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“You’re in the inner circle.”

That’s what I was accused of.

Said with envy… like I get treated special, like a chick on the first date or something.

You know, with respect, closed doors are flung wide, people open up, and listen.

Did I feel bad?

Hell no.

First. I ain’t no chick.

Second, I told this dude exactly why that happens.

And everything about it applies to your songwriting too.

1. Don’t be afraid to open up. By now you know quite a bit about me, and from just a few e-mails. From my gig instrument to having a 2-year old grandkid with his own drum kit. People respond to that kind of openness. Songwriting is no different. Just like I always sign off with… “Keep writing from the heart.”
2. Genuine. You’ve got to be genuine in your writing. Personal experience is great. Making up some crap about something rarely works well enough, unless you’ve lived close enough to that experience somewhere else in life. If you’re not genuine, people see right through that.
3. Have a voice. By voice I mean a certain style or persona which you write. The language you use, the personality. If you try to be a writer you’re not, your songs will show it, and sound like it, and people will know. Big turn off.
4. Be honest, even blunt if you have to. Don’t be afraid to put something out there in the buff. Sometimes it might seem a bit uncomfortable, but honesty and being straight with people will gain respect like no other. Tact is good, but not when it disguises who you are.

One of the “closest to the heart” tunes I penned some years back came from a real emotional struggle. Something happened to someone I’m close to, and it was troublesome.

I never wanted to play it out.

Not because I felt vulnerable.

I thought it was too sensitive for mixed company,

Turns out a multi-hit songwriter gave it two thumbs up, with as much potential as #1 hit songs like The Thunder rolls, Independence Day, and a few others.

So, in life, or in song…

Don’t be timid.

Don’t be shy.

Don’t feel vulnerable.

Screw that.

Be proud of who you are.

Get your tune on

And write who you are.

Until next time…

Keep writing from the heart!

I gigged at this Italian outdoor restaurant.

It’s a large pavilion smack-dab in the middle of a winery, tucked in the rolling hills… out in the middle of no-friggin’-where.

Cool place.

The owner has this thing where he comes out with a microphone and a glass of house wine, and flirts with the packed audience with his signature Dean martin, Volare sing-along bit.

The whole joint gets singing and it’s just good fun.

We musicians play inside a gazebo just outside the dining area.

The tunes are piped into the eatery.

So, I’m playing in the little gazebo.

An older couple is dancing out on the lawn.

People are stuffing their gobs with food, and all is well…

Until this drunk dude pokes his head in the open gazebo.

“Hey buddy, can you write me a song?” Flashing a twenty at me.

“Huh? What?” I say pulling back from the mic in the middle of an instrumental.

“Can you write me a song?” He says waving the greenback.

“What, now? Here? “Extending the instrumental.

“yeah right now, man.” He says.

I just shook my head and played on.

I wasn’t about to stop in the middle of a good paying gig to write this dude a custom song.

Besides. Write one Johnny-on-the-spot? Nope.

I do write custom tunes, but for a lot more than the $20 bill he was waving around.

Had you ever considered writing custom songs?

Cripes. One time I wrote a musical marriage proposal for this dude to pop the big question to his girlfriend.

Talk about coming out a real hero on that one. They both flipped over it.

And, it was a cool honor to be a part of such an important day for them.

Scribing custom tunes is a great way to monetize your talent, right?

The tips and techniques on the craft of songwriting you will pick up in Tune Booster will help you snag some of those extra custom bucks, doing what you love to do.

First edition coming in June.

Get your tune on.

Until then…
Keep writing from the heart!

I’m in this highway rest area, right?

A dude’s standing at a vending machine.

Pretty close to a Top Gun haircut.

Six-foot tall or so.

Khaki and cammo threads. Civilian style, not quite military garb.

The lady who filled the machine was in the background and saw the dude was having some hesitations and asked…

“Can I help you, sir?”

The dude turned around with a dirty look and rolled the eyes.

It wasn’t a dude.

I mean everything about this dude was dudely.

Very masculine features.

‘Cept… he, or she, had a bit of a chest.

Either that or a bra-worthy case of man-boob.

Anyway, the vending lady immediately said, “Oh I’m sorry ma’am, can I help you?”

The dudette ignored her, made her purchase, and walked away.

The vending lady, said, “Thank you and have a great day.”

Which the dudette grumbled, “yeah… right.” Walking out the door.

There’s a good lesson in songwriting, and in life here.

First, people have the right to be who they want in life. They live with whatever that might mean to them.

But, the world is also used to seeing things a certain way. And if you volunteer to change it, expect to meet up certain surprises.

It’s just going to happen.

I mean, if someone fixed you a hot dog…

Piled on the relish, kraut, ketchup, mustard, onion… the works…

You bit in, and found it was a tube filled with peanut butter and jelly.

Not a hot dog at all. Whatever they are filled with.

It’s not that this sandwich is wrong, but it’s disguised as a friggin’ hot dog.

Then, if you expressed any surprise, would you be wrong?

Not in my humble, but accurate for me, opinion.

This is different than Bob Seger’s tune “Turn the Page,” where he talks about walking into a room with long hair and good ole country boys loudly asking their buddies, “Is that a woman or a man?”

That’s taunting.

But don’t blame me if you’re wearing a knight’s suit of armor, and I don’t laugh because I don’t see the jester’s outfit you’re wearing under there.

It might not be wrong for you, but it’s confusing to me.

And the same can go for your tunes.

Don’t disguise it up as one song, then get mad because someone didn’t get it.

Many times this occurs in the song’s structure.

Look, there are certain things people are just used to seeing and hearing.

And, there are times when you can cross the lines a bit in self-expression or what feels right.

But, if you dress your song as a dog, and it meows, don’t blame the listener for pulling back a petting hand.

What sorts of things do writers sometimes do to cause confusion? What not to do, and how to meet a listener’s expectation?

Stuff like that is what Tune Booster is all about.

Getting to the gritty of your tunesmithing.

First edition coming in June.

Until then…

Keep writing from the hart!