How To Get A Song Idea Or "Start"

by Eric Storey
(Freeport, Bahamas)

The best way to "start" a song is to simply go around humming or singing stuff all the time. It can all kinds of stuff, anything really. For example, it can be songs of other artists' which you like, TV and radio commercial jingles, random phrases and patterns which you are just blurting out, Christmas songs, etc. The exact words and not that important--what is more important is that you are just singing stuff and you are happy about it, enjoying yourself, and with a positive attitude and a smile on your face while you are doing this.

Do this AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE--at least a few hours every day. You can do it loudly when you are in the car driving or are in nature walking in the evening, etc. Singing somewhat loudly is usually best for producing some positive results. But you can sing quietly, or even "in your mind" while just "mouthing the words with your lips" any time you want, even if other people are present. The absolute best times are when you are doing some rhythmic activity such as walking or jogging or lap swimming in the pool, etc. This allows for two extra benefits. The first one is that you have a natural rhythm pattern established by your body movement. The second is that you are "split-focused." Split focused means that half of you is concentrating on the the physical activity while half of you is focused on singing the song. This creates some kind of subconscious benefit which is strange and difficult to quantify, but it DOES produce some tremendous results.

For example, have you noticed how some of your best ideas may have come while randomly singing or blurting out stuff WHILE DRIVING IN THE CAR? It is because your again split-focused, especially if you are on a long straght highway stretch where the driving is monotonous and easy. Your brain is half zoning out on the road while also half zoning out on the song. This is almost a perfect kind of condition, because remember, you should not be "overtrying" to blurt or sing out new great original stuff. You should simply be blurting out whatever comes to your mind and singing it, even if it is a bunch of nonsense.

Try my system and you will find that sure, 99% of it is nonsense, but that 1% will come to you sure as the sun rises in the east, and you will be thinking to yourself, "Wow, I really like that!" And when it comes, simply be ready for it. When you have a nice little melody jump to your head, starting singing that one piece over and over, over and over, and slightly modifying it a bit here and there, you have to sing it at least 40 or 50 times again and again to yourself right there on the spot before you do anything else. This will burn it into your brain enough that you won't forget it before having a chance to get to your instrument and writing pad and notate it all down properly that evening. Of course, keep a little jot notebook handy for immediately scratching out a few words, but as for the melody, you need to keep singing it until you get to your keyboard or guitar--otherwise you will likely forget it. By singing it over and over again loudly (or at least quietly to yourself) you also get some amazing benefits of "branching" where you can slightly alter certain things each time around when it feels natural, sometimes almost stumbling on something a little better or at least an extra part to go along with what you had started with. Sometimes this is amazing and things all start rushing out at once; but don't be discouraged if you don't get anything more--the main thing is simply to get the original little hook or lick down. After you write it down and work out the notation of the melody line that night at your instrument in the peace and quiet of your home or studio, then you have, wah-lah, a song start.

I'll bet that if you use this system, after a short time of singing constantly while having fun with it, you will have generated multiple song-start ideas--and what is most important, is that they have sprung up naturally and they are not contrived. From here you still have a long road ahead of you, which involves completing the melody line, adding and/or substituting words, playing with the chord and harmony structures on your instrument, formatting the overall song, recording, etc. It is a lot of work and a big challenge of course. It takes a lot of time, it is not easy. But it is somewhat fun and if you relax and enjoy it, it will be a positive experience by the end.

I could go into a lot of detail like this on ideas of finishing out your songs once you have the idea started, but will leave that for another post if anyone is interested. There is a special way of motivating yourself think of filling in gaps (in melody or in lyrics) as in solving a puzzle of sorts, and you can do this in your sleep sometimes. Fascinating, I know, but it is really true. Of course, it doesn't always work--I don't talk of a formula or anything like that--it is simply another way to "help yourself along" which really can produce some striking benefits! As for wrapping up this post, however, what we have covered is the way of generating a lot of "song starts" that are natural and interesting--and truly that is half the battle!

Best wishes for success to all in improving their skills, I hope this has proved useful to you! --Eric Storey, Freeport, Bahamas (writer of 100+ songs since 1990)