January 2019
Guild Tidings
The official publication of
The International Songwriters Guild
Volume 24, No. 1
Happy New Year!!!
Next meeting Sunday January 6th 2019 at 5pm..
The International Songwriter’s Guild meets at 5 PM on the first Sunday of every
month at the Central Florida Musician’s Union building, 3020 East Robinson St.,
Orlando, FL 32803 (at the extreme east end of Robinson, near Orlando Executive
Airport)
Songwriters, composers, performers, publishers, and the curious are encouraged to
join us. Non-members are invited to attend a meeting or two to get a feel for our
group and what we do. If you wish to join, there is an annual fee of only $5. For
more information, visit our website at www.tinyurl.com/isgsongs
The meetings will be structured as follows: 5:00 to 5:30, business and
introductions. 5:30 to 6:00, presentation by a guest speaker (when scheduled),
or a short workshop/exercise. 5:30 or 6:00 to 8:00, song critiques.
Please bring a CD or I-phone or mp3 player or perform your song live, and bring 10
or more lyric sheets. If we have at least 5 songs by members who wish to be scored,
and 6 members scoring, then we will have them entered in the Monthly competition.
Everyone is encouraged to write constructive comments on the lyric sheets.
Any Details not in this newsletter are at:
If you wish to join our Facebook group, please check us out at
https://www.facebook.com/groups/831814850193553/
Web Chatter
by Cybertoad
http://www.cliffgoldmacher.com/three-things-not-to-do-for-productive-song-critiques/
Mistakes
By Jeff Mason
I have been wading through the many educational and informative videos from Taxi Independent A&R.
They can be watched for free on YouTube and ustream.tv. You can, also, access them from their website
taxi.com. Be prepared because many of them are over an hour long. I have found it useful to make notes
while viewing them and I have replayed a good number of them. This is a vast and underused resource.
I can’t imagine any serious songwriter not accessing them.
One video I have watched is a discussion between songwriter coach Robin Frederick and Taxi president
Michael Laskow on Dec 8th, 2018. “10 Mistakes Songwriters Make.” I made 14 pages of notes on this video
and I encourage you to watch it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b7e40GkgzH8
I don’t think I will be able to fit all the useful information that I gleaned from this video into one article.
“Mistake Number One; Not Knowing What You’re Writing About.” This is a mistake I’ve made and on more than
one occasion. I have several songs that I’ve shelved because of this mistake. It often begins with an inspired
idea or a couple of promising lines and pretty soon you’ve written verse one. It’s at this point (verse 2) that you
should stop and ask what your theme is. Ms Frederick says, “Don’t ask your listeners to work.” “Listeners are
there to feel. They are there for the emotional ride.” Mr Laskow remembers a lady chastising him for a poorly
written listing, “Communication is not the responsibility of the listener. It’s the responsibility of the person communicating.
” Ms Frederick suggests you interview yourself. Ask yourself what is this song about? Interview your co-writer so as to
gain insight. This inevitably leads to the other common mistake songwriters make and that is verse two should really be
verse one. Here Laskow interjects and says Ms Frederick has taken some of the gems used in writing prose and applied
them to songwriting. The dicussion talks about how all of the arts disciplines overlap. Ms Frederick says that when you
are writing, ”To imagine the listener is in the room with you, imagine you are talking to strangers.” This is advice I need
to take to heart as I’ve never considered who my audience is. I’m so busy getting the song out of my system as fast as
possible. This seems like I would be taking my songwriting to another level.
Mistake Number Two; Cramming Two or Three Songs into One Song. I’ve made this mistake too. It’s closely related
to Mistake Number One. Sometimes “less is better.” However, if you know what your theme is “don’t skim the surface,
you need to go deep.” Some genres require lots of detail. Country music is one of those genres. Ms Frederick gives the
example of a Russell Dickerson song “Blue Tacoma.” It’s a four chord song that digs deep into the details of the ride in his car.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nlKXBPt-6Z8
“Wheels rolling on an old Toyota
Twist top on a Sunkist soda
Your brown hair in the West Coast wind
If heaven is anywhere
90's hits at the top of our lungs”
Another country song mentioned is “I Drive Your Truck” by Lee Brice. This song is full of images and has a story to tell.
It’s about a guy driving his brother’s truck but we don’t find out until the end that his brother has been killed in war.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WNKIKMxums
“Eighty-Nine cents in the ash tray,
Half empty bottle of Gatorade rolling in the floorboard,
That dirty Braves cap on the dash,
Dog tags hangin’ from the rear view,
Old Skoal can, and cowboy boots and a Go Army Shirt folded in the back,
This thing burns gas like crazy, but that’s alright,
People got their ways of coping,
Oh, and I’ve got mine”
We are reminded that songs with this much detail and plot would not get used in film or television as they would
interfere with the show’s real plot. We are, also, reminded that Ms Frederick has written “Shortcuts to Songwriting
for Film & TV” Considered by many to be the holy grail on the subject.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0982004028/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i2
Mistake Number Three; Telling Not Showing
“Comparing emotions to something else.” Example, “When we get together we’re like gasoline and matches.”
From the song “Gasoline and Matches by LeAnn Rimes and Rob Thomas.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUHEhgtOtco
Here is the explanation. If I say, “I love you a whole lot,” we allow the listener to divert. We have to show them
where to go. Ms Frederick calls this one a measuring stick, “I’d cross an ocean for you.” From songwriter Philip
Philips, “When you fall like a statue I'm gon' be there to catch you.” From the song “Gone Gone Gone.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SL8VCJsHI4A Or this one “I will march down an empty street like a ship into
the storm.” From the song “Start A Riot” by Banners.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i5BDB3pxRg
What Ms Frederick advises is to compare “how much I love you” to an image or something physical.
I will continue examining this video next month. Do follow the links. I’ll see you next year.
ISG Bulletin Board
Meeting space graciously provided by Central Florida Musicians Association,
Local 389. You are invited to join the largest union in the world, representing the
interests of the professional musician. Visit their website at afm389.org for more
information. You may reach them by phone at: 407-894-8666.
Why isn't your gig announced here? Members in good standing
call SusieCool with your appearance schedule! 407-760-2153
If you are interested in open mics in the Central Florida area, SusieCool has compiled a list.
https://sites.google.com/site/susiecoolsongs/Home/open-mic-directory-central-florida
If you want to join us at the Central Florida Folk song circle, please show up at
Bikes, Beans and Bordeaux at 3022 Corrine Drive on the last Wednesday of each month
from 6 to 8:30/9pm. The BBB has many delicious items on their menu, and also some vegetarian stuff.
They also serve beer and wine. They have a Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/Central-Florida-Folk-Song-Circle-139385302761066/
On January 16th we have a playing circle with the Fingerstyle Guitar Group
in the Community room of the winter Park Library.460 E. New England Ave. Winter Park,
FL 32789. 6 to 8:30pm. The event usually takes place on 3rd Wednesdays, but sometimes
2nd Wednesdays. Songwriters are welcome, but we do try to play our fingerstyle
songs and not use picks. There is more info on the facebook group page.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/228147620559285/?fref=nf
SusieCool is the admin for a Facebook group called "Orlando Creative Music Network"
where we give out info on songwriter meetings, playing circles, open mics, workshops and concerts.
We have a Facebook page for this group if you want to join.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/274152179716552/
Current members please send us your website info if you would like your site to be
listed in the ISG members page.
https://sites.google.com/site/isgsusiecool/home/links-and-recommended-reading/member-websites
No Critique for December 2018 (We had a great jam circle though for the party).
New members always welcome!
© 2019 ISG