Steve Popovich is John Cougar, Frankie Yankovic aand Meat Loaf's manager etc.
He lives in my neighborhood and has given me some advice, which is:
If you are going to write songs, they better be STRONG!

Thanks Steve,
Jim Washington, Wickliffe

Yeah, but everybody thinks they write strong songs, even the people that don't.

Not bad advice, but KF3 points out that many songwriters, especially those just starting out, do not know what makes a song "strong".

There are several songwriting books that give good advice for writing better songs. You can usually find these at your local bookstore or even your local library.

So what makes a STRONG song, Jim?

I guess that to write a song you need the right balance of emotion.Also,it depends what you're writing.If you're writing an inspirational song you know,it's gotta be inspirational,or whatever so I hope you like my advice!

Jim

I wish there were more like your neighbor Steve. Ever listen to the radio and wonder where all the good songs went? Jim Steinman who wrote for Meat Loaf was really brilliant with the turnaround or play on words. What a story teller.

I can't stand broadcast radio for music anymore. Constantly hitting the seek button to find something new. I go to XM or mp3.

I met Ralph Murphy here on the gulf coast a few years back and in Nashville last year and he has the history and credentials to back up his hit song theories. You can read his stuff here: Ralph Murphy

Taylor Swift currently is a big exception to Ralph's Rules.

I wish Steve would have told you who in the business is looking for strong songs. We could send them a demo.

Hope to hear you someday on the radio and I promise not to hit the seek button.

Dave G