Lyric sheet question

[nomiyah]

Do song screeners (Taxi or other) prefer to have the full lyrics completely written out? Or do they prefer to have it shorter and simpler by abbreviating repeating choruses?Do they like to have the name of the parts (verse 1, chorus, verse 2, etc) included or just define the parts the way they hear it?Do they like notes like genre, target artist or synapsis of the story?Should I include background vocal lyrics (if different) and should I put them in italics or parentheses?Probably different screeners have different preferences but I thought there might be some standards. Any thoughts?Nomi

[toolowd]

Nomi - Not sure about most of your questions, but if you are using broadjam to submit your songs then you can fill in all of the metadata like genre, target artist, story synopsis when you upload your song. I think that info is visible to screeners. If you are using regular mail then I'm not sure if they'd want all of that included or not. As for finding out for certain what they like to see hopefully one of the site administrators will read your question and respond with actual screener preferences. This would be good information for all of us to know. -Dan

[matto]

Quote:Do song screeners (Taxi or other) prefer to have the full lyrics completely written out? Or do they prefer to have it shorter and simpler by abbreviating repeating choruses?Do they like to have the name of the parts (verse 1, chorus, verse 2, etc) included or just define the parts the way they hear it?Do they like notes like genre, target artist or synapsis of the story?Should I include background vocal lyrics (if different) and should I put them in italics or parentheses?Probably different screeners have different preferences but I thought there might be some standards. Any thoughts?NomiI can only tell you what I do...nobody's ever complained...-Unless the lyrics of the chorus change, I just put "Repeat Chorus" the second and any consecutive times the chorus appears.-I always identify the various sections, and always separate them by double spacing and sometimes a different indent, so the structure of the song is immediately apparent. Of course it should also be immediately apparent on a first listen. If your "chorus" doesn't sound like a chorus, writing "chorus" in front of it isn't gonna get the song forwarded... -I never put any extraneous info on the lyric sheet, other than writers' names and a contact phone number and email.If I pitch music directly to a music library or publisher, any genre information would go in the cover letter.-I only put bg vox lyrics (in parentheses) if they are really prominent and add a new element that's not present in the lead vox lyric.None of this is really gonna make the difference between forward and return in Taxi's case...and for other professional screening situations, I think people will be quite happy as long as it's a typed lyric with the individual sections at least separated from one another, the name of the writer(s) and a contact phone/email. Always put the contact info, as your lyric sheet and CD may get separated.matto

[nomiyah]

Thanks for the advice.I realize the lyric sheet is not a deciding factor but it came up the other day when I was invited to a song screening session with Brian Rawlings (president of Disney Publishing).I completely wrote out the choruses and it was a page and a half. I noticed that Brian skimmed over the lyrics but never turned to page 2.I know it didn't influence his impression of the song, but I am always looking to improve. That got me started thinking I should make it as simple and short as possible for screeners.When a non industry person reads my lyrics, I like to have the chorus written out each time because then they read along with it as it is being sung. But it's different for a screening. I appreciate your input, thanks.Nomi

[Casey H]

Hi Nomi with the nice legs Speaking about non-TAXI submissions to publishers and other music industry folks:Early on I used to submit lyrics with all my submissions. I found it to be a double-edged sword. Some publishers will quickly read the lyrics and if they don't like something, won't even listen. I believe, unless they truly are horrible, that you can't review lyrics outside the context of music (JMHO). So I stopped sending lyrics unless they were indicated as a submission requirement. However (the other side of the sword) if you send lyrics you may have made the publisher's life easier and if there is something special in them, you may get an edge.Yes, if you send lyrics, you should clearly indicate the sections and I see no reason not to use "Repeat Chorus", especially if you have made it clear what the chorus is. As Matto said, if a listener can't determine the chorus within about a minute into the song, it will get rejected no matter what.PS I did some work as a publisher/placement agent myself and always asked for lyrics. I often didn't read them. I wanted them so if someone was interested in the song, I didn't have to go chase the writer down. (i.e. Made my life easier)Good luck! Casey

[nomiyah]

Casey,I can see what you mean. If I was on that side of the industry, I think I'd listen first and if I liked the song I'd read the lyrics afterwards.Nomi(Ps, thanks for the compliment )

[horacejesse]

What about labels on the CD's? Should one just write the information directly onto the CD or is it preferable to have stick-on labels?

[matto]

Quote:What about labels on the CD's? Should one just write the information directly onto the CD or is it preferable to have stick-on labels?Printed stick-on CD labels. No handwriting directly on the CD or label, looks sloppy and unprofessional.

[horacejesse]

Thanks, Matto, for that reply.I was thinking about highlighting my choruses in red. Do the copying machines Taxi utilizes preserve color?

[hookstownbrown]

I don't know about NY or LA, but in Nashville it goes like this... This info pertains to any music exec, not just publishers.The majority opinion is to write out the choruses and avoid using "Repeat". Parentheses are ok for backing vocals but desirable if they are different from the lead vocal. Label the sections - Highlighting is not necessary. Provide your contact info. Other than that, keep it simple.Many publishers will just read a lyric sheet, looking for keys simply because that is their process. It's either their chosen way of doing things or they have inside info on what they can pitch. If they like the lyric as it reads, they will listen further.Some publishers want a lyric sheet, others don't. On a second or third listen in their office, though, they may change that approach, so, unless they insist, include a lyric sheet and let them throw it away if they choose to.On the cd, a printed label is a must - with your contact info - without any distracting mumbo jumbo. Never hand-write lyric sheets or scribble on cd's. Hand written anything is a luxury that comes only with the "staff writer" tag. Even then, I wouldn't present my song that way. Staff writers themselves, are constantly competing for their publisher's attention.Publishers are people... Very busy people, but they are also consumers. And the proven way to attract a consumer is through smart packaging.