Originally Posted By: Pat Marr
My counterpoint to the discussion is that I see no point in writing original songs. To me it's the functional equivalent of building sand castles at low tide.


Pat, have you ever sat around a table at a restaurant or a bar and told stories? Or met with your closest friends and shared a sad breakup, or a happy victory?

That's what songs are. Songs are stories set to music. Every song I have ever written tells a story of some event in my life. I really don't care about what sells. I have enough money. I want to make enough on this CD that is in progress to break even. The joy of songwriting is to share your story with people, just like when you sat around that table. I would rather tell MY stories than those of some other songwriter. I can't tell "Bob's" story with the proper amount of emotion. I can tell MY story that way though.

If I see ONE MORE hack girl singer over emoting on "At Last".....

Tell me YOUR story and you will have my interest.

I will never say or even infer that it does not take talent to play covers. I know better. I have played covers too like everybody else. What I DO say is this. I believe that if you sat a chimp at a piano in a locked room, and played Chopsticks over and over and over and over ad infinitum, eventually that chimp would learn to play Chopsticks.(Or as that song is called in China, Silverware). It's all repetition. My point is that it takes a different, deeper talent to be able to write your own stuff. You have to be more musically and lyrically literate to create than to mimic. As we all can say, I know some outstanding players who play in copy bands.

Once again I make the disclaimer, FOR MY TASTE, IN MY OPINION, WHAT I PREFER, NOT TELLING YOU WHAT TO DO..... I prefer to go to songwriter nights and hear what people are composing, not someone regaling me with his best impersonation of someone else. I went to one about 10 weeks ago on invitation of the guy running it. He told me it was a songwriter night. It was an open mic night. I stayed for 8 of the 15 minute acts. 6 of them did Turn The Page (Yes, SIX!), with one acoustic guitar, no sax (You can't do that song without the sax), and only one of the 6 could sing AT ALL. The other 2 acts played 3 original songs. Guess which ones got my applause?

Everybody is free to do what they choose to do. I am free to see who I choose to see. That works out well.

Last edited by eddie1261; 12/09/14 09:21 AM.
I am using the new 1040XTRAEZ form this year. It has just 2 lines.

1. How much did you make in 2023?
2. Send it to us.