The Art of Lyric Writing
The Art of Lyric Writing
“Lyrics that pose endless questions are like stories without endings”
We present the second in a series of extracts from a new book by the former head of copyright for EMI Music Publishing, Dennis R. Sinnott, called ‘Masters of Songwriting’.
In the book Dennis offer his own unique take on the songwriting world drawn from his extensive experience in music publishing at EMI, where in addition to administering a repertoire of over 1 million works, he was also instrumental in negotiating deals with superstars like Queen, Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan.
In this extract from ‘Masters of Songwriting’, Dennis Sinnott offers his unique take on understanding the art of lyric writing.
’The Art of Lyric Writing’
- an extract from ‘Masters of Songwriting’ by Dennis R. Sinnott.Lyric writing is an art form in itself. I have known many composers capable of writing wonderful melodies yet be unable to match them with anything like a good or even average lyric.
At the same time I have known lyricists who have tried in vain to produce a melody capable of ‘doing justice’ to their words. I have also known writers who are incredibly skilful at writing both words and music.
However you feel about writing lyrics, you should bear in mind that they are equally as important as the music. For one thing, they command half the copyright and half the royalties. Unless your song is to be released in a foreign speaking country only, you will need to pay particular attention to the words.
The good news is in commercial writing you need never have to worry about complicated lyrics. What you're trying to do is to get a point across in a simple and concise manner. Keep in mind the phrase ‘K.I.S.S’ - "Keep-It- Simple-Stupid!"
Lyric writing is about conveying a clear message to the listener. Something they can easily understand or identify with.
Complicated lyrics with words of four or more syllables may look good on paper, but if you fail to get your message across, your song will ultimately fail. The notion that people don't really listen to words is not true. People do listen!
Songwriters aiming for a ‘standard’ or ‘evergreen’ should pay particular attention to the words. Use them intelligently. Remember, an average song lasts for three minutes. Unlike an in depth novel, you won't have time to go into too much detail.
Some writers liken a lyric to writing a short letter to a girl or boyfriend. Others use a topical subject i.e. an event in the news, an item of sport or a moral issue they feel strongly about.
Generally speaking of all the styles of music in the world, the lyrics that always draw the biggest response are those to do with affairs of the heart. Make a note of the next twenty songs played on the radio, any station you like, and see if I'm wrong.
There is nothing wrong in using basic or simple words. The lyrics of some of the world's biggest selling standards bear this out time after time. You may hear an occasional word or phrase that sounds complicated, but the overwhelming majority of successful songs contain lyrics with basic down to earth words that ninety nine percent of people can understand.
Make a study of listening to the words of any great song or ballad. You'll be pleasantly surprised.
When stringing lyrics together, there is often a temptation, especially amongst inexperienced writers, to use words that rhyme irrespective of whether there is any clear logic to the words used. A good rhyme may sound pleasant on the ear but if it doesn't make much sense your song will ultimately suffer. For one thing, you'll be for ever trying to explain or justify its meaning to others. One should never have to explain, sell or make excuses for the lyrics of a song. A good lyric needs no explanation.
If the words rhyme and make sense, all well and good. Otherwise, apply the rule - logic before rhyme!
When you're writing the words, try to think of the verse as the cause, and the chorus as the effect.
For example, if the lyrics convey a story, use each verse to convey the setting, the place the person is going to, his or her situation in life, or about a person one is in love with.
The chorus should then go on to make a statement or "sum up" of the situation expressed in the verse. The bridge, as in the melody, can be used to link the verse and chorus together without ‘jarring’.
Remember if the verse is asking a question use the chorus to provide the answer. You can even use the chorus to pose a question and on the last line give the answer. If you opt for the latter, try opening the song with the chorus.
What you should avoid is to make both the verse and chorus the same. To do so would be like having one long question or a series of questions without an answer, and vice verse.
Moreover, lyrics that pose endless questions are like stories without endings. Without a clear answer somewhere in the lyric, the listener will be left feeling confused and even annoyed, especially if the words aren’t understood properly. I’m not saying strange or vaguely worded songs never achieve commercial success. Many with badly written
lyrics do get into the charts - but few if any become standards or evergreens.
*Read ‘Make Songwriting Pay’, the first extract from Sinnott’s new book
