We all have off-days - Learn From Them.

I have been writing songs for a long time. For whatever reason, the ‘song-fairy’ sprinkled her dust over me and I got the inclination to express myself in word and song in my early teens. I had an uncle who could ‘play anything’ so I thought ‘You won’t be able to pay this bugger…’

When Jae Bedford Of The Bedford School of Music and Performing Arts  https://thebedfordschoolofmusic.webs.com/ asked me to hold a songwriter’s workshop during the 2020 harbour Street Jazz and Blues Festival https://www.harbourstreetjazz.com/

– I readily accepted. My pride, ego and vanity all a-flutter.

But then thought: 'Shit!'

‘What on earth might I be able to offer by way of advice”’

I suppose I could boil it down to this:

Listen to other songwriters.  Forget about their look, their age, their gender, their sexuality or background. All that stuff is the wrapping that promoters like to envelop the ‘product’ in. Listen to each songwriter with the same ears. Ask yourself. Is this a good song? Not ‘Does this artist look good in a cat-suit?’

And yes, if not looking good in a cat-suit is a measure of song-writing ability I’m up there with Lennon and McCartney. And secondly challenge yourself. Be prepared to accept that even Lennon and McCartney had their off-days.

It may be true that torture begets great art. But you know what really begets great art?

Working at it. 

More of that later.