JPF Home Page Forums Lyric and MP3 Feedback Creative Challenge Forum Challenge: Write Lyrics to a Melody

.................it's on REPEAT for the afternoon ............................

This one is so sad...

Calvin Stewart - "A Strange Form of Art"

Calvin is just so sentimental.

Thanks Joice! Glad you like it...the lyrics are what's hot.

Is that me giving the Magnum in that photo?

Ha could very welll be !!

you are so talented!!! and versatile.......
shoot .... I have to pause it to go listen to Calvins !!!!

HAAAAA

What a RIOT !!!!!!!! LOL LOL .... you two !!!

you made my day Totally entertaining -- Love this music stuff !

Hi Mark,/Joice,

Hey, you're both cool.
Very smooth playing & singing Mark & Joice, your lyrics are quite beautiful.
Now I'm so excited, I'm going to go listen to mine, oh boy it's Christmas time, thank you ahead of time Mark !!

Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

ha, you're way too cool man, now I'm smiling for a long time, thank you so much for the very cool work you've done here.
This may be the best song I've ever written, it's certainly the most beautiful :-)

What you did with the pocket/socket thing alone is worth the price of admission, ha ha ha.

ha ha ha, still smiling.
Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

This is just too much! Going from JM's to Calvin, I think I gave myself whiplash! Wonderful lyrics JM, very hot. And Calvin, what can I say, you are one of a kind. Way cool vocals Mark, on both of them. You are THE MAN!!!

Ricki

Hope I'm not too late to try...

Someone Just Like You

Someone just like you once stole my heart when I was barely seventeen
I bought her an ice cream at the Dairy Queen I still can see the scene
Her friends and her all in short dresses
Later on her soft caresses
The woman of my dreams

Someone just like you became my wife on a windy summer day
Standing there before our family and friends we swore we’d find a way
To each be true to one another
Vowed we’d be eternal lovers
And never go astray

I have never doubted where my love was made
Though the hand of fate has scattered all our dreams
I’ve cried as I’ve watched your fire slowly fade
But I never second-guessed the choice of you for me

Someone just like you once lived in there behind those silent empty stares
But for all the years of happiness and love I send up thankful prayers
Cuz my life with her down here together
Was rehearsal for forever
Goodbye my love, take care

Ah there we are, classic AABA.

Too late? Nahh, this is too fun. I'll just keep checking the thread until one day when maybe I'll finally cry uncle. Until then, write away!

Mark can you hear me laughing... you're only in Minneapolis and I'm laughing out loud in Pennsylvania so you should be able to!! Calvin you are too much but thank goodness!

I don't know how you were able to sing this without losing complete control. You even added that sinister laugh at 2:57 which some folks might miss if they don't have the volume enough.
You and Calvin teamed up on this one meant trouble from the start. I think if you played this one out on the town the audience would go crazy. It's even funnier because the melody's genre is the complete opposite of a uptempo novelty type melody and so it makes the lyrics seem even more outrageous.

Thank you for a hearty laugh this fine Tuesday evening!!

Joice your lyrics are a perfect fit both rhythmically and moodwise. Especially loved this..."and when the band stops playing we'll keep swaying, I know what your eyes are saying". This is all so much fun to hear the different perspectives and I am loving Mark's "smokey lounge" vocals. What a treat this thread has turned out to be.

Like I said, Lynn, it's wrong on every level.

But don't fear Calvin! He was sent here to observe us.

Thanks for not saying Bill Murray vocals.

Oh oh, now there's another idea...

THanks LyNN
Aren't those two a HooT -- I can't listen to it and NOT laugh !!!!

and yeah - who would have thoughT Mark has ALL these great persona traits to Sing with !!!!!

There's TALenT on These Boards !!! all over the place!

Joice and Mark. Wow !!!

This is cool Calvin!

Hey Mark, Jazz is out of the box for me but I like to atleast give everything a shot. My lyrics are usually a folk country.

As I only write lyrics, I tend to try to make the words do it all, not allowing for the music breaks because the melody is all I have in my head. I tried "bluesy" once, it was pretty much a flop I think so don't know if I'll try rewrite because I'm not sure how.

This is new to me so I wrote it really simple.I've never tried to write to music, so it was a great exercise for me.

Thanks for the opportunity,
Geneva


You Are On MY Mind


Verse 1
You are on my mind,
The smell of Autumn,
The rustle of the leaves,
When the wind blows,
The crispness of the air,
Reminds me of a time.

Chorus
When we vowed to care for each other,
Back when you and I were lovers,
Those memories, so sweet.

Verse 2
You are on my mind,
When mist is falling,
Or frost lay on the ground,
Sunlight warming,
A foggy Autumn morn,
Reminds me of a time.

Chorus
When we vowed to care for each other,
Back when you and I were lovers,
Those memories, so sweet.

Break

Bridge
You come back to me on this October morn,
I can feel your cool breath blowing on my face,
You'll be with me up until Novembers gone,
Then you'll gently start to fade away, again.

Verse 3
You are on my mind,
How it once was,
My daydream memories,
Of a young love,
When Autumns in the air,
Reminds me of a time.

Chorus
When we vowed to care for each other,
Back when you and I were lovers,
Those memories, so sweet.

Cranking out some more today. Here's Beth G. Williams' "Judgment Call":

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7539583

OMG Mark,

This is a HOOT!!!! SO fun to see the versatility of this music...and the order in which you're producing them is creating quite the dramatic juxtaposition!

I wasn't sure what kind of a spin you would put on it -- even though I knew the music. But (no surprise) it was GREAT -- how do you sing so well with your tongue planted so firmly in cheek!!??

ANYHOO, thanks a BUNCH! I really didn't know if it was worth doing (like I said before, I'm I WAS a virgin in this territory )...but I'm simply delighted you took me along for the ride.

VERY VERY FUN!!

Gotta scoot, P/T here soon!!!

xoxoxoxo,
Beth

And here's Greg Swartzentruber's "Someone Just Like You":

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7539709

You're welcome Beth! "Worth doing"? Sure it is. I posted this as a challenge, but what I REALLY hope is that it simply reveals things to writers about applying lyrics to music, and the very different results that can happen based on our lyrical choices. Not just subject matter, but the ordering of our words, the natural rhythms and weights of the phrases. As people listen to these, I hope they're hearing subtle but crucial differences in how the phrasing changes everything.

When we write a lyric--knowing it's meant to be music, not poetry...and heard, not read--we have to be keenly aware of the rhythm of the words. I'm hoping that hearing all these different approaches will lead to some discoveries that will be remembered when we put pen to paper. At the same time we're writing, we need to be "listening" in our imagination.

Thanks Mark! Awesome job! I must admit though that Calvin's does have a certain deliciousness to it... This is fun! (AND enlightening)

You're welcome Greg! All of these different lyrics have a lot of great things going on. I love the story in yours, how the situation gradually explains itself, and how it grabs us in the end. Nice write!

Hi Beth,

Nice work here.

Calvin

*******************************
Hi Greg,

yes I love this part especially...

Cuz my life with her down here together
Was rehearsal for forever
Goodbye my love, take care

good job.

Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

Wow! To all the great lyricists here that I have the pleasure of knowing, a big 3 thumbs up! And to that versatile singer/musician/composer, you amaze and impress me to no end.

I've just now had a chance to sit here and listen to all these wonderful songs one after the other. The most enjoyable half hour I've spent in a long time.

All of you, take a bow!

Greg

Greg, you've gotta be sick of this song by now!

But after all those listens, maybe the general melody is easier to remember? I really liked your lyric, but couldn't make it fit the tune. If you ever give a shot at a rewrite, I'll sing it...

Thanks for all the nice comments, Randy. This challenge is meant as a bridge of sorts. I think it's important for anyone who wants to write songs to get closely acquainted with all the different aspects of the process, whether they do them or not. In other words, if you only compose, you should still familiarize yourself with the process of writing lyrics. If you only write lyrics, you should learn all you can about the nature of melody and rhythm and chords. If you write songs and perform them, you should get to know what a recording engineer goes through, what mastering is, what compression means. It could go on and on...but I always found it interesting how different specialists view the other specialists...and the more we know about each other, the easier it gets to communicate and collaborate, and write even better songs together.

Mark,
you are surely correct. All 4 of these are wonderful in their own way.

Good idea,
John

NEWSFLASH...THIS JUST IN......BREAKING NEWS........

Hi Mark, just wanted to let you know that Wendy and I are getting closer to the finished product so please leave the gate open and the light on. Thank you.

Best of intentions,
Lynn

No worries Lynn, no plans for a locked thread here. And Nightengale, I haven't forgotten you, just can't record until Tuesday.

Aw man, do I HAVE to wear that red cap? I hate wearing baseball hats... Yep...

Hi Mark

Here’s my stab. I had this idea immediately but as ever it took a lot of spade work to get anything resembling a song. And anyone that follows my posts will know that a stand alone lyric from me is a rare as rocking horse poo

I envisaged a sort of quirkier Cole porter or Johnny Mercer type thing. Thanks for putting the melody up (and such a good one too) as it gives so many an opportunity to have a crack at it.

Anyway here goes:

Cheers

Nige

edited to include audio link

Blue Blue
© 2009 Words by Nigel Quin

On this starry night
We are together, falling hopeless you and I
In a heaven, so hopeless you and I
I look into your eyes

And on this starry night
You told me
Of a color just for you
That's when I replied
Blue Blue


I met you at the dance
And when you looked up, never thought you saw my glance
All alone with, my embarrassed looking stance
I turned and slid away

I walked up to the bar
You joined me
Is this dream or is this true?
While the lights spun round
Blue Blue

Break

Yesterday I wandered to the local fair
And went riding on the love train all alone
But now I taste your lips and smell your perfumed hair
(I) Guess the fortuneteller didn't know, oh no


On the avenue
The roses blooming, with the taste of morning dew
Love is looming, special thoughts of me and you
Just dreaming of your eyes

And on this avenue
My old home
Is now looking fine and new
Petals everywhere
Blue Blue

Great idea Mark. I have started working on one. Be curious to see what comes out.

Douglas

Cool, Nige!

Look forward to yours too, Douglas.

Guess I'll have another busy Tuesday...gotta finish Catwalk Candy and Linda Lou too!

If you spent less time with these women you might get more songs done!

HI MARK

Here's a Girl version :-) of Morning Comes...

http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7553448

!!!

Can't listen here at work! D'OH!

Look forward to hearing it tonight.

Hi Joice/Mark,

LOVE IT !

Cool vibe !

Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

+1 Joice! I was hoping I'd hear someone sing that female version.

Joice,
that's beautiful.

have fun,
John

Here are three more:

Nigel Quin's "Blue Blue": http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7575770

Nightengale's "You Are On My Mind": http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7575785

...and Spidey's "Christmas Eve (I've You)": http://soundclick.com/share?songid=7575795

And with that, I am officially tired of singing this! Look forward to hearing any other versions...I hear Wendy has one ready, but I don't see it yet. I will hunt.

Hope you all enjoyed, learned, whatever. This was a blast for me.

-Mark

UPDATE UPDATE UPDATE..............

We do have one coming still Mark but we wanted it "just right" as Goldiloch's would say, so it will be soon and may I say it is "Wendy Wonderful"!!! You won't be disappointed (I promise!) and your voice will get a break as well.

Do I hear a drum roll..............

Hi Mark

What a star you are!! I am so thrilled to hear this, as you can imagine it’s a rare treat for me to be the lyricist. Your vocal is excellent.

I would like to give you a really big thank you for doing this for everyone. As someone who records myself I know how much time and effort is required. So if there are gold stars to be had, you've got one from me!

Well done and thanks

Nige

Hi Mark,

Well, I just listened to your last 3 .
Excellent work !

Nigel/Nightengale/Spidey, I enjoyed your lyrics put to this beautiful piece of music.

This whole challenge has been a great time for me, hope everyone has enjoyed it as much as I have.

Hats off to *Mark Kaufman* for being such a nice guy !!

Calvin


http://www.soundclick.com/bands/0/calvinstewart

Hi Mark,

Thanks for the challenge, its been great. And thanks for posting up all the versions of the songs

Cheers

Alan

WOW Mark!!
What an awesome artist you are!
Such an incredible job with all these songs,
Loved every one of them. I can imagine the time
commitment you put out on us. I did learn alot from
this challange never writing to music before.

Thank You, Thank You, for doing mine too (being such
a new writer) along with the amazingly talented lyricists
on this site.

I am blown away, Can't Thank You enough, WOW!
Geneva