NL January 2011.pub - International Songwriters Association

OUR 44TH YEAR SERVING SONGWRITERS THROUGHOUT THE WORLD®JANUARY 2011 ISBN 0332-4990 FOUNDED 1967 ISSUE 306Songwriter DownloadedOwn Tunes In Card ScamWolverhampton songwriter Lamar Johnson,has admitted being part of a £500,000 fraud,which involved the use of stolen credit cardinformation, which was then used to purchasehis own songs from download stores such asAmazon and iTunes.The aim of the fraud, Southwark CrownCourt heard, was to obtain royalties from the“sales” of the material. Prosecutors claim thateleven other people were allegedly involvedin the operation.Johnson, pleaded guilty to one count ofconspiracy to defraud, but no pleas wereentered for the other defendants.Johnson who is currently in custody servinga five-year sentence for causing grievousbodily harm, admitted being responsible forabout 2,000 of the downloads during 2008and 2009, although the allegation is that6,000 downloads were involved altogether.Johnson is the youngest member of a group,accused of making nearly £500,000 throughthe fraudulent downloads.InterviewSongSeller & Trade NewsREM Song Makes Grown Men CryPRS for Music, the organisation that collects and pays royalties to its 70,000 song-writing andcomposing members, today reveals that REM’s Everybody Hurts tops the list of songs that makemen cry.REM’s “Everybody Hurts” was used as a charity single early this year in response to the 2010Haiti earthquake, in which VAT and royalties were waived to maximise the aid money. Thesingle became the UK’s fastest-selling charity record of the 21st century.Top ten songs that make men cry1. Everybody Hurts – REM2. Tears in Heaven – Eric Clapton3. Hallelujah – Leonard Cohen4. Nothing Compares 2 U – Sinead O’Connor5. With or Without You – U26. Drugs Don’t Work – The Verve7. Candle In The Wind – Elton John8. Streets of Philadelphia – Bruce Springsteen9. Unchained Melody – Todd Duncan10. Angels – Robbie WilliamsSource: PRS for MusicDon RobertsonEric Clapton’s 1992 ballad, “Tears in Heaven”, was written about the pain that he feltfollowing the death of his four-year-old son. Clapton stopped playing the song in 2004 when hehad finished mourning his son.The results are based on a survey of over 1,700 people in the UK, conducted by PRS forMusic. Commenting on the results, Ellis Rich, chairman of PRS for Music, said: “From thischart, it is clear that a well-written tear-jerker is one that people can relate to and empathisewith. It is this lyrical connection that can reach deep down emotionally and move even thestrongest of men.”IN FUTURE ISSUES OF SONGWRITER MAGAZINEExclusive Interviews With Such Million-Selling Songwriters AsLes Reed, Dallas Frazier, Keith Stegall etc etc!ObituariesGeorge David Weiss (89), songwriter whowrote Elvis Presley's, "Can't Help Falling InLove" and Louis Armstrong's "What AWonderful World" as well as collaborating onsuch Broadway musicals as "Mr Wonderful"and "Maggie Flynn", and whose songs havebeen recorded by Dinah Washington, TheStylistics, Ella Fitzgerald, Tennessee ErnieFord, Sammy Davis Jr., Perry Como, Nat"King" Cole, Joey Ramone, Patti Page, SarahVaughan, Tom Jones, Mel Torme and KayStarr. A Songwriters Hall Of Fame Inductee.In Oldwick, New Jersey, USA, of heartfailure....Chris Dedrick (62), singer andsongwriter who was a member of Free Design("Don't Turn Away" and "Kites Are Fun") aswell as writing music for such films as "TheSaddest Music In The World" and"Childstar". Chris also worked with TheCanadian Brass, Barry Mann, Peter, Paul AndMary, The Star-Scape Singers, MelissaManchester, Simon And Garfunkel and JamesTaylor. In Toronto, Ontario, Canada, ofcancer....Ben Keith (73), steel guitarist,singer and songwriter who was a member ofThe Pegi Young Band as well as workingwith Neil Young, Otis Blanton, Jerry LeeLewis, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, AnnMurray, Ringo Starr, Lonnie Mack, TheBand, Linda Ronstadt, Patsy Cline, Ian AndSylvia, Terry Reid, Paul Butterfield,Emmylou Harris, Todd Rundgren, MotherEarth, Warren Zevon, J.J. Cale, David Crosbyand Graham Nash. At the Broken ArrowRanch in California, USA, following a heartattack....Murray Deutch (90), music industryexecutive, singer, pianist, and musicpublisher, who helped with the career ofBuddy Holly And The Crickets while head ofthe music publishing company Peer-SouthernInternational. Later he headed up the musicdivision at United Artists, before foundingthe publishing company, Buttermilk Sky.Murray was the husband of actress, LeaThompson, father of film director, HowardDeutch and brother-in-law of actor, RobertWalden. In Scottsdale, Arizona, USA,following a heart attack....Solomon Burke(70), singer and songwriter of such hits as"Cry To Me" and "Everybody NeedsSomebody To Love", who worked with PattyLoveless, Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris,Patty Griffin and Gillian Welch and whosesongs have been covered by The RollingStones, Wilson Pickett and Otis Redding. ARock And Roll Hall Of Fame Inductee,Solomon Burke died at Schipol Airport,Amsterdam, Netherlands, following a heartattack....Neil Richardson (80), composer,arranger and clarinettist, who led The NeilRichardson Singers and worked with NeilDiamond, The BBC Radio Orchestra, JohnnyMathis, Vic Damone and George Shearing.He also wrote for radio, TV and film, and forboth The King Singers and The SwingleSingers. In Nerja, Spain, of heart failure.The Songwriter® is published by International Songwriters Association LtdPO Box 46, Limerick City, Ireland. Tel 00 353 61- 228 837: E-mail jliddane@songwriter.iol.ieManaging Editor: Jim LiddaneContributing Editors: Larry Wayne Clark, Patricia Knapton, Jim Birmingham and Harvey Rachlin

STACE JAMESPERFORMER Michael Jackson with AkonWRITERS Aliaune Thiam, GiorgioTuinfort, Claude KellyGuide to the sections:1. The Hooks Takes a closer look at "thehooks" that helped make the track a hit.2. The Lyric Examines the lyric of the songand considers the nature and extent of its rolein making the song a hit.3. Song or Track? Looks at the extent towhich the song’s success depended on theproduction and performance of the song, andthe extent to which its success relied upon"the song" itself.The HooksThe arguments over whether anyunfinished works by the late King of Popshould be released will rage on for sometime. But it’ll have no bearingwhatsoever on what will actually happen– like it or not, Jackson’s firstposthumous release, Michael, will mostdefinitely not be the last. The fact is thatJackson’s music will be in demand for avery, very long time, and while thatremains the case, and while there’sunheard material in the vaults, there willcontinue to be “new” Jackson releases.No doubt about it, Jackson’s going to bea very busy dead man.Putting the controversial issue of theethics of posthumous releases aside, andconsidering Michael purely on itsmusical merits, it really is an impressivework. Understandably, the album doesn’treally work as a cohesive statement: thesongs are sourced from as far back as theThriller period to material he was working onin 2009. But, taken as individual songs, thequality generally is far higher than manydoubters had expected. Indeed, it couldeasily be argued that a handful of the trackson Michael can comfortably make claim tobe among his best work.Among the standout songs on thecollection is Hold My Hand.As one of the more recent Jacksonrecordings, what is initially most striking isthe confidence in Jackson’s performance.On the evidence of this and other recentrecordings, there’s every reason to believeJackson could have delivered another classicalbum, had he lived to complete it. Somecritics have argued that Jackson was indecline as a songwriter, performer andvocalist from 1987’s Bad onwards, but that’sAnatomy Of A Hit -“Hold My Hand”a controversial view and a very difficultargument to defend. Vocally, in particular,Jackson never lost it. His vocals for Hold MyHand were recorded in 2008, andconsidering the utter chaos in both his privateand public life at the time and, especially, inthe few years previous, it really is quiteastonishing that he still sounded so good.As with much of Jackson’s best work, it’sthe simplicity of the main hooks that makeHold My Hand such a catchy song. Theverses and pre-chorus are clean, uncluttered,and posses a nursery-rhyme-esque quality – atrait common to many Jackson ballads.Notice, too, how the title and main hook ofthe song are presented in teaser form in theverses as response lines to the main melody:a clever, but often overlooked, songwritingtechnique.The attractive, but calm and laid-back vibeof the verses and pres, are perfectlyconstructed as contrasts to the bold, epicchorus that follows. This is a great exampleof how contrast can be used to makeattention-holding songs. There’s plenty ofvariety between verse, pre-chorus andchorus, no section is any longer than itabsolutely needs to be and so the listeners’attention is sustained throughout.Worth mentioning is the interplay betweenJackson and Akon’s vocal lines in the chorus.Writing for two lead vocalists is adeceptively complex branch of songwriting.It’s not just a matter of each vocalist takingevery other line.Notice, for instance, how each chorusvaries in which singer takes which lead andad-lib lines – exposing not just thesongwriting expertise at work here, but thearranging, editing and mixing skills too.The LyricJackson ballads have sometimes beencriticised for being mawkish and overlysentimental. Whatever your thoughts on thatparticular argument, what is virtuallyirrefutable is that Jackson always believed inthe lyrics he was singing.While there’s nothing especiallyremarkable about Hold My Hand as a lyric,the simplicity of its message is endearing –everything will be better if you just “hold myhand”. That it’s impossible not to “get” thelyric is part of its appeal. Often, the moreuniversally understood and unambiguous asong lyric is, the wider it’s embraced.Lyrically, it’s possible that in lesserhands, Hold My Hand may have comeacross as slightly too saccharine. Butactually listening to the song, Jackson’sdelivery holds the whole concepttogether in a completely believable way.Song or Track?The controversy surrounding the useof Autotune and Melodyne (and, indeed,if Jackson’s voice is in fact that of animpersonator on parts of the Michaelproject), has been laughably overblown.Pitch correction is a necessity whentrying to cobble together a finishedsoundingmaster recording from what, inmany cases, would have been guidevocals or run-through/rehearsal takes.It may shock many, but even hadJackson completed the project himself,pitch correction software would haveplayed an essential role at the mixing stage.Very little of what you hear in pop these daysescapes pitch-tweaking.To criticise a track on the grounds thatMelodyne was used at some point hasbecome as ridiculous as accusing a live bandof “cheating” by using amplifiers to makethemselves louder. Jackson was always keenon using the latest technology and innovativeproduction techniques and sounds in hiswork. But, for him, the song at the heart ofthe track was always king. In this respect,Hold My Hand is typical Jackson.The production has been given theobligatory contemporary edge, with thebright synths and snappy drum programming,and everything does its job well. But likemost of Jackson’s work, at the core thereremains the holy grail – a killer song.Copyright Stace James & SongwriterMagazine: All Rights Reserved: PrintedBy PermissionSongwriter Magazine Page 2

DENNIS R SINNOTTHow To Start And Operate AMusic Publishing CompanyStarting a music publishing company canbe a lot simpler and much easier to operatethan you may think - but you need to followcertain rules.There's no question, the amount of revenuegenerated every hour simply by controllingthe copyright in just a handful of songs, canrun into millions. The income from oneevergreen alone, for example, can be enoughto pay the salary of a small publishing housefor several years.Curiously, people often make the mistakeof thinking they have to invest heaps ofmoney into this business to have any chance.Actually, of all the fields in the entertainmentindustry, music publishing can be the leastexpensive. I have known individuals to startup on less than forty dollars, and make hugesums consistently, year in year out.To get started you need to determine firstlythe genre of music that most interests you.Some people like to work on "CountrySongs" or "Hip hop" "Dance" "Blues" "Jazz"or even a general catalogue of music.Whatever music you consider - bear inmind if you want to make money, your musicneeds to have commercial appeal.Next, you'll need a publishing agreement(sometimes referred to as a "publishingassignment"). You should ensure that theterms are fair and reasonable and preferablyobtained from a reputable entertainmentlawyer, one which you can also use as yourtemplate for future signings.This is the agreement between thecomposer and lyricist of the song, and you asthe music publisher. As a music publisher,you have to appreciate that the person whocreated the song in the first place (i.e thecomposer/lyricist), is the beneficial owner inthe copyright.If you're a songwriter yourself, then youhave an added bonus in getting your musicpublishing company up and running.By assigning the rights to you as a musicpublisher, the songwriter is empowering youwith certain rights to exploit his workthrough the media.Once you control the copyright, you canstart to make an income every time the songsor theme music (as the case may be), are usedpublicly (i.e broadcast on radio, television,synchronised into a commercial, released onrecord, published in print, used digitally onthe internet, and so on).Although the different areas of licensingmay seem daunting, most of the licensingprocess can be taken care of for you.For example, as soon as you've acquiredthe rights in your first few songs, you canapply for membership of one of theperforming rights organisations in yourcountry.In the United States for example you havea choice of three: ASCAP, BMI or SESAC;in Canada: SOCAN; in the United Kingdom:PRS; in France: SACEM; in Germany:GEMA; Australia: APRA, and so on. Simplygo to their respective website for anapplication form. Every country in thecommercial world has its own performingrights organisation. Once you're admitted tomembership you can register your songs assoon as you acquire the rights.Your performing rights organisation (orperforming right societies as they aresometimes referred), will automaticallylicense and collect revenue on your behalf foryou on all performing and broadcasting useof your works.They will then pay you at set distributiondates in the year. They will also pay thewriter his/her share direct (provided he/she isa writer member).So, a large proportion of your licensingrequirement is taken care of for you. Bear inmind that, the performing right organisationssphere of interest is in the area of performingand broadcasting activity only.If one or more of your songs (or thememusic) is released on a record - i.e CD/DVDfor sale to the public, you can either licensedirect to the record company, or join amechanical rights organisation who willlicense and collect income on your behalf forthis type of license (i.e record sales).In the USA you can join the Harry FoxAgency will handle your mechanicallicensing; in the UK: MCPS, and so on.So, by joining a performing andmechanical organisation in your owncountry, most of your licensing has beentaken care of for you. Just ensure that youregister all your songs (and whatever othermusic you may be acquiring - theme,background etc), with both performing andmechanical societies as and when youacquire the rights.There are some areas of licensing in whichyou will have to deal directly with thelicensee or company wanting to use yoursong.Grand or stage rights for example (i.e useof a song in, say, a drama, musical or opera),print publications, synchronised use in afilm, commercial etc. (note: sometimes amechanical rights organisation will offer tolicense a synchronised license and collect thelicense fee on your behalf. Some do, andsome don't. Check with the organisationrepresenting you).Your obligation of course, is to pay thewriter, his her contractual share as set out inyour agreement.Once you have two or more songs, (orpieces of theme music), your catalogue hasstarted.Many people primarily involved in otherareas of music: producers, managers andartists, even record labels, often have a musicpublishing companyYour underlying objective should alwaysbe to build a repertoire of good earningsongs, a catalogue from which you areadding songs with commercial potential,continuously.Of course the point of what is commercialis down to you and despite your instinctsyou're still going to take in some "deadwood"that, for all your drive and enthusiasm, yousimply won't be able to license or cover forlove or money.Well, okay - so long as you've exploitedthem - you've done your best. You're notgoing to be successful on everything youpick up. Give the rights back to the writer sohe can take the song elsewhere.Always keep in mind successful musicpublishing is about having a continuousevolving catalogue generated from clever andshrewd licensing.Focus on building, expanding andincreasing revenue streams for yourself andyour songwriters, and your name andreputation as a music publisher will go fromstrength to strength.I hope you found this article helpful andinstructive. If so, why not visit our site at:http://www.ChristelMusic.comCopyright Dennis R. Sinnott &Songwriter Magazine: All RightsReserved: Printed By PermissionSongwriter Magazine Page 3

DEBBIE RIALAt the age of just 17, Claire Hamill foundherself with a recording contract with amajor label. Her debut album “One HouseLeft Standing" was one of the first everrecorded by a British female singersongwriterand featured members of theband Free as session musicians. She soonfound herself touring in the UK with thelikes of John Martyn, who’d also played onthe album and Procol Harum and JethroTull in the US. On her return toBritain, she recorded her nextalbum “October” at RichardBranson’s Manor Studio and alsofitted in a tour supporting KingCrimson. In 1973, she met RayDavies of The Kinks and wassubsequently signed to his Konklabel which provided her thirdalbum “Stage Door Johnnies”,which had a more ‘rocky’ feel and“Abracadabra”, her fourth. Aroundthis time, Claire joined forces withWishbone Ash and co-wrote thetrack “Living Proof“ with LaurieWisefield. By the mid eighties,following a short time spent withher own band, ‘Transporter,Claire’s music had taken on a NewAge feel and her album “Voices”which was exactly that, layers ofClaire’s own voice woven into a richtapestry, won her critical acclaimand was used in the BBC’sprogramme “Doomsday” and laterby Channel 4. Eva Cassidyrecorded a version of Claire’s “YouTake My Breath Away” and went tonumber 1 on her album ‘AmericanTune‘ and was featured in the film“Flight of Fancy“ starring DeanCain. Claire is still a prolificsongwriter and is currently writingnew material to coincide with forthcomingtours.At what age did you discover an interestin music?I remember being so moved by the lyrics of“Scarlett Ribbons” that I cried. I think I was4. My parents had a café on the north-eastcoast near Whitby and customers werewarned not to play that song on the juke box!What music were you listening to whenyou were growing up, who were yourheroes and who did you aspire to be?My heroes were Doris Day, Elvis, TheBeatles, Ella Fitzgerald (my favouritesinger), The Stones, The Kinks. I aspired tobe Marilyn Monroe because my first loveSongwriter Magazine Page 4Songwriter Profile -Claire Hamillwas acting and I wanted to be an actresswhen I was young.You come from a large family, are any ofyour siblings musical?We all sing but with the exception of mysister who plays the bodhran and a littleguitar no one else can play anything.Were you encouraged to follow youmusical aspirations?I was definitely encouraged. Music wasreally important in my family but from apurely cultural/fun point of view.My family was dominated by my Irishgrandmother who had a lovely voice andplayed the piano. We all sang andharmonised together whenever we could.How old were you when you first beganwriting songs?I was 10 when I co-wrote my first song.Do you still remember that song andwhat it was about?I can’t remember much about it apart from“sitting under the old apple tree”. I thenwrote some peace songs when I was 12 andmy first love song for a French boy when Iwas 13. I can still sing that one!How do you write your songs, is it as theinspiration hits you or do you set timeaside specifically for it?It depends. I usually wait for inspiration tostrike if I’m writing for myself. I fell in loveagain last year and wrote 11 songs in oneday! Well actually they’re not in song formyet, they’re only poems at the moment. Onlyone has become a complete song so far. IfI’m commissioned to write something Iset time aside and get to work. I also writewith other people. At the moment I writewith my sister Louise and I’m writingcomedy songs with my friend Kate Tym.Do you think of the lyrics first andthen fit it into a particular style or doesthe melody lead?Usually the melody comes first but themetre of the words suggest a melody.Think of “Paperback Writer” it almostcouldn’t have been written any other way.At the time you came to everyone'sattention it was almost unheard of tohave a British female singer/songwriter,was this uniqueness a help or ahindrance?Both. It was a help in one sense that Iwas able to get press/publicity etc but ahindrance because there was no biggenre for women’s (sensitive) songs.The 70’s was a time of hugebreakthroughs for women in every sense.I witnessed the changes first hand. I wasquite feminist having been brought up bya single mother at a time when it wasreally looked down on.I even refused to wear make-up as Iwanted to be taken seriously for mymusic….how times have changed .We’vecome full circle now!Island Records was a big label, how didyou come to be signed and at such a tenderage?I charmed the boss!Members of Free and John Martynappeared on your debut album "OneHouse Left Standing", one of the first everrecorded by a British female singersongwriter,did you think at the time howspecial that was, did you find itintimidating?I was so innocent and unworldly. I wasn’treally aware of the fame or otherwise of thepeople that Chris Blackwell managed to getto play on my album apart from Simon Kirke

who was the drummer in my favourite bandat that time, Free.After you left Island Records, RayDavies signed you to his Konk label. Whatwas your experience with him?He has a wonderful aura. He’s charismaticand deep. You can’t fail to be enchanted byhim and I was no exception. The onlydifficulty with people like that is getting theirtime. Everyone wants a sunshine piece ofRay!Your time with Ray produced a new,more ‘rocky’ direction in the form of yournext album “Stage Door Johnnies“, whichwas very well received. Was this aconscious decision or a naturalprogression?Because I was signed to a rock label I hadbeen exposed to the rock scene and was veryinfluenced by everything I washearing. I toured with rockbands and was hanging out withthem. I had never been exposedto the folk world or touringcircuit so I thought the wayforward for me was to be a rocksinger. My friend Alan Whitewas the drummer with YES. Isaw stadiums first hand andaspired to that myself.You came through the oldfashioned way, writing andgigging. A lot of people nowwant instant fame through TVprogrammes like “X Factor”,what do you think about suchshows?I think they’re a great way ofpeople who can sing but can’tplay anything to be discovered.They also provide a living for songwriters asmost of the acts don’t write their own songs.The sad thing is that the contestants mightnot be aware that there’ll be a host of othernew singers coming through on the nextseries. I often wonder what happens to thepeople who come 2nd and 3 rd each year andeven some of the winners. When thespotlight moves on it can be very hard tocope with.As a performer, you’ve worked withsome heavyweights in the music business,Jethro Tull, Procul Harum, Jon Anderson.Of all the names you’ve worked with whohad the biggest influence and whosurprised you?Vangelis surprised me the most…he hasthe most amazing hands!! I think that RickGrech had a big influence on me. He mademe listen to country music over and overuntil I learned to love it. Andrew Warren myex- partner did the same with dance music.It’s very hard to choose one person. Therehave been so many by now!As a songwriter, is there anyone you’dlike to work with?Many!! Too many! Madonna for astart…she could do with a good song! I’dlove to work with Mark Ronson, Mary Black,Natasha Beddingfield and Kate Bush. I thinkI could learn something from all of them. Icould worship at the feet of Leonard Cohenand Bob Dylan. In fact Bob Dylan yes…heneeds me cos I write lovely melodies and hewrites killer lyrics.Although it’s usually just you and aguitar, you’ve also worked as part of aband set up, as in your stint withWishbone Ash and briefly formed yourown group Transporter. What do youprefer and is your own band somethingyou would still like to have?I love working solo just me and my guitarand there is an old Irish tradition of the solovoice that I believe is my privilege to carryon but I love working with other musicians.Making wonderful music and being a witnessto something beautiful being created is one ofthe most incredible things in life. It makesyou glad to be alive.. truly!Looking back one cannot help beingimpressed at the diversity of your work,you’ve never been afraid to experiment. Isthere a musical style you still wish toexplore?Thank you for that lovely compliment! Iwant to immerse myself in Celtic music formy next album and make something sohauntingly beautiful it will stand as mytestament…blimey I sound grand!But you know what I mean? I’ve comeclose to real beauty on a few different songs(“Trees” is my favourite) but I haven’t madethe killer album yet …that pleasure awaitsme and drives me on.Is there a style you would avoid?Hip hop!Your 1987 ground-breaking album“Voices“ was just that, songs built up oflayer upon layer of your vocals with noinstrumental or vocal backing. What wasbehind this innovative concept?I was asked to make it by my ex-husbandfor his new age label. He had discoveredNew Age music in The U.S. and wanted tobring it to the UK but needed some differentsounding albums. It was a stroke of genius onhis part to ask me to do that album. I willalways be grateful for the opportunity hegave me to go in and record somethingcompletely new.How did you have to adapt your songwriting style to using your voice in thisway?I had just moved to the country so I used itas the inspiration for the project and I just letmy voice come out of me…it was a greatexperience, so cathartic! It was strange not tohave to write anything with words. “Awakenlarkrise”was the first track.When I finished recording itthe engineer was blown away.He could hear that it was sonew. I just thought it wasweird and that no-one wouldever buy it!How did you feel whenyou heard Eva Cassidy hadrecorded “You Take MyBreath Away” and what didyou think of her treatmentof it?I cried when I heard it, itwas so beautiful. It’s such ashame that I’ll never get tothank her for her wonderfultreatment of my song.What are you up to at themoment?I’m writing with my sister Louise andfriend Kate Tym, planning my next albumand a tour of Italy in July and the U.K. inOctober as support to Barclay James Harvest.Finally, what tips do you have forsongwriters looking for their big break?Get the best recording of your song. Getyourself a manager if possible and makecopies to give away to people. Either goodlocal singers who you think might be goingplaces or press a CD into the hands of yourfavourite artist at the stage door. You neverknow where it might lead.By far the best way is to get to know a greatpublisher or producer but that’s not alwayspossible though you’d be surprised who isstanding next to you in your local pub!Finally let your songs be heard in whateverway you can.You may never get a Number 1 but why letthat stop you performing your songs? Get outthere and make them live… good luck!Copyright Debbie Rial & SongwriterMagazine: All Rights Reserved: PrintedBy PermissionSongwriter Magazine Page 5

SONGSELLER® NOTICEbOARDMoonBeat ProductionsWe've recently opened a studio in theMidlands region of the UK and are lookingfor some original material for an unsignedband.Use of material: Looking to release analbum commercially.Singers: A three piece boy band between13 and 15 years old.Style: Up beat pop.Will provide a copy of any demo made andreturn any unsuitable material. Pleasecontact:Simon BennettSimon@MoonBeat.co.ukMoon Beat ProductionsChurch ViewChurch LaneMiddletonB78 2ANUKTel 07814 653 506Tel 0800 933 61 61http://www.moonbeat.co.ukConor BrassilSinger Conor Brassil requires songs toperform and perhaps record and release.Upbeat or slow songs in the style of EltonJohn or Lady Gaga and similar if possible.I play piano and guitar and need somethingcatchy Like Lady Gaga's "Speechless" or"Pokerface" acoustic. Can record the songand return for further changes if wanted.Mobile: 0866662851c.j.brassil@gmail.comNathanMale singer urgently requires a song in thehard rock/heavy metal style, for demo.Wordsmust suit male vocalist. Will provide a copyof any demo made and will return anyunsuitable material.E-mail Joshua Roberts (manager) atJosh2Rob@live.co.ukJake Shaw MusicWe need a song in the style of JustinBieber's "Eenie Meenie". You can check thatout athttp://tinyurl.com/38v6rrlMoonBeat Productions,Alexine & Adam Taylorand contact me atjakeshawmusic@yahoo.co.ukChristie ConnollySinger Christie Connolly urgently requiresmaterial in the swing style of Caro Emerald,for demo and possible record release. Wordsmust suit a female vocalist.Will provide acopy of any demo made. MP3 only please-Instrumental is fine.Please e-mail to:xtie_music@hotmail.co.ukBen SellorsI recently signed for a record label, andrequire an album's worth of songs (minimumof 12) for future release. The songs must suita male vocalist. The style should be pop/ballads - possibly similar to JesseMcCartney. (Some uptempo, some not so). Ifrequired, I can email you a copy of anyfinished recordings. I will return anyunsuitable material, if a stamped replyenvelope is enclosed.You can write to me atBen Sellors34 Droghadfayle ParkPort ErinIsle of ManIM9 6EPor email me atb.sellors.music@live.comAlexineSinger Aleksandra Waszczuk (Alexine)urgently requires a song which bearsresemblance to Britney Spear's "Womanizer"- for demo and possible record release.Words must suit female vocalist and not to bevery complicated. Song should be a hit whichwill cheep up the listeners. Will provide acopy of any demo made and will returnunsuitable material.alexine@windowslive.comJoshua RobertsUK singer Joshua Roberts urgentlyrequires a song in the up-tempo pop/dancestyle, for demo and possible record release.Words must suit male vocalist. Will providea copy of any song made and will returnunsuitable material.e-mail Josh2Rob@live.co.ukMichael O'BrienThis is a golden opportunity for a male/female vocalist, to write lyrics, and sing onvery commercial dance/trance tracks, withpublishing deals already in place.If youwould like to be a part of a financially andrewarding success story, we would like tohear from you.Contact, Mike by email at;-mcobrien8@aol.ComAdam TaylorOriginal material required for male vocalistAJ, possibly for release as a charity single.Would prefer a ballad or an uplifting song,suitable for a male voice, similar to RobbieWilliams/Westlife etc. We are willing toprovide copies of any recordings made andwill return anything unsuitable. AJ is also aRadio DJ and as a result is guaranteed someairplay for any songs recorded.Write to:Adam Taylor12 Castleland StreetBarryVale Of Glamorgan CF63 4LNWalesor phone07812245285or emailfrazzleadz@hotmail.comSongwriter's Best SongSongwriter's Best Song is a service thatfeatures a genre-specific directory in whichany songwriter's works can be showcased andperhaps discovered, published, and recorded- without the need for the writer to mail out asingle CD. Songwriters should think of thisservice as a link to people in the musicbusiness and other industries who now need,and are now listening for, new songs forp u b l i s h i n g . . . T V . . . r e c o r d i n gartists...movies...ad campaigns...computergames...live theater...and the dozens of otherapplications for which their songs may beused.Songwriter's Best SongBox 398Songwriter Magazine Page 6

HallandaleFL 33008USATel 305-331-1070Contact Marilyn Kay, Administrator atmarilyn@songwritersbestsong.comG4orceMy name is Anthony Nuxy and I am onehalf of a production duo called G4orce. Asmusic producers, we have have worked withmultiplatinum artists including, Usher andNelly. Please find below a request for songsfor an artist we are working with.Amy WebsterHaving just turned 16 years old, AmyWebster has a great voice and interestinglynever taken vocal lessons. Like EsmeeDenters and Justin Bieber, Amy wasdiscovered on YouTube where she haswhipped up a storm with amazing covers bythe world's biggest vocalists, Beyonce,Mariah, Christina Aguilera and Leona Lewis.Album will be executive produced byG4orce whose production credits include hitsfor Usher, Nelly, Tony Braxton and Rihanna.Styles wantedModern contemporary Hits! Songs you canhear on heavy rotation on the radio. Amy cansing the phonebook. Think Mariah Carey,Jennifer Hudson, Jordin Sparks, ChristinaAguilera, Jojo, Miley Cyrus, Rihanna, KeriHilson.Plenty of Interest in all popular styles butplease bear in mind, Amy is just 16 years oldso relevance is key. A great opportunity forUnknown writers to get in on the groundfloor for an artist who is going straight to thetop!. Ballads are also welcome.Check out all her voice athttp://tinyurl.com/2ubfqatSubmissionsBy Email: Preferably digital link such assoundcloud/myspace but Mp3s are also O.K.Please send listening links/mp3s tomusicalsubmissions@gmail.comandCC musiclawyers@gmail.comPaul GoldstrongI'm looking for someone to collaboratewith as a songwriter. I write songs and lyricsbut feel that there are certain areas, such asmy melodies, that do not in my opinion,come up to the mark.My influences are acoustic, rock, folk,blues, new age based. I'm willing to give anygenre a go, as long as it is good, and relevant.I have a small home studio for demoing. I'mbased in the south-west of England, but I amhappy to work with anybody in the UK, overthe internet.Contact me onpaulgoldstrong@yahoo.co.ukor telephone07901 9666256Roger PenkethmanI am a UK based lyricist looking for newmelody writers, preferably someone who canwork in electro pop, dance, r+b or similarstyles.I have several lyrics that would suit thosestyles and really need to get something donewith them as I have a pretty good contactwho is interested in one of my songs butrequires a few more to complete a futurealbum.Any songs collaborated on will be on a50/50 share of any profits. It would be greatif you had some contacts to submit tracks toand could produce tracks on CD or highquality mp3.Anyone interested please get in touch viaemailinfo@penkslyrics.comAlso I want to hear from bands or solosingers who require original lyrics to addtheir own music to. Most lyrics are prettygeneral in the style of music that could bewritten to them, though a few require aspecific style.Also I have collaborations with melodywriters I so can provide the full song ifneeded. Anyone interested can email meinitially or visit my website for a smallselection of my lyrics and songshttp://www.penkslyrics.comMTG ProductionsIndependent label MTG Productions UKrequires songs in the following styles: Pop/Pop Ballad/Pop Rock/R&B/Dance.For demo and possible record release oniTunes and other online stores as well aspressed to CD for physical release. Artistswill be participating in a small UK-widetown tour in 2011 and thiu are seekingmaterial.Writers are invited to listen to the artistsconcerned (links below) - these are PaulineAlexander, Rose Queen & CatherineStevenson, all are currently signed to MTG.Pauline has just released her debut albumand now is seeking more material to use onher next release planned for Easter next year.Rose is a newcomer and working on herdebut album at the moment, therefore songsare required in the styles above. However wewelcome any other genres for both artists.Pauline Alexanderhttp://tinyurl.com/3667d4kRose Queenhttp://tinyurl.com/3ak98reCatherine Stevensonhttp://tinyurl.com/2umeglzorhttp://tinyurl.com/37drpe2Demos welcome in MP3 format as well asCD. No tapes please. If you require the CDsreturned, please include a stamped addressedenvelope.MTG guarantee to respond to all writers indue course. We will provide a copy of anysongs demoed by our artists to thesongwriters.Please send your submissions toandy@mtgproductions.co.ukPlease include the subject line -RequestISAPlease feel free to email us for more detailson our brief or to request our postal address.No publishing companies please!Natasha "Jayme" HanjinI'm always looking for quality artists.Please send all promo/CDs/bios to theaddress below.Natasha "Jayme" Hanjin107.3 HFM - Rock'n Blues Radio6 Janda Ct. Armadale, WA 6112 Australiarhythmenblues@aol.comhttp://www.myspace.com/BluesBloodJeff (JT) SimpsonI am Jeff (JT) Simpson and I'm looking forsongs for a demo and possible record release- for a male voice and in the style of JasonReeves, John Mayer, Radiohead, and MatKearney. Looking for four songs, uptempoand slow, mostly acoustic driven.You can contact me on my cell at661-809-6414or emailjeffsbestmobiledj@hotmail.comJeff Simpson111 F StewwtTaftCA 93268USASongwriter Magazine Page 7

LARRY WAYNE CLARKESongwriter Profile -Don RobertsonHe has met and mingled with giants ofour time and culture including CarlSandburg, Walt Disney, Johnny Mercer,Frank Sinatra, Elvis Presley, Chet Atkins,and many more and you’ve probably neverheard of him. But, true to the essence of thesongwriter’s unique relationship with hissociety, you’ve undoubtedly heard him . . .his words, his music. And in the case ofDon Robertson, you’ve heard his deft, slipnotepiano stylings. Whether played by him,his contemporaries or his successors,they’ve become a part of the keyboardist’sbasic lexicon, a country-flavouredapproach often referred to as “Cramerstyle,” but more on that later.If you’re old enough to remember theeffervescent 1956 hit “The HappyWhistler,” then you’ve even heard hiswhistling.Don’t look here for sharecroppers’cabins, barefoot treks to one-roomschoolhouses or family gatherings aroundthe battery-powered Philco to glean thenourishment of the Grand Ole Oprythrough the Saturday night static. This isn’tthat kind of story. Donald Irwin Robertsonwas born 1n 1922 in Beijing, China. Hisfather was a doctor and a medical scientist,his mother a nurse as well as an amateurwriter and musician. Showing an earlyaptitude for piano and a passion for songs(he began making them up as a boy), Donwas, for much of his life, torn between therespectability of a “serious” life as a doctoror lawyer (which he felt was expected ofhim), and the siren lure of music (which heloved).Back in the States, now living in Chicago,he attended the University of Chicago as apre-med student. He did not, to his father’schagrin, attain a degree. He had begunplaying piano with local dance bands at theage of 14, and when an opportunity arose togo on the road with popular trio TheDinning Sisters, he seized it. Apparently hisinterest was more than just professional;lead singer Lou Dinning became the firstMrs. Don Robertson. The couple begancalling Los Angeles home in the mid-’40s.Don became a rehearsal pianist withCapitol Records during the glory days ofthat company. And he began writing songsin earnest.Julian and Jean Aberbach’s Hill andRange Songs published his earliest efforts,including the country-pop standard “IReally Don’t Want To Know,” memorablyrecorded by Eddy Arnold in 1954 (and laterby Elvis), and appearing in the 2004independent film A Love Song For BobbySongwriter Magazine Page 8Long, where it was sung on-camera by noneother than John Travolta. The song bearsmany of what would become Robertsontrademarks: a simple yet elegant melodymarried to equally unassuming yetemotionally charged words that form anear-perfect, easily memorable, whole.In 1959 Don’s demo of a song called“Please Help Me, I’m Falling” found itsway to Chet Atkins, who was impressed byboth the song and the demo itself whichfeatured Don’s vocal and piano. The pianointro and accompaniment riddled withthose ear-candy slip-note phrasings thatDon had been experimenting withcaptivated him particularly . . . so much sothat when the song became an Atkinsproduced1960 hit for Hank Locklin, thepiano parts were replicated all but verbatimby Floyd Cramer. Don Robertson doesn’tlike to go into detail about this nowadays;he’s a gentleman who doesn’t like to rufflefeathers and besides, most of the key playersin the drama are dead. But there are manyin in the industry ”Cowboy” Jack Clement,Gordon Stoker of the Jordanaires andElvis, to name a few who will proclaimflatly that Don Robertson, with no offencewhatsoever intended to the great Mr.Cramer, is the true originator of thatgroundbreaking piano style. In 1994“Please Help Me, I’m Falling” was ranked#2 All-time Country Hit by Billboardmagazine.He has had 14 songs recorded by Elvis,mostly ballads and mid-tempos bestexemplified by the haunting “AnythingThat’s Part Of You,” sung to achingperfection in 1962. In 2003 Bear FamilyRecords released a 25-song collectionentitled Don Robertson: And Then IWrote… Songs for Elvis, which providesvaluable insight into Don’s piano finesse aswell as letting us hear his evocative,somewhat chameleonic vocals.In 1964 he and Hal Blair scored a #1 Pophit with the spoken-word cowboy ballad“Ringo,” rendered in the unforgettablerumbling bass of actor Lorne Greene,patriarch of TV’s Bonanza.Other hits include “I Don’t HurtAnymore,” co-written with Jack Rollins (of“Frosty The Snowman” fame), recorded byboth Hank Snow (as “It Don’t HurtAnymore”) and Dinah Washington in1954; “Ninety Miles An Hour (Down ADead End Street),”co-written with Blairand recorded by Hank Snow in 1963 andlater covered by Bob Dylan. “Does My RingHurt Your Finger,” co-written with JackClement and John Crutchfield andrecorded by Charley Pride in 1967, was aGrammy nominee that year.A brief sampling of other artists recordingDon Robertson songs might include AlMartino, Andy Williams, the WilburnBrothers, the Everly Brothers, Anne Murray,Vic Damone, Brook Benton, Bill Anderson,Gladys Knight, Frankie Laine, WillieNelson, Ronnie Milsap, Billy Swan, PattiPage, Dean Martin, Bonnie Guitar, 101Strings, Jim Nabors, Ray Price, Duane Eddyand Danish pianist Bent Fabric. And manymore.He claims that his catalogue is now moreactive than ever, not least of all the Elvisrecordings. All Shook Up, a Broadway showincorporating 25 Elvis songs into its plotline,features a “stunning” performance of“There’s Always Me” by Sharon Wilkinsthat had the song’s author in tears. He hasreceived two BMI performance awards and18 ASCAP performance awards, and in1967 his name was added to the "Walkwayof Stars" at Nashville’s Country Music Hallof Fame and Museum, where some of hiswork is displayed. He was inducted into theNashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in1972.And a unique honour indeed ”Pianjo,”a Robertson instrumental, provides theopening tune of the Country Bear Jamboreeat Disney parks around the world, as playedby Gomer the computerised ragtime bear.An arranger- conductor, Don Robertsonplays piano, organ, trumpet, trombone andtenor horn and let’s not forget thatwhistling! Now in his 80s,he is humble andgentle-spoken, retaining the details of hisimpressive life and career in sharp relief.One gets the impression that he’s well awareof how fortunate he’s been, and that a senseof wonder still prevails. Due to a stroke somefour years ago his chops aren’t what theywere, but he’s working hard to rehabilitatehimself. He warns me, in advance of ourphone talk, that his concentration andenergy can be fragile and that he may wantto stop after 30 minutes or so, perhapspicking up the thread another day. Not so.After 90 minutes of lucid and fascinatingconversation, I’m the one who finally pullsthe plug. Don’s wife, Irene, sits near himthroughout, sometimes providing names anddates when he hesitates. I find this rathertouching.I begin by complimenting him on hismarvellous website, donrobertson.com.I was scouring your website today. That’sa great site!Thank you. Yeah, a friend of my son’s doesthat for a living so she did it for us. Ann

Zumwinkle is her name.How many children do you have?Two sons. And an increasingly largenumber of grandchildren.Well, that’s a good thing.Yeah, it is.You were born in 1922!That’s right. That’s what it says on thecertificate anyway [chuckles].It’s amazing. You sound like a muchyounger man. Your voice is very youthful.Glad to hear it.Do you still sing?Yeah, I do. But I haven’tdone any recordingsessions for a few years.How long did yourcareer as Gomer the bearlast?Well, let’s see . . . I’llhave to check when I didthat [confers briefly withIrene].I was gonna say 1971, Ithink it was. Actually afriend of mine who livedout here he’s passed away,a neighbour of ours he hadheard my recording of apiece called “Pianjo.”Supposed to be acombination of piano andbanjo. It was aninstrumental I had put outon Monument Records,and Jack Speirs, who was awriter and producer atDisney Studios, heard itand liked it. And at thattime Walt Disney wasputting together thisCountry Bear Jamboreeshow for Disneyland outhere and in the variousparks around the world. Soanyway, Jack played himmy recording of “Pianjo” and Walt liked it.So rather than try to get that master theyjust asked me if I’d come down and record itagain at the Disney Studios, which I did.How did the song come to have thatname? Were you somehow incorporating abanjo approach on the piano?Yeah, somewhat. Although this was notreally the best example, ’cause I’ve doneother pieces where I’ve adapted Earl Scruggsthings to the piano. This didn’t really have alot of that but, I don’t know, it seemed to beenough to call it “Pianjo.” Not a very goodtitle.So you’re a bluegrass fan?Yeah, among other things. Actually I’m avery enthusiastic bluegrass fan. Jack Clementgot me interested in a lot of stuff and I got tohear a lot of his bluegrass buddies play in hisoffice.I saw a picture of you with the KentuckyColonels on your website.Yeah, that was around the same time.Piano, in some views, is not reallyconducive to bluegrass, though I haveheard it incorporated successfully at times.It’s interesting though that bluegrass isamong your bouquet of musical interests.You seem to come from a very differentplace.Yeah it’s pretty rare to see a piano as partof a bluegrass group.Bruce Hornsby can do it.Can he? Excellent player, I really like hiswork.He has a way of omitting the third thatblends with banjos and mandolins andseems to belong.This is such a great time in the history ofthe music business for keyboard playersbecause of all the synthesisers and stuff thatyou can do on a keyboard.Yeah that’s good and bad.Well it is, yeah, but at least you’ve got allthose sounds at your beck and call.In the hands of a masterful musician youget masterful results. But it also means thatanybody who can play in C reasonably wellcan play anywhere, with transposition.Well that’s true.But then again it worked for IrvingBerlin and he had to do it mechanically.Yeah [laughs]. He came out pretty well!Well so have you! Your biography is justawe-inspiring when I see all the differentbases you’ve touched. You were at CapitolRecords in the early days.Uh-huh.Was Johnny Mercerinvolved at that time?He was. Johnny Mercerand Glenn Wallichs, whoowned a big music store. Heand Johnny Mercer andBuddy DeSylva, thesongwriter.DeSylva, Brown andHenderson.That’s right. Exactlyright. Anyway, I think theyeach pitched in tenthousand bucks and startedCapitol Records. And whenI first touched base withCapitol they had a littleoffice upstairs in a reallytiny space just belowSunset Boulevard, on VineStreet. Then later on asthings moved along ’causeJohnny Mercer was such amasterUnderrated musiciantoo.I think so because hissongwriting is sounbelievable. He was not aschooled musician in thesense of being aprofessional player, but hewas certainly an excellentand appealing singer, Ithought. Very appealing style like “Blues InThe Night” which he did just beautifully. Idon’t think anybody can match hisperformances on some of those things. I don’tknow as far as musicianship, beyond hissinging. I never saw him touch the keyboard.Apparently he couldn’t really play but hecould come up with melodies. You know, hewrote the melody for “Dream” and for “IWanna Be Around,” which is a great jazzstandard, I think. “G.I. Jive,” “StripPolka.” His own melodies.That’s news to me.I think he was more comfortable whenthey were clever.Yeah, uptempo things.Songwriter Magazine Page 9

So did you get to know [Capitolstaffers] Paul Weston and JoStafford?I did. Paul Weston was more or less thehead of the music department when Ifirst got involved with Capitol.Great arranger.Oh, terrific arranger! Good musician. Iwas aware of Jo Stafford of course [’40ssinging star who worked with, andeventually married, Weston] but I neverreally got to know her particularly well.Did you get to know “Frankie”?Frankie Laine?Was that voice special when it was in theroom with you? Some people record moremagnificently than they sound across thetable.That’s true, yeah. Well, I don’t recall therebeing any difference when he was in theroom. It wasn’t something that just blew meaway. I knew what his style was and that washim. It seemed natural.Had you started writing songs by then?I didn’t really start writing songs until I’dbeen at Capitol a couple of years. I started atCapitol, I think, in ’51 and 1952 was whenmy first efforts at songwriting [occurred],when I met Hal Blair, who was my partnerdifferent melody, and had been recorded byseveral people just because the idea wasintriguing, you know.But the Aberbachs were convinced that themelody was wrong and that it needed differentmusic, so they asked me if I wanted to take acrack at it and they got the music writer of theoriginal song to sign a release. And they gaveme the lyric. It was done, I would say, withEddy Arnold in mind.Yeah, it was really fun to work on that songbecause the lyric was just so interesting.But that must have been a difficultchallenge with another melody in your face,or did you not hear the melody?I asked them not to play methe other melody.No, Frank Sinatra. I’mbeing a smartass.Oh, Frank Sinatra. Well, Iwas a rehearsal pianist therefor about four years and hewould come in occasionallyand I would accompany him,although he had a very, verygood accompanist.Bill Miller.Yeah, exactly right. But ifhe wasn’t around at the timethey would ask me to play, soI did accompany Sinatra acouple of times.It’s amazing. You’rewalking with giants here.That’s true, and I was notthat aware of it at the time and it’s a goodthing. I would have fallen to pieces! Yeah, Itouched . . . I breathed the same air as somepretty prominent people.Was Sinatra impressive in person? Didthe genius come through that emerged ontape?Well, he was a kind of dese-and-dose typeof guy who was also self-educated, and hekinda climbed out of that just by himself, youknow. He exhibited high intelligence. And hewas . . . I dunno, I liked him. And he was niceto me so that makes me like people[chuckles].Just a little aside . . . one of the producersat Capitol took me over to Sinatra’sapartment in Westwood sometime in theearly ’50s, and when we walked in he wassitting at his dining room table working onhis taxes.He had all the forms around him andeverything, and he complained about the factthat he felt like he’d been ripped off. He wasnot satisfied with the way whoever it was didhis taxes and he was going to do ’em himself.Interesting guy.Frank Sinatra doing his own taxes. Veryinteresting picture!Yeah. Interesting guy.later on a lot of songs.Boudleaux & Felice Bryant, Don,(Unknown) with Lefty FrizellAnd within a short time you had a bigone with “I Really Don’t Want To Know.”Yes, that’s true. And that wasn’t with Hal.I sort of got in with a group of people andHoward Barnes, my lyric writer on “I ReallyDon’t Want To Know,” was part of a sort oflocal group of people who were active inHollywood.Now when you were writing a song likethat did you see yourself as a country orcountry & western writer, or just a certainkind of ballad writer? How would a songlike that be pitched?Well, in this case I had come into contactwith the Aberbach brothers, who had Hilland Range Songs are you familiar with that?’cause I had occasion to work ondemonstration records for them. So I got toknow them a little bit. And Hal and I hadwritten a song for Eddy Arnold which kindamade a little bit of noise at the bottom of thecountry charts it was called “CondemnedWithout Trial.” And anyway, the Aberbachswere interested in getting more material forEddy Arnold.So they were the moving force, actually,here because the lyric to “I Really Don’tWant To Know” had been written to aDid you eventually hearit?Yeah, I eventually did.What’d you think of it?I was not too impressed[laughs]. And it was anentirely different tone. It waspartly in a minor key Ibelieve. I haven’t listened toit for years and years andyears, but I pretty much had achance to approach the lyricfresh and that was a bigadvantage.Are you comfortable withthat challenge of sittingdown with a totallycomposed lyric?It’s only happened to me a few times wherethe lyric just felt right to me without having torewrite. Most of the time when people havegiven me lyrics I’ve ended up rewriting agood part of it. This was one of the few timeswhere aside from repeating a couple ofphrases and some ifs, ands and buts other thanthat it’s just the way it had been written. Itwas like smorgasbord, being given somethingwonderful to work on, you know.Did it take long to complete?No, actually it didn’t take a long time. Ikinda walked around with that lyric in myhead for a while before I started working on it,and then I took it into a little studio that I hadin North Hollywood at that time, just a pianoand a chair. I took it in and I worked on it, ohI’d say for a few hours, and I really felt that itwas kinda patched together from other songsor something. It just didn’t seem very originalto me but anyway I ended up showing it to,first of all, my ex-wife who was singing all mydemos at that timeThis was one of the Dinning Sisters?Right, yeah. Lou Dinning. And she fellover, she thought it was absolutely great. Sothen we made a demo and took it down to theAberbachs and they loved it, and it really hadan easy road.Songwriter Magazine Page 10

Of course you couldn’t have had a betterinterpreter than Eddy Arnold.No, that’s right.He was gigantic at that time, wasn’t he?He was, yes. He was very successful.He was like a slightly countrified BingCrosby.Exactly. Yes.You know, I guess I would have been tenyears old when “Please Help Me, I’mFalling” came out, and that holds a placein my esteem as being one of those perfectcountry melodies that you sometimes hear.Hank Williams had a couple of them . . .“You Win Again” . . .That’s a nice compliment.Songs you just couldn’tchange a note or a syllableof without doing damage.Belonging to a certain eraas well, when people likeFred Rose and the Bryants,and so forth, were stillworking. How did that onecome about?Actually I have a habit ofwriting down titles and stuff,as you probably do toowriting down ideas and titlesand I had written “PleaseHelp Me, I’m Falling” downas a title. And I was goingthrough my files with HalBlair one time and he pickedout a few things that hethought would really beinteresting to work on. Sothat was one that he pickedout and we put our headstogether and finished it up.The melody just seemed tocome rather easily, but weworked hard on it until wefelt that the lyric was the wayit should be.And at that point, too, Ihad been experimenting with differentsounds on the piano which really were theresult of listening to country guitar playersand fiddle players and singers that got aparticular sound that I had never heard on thepiano.Guitar players particularly. So I wasfiddling around with the piano to see if Icould approach that sound where they slideto a note from underneath and of course youcan’t do it on the piano unless you’ve got avery large wrench! [laughs]I guess the closest instrument that reallydoes it is Earl Scruggs changing his tuningwhat was the name of that song? “Flint HillSpecial”? [sings a bit imitating notes alteredby twisting a tuning peg]Remember that? Where he plays and heactually reaches up and changes the tuningon the string.Guitar players do that, like on the introto “Detroit City.”Right.And this is something you’d becomeintrigued with at that time?Yeah, very much so. And that was right atthe point where we were working on “PleaseHelp Me, I’m Falling” so there were a lot offirsts in my experience of that song.Because my ex-wife had been doing all thevocals on the demos and at that point she andI were just about separated, so it wasn’t veryconducive to making music together.Anyway I went down [to the studio] and Idecided I’d try singing it myself. I had awonderful little studio that I used to work in,Gold Star Recording Studios in HollywoodOh that’s a famous studio . . . PhilSpector . . .Yep. At that time it was just a couple ofguys that had built a little studio and I hadknown them from making some demos downthere. So anyway, when we got the songfinished up I took it down to Gold Star andStan Ross, who was a co-owner, was in thebooth, and one of the studios had just a pianoin it.So I sang and played it. And I had workedon the accompaniment as I was working onthe song, which very often happens with methe lyric and the melody and theaccompaniment sort of evolve at the sametime.So I made that little piano-and-voice demoand I gave it to the Aberbachs at Hill andRange. They sent it to Chet Atkins. Chet likedit and he gave it to Jim Reeves. I talked to Jimlater on and he said that he’d held the song fortwo or three weeks and then turned it down,and he was regretting it ’cause at that point itwas up on the charts.Anyway, Chet decided to show it to HankLocklin, who was kind of down on his luck atthat point that’s my recollection. I think hehad “Send Me The Pillow That You DreamOn” and one other song, but at that point hewasn’t doing very well.Yours was his career song, no two waysabout it.Well it did work out that way, didn’t it?Funny . . . this is for an Irish publication?Probably.Yeah, a newsletter.I don’t know if theythink Hank Locklin’s anIrish tenor but it soundsthat way to me!He does, you’re quiteright. I always liked theway he sounded. I don’tthink Jim Reeves wouldhave done the song aswell, personally.I never thought abouthow it would have turnedout if Jim Reeves haddone it.He would have relaxedit too much, I think.Yeah, that’s true. I thinkHank Locklin was just theright artist for that song.It had a yearningquality to it.Yeah.So do you think thatcame out of yourpersonal situation at thattime? Sounds like youwere going through a bitof turmoil.Do you find that your emotions creep intoyour work in an autobiographical way attimes?Yeah, I think so. But I think also beingsongwriters, as we are, you don’t really haveto be experiencing a certain thing at that pointyou can draw on past experience although Ithink it helps.It’s method acting, to a degree.Right!And you know, listening to that songyears ago, and listening to it since, I wouldnever have imagined that that was the workof somebody who was born in China[laughs] Unlikely, isn’t it?Songwriter Magazine Page 11

The son of a scientist?Uh-huh.That’s a very unlikely history for acountry songwriter.I know!You said somewhere that you didn’tcompletely reconcile yourself to the factthat you weren’t going to go back tomedical school until you were in your 50s.That’s true. Because my two brothers bothwere MDs and my mother was a nurse, so Iwas surrounded by medical people and it waskind of the thing to do in our family.Were you the black sheep?Very much so, yeah.Were you made to feelthat way, seriously?You know, the only thing Ifelt that my father felt, hewas worried for me. Andactually he had every reasonto be if I was gonna try to bea professional songwriter, oreven in the music business.I mean the chances are soslim that you can understandwhere a parent would beconcerned. It wasn’t that hedisapproved, he just wasconcerned. And he waswilling to send me throughmedical school or law schoolor whatever I wanted to do.I really didn’t feel certain,I didn’t feel settled in themusic thing until a very long way into it.By which time you had probably made alot of money and met a lot of people,achieved a lot.Not all that much money, actually. Youknow, I make more now than I did at thattime even on 40-year-old songs ’cause theroyalty rates were so puny. It was a two-centceiling for years and years and years.It’s hard for people to realise howfamous you could be in your field and stillreally not be paid commensuratelycompared to just about any otherprofession.I know. But God, you can’t buy beinghappy and contented in your work. There’sjust no price on that.“The Happy Whistler”! Talk about ahappy record! Isn’t it a shame that youcan’t hear that kind of thing on the radioany more?I know. It’s almost non-existent these days,isn’t it?Instrumental songs being whistled. Yeah,you could hear these little happy twominutesongs, some of them a bit silly butmany of them really charming I thinkyours is extremely so you just can’timagine that happening any more.I know it.There are so many gatekeepers now andso much politics . . .Yeah, you’re absolutely right. Getting pastthem is something.So you spent your boyhood in China?No, not really. I was only there till I wasfour years old or not quite four years old. Weleft China in, I guess 1926 or something likethat, and spent some time in southern Franceand then in England, where my father hadrelatives.And then we came to the United States andsettled in Chicago.Don and Irene with Roger MillerDo you speak any other languages?No.Didn’t have enough time to get steeped inany of them, I guess.Actually my parents told me that theycouldn’t get any of us I have two brothers tospeak Chinese after we left China. I don’tknow what that’s about.It’s a helluva thing to learn, from allreports.It’s a complicated language, yeah.So you spent many years in Chicago andthen left with the Dinning Sisters, is thatright?I went on the road with them, yeah.So how did the music bug get to you?Your mother played, I think?Yeah, she was quite a good pianist andshe’d sing a little bit, although mostly Iremember her as a pianist. My father was agreat connoisseur of classical music and hehad a huge collection of classical recordings,and almost every evening he’d be playingthem.These would have been 78s?Yes, I think some of them were longplaying78s, you know, big ones. Great big12-inch discs.That could break if you looked at them!Absolutely, yeah. There was a machinewhich he bought called a Capehart thatactually would lift the disc up kinda like someof the jukeboxes turn it over and put it backdown again. [note: Homer Capehart’sSimplex changer was indeed sold to Wurlitzerin 1933 to be used in jukeboxes.]So he had a nice little set-up. I heard a lot ofgood classical music.And you were learning piano at this time?I was learning piano and soI was studying classicalmusic too. At one point I hadsome fantasies aboutbecoming a concert pianistbut I never got even to firstbase.Well, if you have theknack to actually make upyour own tunes and explorechords and sort of workaway from the page, I thinkit’s hard to disciplineyourself to be a classicalplayer.Yeah, that’s true. Peopleeither seem to train their earsor their eyes. I haven’tencountered too many peoplethat are really ace sightreadersand are greatimprovisers. There are a few.I had trouble with sight-reading. It reallyjust defeated me and what I would do is Iwould fake it, you know, for my pianoteacher.Get her to play it for me first and then I’dplay it by ear and look at the music and shethought I was reading it! I think when you . . .in my case I was frustrated not being able toread and I depended more and more on myear, and then I learned to improvise.I’ve heard that story from a lot of peoplewho took music lessons if they had a goodear they would just memorise. They wouldlearn to reiterate something more quicklythan they’d learn to sight-read. Sightreadingis very dry and difficult and if youhave a quick ear it’s much easier to dependon that.I got myself into some frightening situationsbecause of that, because people would assumethat I could read and I would say yes to jobsthat I should never have and try to fake myway through ’em. And sometimes I ran intosome really tight squeezes [chuckles].But I’m not sorry now, though I wish Icould sit down and play a Mozart sonata youknow, just sit down, open the book and playit. It would be wonderful. But that was not mydestiny.Songwriter Magazine Page 12

Have you ever written concert pieces?Yeah, I did. I studied orchestration andcomposition both in Chicago and, later on,out here in Hollywood. I studied with a manwho taught quite a few of the people who didmovie scores. His name was Tedesco.Mancini was a pupil of his. [note: he’sreferring to Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco,1895-1968]But anyway, yes I did study orchestrationand composition and in the course of that Iwrote some orchestral pieces. And I’vewritten some piano pieces that would becalled classical, I guess, and some studiesthat I’ve never done anything with.You’re also a horn player, I believe?Yeah [chuckles]. I was excluded from thehigh school band because they didn’t use akeyboard and so I learnedtrombone and trumpet, and Igot to be in the marchingband.Who were the people thatyou listened to, be theysingers or piano players,that sort of establishedyour direction, led youaway from the classicswanting to do something alittle funkier, a little morecontemporary. Who wereyou listening to?Well, I was a jazzenthusiast and Art Tatumwas one of my idols.Yeah, the god . . . “God’sin the room.”Yeah right. Nat Cole. Ithink he’s very underrated asa pianist. His touch was justexquisite. I used to learn hispiano solos, like on thoseNat Cole Trio recordings?I’d learn the piano part so Icould play it note for note.You know, I’m convincedthat if you listen to peoplelike Nat Cole and TeddyWilsonTeddy Wilson, right, hewas one.Players of that ilk, you can hear a littleof that slip-note thing.Oh really, I never thought about that.In a different way, just a little of thatstyle that later became identified withNashville. I mean, it wasn’t focused on inthe same way but I’ve listened to, like, oldInkspots recordings where you hear thattinkling piano I don’t know who would beplaying it and every now and againsomebody will do a kind of ornament that,to me, is kind of Nashville-like. Kind ofCramer-like, or Robertson-like, if you will.[chuckles] Well, you know this is aninteresting thing: you know the blues thingswhere there are grace notes or slurs? They’rehalf-tone slurs. Like if you were in the key ofC you’d go from Eflat to E? Just slide offonto that. There’s a lot of that in bluesplaying and in jazz playing.But the unique thing about the countrystyle and that’s what I was curious about theywere whole-tone trills and turns and gracenotes. Like from D to E instead of Eflat to E.And of course you’re playing the Gabove it.You’re playing the G, exactly, that’s whatgives it that sound. Right.But the notes that attract your attentionare the ones in the middle; that’s veryimportant to it. You’d think you’d bedrawn to the highest note, but you’re not.I know!The high one is just adding a little spiceto it.Right. Well, some of the singers . . .Remember the Davis Sisters? Skeeter Daviswas one of the sisters.I’ve read about them. I don’t think Ihave heard the sister act.Well, they would sometimes do that kindof thing where one would hold the G and theother one would sing the D to E. And fiddleplayers do that also.So you were intrigued by jazz whatinspired you to be writing songs for peoplelike Eddy Arnold? Perfectly respectablething to do but it’s not jazz.Well, that was a totally different part of mylife and I have to attribute a lot of that to theDinning Sisters, because I travelled with themand I rehearsed them and I did arrangementsfor them, and mostly I had the privilege ofhearing them in the room singing. Which wasa thrilling experience because they were Idon’t know if you’ve listened to them? theyonly have one CD out that I know of but theyare an absolutely unbelievable trio.What were some of their trademarksongs?“Buttons And Bows,” they had a prettygood success with. That might be the only onethat made some charts. Butthey did things . . . like forinstance, they recorded“Brazil” and at the endingof the recording they slideup all together. They hit achord I think it’s a D chordor whatever it is and theyglissando all the way up toa high inversion of thatchord, and I’ve never hearda trio or vocal group do thatbefore. It’s just amazing.It’s like a steel guitar; it wasperfectly in tune all the wayup.That sibling telepathy.Yeah.So this gave you anappreciation for, what?,simpler chords andYeah, for country soundsand hymn music. Of courseI fell in love with hymnsbefore I was ten years oldwhen I had a chance to playan old pump organ. I lovedhymns and I sang in thechurch choir for a long timetoo as a youngster. And Ithink that’s where some ofmy love of the countrysounds came from.That’s a very good starting point becausethose melodies are so influential in countrymusic. Mixed in with a bit of the blues. Soyou had that in your background as well.Yeah. I had a six-dollar Sears & Roebuckguitar which my folks bought for me and Ilearned to play a few chords, and learned toplay some cowboy songs. I liked cowboysongs too.But you’re leaving out an important part,which is that you had a very famous mentor. . .Sandburg? Yeah, that was very inspiringand it influenced me a lot because my parentsSongwriter Magazine Page 13

eally didn’t think much of anything butclassical music. They didn’t have any highregard for when I was singing cowboy songsand stuff like that. But they admiredSandburg enormously they were friends as amatter of fact but they were great admirers ofSandburg’s work and Sandburg was a loverof folk music. So it was that sort of link: theyadmired Sandburg, Sandburg admired thesort of music that I was intrigued with, thenthey started looking at me with a little moreapproval.Did you feel that your parents eventuallyapproved of yourcareer choice? Didthey get to see someof your success?Yeah, my motherdid anyway, but Ithink my father wasabsolutely mystifiedthat I could make aliving! [laughs] Butmy mother . . . theyused to live in theSanta Cruz mountainsand I’d go up thereand visit, and therewas a piano up therein fact it was mychildhood piano; it’sin the next room rightnow as I sit here. Butanyway, she had acopy of “The HappyDon and Irene withPriscilla Presleyat the Rock and Roll Hallof Fame, 1996Whistler” sittingthere, and she was very proud of that. She’dbring that to the attention of her friends.[Irene can be faintly heard] My wifementioned that my mother called herselfWhistler’s Mother! [laughs heartily] I hadforgotten that. That’s cute.That is cute. What about Sandburg? Didhe ever get to hear some of your stuff?No, I wasn’t really composing anythingthen.There was a little community up in asummer resort, a place just north of Chicago,where Sandburg and his family lived. Theylived there year-round but we used to go andspend our summers up there. And as acontribution to the community they had whatthey called “sunset sings” and they would gettogether and sing, and Sandburg was activein that little group.I heard him sing and play. And then itwasn’t too much after that that he recordedsomething called The American Songbag forDecca, I think, and then he put out a book.He was one of the early collectors of some ofthat mountain music and cowboy music.Now there are musicologists that haveextensive knowledge of that but Sandburgwas one of the early . . . I mean I’m not ahistorian butHe saw the value of it.Yeah, right, exactly. And brought it frombeing music to be made fun of into a seriousappreciation. You’re way too young toremember but there were people who used tomake great sport of hillbilly singers andmusic.Oh, there still are!They’re still doing it, yeah! [chuckles]Did you ever live here in Nashville?Well, just a few years ago we did get ahouse down there not too far from Jack’splace and we were there for a couple of years.But we never moved out of our house inCalifornia. Our sons are both living in thearea here and we have grandchildren.Talk a little bit about Elvis, another iconthat you rubbed elbows with extensively.Yeah, that also came about because of theAberbachs. I’m sure you know that they wereveryThey were his gatekeepers.Yeah, that’s true. But they recognised hispotential and they got together and theymoved right in with a business plan forthemselves and Colonel Parker and Elvis.And that was right at the period when I was awriter for Hill and Range and the Aberbachs.So I was in the right place at the right timeand they started sending him some of mystuff. So that’s how that came about.So you got to know him some?Oh yeah, I did. That was later. He asked tohave me come down to where he wasrecording in Hollywood. Told one of hisguys that he wanted to meet me so I got a callfrom one of his friends.Did you sit down at the piano together?Not really. At one point we were up at hishouse and I was playing “Tennessee Waltz”and they were singing. Elvis and Red Westand Charlie Hodge. . . [Irene speaks inbackground] Johnny Rivers. Anyway therewere enough to form a pretty good little choir.And we were in his rec room up in Bel Air,singing and playing together.He loved piano, didn’t he?Yeah, he did as a matter of fact. He satdown and played chords for himself and wassinging a hymn of some kind, I’ve forgottenwhat it was.Did you ever play on any of his sessions?Yeah. He invited me to play on thesoundtrack to the It Happened At The World’sFair movie.How did “I ReallyDon’t Want ToKnow” get to JohnTravolta for thatmovie?I have no idea!You have no idea.Nope. No ideawhatsoever. It just . . .all of a sudden there hewas singing the firsthalf of “I Really Don’tWant To Know” in ALove Song For BobbyLong.Not a bad littlemovie.Yeah, it was prettygood. At first I guess Iwas disappointedbecause he only did the first 32 bars orwhatever, but it was really rather charming theway he does it.Isn’t it a wonderful thing when yourcareer gets to the point where these songsare just walking around by themselvesand landing in people’s laps?That’s true, it’s wonderful. That song has alife of its own and it’s very satisfying. Haveyou ever heard Boots Randolph’sinstrumental of “I Really Don’t Want ToKnow”?Not that I’m aware of.Oh, it is absolutely . . . One of the jazzclassics of years and years ago was ColemanHawkins’ “Body And Soul.” Classic jazzrecord. Well, this is the country equivalent notcountry at all, it’s just strictly a jazzinstrumental but it’s lovely. It’s justwonderful.I’ll hunt that down. Another one of myfavorites of yours and I think it should havebeen a bigger hit was “Anything That’sPart Of You.”Oh, is that right? Well, thank you.I think that’s lovely. And such a littlegem. Is that even two minutes long?Yeah, I’ve wondered myself why a lot of thethings that I wrote for Elvis were short.Songwriter Magazine Page 14

But he sang that beautifully. He sang likehis heart was truly broken.I know. He does a great job on it.I think that’s one of his best vocalperformances. It didn’t have anymannerisms, just him singing at his best.He really could be a great ballad singerwhen the mood took him.Yep.When did you last see Elvis?The last time I saw him was in SantaMonica. I’d been working on a song withIrving Gordon, who was the writer of“Unforgettable”? He was a friend of mineand we were working on something for Elvis,and I took the tape over to what studio wasit? In Culver City?I guess it was MGM I took it over and hecame down to the main entrance withsomebody, I’ve forgotten who. But anyway, Igave him the tape and we just exchanged afew words. And that was the last time I sawhim. I think that wasmaybe, ’67?Oh, so he was still ingood shape.Yeah, he was.You never saw himin the years of decline.Not really.Probably just aswell.Yeah.That turned out tobe a very sad career.Very much so.From such ap h e n o m e n a lbeginning.I know. I think hedidn’t know what hithim. I think he couldn’tunderstand what all the fuss was about, youknow. And who would? He was bigger thanJesus, for Chrissake! [chuckles] So to speak.It’s true. And for some people he still is.That’s the scary part.It’s interesting, isn’t it? But it’s awonderful thing for me because his [recordsof my] songs have more activity than whenhe first made them.You and Irene have been together forquite a while. I saw a picture of her in astewardess uniform, it looked like.Yep, that’s right. I met her on a plane. Shewas flying for American Airlines. We struckup a conversation on the plane and it wentfrom there [chuckles].So you’ve been together for some years.Yeah. [to Irene] How long have we beenmarried? Since 1962. I met her in 1960. Soit’s been a long time, yeah.So it sounds like you didn’t have toomany bachelor years.Nope, I didn’t. I leapt from one situation toanother. But I got the right one this time. Ifinally got it right.Sounds like it was a good leap! Is Irenemusical?Yeah, she’s not a serious professional butshe is very musical. She’s actually a singersongwriterbut her real strength is in lyrics.She’s written hundreds of lyrics; wrote a lotbefore I ever met her.She’s got a songwriting credit in a moviecalled Purple People Eater. She’s reallyexcellent. She and Billy Swan and Icollaborated on a couple of things, and herecorded at least one I can’t remember if herecorded more than one on one of his Epicalbums.She doesn’t like me to tell people but sheDon Robertson (right) with his son Bobby,pictured with country star Hank Locklin in 1999plays accordion [laughs, as does Irene in thebackground]. I can’t get her to bring it outwhen there’s anybody around.Take her down to Louisiana, she’d behip!Right. Absolutely. I love the instrumentmyself.Yeah, there’re so many variations on it.If you look at the French concertina stylethat can be so poignant and so differentfrom the full-throated Lawrence Welktypething. And then the Cajun squeezeboxis a whole other thing.Oh, I love the Cajun stuff.And it all serves a purpose.I’ll say!If nothing else I guess we can thankpeople like Carl Sandburg for releasing usfrom musical snobbery.That’s very well put. Exactly right.No place for it. Even disco probablyserves some purpose!Oh, sure. And the best of it will probablysurvive.I might make an exception for rap . . .[laughs ironically]It’s not entirely without value but thehuge popularity of it bothers me because Ithink it’s doing irreversible damage to theart of melody and harmonisation, all thestuff that was so prevalent back in the eraof the Johnny Mercers and the IrvingBerlins.Yeah, I think the current generation ismissing out on a lot of stuff.The only place where I see hope for it isNashville.Well, that’s true. There’s sort of a repositoryof that. They’re kindof like the abbots werein the Middle Agesthat preserved the artand the writing.Because there arepeople here who stillknow the satisfactionof writing a goodmelody andmarrying it to theperfect lyric, andseeing people reactemotionally tosomething that’smeant to engage allthe emotions not justanger, or whateverrap and hip-hop aretrying to get at. Itseems to be kindasavage.Yeah, it’s a littlefrightening, isn’t it?Do you regret not being better recognisedas an artist?Well, I blew the opportunities that I had andI guess there was a reason for it, because I’mreally not enough of an extrovert to becomfortable in that role.I don’t think I’m suited for that. I thinkthere’s a reason why I preferred to be in thebackground.I think the background’s a better place tobe, personally. I mean you only have to lookat an Elvis or a Hank Williams to realise thedanger of that other life, that extrovertedthing.I know. And they fall prey to the drugs andthe alcohol and everything. It’s a rough life.Copyright Larry Wayne Clarke &Songwriter Magazine: All Rights Reserved:Printed By PermissionSongwriter Magazine Page 15

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In the case of directory information, state clearly which act,record label, publisher or manager you wish to contact.WE ARE ON THE INTERNETWe have had our own site on the Web since 1997. The currentsite is at http://www.songwriter.co.uk and comprises a newspage, song contest deadlines, articles and interviews, links to othersites, plus a detailed description of the publications and thereaders' services. This page can also be found on our website athttp://www.songwriter.co.uk/page100.htmlFor details of the ISA Member’s Site, see your Member’s Pack.GUARANTEEAnything which International Songwriters Association Ltdsupplies, is guaranteed, or your money is refunded withoutquestion.In the case of subscriptions, your last subscription period(whether that be quarterly or half-rearly depending on how youchoose to pay), is refunded in full without question.This has been our policy since 1967.Please Keep This Page In A Prominent Position In Your Studio; Request A Replacement If Lost • A Copy Of This Information Appears In EveryIssue Of Songwriter Magazine • This Page Can Also Be Found On Our Website at http://www.songwriter.co.uk/page100.html