When is a Song Done?

Ah, tough question for sure. Let’s take this from the angle that the songwriter wants to market their songs commercially. And generally, I think the answer resides in additional questions…

1. Does the lyric paint a picture of what you want to say? Anyone can tell a story, but not everyone can hold the listeners attention. The pictures you paint will be the vehicle that captures the listener’s attention.

2. Does your lyric have a hook? When you think of fishing, a hook is used to catch a fish, well in a song it’s used to catch the listener. The hook is generally draped in the chorus because it allows you to cast the line several times, the more times you cast the hook, the better chance you’re going to grab yourself a listener.

3. Is the lyric relatable? If you’re trying to write a commercial song, you want to reach many listeners, so the more someone can relate to the lyric, they will naturally be absorbed in the lyric.

4. Is their a rhythm to the lyric? Yes, I said rhythm. Words have a specific cadence that flow off the tongue. Specific syllables of a word may be stressed differently depending on how it needs to be said. Solid melodies long for a consistent way to utilize inflection when conveying a lyric, specifically in the verses.

5. How bout’ the rhyme scheme is it consistent? Is it forced? Most songs summon the use of rhyme. Rhyme is one of the ingredients in a song that makes it singable. If you used rhyme, it’s not enough to just make sure it matches up in each verse consistently. You have to ensure the words you use roll off the tongue honestly. It’s also very common to over use the same rhymes, see what you can do to find fresh convincing rhymes.

6. Does the melody invoke the emotion of the picture? It’s important in most cases that the melody marries the lyric and become one. This may sound a bit silly, but if you have a lyric that involves an abused child and your melody sings like a polka, it probably isn’t gonna work. It’s not to say that some lyrics may lend themselves to multiple styles. But generally, the way a story is conveyed may dictate how the melody unfolds or vice versa…depending on which comes first the melody or lyric. If you have a yee-haw type melody, you probably ain’t going to be using too many sophisticated words and likewise, if you have a lyric talkin’ about jukeboxes and saloons, you’re probably not gonna wrap the lyric in a pop ballad type melody.

Well I hope these steps help you gauge the completion of your song. Next month, we’ll discuss “Time To Demo”, a further look at the completed song.


My best,
Ray