Very cool exercise, this.

Now we're getting to the fun part! We have a melody, so we are fairly well covered for the song except for the bridge. Sounds like we're getting ready to find the right chords to support and to "color" this melody? We'll see what Jack prefers to do next.

But when it happens, the chords Jack picks will either reinforce what people think this sounds like, or it may startle them a bit...because a melody all alone is a lot like reading a lyric all alone--we're a bit blinded by our preconceptions here. The melody may well take on a whole new meaning and "feel" once we hear the chords that go along with it.

(Jack's leading this exercise, but I'll insert a personal comment here about bridges. When I write songs and get to this point, I often save the writing of the bridge until just a little later. Why? Because I like my bridges to veer off in startling directions, so I take some time to get used to the new music I've just written, even if only for an hour or so...But then when I tackle the bridge, I try to come up with something that takes us someplace else...yet still "fits" and carries us neatly back home. The Beatles called this "the middle bit". It's my favorite part of a song. Okay, back to Jack!)

http://www.soundclick.com/MarkKaufman