how often you write songs?

[K.C.]

I try to write a song everyday .. like spending one hour a day to purposely write a song.. I think that's a good practice to improve writing skill. How much time you spend to write a song... I heard that "yesterday" is written within 5 minutes ... is that true? ...so damn fast!!

[dansouth]

Well, I work on songs every day, but it usually takes from two weeks to three months to turn one into a recording. The fastest was one week, start to finish. The hook and the structure of the song usually hit me instantaneously. I just have to fill in the arrangement and the rest of the lyrics.

 

The prototype for 'Yesterday' - it was called 'Scrambled Eggs' - may have been written quickly (I don't know the details), but McCartney agonized over the song for months before he recorded it. He was certain that he'd heard the melody somewhere and had plagiarized someone else's song. He played it for anyone who would listen, but no one claimed to recognize it. When Paul finally convinced himself that it was indeed original, he recorded it. Sometime during this gestation period he (thankfully) rewrote the lyrics.

 

None of the other Beatles played or sang on the recording. George Martin arranged the string section. Start to finish, the song took a LOT longer than five minutes.