JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum Why don't Lyricists learn an Instrument?

Again the topic raises its head, but with some interesting and different angles.

Not so long ago I myself got involved in a back and forth on one of the posts because the other person kept saying that I should learn an instrument because not to do so would keep me lacking as a SONGWRITER. I was more or less told that I was a lazy person for not bothering to try to learn an instrument.

I saw nothing bad in the conversation (I can stand my own ground)and stuck to my guns and we are still friends here on the boards.

So here is my take.

I don�t want to learn an instrument. I have never wanted too. I have no interest in music except listening to a great song. To learn an instrument would as Brian pointed out, just waste the time I have left in my life doing something that I DON�T WANT TO.

I make music videos, which required an awful lot of learning, so should those who write music and lyrics be told that they must do the same, being as video is a major music medium now.

Of course not.

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So what can I do?

Well I think that I write mighty fine lyrics in a way, that allows music to be written for them, in a straight forward way, (by someone who writes music).

I think I am very good at choosing a composer whose talents will enable him/her to write that great melody that I want my lyrics to go with. ( I go by what they have done and most times I have listened to their work before).

I think that I am great at selecting the right singer or singers to sing my lyrics to the composer�s music to end up with a great song. IMO

Sometimes this is all done in a studio but still I think I am very good at picking the right studio for the song to be turned into a final demo. (not necessarily based on studio costs).

If all us who write only lyrics suddenly overnight became top musicians / composers / producers all those studios would have to just do their own stuff or close up shop.

And I do wonder (no offence intended) how many writer/musician/producer folk who can do it all, ever put together a REAL GREAT finished product where everything is top notch. We are talking the Holy Grail here.

When I post a finished song, I usually get comments saying, great words and great music and what a great singer.

That is what give me the biggest buzz. Not just the words that I wrote, but also the fact that I found the right people to put it all together.

When a co-write is finished the co-writers don�t each think just of the bit that they contributed. That would be awful No the say hey, look at the song WE WROTE.

It becomes the complete item and is listened to as such.

I LOVE WHAT I DO BECAUSE I CHOSE TO DO IT.

Anyway that�s me off the soap box for a while.

Enjoyed this

God Bless Roy and Helen