Loomis Green - 10 Quick Steps to Better Songwriting

Loomis Connell Green was born in Daytona Beach, Florida in 1968 andbegan learning the guitar at 9 years of age. At the age of 19 hestudied Jazz guitar at a local university, he then left DaytonaBeach Florida after his studies and joined the U.S. Army Band andwas stationed in Berlin Germany. While serving 3 years playing atmilitary engagements, he was honorably discharged from the militaryin 1991, due to a knee operation that caused him to be unable torun for long periods of time rendering him unfit for militaryduties. He then began working for such acts as: Weather Girls,Eartha Kitt and many more well-known artists. In the mid 90'sLoomis began composing and producing for artists in Europe andAmerica. He is a chameleon! Meaning he is well versed in manystyles such as Jazz, Rock, Funk, RnB, Soul, Latin and Gospel. Whennot touring, hes teaching, producing and working as a studioguitarist. His list of performances consist of but are not limitedto the following artists: Jan Delay, Eartha Kitt, Weather Girls,Benny Golson, Kenny Burrell, Patricia Kaas, Buster Williams, HoraceParlan, Aloe Blacc, Santana, Nelly Furtado, Nadja Benaissa, Taco,Amp Fiddler etc. He has toured together with: Chic, Leo Sawyer,Stylistics, the Tramps, Village People, George Mccrae, and more.Loomis is currently guitarist with the group Jan Delay and DiskoNo. 1 and has been for 10 years. The group has 2 back to backplatinum LPs and one Gold on which Loomis has composed andperformed.

First off, start with the instrument that you play Best and build achord structure, if you dont have the feeling that you can easilycreate a melody to the chord changes then dont waste yourtime thinking about it, just try another chordprogression until You accomplish this. The most common Chordprogression is I V vi IV (G D Em C). The Secondis I vi IV V (G Em C D) the third is I V vi iii IV I IV V (G D Em Bm C G C D). Once youhave the desired cord progressions for all parts, Example: (Intro,Verse, Pre-Chorus, Refrain, Verse2, Pre-Chorus2, Refrsin2, Bridge,Double Chorus, Outro) Once you have that mapped out, find a Beatthat fits all of the parts with a few variations, to match thedifferent parts. Map out the instrumentation, Ex. Strings, Guitar,percussion, sweeps etc. Music should tap into the emotions of thelistener, so when making Music try to affect someone hopefully in apositive manner. Remember also that a good song is not determinedby the complexity of the production, a great Song could simplyconsist of just guitar, or just Piano, as long as it fits intelling a story to get the true feeling across. So in order tocreate Music, you dont have to be this Genius that plays all theinstruments perfectly, so with that said come up with an Idea inyour head how your Song should sound, then work on bringing this toimmediate reality without hesitation. Because procrastination Isjust another word for a Lazy Ass that cant get him or herself ingear so dont be a lazy ass go out there and write your song today.

When writing the verses I create The melodies as well as the lyricsat the same time, this speeds up the process, And with enoughpractice, this Skillset could prove to be a vital asset toyour songwriting. The melody should be melodic, lyrical and most ofall easy on the listeners ears. But just as well the lyricalcontent should have some substance to it. And whilst writing theLyrics, in order to keep in mind what the subject o the song is Ikeep the title of the Song that was thought out in that verymoment, I keep it in my eyesight for reference so I dont losetrack of the Theme. This totally helps me in coming up with freshsensible lyrics.

When composing your pre-chorus, try being a bit more creative, Thepre-chorus should raise the attention of the listeners, aim forthat wow effect. The pre-chorus should hold the attention span ofthe listeners just long enough to prepare them for the chorusthat should then even more so elevated. Remember when trying tomusically change the pre-chorus somewhat to create interest, try tonot forget what you are writing about, meaning dont lose theinitial idea of the Song, definitely follow through on that. Alsproduction wise the Pre-Chorus needs a bit more elements to raisethe attention of its listener, a bit more percussion, shakersomething to elevate the part a bit so that an apparent change isnoticeable.

The bridge is probably the most important part of a song, becausethis is the part that makes you think now youre flying, now youwere soaring like an eagle. Make sure the bridge of your songescalates you To a height that hadnt yet existed prior to thebridge. And once you have reached that point, you need toDeescalate by returning to the Chorus or the pre-Chorus forinstance. A bridge kann also be broken down in dynamic instead ofgetting stronger which is more common , you can also get softer,some called this a romantic Bridge. Which is often featuredon modern productions today. Think End of the Road From Boys ToMen, during the Bridge, the one Guy raises both arms inthe air to also visually Signify A new part is here (The Bridge),which means even the video aspect of the song elevated during thebridge apparently this is just as important as the music.