As the owner of New Faith Favorites, I get to see and review quite a lot of songs. Almost every one has a decent melody, and most have nice instrumental accompaniments. BUT, an amazing number of songs have poorly written lyrics—bad words!!
You get the tried and trite phrase, “I just put down what the Lord gave me”. Rubbish!!, Balderdash!!, and Give Me a Break!! When the Lord gave you the melody and the chords, did you leave it right there, or did you practice it, tweak it, and mold it into something that you and everyone around you would enjoy listening to. Of course you did! So why can’t you take the time to create words that inspire and provide a picture. In other words, provide striking imagery.
For an example, I am going to use the unlikely and poignant song “The Piano Man” by Billy Joel, which I think happens to be one of the best pop songs in the last 50 years. Let’s focus on one couplet.
Sir, can you play me a memory.
I’m not really sure how it goes,
But it’s sad, and it’s sweet,
And I knew it complete,
When I wore a younger man’s clothes.
He uses a bit of misdirection by using the word “memory” rather than “melody”, and by so doing, that one word gives us the opportunity to imagine all sorts of scenarios. The third and fourth lines have rhyming that just flows off the tongue, but I’ll discuss that in my next blog.
Now, take a look at the last line. “When I wore a younger man’s clothes” paints a bittersweet picture of a life being passed by. Imagery! Provide words that let the listener visualize what you want them to see, and make the words interesting enough that they will remember them for years after.
OK, let me end with a Christian example. I am going to use my own song. “Blow, Sweet Spirit”, which I spent a great deal of time crafting to make it a great song. I’ll use the second verse:
Can you see them coming from every land?
Being led by the shepherd’s strong hand,
To fulfill the promise He gave to us all.
Let us joyfully answer His call.
Can’t you just see people from all over the world being led by who? A shepherd, who loves His sheep, but who also has a strong hand to guide us in the proper path.
If we are writing songs for, and about the King of Kings, shouldn’t they be as good or better than all the secular stuff that’s out there? That’s a rhetorical question, of course. With prayer and effort we can and should provide a rich tapestry of ideas and images in our songs.
