Breaking Down The Songwriting Process
I am kicking off a new segment of my blog which is to discuss prolific songwriters and what makes them so popular. First up, Ashley Gorley has won more than a dozen Songwriter of the Year awards (through different organizations) and written 43 # 1 singles for artists such as Sam Hunt, Luke Bryan, Blake … Continue reading Featured Songwriter: Ashley Gorley
I recently read an interview with Keith Getty, a song-writer most famous for writing the modern hymn In Christ Alone (one of my favorites), and his concern over modern Christian music calling it “utterly dangerous” contributing to the “de-Christianizing of God’s people,” focused on “catharsis” and “cultural relevance”. As someone who believes there are legitimate issues with music … Continue reading Keith Getty’s Problem with Modern Christian Music
Smoking Gun It can be difficult to admit you wrote something, even when you are proud of a piece of work. There is fear that others will disapprove or find it silly. It is even more difficult to share a piece of work you know is bad. This is the case with this song and … Continue reading Nonsensical Babble
The glow of the dawn on the lineThe vast space fading to blueThe fair course hardly definedThe safety of shore out of viewI search to the left and the rightThe sweet water kissing my skinThe powerful gust my delightthis venture that's pulling me inAnd the fear behindFaster than all my caresBetter than anywhereOne with the … Continue reading Floating On Air
This song was definitely inspired by Taylor Swift's album Fearless. Sadly, there is no way I will ever sound like Taylor, but a key image for me was imagining an old building. Think of the scene in The Bourne Identity when Jason uses the dead body to drop down several stories (dark, I know, but … Continue reading Love, Hope, Alone
The Lonely Man One of my favorite songs is Johnny Cash’s version of Sting’s I hung my head. I love the simplicity of the structure and music of the song, the focus is on the story. Of course, everything is made better with Cash’s emotive, gravelly voice. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0M53FcPoWtA I wanted to write a song like … Continue reading Finding Inspiration In Other Artists
Only To Your Phone One of my greatest frustrations with myself is my poor memory. Thinking back to what started the writing process of Only To Your Phone, I have only flashes of memory. Anytime I think of how this song began, these images come to mind. The first image is me sitting on a … Continue reading Drawing From (non)Experience
Sew Me Up I remember the first time I had the idea for this song. One of my sisters is three years older than me. We spent my first year of high school together with her as a senior. We were very close that year. In my memory, we did nearly everything together. She ushered … Continue reading Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone
A few years ago, while on my evening train home to the Chicago suburbs, I listened to a Ted Talk podcast hosted by Guy Raz. The episode told a story about Sting, one of the most prolific song writers and how, one day, he inexplicably lost his power to write. I was riveted by the … Continue reading An Introduction
Thoughts On Lyrics 