Lyrics and Music

Are you trying to write songs, but you feel something is missing?In this book you will learn tips and tricks that have helped songwriters write great songs for the past 50 years. Author Willy Minnix covers tried and true methods that will help you improve your lyrics, chord progressions, and melodies, and help you capture that certain magic that people like the Beatles, Elton John, Brian Wilson and Bob Dylan have known for years. Whether your songs suffer from a lack of structure, or a weak hook, or are just missing that certain spark, the topics covered in "Lyrics and Music," will offer songwriters of any level interesting things to think about that will help them hone and take their craft to another level. Covered in this book are topics like how to write a good melody, and ways to improve and develop melodic ideas. How harmony works, how to write counterpoint, how to make your chord progressions more interesting, and how to move past just the regular four chords that everyone uses. Also covered are discussions about rhythm, poly-rhythms, arrangement advice, and how to improve the lyrics that you write. Included with the book is a survey of over 30 popular songs dating from 1935 to the present, and what makes them worth listening to, and why they will inspire you in your own songwriting pursuits. Most of the material in this book is presented with the idea of writing pop songs, but country, jazz, R&B, blues and rock songs are also explored and mined for great songwriting ideas. Willy Minnix has been a profession musician, teacher and songwriter for over 20 years, with songs that have been featured on the radio, in film and on television. He is the author of over 10 books on music theory and mandolin studies, with his popular "Mandolin Dead Man's Tuning" series of books being sold all over the world. He lives in Winston-Salem, NC, and continues to teach, perform and speak publicly at festivals and colleges around the country.