Creating Lyrics that Have a Natural Flow

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: If you want lyrics to sound natural, you need to sing them with the natural pulses that occur in spoken language. For songwriters, you need to match up the natural pulse of the lyric with the natural flow of your music. It may not be […]

The 2009 BET Awards Show Honours Michael Jackson

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: The 2009 BET (Black Entertainment Television) Awards were handed out last night in Los Angeles. The show was completely refashioned as a Michael Jackson homage, complete with wardrobe and musical tributes to the King of Pop. Probably the most surprising aspect of the spectacle was […]

The Life and Death of Michael Jackson – Why Do We Care So Much?

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website Anytime the name Michael Jackson hits the news, it has a way of pushing everything else completely into the background. And the news of his untimely death did more than push other news back. It completely shocked generations of people, from those who weren’t even […]

If You Want Your Song to Sell, Your Melody Needs Shape

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: Many songwriters start the writing process by coming up with a chord progression, and then try to create a melody that works with it. The problem with this approach can be that the melody lacks shape, as the importance is placed on the progression first. […]

Seven Great Progressions to Get Your Summer Writing Underway

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website Check out “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” 6 e-book bundle. And start writing the songs you’ve always known you could write! ______________________ Summer is a great time to write songs. Especially for those of us in the northern hemisphere, we get out of the house […]

Is "With a Little Help From My Friends" the Perfect Song?

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: I believe the best songwriters in the world are the best listeners. You can spend a lot of time trying to come up with the next gem, but it’s the ones who really listen to successful songs, trying to figure out why they work, that […]