Articulation - who cares?

In a recent coaching class, someone [no names now] made the comment that for a singer, articulation can't be that important because nobody listens to the lyrics anymore!  I was too dumbfounded to make a comment at the time.

If this were really the case, we'd all be tuning to the classical music station...we'd all be listening to opera ....and nobody would be singing along in the car! [er, unless you sing opera that is]

Music is integral to the human spirit.  It uplifts us.  It soothes us.  It motivates us. It inspires us. Many of our memories are linked to music.  We use it to mark the important milestones in our life ....birthdays, weddings, celebrations of all types.  We treasure it as a solo experience and we share it with other human beings.  When the music has lyrics, it is called a song!

Songs are the fabric of, and the witness to, our lives.  Lyrics can become a mantra for many people [dare I stick my neck out and say 'most people'?].  Here are a few of my own examples:

• upon achievement - the lyrics of Queen's "we are the champions of the world"  
• successfully tackling a challenging task - Annie Lennox singing "sisters, are doing it for themselves"
• currently, when I'm struggling with something, the lyrics of a Whitney Houston song - "step by step, bit by bit, stone by stone, brick by brick"

As a songwriter, the challenge is always in finding a way to get the message across in fewer words. For me, some songs are just for fun - so if the listener can't hear the lyrics, they'll miss the joke (or worse, the punchline).  Most of my songs, though, have a message - and often multiple messages.  I often structure my lyrics to be interpreted in different ways - in order that individual listeners will find meaning to fit their need.

When audience members come up to me after a gig and tell me that "that song really touched me because ..."  or "you played a song last year that changed my life ..." then proceed to share their own story,  well, for a songwriter it lifts me to a new high and I know I've done my job well.

So I'm putting out a new challenge on Facebook each day this week .....share the lyrics that make a difference in YOUR life.  I'd love to hear from YOU ...so leave a comment below or jump on to Facebook and join the challenge.

How to Find Y' Mojo!

It was only a short tour but Holy Smoke!.....it was just what I needed to get my mojo working again.

Here's what I learned I need to locate my zing, get my inspiration back, get excited again:
I stayed with muso's.  I played with muso's. I hung out with muso's. I met new audiences....and new audiences met and loved my music. Oh yes - I LOVE BRISBANE!  Some 22 hours of solo travel time - to and from, with just me and my thoughts. Hearing new bands and other songwriters. Just goes to show it's not quantity [or length of tour] that counts but quality [richness of the experience] That's my recipe and you're welcome to share it!

Here are just a few of the highlights of this little tour:

• Making Magic at Redland Folk  - Sunday afternoon could only be described as magic when I invited a whole bunch of musicians I didn't know to play on various songs in the set.  Chrissy and Julie on single then duelling harmonica, Chuck on stunning guitar, Richard on Trombone, and of course those gorgeous harmonies from Mary and Anne.  Didn't the audience just love it?!   And didn't we?!! Just an extraordinary experience, sharing the passion of music
• Discovering the gold nugget of Foco Nuevo - totally unexpected, totally different from what I'd anticipated.  Having Steele Chabeau turn up to play de-lovely Bass on my set with me - no charts, unknown songs, just cold play ....and he did he rock!!!!  Delightful audience.  Stunning music from Jumping Fences who were just soooo tight and polished.  A great set from the Toni Pollard Band [although just a tad long - and how the heck does she keep up that pace for so long?! impressive]
• Staying with friends Chris and Peter - Pete is a songwriter and lovely guitarist who used to live in Newcastle.  Yakking our heads off about music music music....and then lending a hand to write a great set of lyrics to a brilliant melody of Peter's and turning out an excellent song!   My first successful collaboration. 

    Plus many more little joys and delights to add to the memory bank [and subsequently flavour some new songs with in the future].....and a couple of experiences that I plan to forget once I reach the point where I can laugh about 'em [like a crap last gig, getting lost driving to Ballina via Ipswich].

I returned home with my head absolutely stuffed full and buzzing with new ideas, new projects, and new enthusiasm.   Doesn't take much, does it?!

WAITING FOR .....INSPIRATION?!

Oh Dearie Me!!
What a start to 2011......trapped in the Queensland flood, a traumatic escape, devastation for my son, and we're all still trying to come to terms with the experience and the fall out.

Is it any wonder that I'm lacking inspiration right now?

Funny, but everyone says "oh, there'll be a great song out of this, won't there?" Yet that's the last thing I feel like doing.
Fortunately, I'd finished a couple of songs during December - when I took a much needed break after a very heavy 2010 - planning to be back in the studio for recording in January.   Well, with the studio dates set for late January, the floods put a stop to that too!  So those new songs will have to remain as live-performance-only for the time being.

I'm back in SE Queensland in late March for a short tour and a series of small gigs so if you're around the Brisbane area and want to come along to one or two, just let me know.   Here's a brief look at a couple of the newies that I'll be sharing - and eventually recording:

• Cover Your Load - purely for laughs....about getting caught short on a road trip - we've all done it!
• Day is Done - a ballsy blues with guts
• Wasting Time - a funky little number
• All Dressed Up - a quirky tale of love's revenge
• Granny Hell- yeh, I said I'd never record it but I will - shhhh, don't tell!

Hope to see you at a gig soon.

OH.....by the way....for those of you in the Newcastle area who have been wondering when I'm going to get around to delivering the Borderless project here - it's coming to the Royal Exchange Theatre in Bolton Street on Wednesday Night March 16 (that's St Pat's Eve - appropriate for a show about Irish female settlement in Australia, eh?)

On Tour and Live

Just when you think you've got it all nailed in place...along comes a quirky event and all the nails pop out! And I guess that's the not-so-good, the bad, and the ugly about planning a tour. Today I learned the REAL reason why I haven't been able to secure a gig at a venue I've been wanting to play during a southern tour for some years. For years, they've fobbed me off with one reason or another instead of just coming clean and giving the real reason - which is actually a very valid rationale that I fully understand. If they'd been upfront at the start, I could simply have wiped them off my list and saved myself a lot of effort over a long time.

Many of the musicians I play with on and off will say "I don't know why you do it ..." or "I couldn't be bothered". But the reality IS when you are an independent muso with no agent or corporate support, the world doesn't beat a path to your door to hear your music! You've got to get out of the loungeroom and take the music to new audiences.

The internet certainly opens up new scope for getting your music out there - but my typical audience do not spend their lives online trawling for new music. And online listeners might listen to bits of songs but they're not likely to pay attention for the length of a live set - too many other distractions. For a lyricist like myself, you want your listener to hear the words, you want the words to make a difference to your listener.

There's nothing like bringing new music to a live audience - it's the best way for a songwriter to give a new song the taste test. A live performance allows you to actually see what sort of response the song is getting and enables you to identify how/where the lyrics or melody need tweaking. And of course, if your material isn't engaging enough to hold an audience for a full set, then you're not getting it right!

I wish there was a better way than the tremendous effort that goes into putting a tour together.....but so far, I haven't found it.

ah well, the joys of a creative life! [and I wouldn't have it any different]