The Free-Thinking Songwriter: Thoughts, Tips and Ideas on the Beautiful Craft of Songwriting

By Karl Broadie

The Free-Thinking Songwriter should be considered a companion for all levels of songwriters, from beginners to hit-makers as well as soulful, organic songwriters alike. This book is brimming with insightful words of wisdom relating to the "craft" but more importantly, Karl shares thoughts that we can adopt as daily mindsets on our path. What path? The path of The Free-Thinking Songwriter.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Mar 19, 2014
• ISBN: 9781483523613

Book preview

Dedicated to all the artists, poets, songwriters, philosophers and free-thinkers, past, present and future.

Introduction

Introducing a collection of original and philosophical thoughts on the beautiful craft of songwriting.

These words are intended for those walking an honest road to their very own songwriting mastery.

To have aspirations as a songwriter today means a lot of things and many of those things are a distraction from our craft, to say the least. One view is that we have a desire to open doors that will inevitably lead us into a world that is most notably, overflowing with genres, abundant with new releases from every corner of the globe and

increasingly complicated when pursuing our creative objectives due to ever-changing digital outlets and streaming services that are named using words, that mean nothing and words that were only invented this year! That these services are named using words that are missing vowels and have no definition, should be enough cause for us to throw in the towel, I mean, what hope is there for us?

However, hand-in-hand with these aspirations of course, go the daily mindsets we must embrace in order to thrive and to fully live our purpose as unrelenting creative beings on our path to songwriting fulfilment.

Regardless of where you consider yourself on the new world scale of songwriting accomplishment, this book is intended to highlight where the ground is and always has been.

Terra Firma is always the best place to start, no matter what your creative pursuit happens to be.

There are many definitions of what great songwriting actually means today.  An honest road leading to true, sincere, creative, artistic expression, will always fulfil the heart and mind of a truly great songwriter.

Consider these writings a companion. Carry them with you and let your natural instincts dictate the flow of your creativity. Whether you are on a schedule of songwriting appointments or if you are simply in the mood to write a song, let this book be by your side for each and every time.

May your songs thrive and may you flourish as a fortunate one, a Songwriter.

All the best

Karl

Foreword

by Michael J Roberts

- Record Producer, Musicologist, Songwriter, Author

Karl Broadie is a natural writer in the best sense of the word, in that his musings and observations are from a deeply organic place, the wellspring of his heart and soul.

Karl has the rare ability to balance the innate tension between emotion and intellect and yet not do disservice to either aspect of those essential components.

A great song is that most mysterious and mercurial commodity, and when a song works best it's because the work that's gone into it seems almost invisible, it's a skill bordering on alchemy. In this regard Karl is an alchemist of a very high order, able to conjure great songs on a regular basis. The poetry he finds in the everyday, and the ability to consistently find an authentic way of expression is a key trait in Karl's work, and that he can turn his wordsmiths skills to tunes that are memorable and musical, is a bonus indeed.

A writer can only connect with an audience in any meaningful capacity if they are honest and able to bare their inner selves for the world to see. Karl has mapped both the dark and the light in digging out  some very deep observations of the human condition, like an explorer out there on the edge, marking the boundaries for those who follow. In the finest traditions of the singer-songwriter he continues to push himself into finding the most elegant and poetic ways of framing his explorations, and best of all he does it with more than a dash of wit, intelligence and humour.

Karl's songs are full of keenly observed moments, of beautiful marriages between word and melody, of concepts that hint at the sublime and the transcendent, that magical realm to which the human heart aspires.

Karl is from a family or artists, writers and painters, and continues to keep that creative heritage alive and that artistic torch lit, holding out a glowing light for us