Casey Hurowitz

[stevelane]

Hi CaseyI think its great you had taken the time (your own time as well) to help me try and get to know the understanding of song writing. Its people like you that makes me want to join TAXI whether I'm good enough for submissions or not. I love all the critics you put in the post you sent to me. I don't care how good or bad they are in fact I want the bad critics because there the ones I need to be working on. Just a note to another good TAXI memberFromSteve

[Casey H]

Your welcome Steve, my pleasure... You made my day... BTW, there is no "bad"... There are just things we need to learn, myself included. You took the most important step by putting your music out there to get feedback. So, pat yourself on the back... Last night I sent one of my songs to another taxi member, one who is a much more experienced songwriter than me, for feedback. He took a lot of time to give me a very detailed critique, one that was very helpful. (You know who you are and THANKS! )... That's what makes this place so very special.Most of us here are "pay it forward" people. I've mentioned this once of twice before, but when I started, I took a bunch of songs to a producer ("DK") to get demo'd. I didn't even know what a hook or a rhyming pattern was. Many songs had no choruses and/or lyrics that were way too vague- it wasn't the 60's anymore when we were all so stoned we could write "I am the egg-man". DK took the time to teach me and work with me on the songs. What might be my best song today, "What a World", had NO CHORUS when I first presented it! I had this silly tag at the end with the words "what a world" and some chord changes. He immediately said, "that is your chorus!" I will be grateful forever for that...Many of us here take as much pleasure in helping others as in being helped... So your post really made it all worthwhile for me...Thanks again...All the best,Casey

[stevelane]

I put the post here because you deserved to have it here.If I am ever to get any were with my music\lyrics or even songsit will be here, along with people like your self helping me. And who knows maybe one day I can help others in the same way.And be able to say I had good teachers.I am only new to joining these forums but have have scanned them a fair few times over the last 2 years or so.I need to learn we all need to learn even the best are still learning.I am not a good critic and my motto will be if i do critic some oneIts a good song but i don't know whats wrong with it!If i can't get my own lyrics rite then i cannot critic other's lyrics.Thanx Casey and I am glad you liked you post for today.Check your mail I have re-done a newer version.SteveP:s I think I broke the spell-checker

[Casey H]

SteveThis is generic advice for songwriting novices (and not-so-novices) so I figured I'd put it up here in case some other people are helped by it.You should probably get some books on songwriting and lyric writing by authors such as John Braheny (The Craft and Business of Songwriting), Jason Blume (6 Steps to Songwriting Success), Pat Patterson (Writing Better Lyrics), etc. You get a lot of tips on melody making, variations in your sections, making your chorus stand out, effective lyrics, etc. Many good books like these are recommended on this forum, just do a search on "books" going back over the past few months. Also, I bet Vikki (hummingbird) will pop in with some book suggestions.I know you live in Europe, but the Road Rally has something to offer everyone from the novice to the more experienced. You can sit in sessions with the above experts and authors- I went to a great one by Jason Blume on melody writing and there were others by gurus on lyrics, making the first 30 seconds of your song stand out, etc, etc. You also would get a one-on-one mentor meeting with an industry pro. Don't worry about the quality of your recordings at first. Just write and get the ideas recorded. This will allow you to get feedback on the songs themselves before you invest in any demos. Casey