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Post by Gypsy Picker on Nov 9, 2006 17:40:25 GMT -5
That's great ink David. You were one of the critic's favorites, too! After reading your entry, I can see why it might be a tough pick as favorite -- it's a very good lyric (especially for only 36 hours and music too), but the somber theme probably killed it's chances. I started writing mine before you posted yours, and I laughed a bit because of the taxi theme -- the intention of mine was to make people think I was talking about a taxi, when in fact it's a police car. I hope that came through.
I wonder when we'll see Marshall's entry...
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Post by Marshall on Nov 9, 2006 23:17:01 GMT -5
Sorry, I'm stuck in traffic.
(actually didn't start anything. But I'll think about it. Stuck in traffic ain't a bad start.)
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Post by Cornflake on Nov 10, 2006 13:15:34 GMT -5
I missed the starting gun or I'd probably have participated. There's always someone who doesn't get the word.
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Post by Marshall on Nov 10, 2006 18:41:54 GMT -5
Ready . . . ,
Set. . . ,
GO !
(I suspect i'll take a week on this assignment. I've got some travel coming up this week hopping across the country and i'll put my songwriter glasses on.
I jsut scarmbled through my papers and was sad to see I've probably thrown out some old notes i had. About 6 months agao I was riding teh train home one Friday night, and there was a guy across the aisle on the upper deck talking up a storm on his cell phone. It was just precious. I took out a notebook and sribbled madly in short-hand for about 10 minutes of hsi conversation. It ranged from work stuff to his wife and kids with all sorts of juicy comments. He was 1/2 full of liquor and totally full of himself.
I carried those notes around for about 6 months. One day about a month ago I took them out and decided they wouldn't fit an easy meter nor would they lend themselves to a chorus or refrain type structure. So, it just didn't seem like an easy fit into a song without a good purpose to write a song. But now I see it could have been a juicy slice of life for the Public Transportaion theme. Oh well.)
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Post by loopysanchez on Nov 11, 2006 22:36:18 GMT -5
Great lyrics, David. You have a knack for sucking a listener into a story that most songwriters would give their pinky toes to attain.
And count me in on whatever "48-hours" type songwriting exercise/contest you guys want to put together. I can't guarantee I'll have time to participate every single week, but I'm eager to see what gems we can all come up with on short notice.
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Post by davidhanners on Nov 13, 2006 12:25:27 GMT -5
Should we figure out some way to actually start doing the exercise?
We'd need someone to come up with the subject matter, but I would think that person should not be a participant in that week's exercise. We could have a rotating list; i.e., one week, I come up with a subject, but I don't participate, and the next week, Loopy comes up with the subject, and the next week Marshall, etc., etc.
And we should get an actual starting date in mind, like next week or something. Again, for example, at 9 a.m. CDT, I (or someone) posts the topic on the Songwriting forum, and the entries have to be in by 9 a.m. CDT Wednesday.
Just a suggestion. I'm open to any and every idea....
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Post by loopysanchez on Nov 13, 2006 12:53:52 GMT -5
That sounds like a good plan to me. I guess we need to get an official list of participants' names, then create a schedule of who picks the idea each week.
I'm thinking maybe we should post this to the general Cafe forum too--I suspect there are a few songwriters who don't check the threads over here very often.
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Post by Marshall on Nov 13, 2006 13:13:29 GMT -5
I like the idea of a week to write it. Then maybe take a week off to review what's been done & general bs.
Sure a note announcing the first exercise in teh Cafe would be a good idea.
I'm sure Flake is interested as well as VI. Probablly many others. That would be at least 6 rotating participants for theme suggestions. We could also ask anyone who has an idea to forward it to the council of elders for consideration and potential dispensation.
(Now there's a topic: dispensation.)
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Post by davidhanners on Nov 13, 2006 14:26:22 GMT -5
The point about touting this in the Cafe is a good one. What if we posted something there this week, with the intention of starting the exercise next week?
I would posit, however, that a week is too long for the exercise. I think one of the appeals of the undertaking is that it is quickly finite; what you come up with in 48 hours (or however long we agree on) is what you get. That way, there's not an immense amount of pressure on the writer to come up with The Greatest Song Ever Written.
I would volunteer to be the one who comes up with the first topic.
What should the notice on the Cafe say? I figure the notice should point out that it is more of a songwriting exercise that a contest, that we'll announce a topic at a certain time and that writers can post their lyrics after the 48-hour (or whatever) period is up. (Or, is there any way to send the lyrics to some computer gizmo, where they are held automatically and then all posted simultaneously?)
Also, we should have at least a minimal ground rule concerning the topic and its connection to the song. The song has to be about the topic, or mention it, or refer to it in some significant way.
Other ideas?
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Post by Gypsy Picker on Nov 13, 2006 15:23:25 GMT -5
Hmmm... interesting propositions. Regarding the timeframe, I think 48 hours may suffice for some, but certainly won't for everyone each week (or two, if that's the case). In the case of your 36-hour contest, David, you knew going in which 36-hour timeframe you would have and could allocate in advance that time for creative work. I suspect many here have ongoing obligations which would interfere with completing a song in a specific 48 hour timeslot. Conversely, I don't think many, if any, of us would actually spend much time writing a song no matter how much time was allowed. I think a full week is a reasonable time to encourage as many people to participate as possible without allowing so much time as to pressure any of us to come up with "TGSEW". As far as topics go, I'm fine with rotating through contributors, but I'm not sure a schedule is really needed. It may work better to have contributors volunteer to generate a topic (thereby disqualifying themselves) based on their projected ability to contribute (or not, more precisely). If I know I have a busy week ahead, I'd rather generate the topic at that point and pass on the exercise than have my turn dictated by a schedule (when I very well may have plenty of time to contribute, but Corflake, eg., does not). As far as the timing of posting lyrics, since it's an exercise and not a contest, I don't think we have to be overly concerned with who posted what first. If someone wants to borrow (read: steal) an idea and write a song in a couple hours and post it then, go for it. Nothing has been gained, and nothing lost. Regarding ground rules of minimum topicality -- what purpose would this rule serve? The topic is merely a catalyst for creativity and artistic expression. I think interpretation should be left to the interpreter and extra rules regarding topicality invite boundries that serve no positive function. Again, since it is not a contest, why have any extra stipulations? To wit, my song entry on the public transportation theme neither had the words "public transportation" nor a direct connection to any common view of public transportation. The lyrics allude to a taxi ride (which it really wasn't), and whereas I may view a police car as a form of public transportation at times, I don't want to squabble about whether or not I violated any ground rules. It simply is what it is, and can be so judged by the membership at large.
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Post by Marshall on Nov 13, 2006 17:22:39 GMT -5
Everybody knows there are no rules in a knife fight !
I like the week idea for what Scott says. There's no saying you have to take a week. I'm a slow writer myself. (or an overly committed one).
And on the subject of the chooser of the theme sitting out. Well gee. Seems silly that if you come up with the greatest theme of all time, you can't write anything about it. (Of course someone might cheat and pull an old song out of the drawer. But, so be it. {he'll probably rot in hell for it})
But I'm just rambling. Anything will do. As a rule, I absolutely don't like absolute rules.
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Post by Gypsy Picker on Nov 13, 2006 18:30:49 GMT -5
There's a room waiting for you, Marshall...
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Post by davidhanners on Nov 13, 2006 18:39:42 GMT -5
Those are all good points, GP, and I would gladly sign off on them. I was just throwing a couple of ideas out there, and I'll admit I didn't give it a ton of thought. I think that despite my intention to not make it a competition, I was probably subconsciously approaching it from that standpoint. Your ideas make sense.
I think the point I was trying to make on the connection between the topic and the lyrics is that it should be a fairly direct connection. In other words, if the topic were "insurance," I wouldn't want someone entering "The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald" on the supposition that the sailors had life insurance. Even though that may not be the best example since that's a really great tune. But you get my drift.
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Post by Marshall on Nov 17, 2006 9:33:24 GMT -5
Back from my travels. No new song to post yet. But I gathered some interesting images on my trip. The problem will be in stitching them into a song. I tend to like do thes slice-of-life tunes that have images that catch my attention. It’s not like writing a story. I start out without knowing where I’m going to end up. It’s in the massaging the images that a meaning eventually rises to the surface. Anyway, here's some of my notes:
I started out my trip getting up @ 3:30. I made it to the airport by 5:00. While I rode the tram from long term parking, a guy sat down across from me. As we all stare out the window, or at the floor, or read the route map,( or look any direction so we don’t have to make eye contact), he reaches over my shoulder and places some tracts on the sill next to me. And mumbles something like, “Someone may need thees.” I look down and see a pamphlet with the title, “This was your life” on it. I look at him. He looks the other way. When the tram gets to my stop, I stand up, pick up a track and stuff it in my pocket and move off the tram.
The day was a long one. I wrote down in my notebook many images. The Skymall mag is always a source of fun things. How have I ever lived without a laser guided pool cue? Or flip flop drink coasters?
Someone on the plane was reading Summer of the Monkeys. I write that down in my little book.
The day is a busy one filled with seminars and discussions and note taking and hand shaking and business card trading. Reminds me of collecting baseball cards as a kid.
Later on that evening I spend some time in an airport bar killing time waiting for my next flight. I sit down next to a guy who is on his way up to Anchorage to start a 3-weeks-on duty cycle. He’s an engineer in his 50’s. Divorced now. Back living with his mom. I ask him about Anchorage. He said he had just talked to the guy he’s replacing. It was 18 below yesterday. This time of year it’s in total darkness. The sun never breaks the horizon. I write “total darkness” in my notebook.
We share a couple drinks. Me; some wine. He pounds down a couple of big Saphire martinis. No liquor allowed on the job. Our flights are announced. We say goodbye.
I board my plane. We take off for the next city. I always take a window seat. As the plane rises I crane my neck and watch the last remnants of sunlight rim the circular horizon. Looks like fire in the sky.
I land in the new airport. I wait a while at the curb for the hotel bus. It finally comes. The driver is an skinny oriental fellow; new to the country. He’s driving the van wearing fancy leather fingerless gloves. He seems intense about his business. Looks sort of comical; a race car driver maneuvering a hotel van through crowded parking lots.
It’s late. I finally make if to my room. I empty my pockets on the night stand. There’s the track.
This was your life.
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Post by davidhanners on Nov 17, 2006 11:05:29 GMT -5
I once read an interview with Tom T. Hall (one of the true songwriting greats) in which he described how he'd just grab a guitar and a camera and hit the road for a couple of weeks. He'd take a ton of photos of interesting people or places or signs and then when he'd wander back home, he had all these rich images to work with.
Of course, songwriting was his "dayjob," so I suppose he could take the time to do that. Most of us have to just collect those images, either photographic or mental, on the fly. I read another interview with Bill Morrissey where he said a songwrite should always carry a notebook. Made sense to me, but since I'm a reporter, I generally always have one anyway.
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