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Takes from the Top: Recording Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘The Boxer’
The explorations in sound that would feature prominently on Simon & Garfunkel’s fifth studio album, 1970’s Bridge Over Troubled Water, were evident right from the start with the making of “The Boxer,” which began on November 16, 1968 inside Columbia’s Music Row Studios in Nashville. Having envisioned a guitar-heavy rhythm track, Paul Simon was fortunate enough to secure the services of session ace Fred Carter, Jr., by then a familiar… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 5.17.12
(More) Successful Strategies for Studio Singers
Over the years I’ve become familiar with the infamous studio stories involving celebrated prima-donnas like Barbra Streisand et al, who spent many a session brutalizing hapless engineers with between-take tantrums (“too loud,” “too soft,” “can’t read the lyrics,” “can’t stand these headphones,” etc.). Though she’s no Streisand (and thank God), working with my wife has nonetheless given me a little taste of what it must have been like for those… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 5.01.12
Seeking Songwriting Success: Three Ways Follow-Through Pays Off
Songwriting is art. Like all art, songs require a healthy dose of inspiration, which is nearly impossible to predict or control. In that way, the spark that results in the creation of a song is a gift but the rest of the process is nothing more (or less) than good, old-fashioned work. By following through in a variety of different ways, you stand a much better chance of achieving the… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 4.27.12
Five Myths about Achieving Success as a Songwriter
With April Fools Day upon us, I thought I’d address some common misconceptions about life as a songwriter that tend to either slow down our progress or discourage us unnecessarily. The more educated you become about the mostly unwritten rules of the music industry, the less often you’ll be fooled and the better prepared you’ll be to make the slow and steady progress that leads to success. 1. Industry people… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 3.27.12
Let It Bleed: Learning to Love Leakage
Recently, I was working on a recording session with a local keyboard player, using live piano and drums in the same room for the foundation tracks. Since we had a digital console piano, we could have plugged straight into the mixing board and kept the sounds totally separate; however, since I seldom do things the easy way, I opted to record the piano “live,” and proceeded to place a pair… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 3.14.12
Six Things To Do When Your Song Is Finished
Knowing when a song is finished is an entire article in and of itself, so I’m going to predicate these comments on the understanding that your song is, indeed, done. While having a finished song is its own victory, there’s more work to do if you’re hoping to keep your records straight, stay organized and possibly generate income with your song. By treating your songwriting like the profit-making business you’re… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 2.27.12
Three Good Reasons To Love Your Songs
In order to suffer the slings and arrows that are an inevitable part of trying to generate income from your songs, it’s a good idea to love them first. I’m talking about a very specific kind of love here. What I’m not talking about is the kind of desperate, dysfunctional love where your song is so dear to you that you’re crushed if someone doesn’t love the song as much… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 1.31.12
In Praise of “Modular” Recording
Much has been made of the long-awaited official release of the Beach Boys’ epic SMiLE album, which, despite being abandoned back in mid-1967, represents the creative high-water mark for its composer, BB leader and pop wunderkind Brian Wilson. By 1966, Wilson, using the technology available at the time, was hard at work developing an entirely different approach to crafting music in the studio. Rather than cutting backing tracks live from… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 1.11.12
Three Reasons To Be Thankful You’re a Songwriter
On the heels of this Thanksgiving, I thought I would take a moment to tell you (and myself, while I’m at it) a few of the things we have to be thankful for as songwriters. Songwriting is the kind of pursuit that often takes place in a vacuum with little or no encouragement and is, by its very nature, solitary. Also, given that only the tiniest percentage of the songs… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 11.30.11
Four Things You Can Do To Improve Your Odds in Film/TV Song Placements
Having had the good fortune of song placements in both films and television shows, I can safely say there is no magic bullet when it comes to how to make this happen. That being said, there are certainly things that you, as a songwriter, can do to improve your odds. I’ve listed a few of these below. 1. Make sure your song is professionally recorded and performed This may… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 10.31.11
Mark Neill on the Making of the Black Keys’ ‘Brothers’
Though digital has long since taken the room out of the equation, there remain a handful of studio dwellers who stubbornly cling to the belief that it’s still possible to make records that don’t sound like everyone else’s. One of them is Mark Neill, the Georgia-bred producer/engineer, who spent a good portion of the ’80s buying up unloved tape machines, old microphones, mixers and processors on the cheap, which he… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 10.10.11
Five Things Songwriters Can Do To Move Their Careers Forward
1. Do One “Business” Thing Every Day. This is the musical equivalent of eating your vegetables. They may not taste great but they’re good for you. It’s the same with the business side of music. We all know how much more fun it is to play the guitar, sing and even write compared to making phone calls, sending emails or following up on something you’ve already submitted, but if you’re… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 9.28.11
Good, Fast, Cheap: Pick Any Two
If you’re willing to invest money, you can move more quickly towards the end goal of musical success — good and fast but not cheap — but what I find more encouraging is that if you don’t have the money, you can still achieve “good” by slowing down and being resourceful — good and cheap but not fast. That leaves the one combination that we need to guard against —… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 9.02.11
Four Reasons It Pays for Songwriters To Be Patient
Looking back on 20-plus years of writing songs, it’s a lot easier for me to connect the dots now and see that the things I was doing years ago would eventually bear fruit. I can safely say that nothing ever moved as quickly as I thought it would, yet I’m constantly surprised at the ways that my long-forgotten efforts have come around to generate royalty income. All that to… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 7.29.11
10 Rules for Running a Successful Recording Session
There’s no better way to test your mettle as an audio engineer than to open up your studio to visiting musicians for fun or profit (preferably the latter). Setting microphone levels and sorting out other technical detail is one thing; however, home-studio producers must also be prepared to deal with frayed nerves and large egos, and, above all, know when it’s time to say “good enough, let’s move on.” Here… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 7.18.11
The Dos and Don’ts of Co-Writing
Looking back over 20 years to my first songwriting efforts, I remember my creative process as so personal and fragile that I was dead certain I would never open it up to another songwriter. This would have seemed like co-painting or more like co-dating — just not going to happen. However, two things did happen. One, I moved to Nashville, Tennessee, the co-writing capital of the world, and, two, I… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 6.28.11
Five (More) Essentials for Home Studio Recording
A Shure Thing: If there is one microphone that could be considered a true studio essential, it is most certainly the Shure SM57. This highly versatile, directional dynamic mic is ideal for capturing virtually any sound source, from drums and guitars to vocals, piano, strings and more (legend has it that Tom Scholz used nothing but SM57s to cut the entirety of Boston’s stadium-sized first album). The 57’s… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 6.06.11
Five Mistakes Songwriters Make Before Demoing Their Songs (and how to avoid them)
The professional demo-recording process is a necessary part of the equation for songwriters aspiring to get their material heard by music industry decision-makers and, hopefully, cut by successful recording artists. Despite the fact that hundreds of demos are recorded every week in places like Nashville, New York and Los Angeles, new songwriters often find themselves overwhelmed and a bit intimidated by the prospect of getting their songs demoed and ready… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 4.19.11
Using Modeling Amps in the Studio: Pros & Cons
Each summer, we pack up our belongings and head up to our crusty old lakeside cabin in the woods of Maine for a few weeks of so-called vacation. On occasion, the traveling inventory has included a few electric guitars and some small amps required for the annual family reunion party — which, on account of the rustic surroundings, usually remain under lock & key until their services are required. A… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 3.23.11
What To Do Before You Go into The Studio To Record Your Indie Album
When it comes to recording a CD project where you’re the artist, you’ve got a lot of big decisions to make that will ultimately influence the way your project sounds. In other words, the more you do to prepare yourself before the record light comes on, the more enjoyable the process and the product will be. Pre-Production Pre-production is everything that you should be taking care of prior to… more
From Songwriter101 - Articles, posted 3.16.11
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