CHAPTER 13 - Seven Tips On Writing Great Lyrics By producer STUART STUART Brisbane, Australia www.analogheartrecords.com Visit the website to hear as an audioblog Over the last 20 years or so, I ve worked with dozens of songwriters, maybe hundreds. As a producer, it s up to me to review and critique every aspect of the song we re recording, from the arrangement to the kick drum pattern to the words. And more often than not, the lyrics are where the song falls into a pit of clichés and lazy phrasing. It seems as though songwriters fall into two categories the people who write the first thing that comes into their head and never look at it again, and the people who sweat over every syllable. I ve personally witnessed people write a verse in 1 minute, with zero quality control. And I ve also held the hand of songwriters who have spent an entire DAY trying to write a single line. I probably prefer to work with the second type, although sometimes you just want to yell it s just a song Shakespeare!!. Interestingly, being musical and being literary are two completely different skills. You can be an astonishing guitar player, singer, or melody writer, but not have one poetic bone in your body. You might not have even passed Grade 8 English. That s not to say you need to be a wizard of language to write a song, but if you can t translate what you re feeling into short sharp phrases that match the syllables in the melody you ve written, you ve only done half the job. There s no shame in admitting that words aren t your strong suit, and asking another band member to help, or if you re a solo artist, a friend who you think of as a wordsmith. Or failing that, don t start with the expectation that you can just write any old shit in two minutes and consider it good enough you re going to have to put some time in. If that seems like too much hard work, why would you expect your song to connect with a wide audience? If you can be bothered making the lyrics ABOUT something interesting, and putting that across in an interesting way, why would you expect the world to find it interesting? Which brings me to my first lyric tip 1) Lyrics DO matter. I always hear from lazy songwriters lyrics don t matter nobody listens to the words anyway. And then they will point to any number of songs with clichéd, stupid words. And remind me that many music fans are teenagers or younger they don t need something super sophisticated. In fact, they don t WANT that.
All of that is definitely true, and you have to be aware of who your audience is. If you are making boy band music, you don t necessarily want to be dealing with complex adult emotions. If you are writing more mature singer songwriter stuff, it s not enough to just make every second word baby, and hammer it out in two minutes. There has to be some depth there. Most music falls somewhere in the middle. If your lyrics are too obscure, or too basic, you will lose the group of music listeners who CARE what the words are. It might surprise you, especially if you re a young male rock fan, plenty of music fans will fall in love with a song BECAUSE of the words. Of course, if the music is garbage they won t. But what makes it a must-have for their collection is the lyric. And to some degree, we re all influenced by the words. We want to know whether this is a song we want to associate ourselves with. For example, if you re a metal fan and James Hetfield of Metallica starts singing ooh baby, you re so sexy, we re gonna make lurve tonight, you would wonder if he has taken the wrong meds. Likewise, if Pink was singing about how much she loves doing housework, her fans would be baffled. More than anything, your lyrics tell people if you have any soul, intellect, passion or point of view. Perhaps that s why so many songwriters just fall back on words we ve heard in other songs stuff that no one can criticize. When you sing a song you ve written, you are making a statement to the world about yourself. And that takes some confidence. Guys are often reluctant to write something too emotional. Many girls are scared to write something too sexy. That s not unusual I guess, but to make an impact, you have to expose something of your inner workings. You can half ass it, and give your words practically no thought, but why would you? Are you serious about being a professional musician or not? Why would you be lazy and just go with the first thing that comes into your head? Is that really the best you can do? To attract attention in the music business, you need EVERYTHING working for you. If you are going to give music fans who listen closely to lyrics NOTHING to think about, you are unlikely to engage them. If you don t engage them, they ll quickly forget they ever stumbled upon your music. I hope it doesn t sound sexist to say, but on the whole, it seems as though girls listen to words much more than guys. I won t worry about guessing why that is, but it is a theory that I ve seen played out in real life again and again. If you want your audience to have a female component, you need to write a lyric that makes sense, that makes people feel something. And you want at least a tiny bit of originality. Music industry folks also listen to words. Managers, labels, radio these are people that listen to songs day in, day out, and are quick to dismiss a badly written lyric as amateurish. Once again, you don t have to be writing amazing poetry, but to give yourself every chance, you have to put some time into it.
2) Second tip is, know when to be direct and when to be obscure. I put songs into two categories direct and obscure. Direct songs simply tell you what s happening in plain language. Katy Perry s I Kissed A Girl is a perfect example of an exciting way to do that. Obscure songs rely on metaphor and images to build up a kind of word tapestry. These songs can be interpreted a dozen different ways, but they give you a mood. I think of Radiohead s Fake Plastic Trees as a successful example of an obscure song. Surprisingly, both approaches are equally difficult. You may think just telling the story seems easier, or you may think being able to write any kind of vaguely poetic ramble seems easier, but there is a skill in doing either style well. For the most part, direct songs belong in the pop world. If your aim is to be on commercial radio, you should be thinking clarity. Pop listeners don t expect to be wading through layers of metaphor and weird-ass poetry. But the challenge is making that kind of direct storytelling sound cool. A lyric like we ve been dating for 3 years, you slept with someone else, now I don t love you anymore is boring. It has to be spiced up a little and made a touch more poetic. Taking that example, you might say On our third anniversary, you broke my trust, now he s stolen the love I once had for you. Ok, that s still pretty corny, and doesn t rhyme of course, but it s approaching what might pass for a better way to tell a straight story. It s important to remember you re not writing high poetry here, but similarly, you re not just writing a text message to your mum. You want people to understand what is happening in the song, but you also want them to daydream about it. You want to engage their mind and their imagination. This is why songwriters don t tend to just say we had sexual relations. They want to evoke a feeling about it, so they ll say you gave your body to me, or the electricity of your touch creeping up my thigh. Or whatever. I don t want to get too pervy here. Or do I? No, I don t. The best examples of direct lyrics are clear, but they are one step back from just telling you a story in plain court-testimony language. If you told your friend a story using good songwriting technique, your friend would think of you as a wanker. Oh Paul, our bodies were entwined and our passions were inflamed. But in a song, that kind of simple poetry is what makes it emotional. And backed with the right music, that s incredibly powerful, Songwriting is still the only art form that has the power of storytelling, amplified by the ineffable emotional power of music. If you re going to write a direct song, you want people to DREAM when they listen to it. You want them to stop thinking about the traffic, or their work, or what s for dinner, and to become engaged in your words. And yep, that takes some effort. Obscure lyrics are generally better suited to indie, alternative, or rock tracks. Using Radiohead as an example again, if Thom Yorke started singing our marriage has been
difficult, but I still love you, I hope you will come back to me, it would be highly out of character. Radiohead fans don t expect that level of directness, and they don t want it. They want some rich imagery, so they can dream away, inventing whatever mental picture they want. Perhaps they re worried if their dream aligns with what Thom Yorke was actually writing about, or perhaps they re not. Ultimately, it doesn t matter, as long as the words evoke imagination. The rules for writing this kind of song aren t quite as defined as for a direct song, but there are some guidelines. Firstly, I think it s important if YOU know what the song is about. If you re just writing random words about nothing, you can t really expect anyone to get a cohesive feeling from it. And that s what counts here you want people to get the mood you re trying to communicate. And the mood can be more complex than just happy or sad it can be something like depressed but also hopeful that I can find my way out of it. Or optimistic, but always scared that something will spoil it. Lyrics in an obscure song should be evocative, visual and stimulate the listener to dream. Coming back to Radiohead, Thom Yorke sings he buzzes like a fridge in the song Karma Police. Rather than just say he is annoying, he gives you an image rich with meaning and imagery that sends you off dreaming. That s the essence of it stimulating people to dream and feel. But even within such a vague song like Karma Police, the mood is clear cynical, pissed off, and somewhat resigned. Well, that s what I take from it. But critically, there is nothing in there that disrupts that mood. That s probably the major mistake that amateurs make when trying to write a song like this. They think they can just write anything and let the listener piece it together. But if lyrics contradict, it disrupts the dream. Your job is to set a mood, and let people get fully immersed in that mood. The easiest way to make sure it all adds up is to write it ABOUT something. You never have to disclose what that something is, but check that every line relates back to that topic, or feeling, at least in a vague way. Which brings me to point 3 3) You need a concept to hang the words on. Starting a lyric without a concept is probably the most difficult approach. It s probably also the most common. People sit down to write the words, and start at the start, without knowing where they are going. They finish the first verse, get through a prechorus, and then find they need to sum it all up with a grand, universal concept, and an interesting title. The most amateur songwriters don t worry too much about that they write their chorus in the same manner as the verse, with nothing really sticking out as an overarching concept, and definitely nothing really poking out as a title.
Of course, you can get your title from a verse lyric, but that s generally not a great idea. I prefer to use a title that people would expect. If you say Hold my hand 20 times, people will call it the hold my hand song. If you think a cooler title is Niagara Falls, and that features once in verse 2, or doesn t even appear in the song, you re only going to confuse people. And confusing people doesn t help your cause. I recommend STARTING with a concept, and better yet, a title. My process is 1) title 2) a concept based on that title 3) chorus lyrics 4) verse and bridge lyrics. It s working from the centre out. It s so much easier writing verses about a clearly defined story or concept, than it is to sum up vague verses in a punchy clear chorus. More often than not, you don t know exactly what you re writing about, or what point you re coming to. It s like starting a joke, without knowing if there s going to be a punchline. Even if you re writing a vague, indie-ish song, you want a big idea to hang all your word tapestry on. The concept could be a metaphor in itself. Like Burned Bridges. And maybe the song is about what you have to leave behind so you can grow into who you need to be. But if you START there, it will be clear when a lyric doesn t relate to that, and you can weed it out. In a more obscure song about burning bridges, you want people to have that feeling of becoming decisive, and feeling empowered, and every line needs to support that, at least in an abstract way. 4) Write your lyrics to a melody, not the other way around. I ve had songwriters tell me that lyrics can, or even MUST be written first. That s fine if that is your method, and you are welcome to do the art anyway that helps you get it out. BUT, when I listen to the melodies that have been created to fit the lyrics of these songwriters, they are never particularly hooky, or even singable. Usually, these afterlyrics melodies will lack groove, structure and will mostly sit on one note. The melody is only one small step away from simply talking the words on top of music. Despite anything else I ve said here, melody is king. In all circumstances, and in pretty much all genres. There is no such thing as a hit lyric that succeeds despite a terrible melody, but there are plenty of very hooky melodies that are hits despite lyrics that sound like they were translated from Japanese by Google Translate. So can you have a song that becomes popular with shit lyrics, but an amazing melody? Yep. Can you have a breakthrough song that becomes popular with a shit melody, but amazing lyrics? I can t think of a recent example. Having said that, if you are going to give yourself every chance, you need BOTH. But in order of priority. First, create your melody, however you can. Perhaps you have the knack of writing great lyrics WHILE you are creating the melody. I ve only seen one or two people who can do that, and usually only for a few lines or so. I ve never seen someone write a great lyric
and melody simultaneously. Generally, you should think of the words, or sounds (like na nas) you use to write your melody as placeholders. Those lyrics are just sitting there until the melody is finalized. Once it is, the hard work of writing some PROPER words begins. I ve always thought that writing melodies is a kind of magical and almost physical process. It has to come out fast you can t overthink it. If it is going to be hooky, it needs to feel good to sing. For me, that just comes out as a vomit of notes. I might tweak the phrasing or the structure slightly, but usually I sing the melody for a particular section all in one go. On the other hand, lyrics are the part where you knuckle down and put the work in. Great lyrics are inspired, but often that inspiration only comes after three false starts, Much of this comes down to experience. You start to get a feel for when you ve topped out, and hit upon something that represents what you re truly capable of. And you ll be similarly aware of when you are just sticking something in to make it rhyme. THAT is the stuff you need to keep working on. Which brings me to 5) Keep editing Up until the point where you actually record and release a song, lyrics do not have to be set in stone. I recommend people write their lyrics in an email to themselves. Then you can access those words on your phone on the bus, in the waiting area at the doctor, wherever. If you re serious about being a songwriter, you should always be twiddling away, getting rid of those lyrics that will embarrass you in two years time. Remember, if you have any success in music, you might be singing these words for years. Do you want to be singing baby, you re all I want, baby, you re all I need when you get older? Or will you wish you actually spent some time on that line? If you actually care about the songs you are writing, keep editing the words. Don t write them on paper in pen! Write them on your laptop, or tablet, or phone, so you can continuously improve the song. I often tell people to write 2 verses for every verse they actually need. See, once you get the obvious stuff out of your system in verse 1 and 2, you have to start digging deeper, into more specific and generally more interesting things. You will find the more original stuff there. It s something to try anyway take a song you consider to be complete, and challenge yourself to write two more verses. I guarantee you ll beat at least one of your existing verses, if not both. Of course, you need to draw the line somewhere and finally commit to a set of words. As they say, art is never finished, only abandoned. But most songwriters abandon VERY early when it comes to lyrics. Even when I work with songwriters who are convinced
that their amateur lyrics are good enough, I plead with them to write me a third verse. Sometimes I m a bit sneaky and tell them the song will need a third verse, because it needs to be longer. Whatever shakes them out of their complacency and gets them thinking harder. I cannot think of a time when the new third verse did not beat the shitty first verse. It sometimes gives them a taste for re-writing. The problem is, some people approach writing lyrics like it is an English assignment. It feels like a chore, and they just want to get back to rocking out. If that s your attitude, maybe let someone else have a go at writing the words. You don t have to be a master of everything. Perhaps your talent is melody, or coming up with cool musical motifs and riffs. If writing words is as exciting as reading the dictionary for you, hand the job over. If you re singing more interesting words, people will assume you re clever! And people are more likely to engage with the song. And you didn t even have to do it. Everyone wins! 6) Lyrics don t have to be personal If you write songs, day in and day out, you get to a point where you have pretty much exhausted your own personal stories. At least, that s how I feel. I write at least a few songs a month, and they are pretty much never about me. I mean, I might be able to relate a past experience to the lyric, but I rarely write a song that is about how I am feeling THAT DAY. For me, that s too limiting. With some artists, we might be writing a song a day, 5 days in a row. It s hard to think of a time when I ve had 5 pressing issues all in one week. Perhaps the person I m writing with has one, and maybe I have one, but I won t have three others. Of course, no one is saying you need to be writing at this kind of pace or frequency. But you should be writing regularly. If you re only writing songs when you feel massive emotional upheaval in your life, it will be harder to improve at the craft. The best songwriters I ve worked with write a song a week, and realize they will probably ditch 4 out of 5 of those rough ideas. You have to write tons of fairly average stuff to occasionally strike something genuinely exciting. I guess it depends on whether you think of songwriting as a deep personal expression, or if you have a goal to make a career in music. The two aren t mutually exclusive, but if you want your music to stick out, it is going to have to be amazing. And more than likely, the first 8 songs you write in your life will not be amazing. They might show promise, but if you write 20 more, I guarantee most of the original batch of 8 will fall by the wayside. As you write more and more, you will have to start stretching yourself lyrically. You can only write so many songs about the guy you broke up with last year, or the girl you ve always had a crush on. There s no harm in trying to write that story from different
angles until you finally nail it, but if the 5 original songs you play at gigs, or want to record for an EP, are all about the same thing, people will start to tune out. You need to search further afield for your concepts. I generally start with a title, and think of a concept that might fit with it. It doesn t have to something I ve experienced myself. For example, I ve helped plenty of female artists write songs about players bad boys who lie and cheat. I haven t been in that situation myself, but my friends have. Plus, it s not hard to imagine, or to connect with the feeling of being betrayed, and wanting to stand up for yourself. And we ve all heard countless songs based on that concept. I can write a song about the heartbreaking end of a relationship, or the exciting beginning of a relationship, or having a secret crush on someone, or cheating on someone, or being cheated on by someone, even if I am in a stable and very pleasant long term relationship. Writing a song isn t all that different to writing an episode of a TV show. At a certain point, you can t just rely on your own stories you need imagine some, or write one about a friend s situation. I have known people who write a song every time they watch a movie, or read a book. They have gone on the emotional journey of the story and can then translate it into a song with ease. Another trick I use is to see how other songwriters have approached the concept. For example, if I want to write a song about hitting the club, and partying all night, I have about 1000 songs on radio to reference off right now. I want to see how they did it, just to give me a clue on what has been done. Somebody has already thought hard about how to express this idea, so there s no need to reinvent the wheel. Not to say you should copy those words, but it will get you started. 7) Lastly, lyrics should rhyme. Always. I have debated this point with a few budding songwriters. They are usually people who write lyrics before melody, and feel like the words are more important than any musical concern. I ve even had some of them tell me that rhyme is gimmicky. The reality is, 99% of songs rhyme. They don t have to, but they sure sound better when they do. There is something satisfying about hearing a rhyme, and something frustrating about not hearing one. Obviously, more commercial songs demand more rhyme. Most Katy Perry songs will rhyme line to line, meaning the lyrics have an AABB pattern. For example, I kissed a girl and I liked it, the taste of her cherry chapstick, it felt so wrong, it felt so right, don t mean I m in love tonight. The rhyme comes straight away.
If you want to step it back from that, you can go for an ABAB pattern, or even an ABCB pattern. For example, ABAB is da da da da da way, da da da da da see, da da da da da grey, da da da da da be. ABCB means the first and third lines don t rhyme, only the second and fourth. Writing good concise lyrics, that fit tight with a melody, and also rhyme, is challenging. Which is probably why songwriters who focus on words like to write lyrics first, without worrying about melody OR rhyme. But in my mind, that isn t really songwriting. It s more free form poetry, and only doing half the job. Ok, so that s a pretty detailed overview of how I think about lyrics. The main thing to take away is that you need to put some TIME into your words. Don t expect to knock out the lyrics in 5 minutes, and never look at them again. Put the work in and come up with something you are actually proud to sing, now and into the future. As always, if you d like an opinion on your music, please get in touch with me.