James Taylor's guitar lessons

Not sure if you songwriters know about James Taylor's guitar lessons. They are all free.He shows how he finger picks all his favorite songs. I sure could have used this way back when... Here is "Fire and Rain"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTjd4sna_4o

5 Songwriting Tips You May Never Have Considered

Songwriting is a huge topic. There are no right or wrong ways to approach the subject, and there are an infinite number of ways to do so. However, many songwriters choose to approach songwriting in the same manner that they approached all of their previous songs with.

At first glance, this makes perfect sense. After all, if it has worked for them before then it'll work for them again, right?  Consequently, songwriters can easily end up writing songs that sound so similar to each other that it's hard to tell them apart. This can cause frustration, and ultimately leads to writers block. A talented songwriter will vary their approach to songwriting to create a very different song each time, yet still leave enough of their "signature sound" in the song to make it identifiable.

With that said, here are 5 Songwriting Tips that are so easily overlooked:  Change the order in which you write songs  How do you write songs? Do you sit with your guitar until you find a chord progression you like? Perhaps you write your lyrics first and then try to fit the music around them? Whatever your approach is, the chances are you use a similar one each time.   By stripping a simple song down to its bare bones, we are left with 5 key components:

Melody
Harmony
Lyrics
Rhythm
Structure

Next time you sit down to write a song, choose one of these components you have not started with before to begin with. I'd bet most people have not tried writing a song with the structure first, as this is something that is often left to dictate itself. Yet give it some thought, and your songs can improve dramatically. Which leads to my next point:  Alter the structure  Too many times has the structure "Verse, Chorus, Verse, Chorus, Bridge, Chorus" been used. Granted, it has been proven to work, but that does not mean songwriters must assign this structure to all of their songs.

Give it thought. Experiment with different structures and find what works for your song. By first answering why you want a specific structure (perhaps to repeat the hook or to create contrast) you can create a much more interesting song.  Write about a different topic  Almost everyone has written a love song. And you can too if you want, but again, don't choose to do this just because it has worked in the past. Too many songs on the same subject leads to songs that sound the same. Sometimes the best songs are so cleverly written lyrically, that it's hard to tell exactly what the song is about. This allows people to form their own interpretations of the lyrics' meaning, allowing many people to relate to the song.   Change the instrumentation/timbre  A C note on a guitar and a C note on the piano sound very different. This is due to the timbre of the sound.

When writing a song, carefully choose instruments with a timbre that will reflect the song's topic. Written a punk song that sticks its fingers up to the government? Perhaps a symphony orchestra isn't the right choice of instrumentation. I'm not saying to stick within your genre's typical instrumentation, but make sure you choose a sound that will compliment the overall song. Most importantly, do not feel as though you must only use the instrument(s) you play. Songwriting and performing are different skills. Do not let your songwriting ability be limited by your performance ability.

Use different chord voicings  A C barre chord and a C open chord sound different. This is because some notes have shifted register (i.e. up or down an octave). There will come a point in your songwriting where you're using the same chord progression in multiple songs. To make them sound different, try changing the chord voicings. By learning some basic music theory you can take this into your own hands and come up with your own way of playing chords, perhaps in altered tunings.

These are just 5 ways to make your songs more varied. Combine them, along with countless other ways to vary your songs, and you are left with infinite possibilities.

About the Author:
Sam Dawson is a singer/songwriter who specializes in fingerstyle and percussive guitar.

How Do Songwriters Make Money?

Here is veteran songwriter Barbara Cloyd from the Bluebird explaining how the "business side" of songwriting works. She is just full of good information and suggestions for the starting writer as well as good things to check for the veteran songwriter. Barbara discusses legal issues and royalties issues. Mechanical royalties are explained. Good information for everyone.

http://youtu.be/jw-Ze_gOh2U

Nashville Songwriting by Jerry Cupit

Writing songs is an art that must be learned. There are several constants in writing that will help in the successful completion of a good song. Jerry Cupit is a veteran Nashville songwriter who has written a great book on songwriting. In this video Jerry will explain many pieces of songwriting that you need to understand to write that great song. This is a wealth of information that you don't hear often. If you are really interested in writing songs that can be sold to the Nashville music industry you may want to watch this a few times. It is full of good suggestions on structure and content
http://youtu.be/bE-XNmvcS7E

Bellamy Baylor singing up a storm at the Pavilion Coffee House

Bellamy Baylor was singing up a storm at the Pavilion Coffee House last night while another storm was raging outside. Bellamy was in rare form  performing her passionate vocal arrangements of her original songs. Here is one song I have heard her do before. Each time I am pleased with how much she puts into her performance. Rarely do we run across such powerful vocals in a writers night situation.
http://youtu.be/OQy6PqIPOfs

Bex Marshall and the "House of Mercy"

Here is one of the finest blues guitarist I have run across in my travels. Bex Marshall has a firecracker personality that is blowing up in every town she plays . From London to Russia and back through Brazil and all over the USA is a normal year of gigs for Bex. Everywhere she goes there is a wave of appreciation for her style in guitar playing and her hard driving Janis Joplin like vocal presentation. Here is one singer/songwriter who will make her mark to be remembered forever. This video is from her CD "House of Mercy" that has been a huge hit in every country that sells it. Enjoy her video playing the "House of Mercy"
http://youtu.be/o_9lWKjA1Eo