Chords and Speed

by Gary Ewer All it takes is one glitch with your chord progression, and your song can die the death. And one aspect of harmonizing your song that isn’t considered enough is the song’s tempo. Here’s how that works. In short, here’s the basic rule: the faster your song, the fewer chords it needs. And […]

Let Me Introduce My Song

by Gary Ewer. The ideas in these blog articles are the sorts of ideas you’ll find in Gary Ewer’s Songwriting e-books: A favourite pet peeve of mine is the mindless sort of one-chord intro that gets stuck onto the front end of an otherwise pretty good tune. Your song deserves better. If you’ve got the imagination to create […]

The Psychology of the Melody

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: For most songs, melodies are what we use to convey our lyrics. And it’s important to realize that in general, the kind of melody we write for use as a chorus will not be the same as what we’d write for a verse. There’s psychology that […]

Writer's Block: When You Just Can't Write Good No More

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website:   Writer’s Block: When You Just Can’t Write Good No More Every songwriter suffers from it from time to time. The ideas just don’t happen. And even when they do, you don’t know what to do with them. Writer’s block is curable if you really […]

The Descending-by-Thirds Chord Progression

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website: There’s nothing random about a good chord progression. Starting on any chord, descending by 3rds will give you a great one to try. Let’s use the key of A major as our example. Starting on the tonic chord (A), then allowing the progression to descend […]

Lady GaGa- Colby O'Donis' "Just Dance" – Why it Works

by Gary Ewer, from “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” website. Let “The Essential Secrets of Songwriting” turn your songs into hits! _________________________ Ever been on a roller coaster? It’s not about the scenery. It’s about the excitement. “Just Dance” is all about the energy of the ride, and if you’re looking for something profound, it ain’t […]