I’d like to write a bit about how to get going on a song when we start with the title. The online course Lyric Writing: Writing from the Title explores many wonderful tools for developing a song from just the title. I’ll highlight some of those tools here and suggest some ways to apply them to your songwriting.
When we start with the title, we are starting with the main message. The title typically falls in the chorus, is usually in the power positions of the first, last, and even the middle line of the chorus section, and may be repeated several times. Titles that are sensory, meaning they involve a specific image such as when a noun and verb are combined, can sometimes be easier to develop into a song than titles that are more general. An example of this is the song ’On a Bus to St. Cloud Minnesota,’ or ‘My Front Porch Looking In.’ These can bring to mind more specific ideas than titles like ‘I’ve Been Missing You,’ ‘Try,’ or ‘Someday, Maybe Someday.’ These titles can feel so general, that it’s difficult to hone in on a specific angle from which to write the song. So when we are dealing with a title that is not sensory, it can be helpful to choose a specific situation or location from which to write. Try taking a look at some of your favorite songs and asking yourself if the title is sensory or general. Learn from how the lyric develops as a result of what kind of title the song uses.
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One great exercise to push our lyric writing into more interesting places is to create an outline. Describing what happens in each section of the song beginning with the first verse, chorus, second verse, chorus, bridge, and finally the last chorus, forces us to run into challenges that we typically run into when we are actually writing the song. We have to determine what we will say in verse one and make sure it doesn’t trespass on the message of the course. We have to make a decision about what to say in verse two that pushes the song forward or gives it more weight.
One of my favorite tools for giving a second verse definition from the first verse is to use recoloration. Relocation is when we interpret the title in the new way as the song progresses, giving the listener a new and additional perspective. We can emphasize a different word in the title and give the title that new message. For instance, in the title ‘Missing You Now,’ we could emphasize that I’m MISSING you now. Later on in the song, we could explain more about the fact that I’m missing YOU now. Perhaps I wasn’t missing you before, or maybe I was even missing ME. Another possibility is to emphasize the word NOW. In this case, maybe there is a distinction between verse one and verse two, that in verse one I wasn’t missing you but in verse two suddenly I AM missing you. Emphasizing different words in the title helps us to see additional meanings.
Finally, I like to try seeing the same song as a verse/refrain as well as a verse/chorus song form. Changing the form helps me to see more options. Changing the tempo recasts the song message in a new way. Suddenly a title that seemed perky or aggressive loses its punch or force when slowed down. The change in tempo casts a completely different light on the title’s meaning and helps me to brainstorm.
When we have a great title, we have perhaps the most important part of the song. We have the seed of the chorus. For more exercises and insight into writing from the title, come check out the online course Lyric Writing: Writing from the Title. I look forward to seeing you there.
Happy writing
Andrea Stolpe
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