Fun idea for songwriters here...

[Stray Dog]

This thread should really go into the lyricist forum, but no one visits that....

Ok, so to other songwriters here.... you know the feeling when you wanna write a song so bad, but don't know WHAT to write it about? That's the hardest part.... once you've got a subject, then you're off! But finding one in the first place is real difficult...

This might be fun and constructive. How about we all give each other a subject to write about.

It could be anything. Personally I like the idea of a story. Someone gimme a story to write a song about! I will do the same back.

How many times have you looked at your favourite songs and thought "hey this is actually a really weird thing to write a song about?"
Im sure countless times you've thought up similar weird lyric fodder, but thought "nah thats weird".... Well if you've actually got someone TELLING you to write a song about it, you can just ignore your self-conciousness and do it!

So who's up for it?

[Waldener]

like a random story, does it have to be true? Can I make it up? Like a personal story or news? I would totally be interested in doing this.

[Mr. Boston]

Nothing beats a good murder ballad. Think like the Grateful Dead's version of "Stagger Lee," you know something about revenge.

[Stray Dog]

ABSOLUTELY ANYTHING! A true story, a made up story, it could be really long and detailed, and it could be just a sentence or two....
Doesn't have to be a story, could be just like a situation, about a person you could make up, etc... You could just come up with a cool sentence/lyric/song title and make someone interpret it write a song around it.

One important thing though.
Legally, you won't get a songwriting credit. The songwriter gets the only credit. So only write a big exciting story if you are prepared to give it away! For that reason you might as well wack out a really simple idea. Great songs can be made out of the simplest, briefest ideas.

Tell you what, I'll start the ball rolling. Someone write a song about this!
An old man who walks on the same path in the woods with his dog every day, one day finds a wall has been built across it inside the woods. He climbs over the wall, leaving his dog behind, and never comes back.
What does it mean? I don't know. Interpret it how you want!

[Waldener]

I'm gonna go write on that for a while, are we allowed to quote from said story, phrase, ect. ?

How about this one.......... there's a picture leaning sideways on the wall I'm not sure how it got that way.



So.................... That was all I needed. I got an entire song written in less than an hour. Thanks

[Katau]

I actually wrote a song and applied the contents of a spam email to the lyrics. It was complete gibberish, but funny. I had a hard time singing and not laughing...there were several vocal takes on that one. In the end...if the listener doesn't pay attention, they probably couldn't tell.

[Stray Dog]

Sweet, wanna share it with us?
If you can't record it, just post the lyrics and chords!
What sort of style/genre is it?

I'm gonna write a song based on your idea too - thanks for it!

[Waldener]

I'll try to record it tonight if I can and post it, I also think I need to clean up the lyrics a little bit, but I'll post it soon:)

[Squizz]

Ok here's one. There's this guy referred to as "Special K" or "Baby Huey". He tries to support his family as a sub-contractor, but is always damaging his customers things. All his money goes to fixing damage and not feeding his family.

[shiggity]

something your not sharing with us Squizz?

[Furious Lopez]

I'm working on a song about a man who lives on a space station when a nearby sun collapses into a black hole. He and his love plan to marry and then jump into the singularity to be united forever. But while repairing a malfunction an accident sends him rocketing toward the black hole and his girl has no idea. So then she looks all over for him but ends up thinking that he must have left her...and his last thought while he's falling into the black hole is that his love was up on the space station and had no idea that he was gone...

I've only got a few lines so far that I can remember off the top of my head... (and more written in my notebook, but that's at home)

"A dying sun with a one track mind
Cries so hard as it goes out"

and

"The only thing that's worse to bear
knowing you were here but didn't care."

Work in progress.

I'm also working on one about a Paintbrush Robot. It's about a robot that paints, and all his paintings are amazing, but they are all just reproductions of something other artists have done...and he is constantly criticized for his unoriginality. "Poor paintbrush robot, he paints just what he sees." Then then one day he paints something completely new and original but the humans just think he's broken.

[Squizz]

something your not sharing with us Squizz?

lol...it is a true story, but it is not me.

[Squizz]

I'm also working on one about a Paintbrush Robot. It's about a robot that paints, and all his paintings are amazing, but they are all just reproductions of something other artists have done...and he is constantly criticized for his unoriginality. "Poor paintbrush robot, he paints just what he sees." Then then one day he paints something completely new and original but the humans just think he's broken.

dude...that's badass

[Waldener]

Sweet, wanna share it with us?
If you can't record it, just post the lyrics and chords!
What sort of style/genre is it?

I'm gonna write a song based on your idea too - thanks for it!



Here the lyrics I've got so far, haven't done any reworking yet but I plan to I think I want to make the whole metaphor and everything more powerful. When I get home I'll try to work out a guitar part. :toohappy:



Walls

Suddenly things seem as clear as night and day
He walked the same path for years until he went away
The dog he always brought along stuck on the other side
He found the woods were with him all throughout his life
He saw the wall one day in his path to mark its end
He crawled over it as he left his dog behind

So we cry and we never really understand why
We decide that metaphors can mean so much more
When life can get you down and reality knows
It’s way around where we’re standing on the ground
It seems we all cry when the end is in mind

Sometimes it’s clear that things have to change
We walk some paths to find there are things in our way
We leave all our memories and so much more behind
I found there are some words to take with me through my life
I go up and I fall down but I haven’t met the wall to face my end
When I do I’ll quietly crawl over it and wait till I see you again

So we cry and we never really understand why
We decide that metaphors can mean so much more
When life can get you down and reality knows
It’s way around where we’re standing on the ground
It seems we all cry when the end is in mind

He sits there trying to pretend he doesn’t care about life
Seems he walks along the edge of things and has never really tried
The one time he wanted something more than anything at all
He found a faith that helped him find his way through anything at all
The day the wall came it started to rain and he whispered
God, I’m coming home today

So we cry and we never really understand why
We decide that metaphors can mean so much more
When life can get you down and reality knows
It’s way around where we’re standing on the ground
It seems we all cry when the end is in mind

[atmourad]

this is a really cool idea! i really dig story songs! or even albums, like tommy. freaking amazing.

how about this: a guy takes out a pair of shoes he hasn't worn in a while and decides to wear them today. he heads into work and the day passes as any other, until he slips his shoes off and realizes that they make his feet stinky.

kinda the situation i'm in right now haha. dammit i hate wearing my shoes at work! how's that for a random subject it's no tommy, but hey pinball is just as random as smelly feet :p

[Furious Lopez]

this is a really cool idea! i really dig story songs! or even albums, like tommy. freaking amazing.

how about this: a guy takes out a pair of shoes he hasn't worn in a while and decides to wear them today. he heads into work and the day passes as any other, until he slips his shoes off and realizes that they make his feet stinky.

kinda the situation i'm in right now haha. dammit i hate wearing my shoes at work! how's that for a random subject it's no tommy, but hey pinball is just as random as smelly feet :p

I suppose it would be more like tommy if you were wearing the shoes with no feet, legs, or bone structure.

[Waldener]

See what you all can do with this one....

A man, who is running late,rushes out of his house and realizes that he left his keys inside so he goes back in and spends 15 minutes trying to find the keys. He finally finds them and hurries back out to his car. So he's speeding down the road but suddenly is forced to slow down when an ambulance comes speeding past. When he gets to work he's greeted by many of his colleagues who give him strange sympathetic glances. Later he finds out that his wife was killed in an accident during the time he spent rushing around and going through the day to day motions.

[Razzy]

dude...that's badass

I second that, that is such an interesting, orginal, and meanigful idea. It's kinda sad in a way.