I describe my ongoing lyrics writing projects. Where I get my ideas, how I match my words with other people's music, which little helpers I use...
The Motorplanet version of "high enough" is one of my all time favorites. And I've decided to place it on my playlist for a little while as an example of what could be made of my lyrics. My own version is rather uninspired and crude in comparison, and...
For a lyricist writing the lyrics first and have the composer set them to music obviously is the easy way. When I write for myself I normally start with an idea for the chorus. A few lines of text and the tune seem to come to my mind at the same moment,...
I have renamed my first proposal for Karsten's "a song about you" into "there was a time ...", and Karsten and I have agreed that we should give it a new go. So, here's my new suggestion for the chorus: my love has grown beyond compare I'm incomplete...
A bridge was missing. Now I've actually written two bridges: you lay the blame on everybody everybody but yourself your chances have to be provided to be chosen from the shelf may I humbly ask the question which part you are playin' in this which is your...
you say that your life's a mess I say it's a game you say I don't have a clue I say that is all the same if you're the young man with no future I'm the old man with no past if you do not believe me then we both are badly cast you say you've had such high...
I've listened to Karsten's Midi file again only to find that my former suggestion for a chorus is sheer bullshit. First, the tune is quite cheerful, so a text about remembering a failure did not exactly fit. Second, I missed the upbeat in the last verse....
I think I've got a text for the chorus. The tune is always repeated once, so the text has two parts. I've numbered the lines here so I can refer to them in my comments more easily: 1. time has passed me by 2. since that fateful day 3. I'm too sad to cry...
This was a tough one. As easy it is to write for Blues Rock as hard is it writing text to fit a precisely composed melody. I had put down the meter like this: X - - X - - X - X - X - - X X - - X - - X - X X - X - X - - - X - X - X - - - X - X - X - -...
"A song about you" seems to be Karsten's working title. I had noted down its structure - its meter - like this: verses type A X - - X - - X - X - X - - X - - X - X - X - verses (chorus?) type B X X - X - - X X X - X - - X X X - - X - X - - - X - - X -...
I was seventeen and listening to a presentation of new records on the radio. I wore earphones so as not to annoy my parents. The song I was listening to was very sad and tears were running down my cheeks. There had been other very gloomy songs before....
After listening to the tune for the chorus I've got an idea for its text. I had noted the pattern - the number of syllables - as: 3 - 6 3 - 5 - 1 3 - 6 3 - 1 The melody seems to require an exact match, other than the stuff I use to write for Holger. Blues...
Step two - after identifying the subject - is collecting ideas. Here are a few: looks like they always finish what they have commenced although they don't live for, but they live against they'd grow an Eiffel tower if they'd got the power yesterday a...
As you may have noticed, or may have not, I have marked all my stuff with a "creative commons license". I.e. I have attached a statement that I explicitly allow the use of my lyrics and tunes - under certain conditions. The creative commons group has...
Well, you don't want anybody to steal your ideas, i.e. your music or your lyrics, do you? How can you make sure that your copyright is observed? It is actually quite easy. What you need is a method to prove that you were the first who had that particular...
Rock is about sex, isn't it. Well, life is, and so is Rock music. That is even true for harmless Pop Rock songs like "Good day sun shine" by the Beatles. On a hike in the Bavarian Alps I came up with an idea for yet another sex song in the manner of "holy...
At the moment it is just an entry in my "scrap book". But it might become another song of my "carpe-diem section" eventually: tell me when I'm dead make sure I don't miss it out while I'm busy spending my time living, and kicking about tell me when I'm...
Playing "Spartacus" - it has become a little folk song, by the way, since IMO rock music would not fit - I found that it was way too short. I used to repeat the last verse, for which I had altered the chords a bit so as to make it a little more dramatic:...
When I write lyrics for other's songs the first I do is counting syllables and writing a little chart of the stresses. Only then do I start collecting textual ideas. Obviously, it can be done the other way around as well. Recently I completed "lost."...
During the last few days I have composed five verses. They wouldn't fit together, though, to make a rounded story. But when I came up with the 4th verse today, the other verses fell into a pattern. I haven't decided yet if I will need a chorus at all....
Before I can begin collecting phrases, lines of text I could use, or even verses, I have to gather a little information on my subject. Often, I use Wikipedia for a start. Here is what I noted down: enslaved gladiator abuse or killing of slaves had no...
holy hooker (temporary title was "power"): I think it's time that I saw her again tonight she's always good at making me feel alright - alright she'll be my priestess tonight she is divine tonight she'll be mine - her clients can be kings if that is what...
"power" will be renamed "holy hooker". This might become a verse, i.e. if the meter fits (haven't checked yet): think it's time I saw her again - tonight she's always good at making me feel - alright - alright with her everything looks alright we'll have...
Maybe you've noticed that my lyrics are quite varied. And, yes I'm proud of it! Pride is one of the seven deadly sins or captial vices, I'm afraid. So I'm bound for damnation. Fortunatly, I'm not a believer, so I can live with being damnated. Anyway,...
Ideas use to come spontaneously. When I have the impression that a particular idea might make a new song or song text I write it down. I don't use a scrap book any more but a scrap file on the computer. When I'm at work I just send an email home so the...
The first version of the bridge was: ... we haven't got the time to just await the chime This I found not quite correct. Of course we've got enough time to do anything stupid we like. So, the second version - the one I published in my Blog - read ......
