Everyone Happy?

A fictional songwriting session ahead of a real release!

Good Morning March!

Look out for an EXTRA LETTER this month when my NEW SINGLE comes out on March 15th……..

Meanwhile here is an extract from my novel-in-progress. I assure you the songwriting process bears no resemblance to my own……..

It was a busy time of year at The Studio. Going on the double premise that a band only needs one good song and a song only needs one good hook, the team were churning out catchphrases faster than anyone could catch them.

That morning one of the new bloods, This Boy, was in for a session. Dylan was a co-writer on the session, but it was really Matt's gig. The marketing strategists on the project needed the first release to break at around No.25. The chart topper would come next, in July. They needed something solid, which would establish This Boy's identity, but could then be topped. They wanted expectation and promise worked into the lyrics, but nothing too fast or fantastic. This one could be a love song, they said, the next one had to be the heartbreaker.

This Boy was nodding eagerly, up for anything. Dylan couldn't help but like him, cuddling his new Martin like an ugly duckling who’s turning into a swan and can't believe his luck. With him on the leather sofa sat his manager, Charlie, constantly referring to his iPad as though the song was already in there, he just had to find it. There was not much to like about Charlie. On the opposite side of the coffee table sat Bess and Kate from marketing, insisting that they didn't want to interfere in the creative process, interrupting every few minutes to keep the team focused on the song requirements. Matt and Dylan had pulled up chairs and another two guitars. It looked like a Kumbaya sing-a-long on Casual Friday.

Matt was teaching This Boy the chord structure he’d come up with, to check he was comfortable with it. This Boy was comfortable with everything. The others had more opinions. Bess and Kate asked if it couldn't be a little faster – not fast – but just a little faster. Yes, it would be faster, Matt assured them, this was just the rough shape. The tempo could be decided later, Dylan pitched in, nothing was fixed. Once that was settled, to everyone's great surprise, Charlie announced that he was eager for them to hear some lyrics This Boy had come up with himself. This Boy took out his phone enthusiastically and said he could try singing them over Matt’s chords. Dylan's eyebrows arched in alarm.

Life was a rough ride 
Down on the tough side 
'Til I met you girl

You got me out
You saved my heart 
Now you're my girl

(Then there's a chorus, it's not quite finished)

Girl, I only want to thank you
Girl, I only want to... (something)
You're my saviour in this crazy world
You're my lover
I'll be your survivor
We'll – (I’m not sure how to finish this line yet)

Life was a black hole
It was so hard for me to score a goal 
'Til I met you girl

You showed me the way 
I will never go away 
Now you're my girl

(Then there would be another chorus obviously)

They all clapped. The receptionist brought over some smoothies and told This Boy he had a really lovely voice. He did, Dylan agreed, have a very good voice. And he hadn't done a bad job of improvising a melody either. They'd heard worse. Charlie was knocking his knees together, eager for feedback. Kate and Bess were concerned by the word lover. It was a little grown up for the target audience. This Boy said he could change lover, no problem. Charlie pointed out that would mean he’d have to change survivor too. This Boy said that was cool, he could change survivor. Matt tried to get a grip on the situation and suggested they should start by making the chorus really strong and then go back to the verses. Dylan asked This Boy to ping him over the lyrics, wondering how on earth he could help Matt get out of this one.

A complex dynamic of financial concern was at play, with Charlie knowing full well that if any lyrics hold their ground, his manager's 20% would also include his artist’s publishing royalties. The Studio rarely shared writing credits with the talent, certainly not with unknowns. They were allowed creative tweaks or “interpretations” to keep them happy, but never full lines or melodies which could lead to any claims. Having said that, this was a big job and they had to keep the client happy. On top of which, Dylan considered, there wasn't much fun to be had in trashing the sincere work of poor little This Boy. They had to tread carefully.

Three gruelling hours later the chorus had arguably little resemblance to its original draft. Hopefully not enough to leave Charlie with any legal leverage. Bess and Kate seemed delighted with the transformation, as did This Boy, who sang it to them rather touchingly, to a melody line that was also miraculously starting to come together.

There's this thing I want to say, girl 
Soon I'm gonna find a way, girl
Give me time and I will find the words

And I hope that when I do, girl
You might dare to say it too, girl
Then you and I can beat this crazy world

There was another round of applause. Dylan was quite pleased with the rehashed clichés, minus the last line which would obviously be reworked at some point. He was particularly happy with his own changing of the word want to dare. He felt it captured the mood of the song and really helped drive home that exciting tension in the early stages of a relationship.

He calculated to himself that between that little word-change and a minor 7th he'd added to the second D chord, he'd justified his being there in the session. He hated thinking about it in this way, but he had his review coming up.

Brilliant start, Kate concluded. Full of future hope, perfect for the early/mid teens, not too striking a statement, yet an easy springboard for something with a little more pizzazz in the next round. Everyone happy?

SEE YOU ON MARCH 15TH FOR THE REAL THING!