Your approach really struck a chord with me. I have only recently... within the last year really paid attention to what it was about certain songs that impacted me. I've devoted some of my energy to learning these songs... note for note... inflection for inflection with the idea that my strategy might personify itself in my own songs. I love Supertramp songs... been practicing them on the piano and guitar. Take the Long Way Home... School... Bloody Well Right... many others. I love the vocal variety and I love dynamics in a song. I also tend to gravitate to songs that are a little more complex. They are more interesting to me I suppose. I've been playing a lot of old Dire Straits songs as well with the same hope that the process of learning what I really like will transfer over to my own writing. So many songwriters that I know really do nothing but write their own stuff and I think they're losing out on something, as there really isn't a lot of variety in each song. Thanks Rand for validating my own feeling about a successful and practical approach.

Michael