I've been kicking around the notion that I'm going to post something on lyrics for more than a week tonight, and it's finally time. Fair warning going into this, though, there may well be ideas in this post that some will disagree with, perhaps violently. Nonetheless, I'm not scared.
The impetus for this post goes back almost two weeks. The last time SL was in town, she was blasting Eminem as we headed out to dinner. Eminem has always been a bit of a tough sell for me. He's clever, he's catchy, but at the end of the day, I've never been able to see myself owning anything more than a "best of" when it comes to his music. And yet, somehow, I feel it in my soul that the world needs him. How do I know this? It started when he "retired" for about 5 years. He lampoons/comments on a part of pop culture in such a way that, when his voice is absent, the space where it ought to be is noticeably empty. And his turns of phrase are astounding. The things he does with words are such that, for the current generation of kids, I suspect he'll be revered the way we worship Bob Dylan. Both men are poets for their generation, they just deal in differing ways with the idea of protest.
It makes me wonder, though, what will become of the others whose words I admire? The Adam Duritzes, Jeff Tweedys, Jakob Dylans, and Stephan Jenkinses of the world?
It also makes me curious about what it takes to become an amazing lyricist. How much of it is life experience? How much of it is hard work? How much of it is just pure dumb luck?
I'll admit that I majored in English, in part, because I thought it would help me write better lyrics. Has that turned out to be the case? Not yet, at least. I've finished a few things I'm proud of, but far more remains unfinished, half-written, and buried in a notebook somewhere. If next year is about taking steps and finishing things, then maybe I ought to also make it my business to write more songs, finish more songs, and record more songs. I've seen interviews with people who have tried writing a song a day for a year. I'm not saying I'll be able to do that, but I'm wondering if I can polish off a song a week, or even every two weeks, for an entire year. Hell, I'd be happy with one new song a month, if I knew that it would make the songs that much better. It's just another thing I need to spend more time with next year.
I've got so much I want to accomplish, but for the first time ever, I don't see it as an overwhelming task. I just see it as somewhere to start.
The impetus for this post goes back almost two weeks. The last time SL was in town, she was blasting Eminem as we headed out to dinner. Eminem has always been a bit of a tough sell for me. He's clever, he's catchy, but at the end of the day, I've never been able to see myself owning anything more than a "best of" when it comes to his music. And yet, somehow, I feel it in my soul that the world needs him. How do I know this? It started when he "retired" for about 5 years. He lampoons/comments on a part of pop culture in such a way that, when his voice is absent, the space where it ought to be is noticeably empty. And his turns of phrase are astounding. The things he does with words are such that, for the current generation of kids, I suspect he'll be revered the way we worship Bob Dylan. Both men are poets for their generation, they just deal in differing ways with the idea of protest.
It makes me wonder, though, what will become of the others whose words I admire? The Adam Duritzes, Jeff Tweedys, Jakob Dylans, and Stephan Jenkinses of the world?
It also makes me curious about what it takes to become an amazing lyricist. How much of it is life experience? How much of it is hard work? How much of it is just pure dumb luck?
I'll admit that I majored in English, in part, because I thought it would help me write better lyrics. Has that turned out to be the case? Not yet, at least. I've finished a few things I'm proud of, but far more remains unfinished, half-written, and buried in a notebook somewhere. If next year is about taking steps and finishing things, then maybe I ought to also make it my business to write more songs, finish more songs, and record more songs. I've seen interviews with people who have tried writing a song a day for a year. I'm not saying I'll be able to do that, but I'm wondering if I can polish off a song a week, or even every two weeks, for an entire year. Hell, I'd be happy with one new song a month, if I knew that it would make the songs that much better. It's just another thing I need to spend more time with next year.
I've got so much I want to accomplish, but for the first time ever, I don't see it as an overwhelming task. I just see it as somewhere to start.
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