Thursday, January 15, 2009
Whatevs I Ain't No Artist I'm a Businessman: The Billboard Guide to Writing and Producing Songs That Sell
Posted by Steve Haruch on Thu, Jan 15, 2009 at 1:16 PM
You'll probably be surprised to hear (or maybe you won't) that when I'm not blogging or opening padded mailers stuffed with cracked jewel cases and strangely worded band bios, I'm trying to make it big as a big-time songwriter. To that end, I'm reading Eric Beall's The Billboard Guide to Writing and Producing Songs That Sell the way some people read the Bible.
In other words, when it's convenient.
Today's lesson in heart and soul comes from the chapter "The Hit Formula." You may feel, on some level, that songs have value. They mean something to you. You've put them on mixes to give to people you love. They suffuse important moments in your life. They give you the chills. No, silly. Hit songs have value.
Any Cadillac salesman working near Nashville's Music Row could have vouched for that. What's now apparent is that hit songs tend to maintain their value over long periods of time. Classic hits are covered by new artists, played on oldies stations, sampled on hip-hop records, and put in advertisements. As a result, year after year, they just keep earning money. Today, investors discuss hit songs in the same breath as Old Master paintings, real estate and gold bullion.
Well, then. Maybe Ron Paul should come up with a plan to back the dollar with hit songs! And don't forget: Songs are meaningful.
Comments (2)
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Since Lulu didn't get my DK reference the other day, perhaps I should mention that the line "I ain't no artist I'm a businessman" comes from this song.
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