Learn From The Best
There are plenty of books on songwriting out there. Below are what I believe to be the best books on songwriting you can find.
Songwriting entails more than simply putting words to music. There’s a lot at play if you want to become serious about writing great songs. The five books below are my favorites because they focus on all the ingredients that make a serious songwriter.
Some of these books present a broad overview of songwriting, while others focus on just one aspect of it. Lyrics, for example, is a massive part of songwriting. My weakest area in songwriting is lyrics. So naturally, two out of the five books are exclusively focused on becoming a skilled lyricist. The other books focus on melody, marketing, songwriting organization, and stories from other successful writers.
This is simply my opinion, but you’ll find that many others would recommend these books as well.
The Best 5 Books on Songwriting
The Craft of Lyric Writing
Sheila Davis wrote this classic back in ’85, and it has been recommended by songwriting experts for years. Sheila is no stranger to the songwriting community.
If you’re like me and you struggle more with lyrics than melody, then this book is for you.
Six Steps to Songwriting Success
This book is a comprehensive road map to being more organized as a writer. Jason Blume goes into the structures needed in the songwriting process that will lead you to being more prolific as a writer.
He also touches on marketing your songs and how to understand the publishing business.
Songwriters on Songwriting
This book is a must have if you enjoy hearing how other writers became successful. You’ll learn from some of the biggest names in music and go behind the scenes to observe their processes on songwriting.
I love reading about the creative stories of other artists. It’s always good to learn from those who have gone ahead of you.
Writing Better Lyrics
This is another great one for folks who want to improve in their lyric writing. Pat Pattison has done an excellent job in pushing the writer to write something better — to not settle for the first idea that pops in your head, but to explore and mine your mind for better metaphors and illustrative ways of communicating.
Like I said above, I’ve always been more challenged when crafting words for music in a fresh way. Pat’s book will greatly help you.
Melody In Songwriting
Though melody is my strong suit, it’s very easy to fall back on some of the same old hooks that I’ve already done. Melody in Songwriting is a Berklee publication that helps songwriters improve their musicianship. After all, this isn’t just ay kind of writing, this is song writing.
Music is obviously important. People often associate clichés with lyrics, but melodies can have the same trappings. This book is going to challenge you not only as a songwriter, but as a musician.
WHAT DID I LEAVE OUT?
Again, these are the best books on songwriting according to Nate Fancher. Let me know if there’s a book that you would add to the list. There are a lot of other great books out there. Leave your comments below!