necessarily my usual definition as I believe music is about art, not about sales, but in the context of this thread [hit songs], Top 20 is the definition)

As far as I know, Al didn't write any hit songs. Including his own stuff on his records surely doesn't count. It's a way to make some cash from the publishing rights.

Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland wrote the occasional tune for a Police album, but we all know that people bought the Police stuff for the Sting songs. Check out 'The Singles' Everything on there was written by Sting.


The original question was 'How do you write a hit song' and 'How do songs keep going like the energizer bunny'

Ever see/hear any Weird Al parodies of anything older than about a year anywhere ever?

He filled (having created) a nice little niche for himself, and exploited it very well - but great songwriter?

Hmmm, let's see ... John Lennon, Paul Simon, Townes Van Zandt, George Gershwin, Weird Al Yankovic, Irving Berlin, Lyle Lovett, Paul McCartney.

No, sorry, it just doesn't seem to make any sense to me.
Maybe it makes sense to you.

Let's get real!

foo
 
Have you ever stopped to consider how many adats, tascams, 1" 2" 1/2" computers, 4tracks, 8 tracks etc etc are recording right this very moment with the artists dreaming they have written a No 1 hit - it's pretty scarey??
 
LOL... Hey, Foo, I didn't say he was a great songwriter. I just said he does write his own songs and not only parodies. No, they've never been on the Top 20. You should buy an album if you don't own one already. His songs are as funny, if not funnier than the songs he makes a laugh of. I'm honest about buying one. Go get it!
 
I have read this thread and just now something dawned on me...something jono just left here made me think...i ain't sure if i have ever written anything that would be top 20 and i sure can't record it well enough but i have written enough stuff so that when we(just folks i know) get together i am usually pickin on the ole 6string and we might sing a popular song or two of someone elses but it is so cool because usually everyone has a favorite of something of mine and there are a few old ones (five-six years) and we always sing them...its cool to play my stuff and they sing...connection...a big issue when considering longevity in mho!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top