Inspired songwriting is birthed out of a journey. Almost like a butterfly coming out of its cocoon.
The metamorphosis of songwriting from
LEARNING ABOUT...
LEARNING TO DO...
LEARNING TO BE!
It is quite a journey, but is essential for developing your own unique voice.
Every Singer/Songwriter eventually must peel back the layers of "identity crisis," sometimes accumulated over time.
It is only then that we can write from inside the unique YOU - this is inspired songwriting.
After imitating your heroes, playing in cover bands and studying the greats, it can be difficult to sort out who YOU really are as a musician.
How do we imitate others for learning, but end up with a sound and voice that is uniquely our own? After all this isn't about just songwriting, but inspired songwriting.
As a kid, I remember trying to sing along with Smokey Robinson, Stevie Wonder and others. I would crank up the volume, stand in the window and act like I was crooning away to a large group of adoring fans.
There was no one there, of course, but I believed I really could sing.
Unlike many aspiring singers auditioning for "American Idol" today... I was only 6 years old. That was the start of me becoming a musician.
Eventually, I realized that instruments got my attention far more than the vocals. I soon didn't even notice the singer - I was too busy playing drums on pillows and "air guitar".
Today, I can work in a recording situation with a lot of versatility.
I might arrange and sing 4 - part vocals for a cappella doo-wap jingles, play keyboard bass parts along with drum parts I recorded earlier, then construct synth string and sample guitar parts to fill it out.
Actually, that is a very typical scenario for me. And don't forget, although I am a musician, my main axe is the vibraphone.
Why did I learn to do all this? Truth is...I didn't intend to, it just happened over time.
I've broken it down into three steps in the journey toward truly inspired songwriting.
FIRST STEP: LEARNING ABOUT
Looking back on it, it seems I always enjoyed learning about music. But my learning was shaped by listening.
I found my father's recordings of Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Dave Brubeck. This led to purchasing many more by Miles, Coltrane and pianist Bill Evans.
By the time I was 14, I could sing every note on many classic jazz recordings. Drum solos, bass lines, sax lines, 2 horn counterpoint... didn't matter. I listened for hours every day.
Little did I know, this was great ear training for all that I would get into later.
I had my first jazz quartet at 17. We played a mixture of jazz standards and I also began to write tunes for us to play.
Nobody told me I couldn't, so I just wrote what I liked.
In college, I majored in music and studied all the instruments. I also continued to work as a vibraphonist and drum set player in various settings, such as musical theater and club gigs.
From Bach to Basie , I was getting immersed in a full history of music and songwriting.
SECOND STEP: LEARNING TO DO
I couldn't predict the future then, especially at 18 yrs old. But, there were older musicians that helped guide me along the way.
They insisted my musical vocabulary be based on substance, not trends.
They knew that life as a professional musician demands that you play in situations outside your comfort zone. That inspired songwriting takes giving it your all.
Music theory, Music History, Composition, Ensembles, etc.. I dove in.
Somewhere along the journey, I began to slip out. Me.
My sound was forming and being nourished by everything I had been exposed to. I was becoming a musician.
I began to learn how to whisper on my instrument, or scream. I learned that 1 note can say more than 20. Ballads became more enjoyable than up-tempos.
And I enjoyed embellishing what the singer was doing, instead of waiting for her to finish.
The notes didn't change. The rhythms, time signatures, keys and scales are still there, but became only a guide.
My way of expressing myself became more personal with time.
Songs became old friends and my fellow musicians began to "talk" in musical conversations more revealing and expressive than words ever could be.
I was on the path of becoming a musician. Unlike athletes, musicians just get better with age, like good wine.
THIRD STEP: LEARNING TO BE
I can't really point to when it happened, how or why. Was it the 3000th gig, or the 1st one?
Was it the times everything came out effortlessly, or the years of playing with certain musicians whose styles annoyed the poop out of you?
What causes a musician to evolve over time, despite the situation, and what transitions you from doing to being?
It just happens. It just does IF you do your part and are fortunate enough to be given opportunities to experiment, fail, pick yourself up and keep trying. Keep going.
And...don't forget.
There will be some gigs and even seasons of your life when you won't always play on top of your game. There are peaks and valleys where you'll need a little grace and forgiveness from your fellow musicians.
The journey toward truly inspired songwriting takes courage, patience, and tenacity....but in the end?
You might find your songs soaring like a butterfly!
Paul Babelay is a vibraphonist/percussionist from Asheville, NC. For more great songwriting tips for beginners to veterans visit his website, http://www.yoursongwritingvibe.com
You can also check out his website http://www.thevibeguy.com
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