A summary of Tunesmith by Jimmy Webb

for the Essentials In Songwriting Certificate Course with Dan Wilt

Those pursuing the art of songwriting would do well to pick up Tunesmith by Jimmy Webb, a seasoned songwriter with a wealth of insight and knowledge. Weaving stories and personal anecdotes with vital technical and experiential advice as well as giving examples of well-written (or poorly-written) lyrics, Webb has created a valuable resource for even the most novice of beginners, like me. Webb also chronicles the history of modern songwriting and gives an inside view of what it was like in the early days contrasted with today. I found Tunesmith to be engaging and informative on many levels, discovering many principles within its pages that I began applying immediately.

He begins by talking about where songs come from. Webb says, “Song ideas are the most intense longings of the soul and its deepest regrets” [1]. The ideas come from something about which the writer feels passionately (loathing or hating). It will also include a destination which will consume the bulk of the efforts of the songwriter in getting from here to there the best way possible. A good songwriter also stays emotionally connected. “Without being able to expose ourselves to pain – to break down and cry if need be – we won’t have what we need to be songwriters or even human beings. The reverse is true. Without recognizing the good things life has to offer – the priceless gift of the distant laughter of children – we become sour pendants” [2].

Next, Webb moves into what was for me, the most significant part of the whole book. He relates the story of being mentored by Michael Geffen, one of Broadway’s greats. Showing Webb the room he’d be working in, he said, “In this room you can never make a mistake” [3]. At first read, I thought that Geffen was laying down a strict boundary where perfectionism was required. I cringed (which says a lot about the lenses I wear).

What he was really trying to say was that “…there is no crossed-out, blotted word on paper or half-croaked note or stumbling, tripping step toward the songwriter’s goal that is unseemly or shameful…creativity is a blameless process. That to exist at all it must function unselfconsciously and without guilt…The primary ingredient in that tranquility might be to pardon ourselves in advance for any real or imagined inadequacies and approach the work with the attitude that we will see what happens, make the best of it and enjoy the journey” [4].

Moving to the practical aspects of writing a song, he stresses that every song needs a story to tell. That story is told through clear lyrics that make a “meaningful contribution” [5] to the whole of the song. To accomplish this, a songwriter takes the raw materials (ideas) and begins to shape them into a song: “...a magical marriage between a lyric (some words) and a melody (some notes)” [6].

She brainstorms, making lists of words, phrases, feelings to express the idea. He makes use of a thesaurus and a rhyming dictionary (never substituting these for creativity). She studies meter and rhyming schemes, counts syllables and checks verb tenses. He eliminates the “less desirable elements in order to expose the more desirable ones” [8] crafting lyrics that stay true to the song idea and lead to the desired destination.

Webb then traces the evolution of a song called “Problem Child”, personally, the second most helpful part of the book. He takes the song from the idea stage and the brainstorming process through the editing and re-write phase to the “finished” product. He explains the reasoning behind changes and points out the ways to make good lyrics better.

The next section of Tunesmith delves into the more technical aspects of song form and musical composition. These chapters hold a wealth of information covering music history and music theory. Webb delivers the information in an easy, conversational tone that makes it understandable and makes me want to go back and study these chapters more in depth when I can absorb more of this useful instruction.

Webb also interviews several songwriters regarding collaboration. Marilyn Bergman who collaborates with her husband says, “The most important elements are trust, respect and willingness to sound stupid. Sometimes a silly idea when put forward by one of us will trigger a really good idea from the other…” [9]. “The major impediment to collaboration is fear, “says Barry Mann who also collaborates with his spouse. “Every collaboration begins with this sense of unwillingness to reveal ourselves as in Oh my god, he’s gonna find out, he’s gonna know I’m a fake, that I don’t know what I’m doing” [10]. Isn’t that the truth! Collaboration requires a good deal of patience and forbearance and the ability to push past the uncomfortable emotions in order to be vulnerable and lay out ideas in front of another human being with a different perspective.

In the final section, Webb explains how the music industry works (or did at the writing of this book). He notes the various challenges facing the modern day songwriter. The advent of the singer/songwriter, MTV, and top 40 radio narrowed the playing field considerably. “A person with real songwriting talent would have had a better than average chance of placing a song with a major recording artist in the decade bounded by 1965 on the one hand and 1975 on the other.”

We are so far removed from that day, although YouTube, iTunes, etc. has in some ways made it easier for music of all kinds (the good, the bad, and the really bad) to get play time. Webb seemingly has prophetic insight into what the future held for music: “…eventually, entire record albums or perhaps even first-run feature films will be downloaded to recordable formats by satellite for a fee, which is paid electronically via credit card or some other code” [11].

In closing, Webb encourages songwriters to write. When one finds himself or herself “cowed, sullen and emotionally dead in the water…a violent, arbitrary and radical change of direction is called for” [12]. He goes on to say that “…the infamous ‘writer’s block’ may be nothing more than a stubborn unwillingness to cure ourselves, a psychomasochism caused by our refusal to confront the truth and put it into the air regardless of repercussions” [13]. He tells us to not burn bridges and to not allow bridges to erode from neglect, to remember that songwriting is best done in community. He emphasizes the importance of holding offenses lightly, choosing integrity over the need to seek revenge in a song.

I found Tunesmith to be surprisingly interesting and helpful and will refer back to it again and again. It is another decided gem discovered through the Essential courses.

1 Jimmy Webb, Tunesmith: inside the art of songwriting (New York: Hyperion, 1998), 3.
2 ibid, 17-18.
3 ibid, 21.
4 ibid, 22.
5 ibid, 52.
6 ibid, 70.
7 ibid, 136.
8 ibid, 271.
9 ibid, 296.
10 ibid, 298.
11 ibid, 375.
12 ibid, 395.
13 ibid, 397.

Creativity and Songwriting

for the Essentials Blue In Songwriting Certificate Course with Dan Wilt

I'm in the Certificate Phase of the worship theology courses I've been a part of these last two years, going back through the material and finishing the additional requirements that will earn me a Certificate in Worship Studies. Certainly, just a piece of paper. Most definitely much more than that in terms of growth in depth of understanding of many things related to worship, the passion of my life.

Yesterday I began a dvd series on songwriting for worship titled Worship Songwriting: Embracing Heart and Developing Skill by Brian Doerksen. Doerksen talks about the heart of a songwriter that says "There's got to be more. What I've written up until now is just a glimmer of what is in my heart to write," encouraging us to write, to be willing to take risks, to try anything, to look foolish, and to not fear mistakes.

He references Jimmy Webb who in his book Tunesmith tells of a time when he had been taken under the wing of Broadway master Michael Bennett. Mr. Bennett shows Jimmy the room where he will be composing music and says, "In this room, you can never make a mistake." [1]

At first read, I cringed and thought, "Wow, what a lot of pressure to have to work under, to never be able to make a mistake." But as Jimmy continues, he explains that what was really meant was that "there is no crossed-out, blotted word on paper or half-croaked note or stumbling, tripping step toward the songwriter's goal that is unseemly or shameful...creativity is a blameless process...to exist at all it must function unselfconsciously and without guilt..." [2]

What a relief to hear, and Brian's encouragement to not fear mistakes seems a little more doable in light of there not being anything shameful or unseemly in creative attempts.

Now, creativity will be challenged, even opposed, particularly when it comes to worship songwriting done out of a passion to see God's Kingdom come here on earth as it is in Heaven. There is an opposing kingdom that would seek to destroy the heart of every sincere songwriter and leave it a mangled mess of discouragement, despair, and depression.

That's why it is so important to remember that everything we do out of love and service to God has a part in building for His Kingdom. I can guard my heart and mind with the truth that God delights in my feeble offerings of creativity, whether they be eloquent lines or scribbles of thought, and there is no shame in offering it to God.

Why not write a song today? Scripture says that we are to sing to the Lord a new song (Psalm 33, 96, 98, 144, 149 - to name a few). Go ahead and sing Him a few lines from your heart. Risk a few moments of embarrassment and be willing to look foolish as you reflect the glory of the Lord back to Him in your creative offering.

1 Jimmy Webb, Tunesmith (Hyperion: New York, 1998), 21.
2 Ibid, 22.

Songwriting and a "Blue-Sky Mind"

For the Essentials In Songwriting Online Worship Values Course with Dan Wilt
A few years ago, when I began my journey as an artist, I found that the biggest hindrance to creativity was internal dialog. I would start to create and then stop because it didn't look right, I wasn't talented/gifted/creative enough, who did I think I was anyway...

And I would stop before I had even started.

Somewhere along the way, God revealed to me that I needed to turn away from that voice, press through, and create. Anything. It didn't matter if it was a stick figure. Creating was the point. Not the product.

Dan Wilt calls it "having a blue-sky mind."

I love the image that brings me: a wide-open space, deep blue and beckoning me to enter its depths. It's the process of turning off the internal editor and allowing thoughts and feelings and ideas to flow uninhibited over the pages of my heart, not judging or condemning or assessing. Just being and flowing.

I haven't painted or created much of anything in a while. So as I pick up the songwriting craft in a more purposeful way, I'm going to cultivate a blue-sky mind, expecting creativity to come forth filling the wide open spaces with an abundance of thoughts and ideas to play with, to create from, to explore...

How about you? Join me! Turn off that internal editor. Pull up a blue sky.
Brainstorm.
Dream.
Create!

I'm back...

I've been AWOL for several weeks, and it's taken another Essentials Course (on Songwriting to be exact) to get be back on track with writing here. That, and a friend asked why I hadn't been blogging which made me think that maybe I should be.

After reading back in February about a week-long internet fast that Jennifer @ Conversiondiary.com had done, I was finally pushed to do what I had suspected I needed to do for quite some time: spend less time online.

I took Lent as my starting point and committed to stay off of email and Facebook and severely limit internet access for 7 weeks, with breaks on Mondays and Thursdays to take care of online obligations. As Jennifer recommended, I set boundaries for those breaks: only after 9 p.m. when the kids were in bed and only for 30 minutes to 1 hour. I also allowed myself to briefly look up information during the day, but I tried to make a list of what I needed to do and then do it all at once during the "break days."

Let me just say...those weeks of Lent I found myself much more productive on the home front and much more in tune to the Lord without all of that distracting noise that the internet creates in my life. Instead of escaping to email/facebook/websurfing when things got intense around here, I would find a chore to do, read my Bible some, play guitar, worship, etc.

So, now I'm back online and struggling to find a reasonable rhythm for my internet activity while maintaining the perspective I gained during the fast. It's not easy, but I'm committed to figuring it out and breaking from the internet regularly.

Perhaps tomorrow I'll churn out some thoughts on songwriting and having a "blue sky mind."