Songwriting #101

The way I've been writing is I start w/ an idea on Piano or Guitar and then I write a few lyrics and record a snippet of the melody on my cell phone -- just enough to spark the fuse!

In the past, I would start recording even before I finished with this stage because a) I love the instant gratification of hearing something I made (Duke Ellington understood this), and b) I love the recording process!

Then a little later, Isaac and I run through a little to see what kind of possibilities there might be. We've been recording very rough cuts on my little tape recorder with a condenser mic.

What I'm trying to do this time around is have 10-13 completed songs that I can play on acoustic guitar on and lay down a simple arrangement. Then I can listen to it a few zillion times and see what other ideas might pop into my head.

Ideally I would like to play these live w/ Isaac on drums and maybe even find a bass player.
Then, I want record them very bare bones and deconstruct them (ala Wilco's Yankee Foxtrot Hotel) And put it all back together again into a cohesive unit.

Here is a list of the songs that I have so far. I jotted down a few ideas about them but that doesn't mean there going to turn out that way in the end.

The First Thing - this is in 3/4 and has a slight alt country feel. Maybe not too much. Isaac plays a great beat to this that he came up with himself. He is such an intuitive drummer!

Down - Tommy James meets the Rolling Stones - Iko came up with the retardano at the end.

The Bite - Not sure what to think of this one. I like it but it's in a weird range no what matter key I sing it in. So far there's only two parts but I'm thinking about a third.

Understand in Your Way - This is a pop song that needs some work still, but I like the hook.

Kiss and Run - A play on the not so tamely titled song by Liz Phair on the excellent Exit to Guyville album. I think this one and Down is going to be a standout track!

Just Say the Word - A little piano ditty still in it's embryonic stage.

Numbers Station - An idea more than a song, but I do have a chorus! If you don't know what numbers stations are, Google or Wiki it --they're are a trip!

How Could You Leave a Mess Like This - There's some obvious Plastic Ono Band stuff going on here -- needs more lyrics. And maybe some wine.

She Rocks My World - An old song I never finished, but I think it's worth working it out. Very Beatlely, but I think it will be great if I can manage to play a guitar solo as good as Myracle Brah's Whisper Softly.

So I still need a couple more songs as you can see, but we're well on our way here.