JPF Home Page Forums General Messages Songwriter Message Forum Euphoria of the new song

i'd love to hear the feeling you get when you're creating that new song. It's been likened to love, a challenge, a good buzz , etc. Whatever it is it keeps us coming back...what's your feeling when you're in the zone of the creative process?
Sometimes I feel like I'm constantly in it, other times I wish I was...like the guy once said, most of my money I spent on whiskey and wild women...the rest of it I wasted !

So good to see you Moker. I gotta tell you that when I'm writing a lyric or when it's the case of the lyric writing itself, both ways give the same top of the world feeling. I am somewhat lost (in a good way) and to borrow your word in this "zone". Funny I don't think about it ahead of time but when that first stroke of pen or keyboard takes the plunge it starts and for lack of a better word it's a supernatural kind of thing. It is a freeing (is that a word?) oh well energizing feeling like you are letting your soul breathe. I'm not sure if it's the entire write collectively or the rhyming part but it's a high of the best kind!!

I would never compare a new song to love! I do get excited about a new song and I get delusional to the point of thinking that this is the ONE and that everyone is bound to like it.

The I play it along with a couple of others at a writer's night and discover people don't even mention it while praising something else entirely. Or I put it on JPF and get mediocre comments and many suggestions for improvement which often eliminate the bit I thought was so great. And the beat goes on.........

It depends upon the song.
Sometimes it feels like WORK. It's laborious. It's frustrating.
I keep working over the same part, over and over, and it just never feels right and I just can't seem to find the right words or the right chord change. The chorus is missing one little melodic turn, or has one too many notes (but I can't decide which one or, how to get rid of it).

Other times, I'm "in the zone" and it all just comes tumbling out.
I black out, and when I come to, I'm sitting there with a perfect (to me) new song.

Both are very satisfying when I finally get to the end product and I have a new song that I can introduce to the world. No matter how small that world may be.

HiDee BroMoke'!

I've had that "Elation-ship" more-often than Most..heh-heh!

I'm usually "at my best" with a One..or Two-Word Title. (Or so I think.) Simpler IS Better..& LOTS easier to Memorize.

They can never ALL be "Hits", but I find it pays to get up to bat near-daily to attempt to "Stay in The Zone." (& SOME artists got their BEST Hits offa stuff like "Do-Wa-Diddy" and "Blinded By The Light", don't forget...so I TRY to Have FUN with whatever I pen.)

I admittedly have my MOST fun with shall-we-say "The Spicier Ones"..partly to stretch the "Comfort Zone" that's been imposed upon us by The Powers That Wanna Be..partly because Sex is all that keeps us viable on this Blue Planet..& it'll be here long after I'm gone.

I also enjoy the Gift of Wordplay that I've been-given..probably to compensate for my lack of being able to play any instruments, so-far..heh! It's like being able to hit the right switches to turn-on a myriad of minds..just by popping-out the right word in the right place on the right subject matter.

When it works..YAYYYY! When it bombs...waal..there's always The NEXT One...heh-heh! &..so far..there always HAS been a "Next One". A Blessing..& a Curse..when ya think there aren't gonna BE any next ones. (I TRY to listen as much as I talk...there are TONS of great Hooks floating around in everyday Conversations..I'm sure I hear about Three-a-Day.) & then, like Lynn says, "The song writes itself!"--

Thanks for startin' this Fine Thread, Amigo!
Best Wishes & a Big "Happy Monday" Guy-Hug,
Stan

Cool thread, Moker....

I definitely get in the zone when writing a song I'm excited about - the passage of time goes undetected, thoughts seem to come without effort, the world outside my immediate surroundings ceases to exist. I don't feel any hunger, cold or warmth. Pure, effortless concentration.

That's what I live for

My definition of success is to spend as much time in the zone as possible - whether it's writing a song, making a photograph, climbing a cliff, or writing a research paper. Oh but Mama, that's where the fun is.

Scott

Colin said it very well. This man is perceptive... as well as talented!

Its like electricity running through your house: the current is always on, just a matter of flipping the switch. Or somebody or something flips it for you.

For the first time since I was a child, I am consciously trying to keep the switch off. It's like in "A beautiful Mind" when John learns that he has to ignore the "people" in his mind who had always been there with him. But they weren't real unless he flipped the switch.

great descriptions folks! I have had some songs write themselves in a matter of minutes and others where I get a part or a line or a guitar lick that just kinda hangs around and bugs me for a few months, then something will click and it'll come to together and become a song. If I don't think I've written a hit but got a great part in there I'll use it somewhere in another song, until it's cut it's kinda just an idea anyway Co-writing is either a pain in the butt or a great fit, it's a great feeling to work with a great lyric or piece of music and help it to become something special. Thanks for your comments, keep 'em comin' !

Todd, I can totally relate! Sometimes I'll turn in early but it's not unusual to get in the "zone" only to realize it 1 or 2 a.m. and I like need to get some sleep!

Being a male of the species, this may be a bad analogy, but I liken it to giving birth to a beautiful child after a difficult pregnancy. Or to put it in male terms, a big satisfying dump after a long difficult constipation. There's our image for today...Glad I could help..

Good to see ya around Moke.

I get that feeling when someone else plays me a new song especially one of the young kids here. There's so much joy and hope involved when they do it.

For myself that feeling doesn't arrive until I'm listening to the final mix. It used to be in my friends car on the old Bose system crank up. But no stupid giant bass sub woofers in the trunk lol

With all I have absorbed over the years I still can't hear how effective a song can be till it's mixed. So many things go into making it good and I'm thinking about all of them all the time.
Sometimes a change can happen as your mixing just about, last minute edit or replaying a part yikes... But it makes all the difference in the world to the song.

I wrote one song and thought WOW this is really going to be something then as it got to the final stages of production found it wasn't as effective as I thought it would be. The others I didn't think they would wallop me like they did by the final stage.

So yes there are glimpses of the euphoria in all the stages sometimes from a melody to a lyric or bass line to a beat. Naturally a vocal and so on... But it's just too much work to really relax and enjoy till it's done done...

All the best
Mike

I feel uneasy if I haven't been writing new material for a few days, so I've developed a habit for sure.

I'm constantly fiddling on a project in progress (a PiP!). It can be rewriting a lyric, remixing, recording a track ect. But the best part is always sitting down writing a new song.

I enter that process full of ideas, hope and excitement, and try to maintain that high energy throughout. If I start to feel differently, I change what I'm doing. Staying in the 100% pure energy zone, is my approach to songwriting and composing.

The hardest part is the finetuning. Those small lyric or music edits that'll pull it out of the cliché zone and bring into a life of it's own. Often that is very frustrating, and can make a piece of work hang for a long time.

That tough process repeats itself when recording, arranging and mixing. MAN, it's tough to be DIY'ing. I also have to live with tracks I know would be a lot better, if I had more musicians available. I try to do my parts the best I can, so I at least have something to move ahead with, when a time comes.

So, I get that euphoria, usually the moment I get the music down and need to play it 10-20 times in a row to get it just right. It doesn't last long, but it's worth it. I get the euphoria again when I've finished a mix that I'm really happy with (which doesn't happen that often).

And then I revisit the song, if I get to sign a contract on it. New euphoria moment there!

Getting a cut, watch the song grow up on Billboard, recieve a Grammy, get requests to play it - are next step euphorias, I look forward to :-)

Ultimately my own experience has been like Bob Cushing's. I always seem to be very happy when it's all written, recorded and in the can. Said that though during the actual process there is a fairly predictable pattern with its ups and downs. Initially is usually the tune, then the subject and icon phrase (capture). Tune=fun as heck, the subject can be lots of fun, other times like pulling a molar. Then more fun as I develop the musical arrangement. Now I am at the actual writing part, and share the experiences of those here who get "lost" in the work. I find this the strangest part of the process, because it is fun as the story develops, and hours can pass getting it down. On the other hand, there are always those sections, words or lines that don't work. So I find that part a bit tedious, but necessary for a decent end product. Also at that phase I am one of those who likes to write, put it down and come back to it fresh, later on. Consequently since I normally write two songs at a time, it can take up a week or so to get one good enough to go to studio. The other usually follows a few days behind. The only other thing I'd mention is that the euphoric or funnest songs for me are normally when the deadline is way off in the future. When you need to crank things out in a compressed schedule, I find that not as much fun. I don't think it effects things quality wise since the process is the same, just the process is much more fun in the fullness of time. That's been my experience anyway.

Paul Ryan

Big Bob:

Your all too descriptive analogy will remain indelible in my rapidly fading memory banks. Have you ever thought about writing a best-selling novel? Funny to the core... and I can't stop chuckling!

Speaking of Big... I haven't noticed a post or comment from Big Jim Merrilees these last few days. I know he was having some health issues. Sure hope he's okay.

MOKER--

IT DEPENDS WHAT I CAN GET THE OLD BODY AND MIND TO COME UP WITH--I CAN STILL CLOSE MY EYES AND SEE SNIBBITS OF A SLIDESHOW OR SEPIA-TONED MOVIE: IN A BARROOM, DOWN A DIRT ROAD, ON BEALE STREET, OR SETTING WITH A COUNTRY BAND--1000'S OF IDEAS FLASH BEFORE ME, I CAN ONLY CAPTURE A FEW AT A TIME, TO MAKE SOMETHING WORK--THE BEAUTY IS THE EXCITEMENT OF TRYING TO WORK OUT A PRESENTATION, EITHER LYRIC OR SONG--TIME SEEMS TO DISAPPEAR WHEN DEEP IN THE WRITING PROCESS--


JUST SOME OF MY THOUGHTS--GOOD THREAD--


Mackie

Every song I ever wrote was the best thing I had ever heard up to that point. Then reality sets in, usually a day or two later.

I'm not a very prolific writer, so out of the couple of hundred that I've written since high school, I've played about 60 in front of people. I usually play about 15 originals on a regular rotation. The euphoria is still there for a few of them.

I'm probably unusual in that I don't feel anything at all when I'm writing a song, just relaxed concentration. Like a baseball batter as the pitcher kicks his leg to start his windup. There's no thought or feeling. Just intense, but relaxed concentration. Time and place don't exist when I'm in the middle of creating a song. Now when the song and a recording of it is finished, then comes a feeling of excitement and satisfaction as I listen to the playback.

I have felt many of the same things you folks describe. I've been frustrated, thought it was easy, thought it was the best ever, waited and rewrote cos it wasn't good enough yet,played it live, wouldn't play it live. I do believe the creative process forces the mind to use itself in a way which will help prevent cognitive degeneration, a natural process that can eventually lead to alzheimers. it is the using of the brain in a new way(creativity) which forces the nerve endings to continually do something they aren't used to, thus until that particular song is learned well the neuro road map is expanded during the creative and learning process. for the sake of keeping us creative geniuses humble,actually the same thing can be accomplished by brushing your teeth with your left hand if you are right handed, or moving the trash can across the room from where you're used to it being. the mind is exercised very well in the creative process, and it's cool we get a song out of it at the end.
be well...mj

Not being a prolific writer due to circumstances, I rarely have the opportunity to do a song very fast. My last one, Tight Fittin' took about 9 months until I fine tuned it to the point where I was willing to put money into it. However the euphoria when done is similar, but not equal to having a baby. Having done this long enough though I get over those feelings quickly as the real world rarely shows the same enthusiasm. I know hit songs don't become hit songs unless they get repeated exposure these days. So for me, the excitement is more subdued and eventually becomes more of a pride in accomplishing a goal.

writing/composing gets better and happens with more spontinaity the more i engage in it. sometimes stuff happens all at once, or in bits and pieces over time. often i have numerous writing projects going at once ,and i'll bet it's the same with many here. i keep an old cassette player near my desk to record those sudden flashes of music and my note books are full of pages with nothing more than a title or a few verses. if i don't make some record of it, i WILL forget it over time. as to the sensations of a completed song i often experiance what you have described. but some songs always feel the same, other songs of mine i either love or hate depending on i don't know what. this idea you have presented of the creative process helping the mind stay healthy is something i have concidered and i believe it's true. art,any art, will either grow or die with-in a persons soul/mind if it is not nurtured. we can't allow the "bizz-ness" of song writing blind us to the real reason we do what we do. a line from a jim croce song says: i have a song, i have a song, if it takes me no where i'll go there proud. the false idea of gaining wealth as a primary goal will only wither the fruit on most vines because most will never see it. you have to face that every time you spend your limited time in this art. while i'm sure it would be a gas to recieve a nice paycheck for one of my creative works(i can say from long experiance that it is a speacial feeling to make a living from ones art)the feeling of painting sonic pictures is in itself it's own reward. if we are are fortunate enough to have an audiance then the experiance is greater. sorry for rambling on like this, i just thot this was an interesting discussion. i've seen it, i believe it is a fact, if you stop exercising your talent you Will lose the ability to exercise your talent.

dmk

dmk

Sometimes it's a line that occurs to me and hooks me into the story it implies. That first line hooks me the way I hope it will hook others into the story. Sometimes I don't get the story fully. I don't know where the singer-character in the song is going with his story. So I repeat the line, running through the rhythm and melody, polishing the execution, letting the concept incubate. More lines come, the story advancing. Eventually the timing dictates that I get to the point, and I find THE hook, the title, the upping of emotion for the chorus.

As the songwriter, you are the first listener. You should be hooked the same way as any other listener. Something in the story of the lyric, something in the rhythm of the guitar work, should make you pay attention. Something in one should inspire the other. And then that inspiration should inspire back, influencing the other, back and forth and forward through the story, through the composition.

Often a song bogs down. You don't get it, lyrically, aren't able to go forward with the story, or the guitar work. It hasn't had time to incubate, for you to cogitate, to imagine, and thereby to give the singer-character the words to say, to give yourself the progression to play.

That can frustrate and dampen the creative flow. A good technique to keep the creative mood and flow going is to explore something else, another lyrical idea, another instrumental construct. After a bit you can go back to the first one and often find it has had the time to incubate and you find the next line, the story direction, the missing chord. Then you can switch back to the second piece and find a bit more of it too.

I call them 'Sister Songs', born at the same time, in the same session, and each benefiting from the maintenance of that 'zone' or creative flow, each giving the other a little space to grow, time to incubate, without being stifled by the frustration of not being able to go forward just at the instant you want them to. The inspiration is kept alive, enabled to stay inspiring until the mind can catch up with it.

I haven't read the whole thread, so I hope that this hasn't been mentioned. Hype and euphoria is present in every new endeavour, weather it is a new song, TV show, movie, invention, etc. Everyone wants to get it out. It's always a better mouse trap for the times, in your own mind. Why should song writers and musicians be any different? It's just a different scale.

It's also human nature to brag about our accomplishments.