The increased effectiveness that results when two or more work together

Ever think of Co-writing?
Let’s suppose you’ve done everything right— you’ve studied, you’ve listened, analyzed and written and written and written. But your lyrics still sound like essays, or your music is unexciting, unemotional and dull. Maybe it’s time to face the fact that you need a collaborator.

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Take a tip from great teams such as Rodgers and Hammerstein, Lerner and Loewe, or Lennon and McCartney.

It’s better to be half, or even a third, of a team that really flies than to insist on doing it all yourself and never get off the ground.

The Chicken or the Egg?
When we co-write, which comes first, the music or the lyrics? You have to find out what works for you. Some composers don’t like to be handed a completed lyric because it squeezes them into a preset metric and rhythmic mold. Some prefer it, asking the lyricist to make minor changes later to fit the tune, if necessary. Or, vice versa.

Learn from the Masters
Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe, co-writers of the great musicals My Fair Lady, Camelot, Gigiand others, wrote together in various ways. Sometimes they would sit together and develop the music and lyrics a line at a time, but usually Loewe wrote the melodies first. They would agree on the message and mood and usually the hook or title line. Then Loewe would sit at the piano in his baggy underwear (according to Lerner) and experiment with the song until he hit on something they both felt was right. When the melody was complete Lerner would write the lyrics.

Does this belittle or compromise the integrity of the lyricist? Not at all. It proves his craftsmanship.

Tools of the Trade
The co-writer’s most important tools are diplomacy, good manners, compassion… and a thick skin. You can be stubborn and have a second-rate song, or you can be cooperative and have a better one.

Some people find this hard to do. We know of one married couple who wrote one song together—a great song. One of them continued through the years to write many great songs, but they never wrote together again. When asked why, their answer is, “We decided to stay married.”

We’ve never had that problem—well, to be honest—not much. We started writing together almost by accident. Jimmy was writing a song, got hung up on the lyrics, and asked Carol for help. So we went to work and discovered we enjoyed writing together. Neither of us could have done most of the things we’ve done without the other.


Free-For-All Songwriting?

Sometimes it’s easier to settle differences of opinion when you have three writers instead of only two. There is no rule that says a collaboration has to be limited to two or three writers.

Here’s a fun experiment: get several talented people together—maybe a band or even a class. Some may be better at lyrics, others at music. Agree on a topic, an idea, then brainstorm together.

Begin clustering. Assign one person to write on a board all the concepts that are presented and someone else to play musical ideas as they arise. Don’t throw any away yet. Anybody can throw in ideas without fear of criticism. It’s amazing how “iron sharpens iron” and creativity begets creativity. Ideas begin to spark ideas. Set a groove. Develop a chord progression. Find a motif and develop it into a melody. Let words and music grow together simultaneously. Suggest better words, ideas, chords, hooks, keep improving. See where this takes you. Someone must be the final arbiter, or maybe you can arrive at the finished version democratically. We’ve done this, and it’s lots of fun and sometimes has produced good songs.

Written by : Jimmy & Carol Owens

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