Fingerprints

Warning: Songwriter Geek Speak below....

I am part of a classification of songwriters who have a blessing and a curse. The blessing is that we can sing our own songs. We sometimes play concerts, we have some instruments and sound equipment, and we can get by (depending on the song) with being our own demo singer. I think they call us "performing songwriters."

The curse is that, in order to write commercially appealing songs that other artists want to record, we have to remove enough of our fingerprint so that the song doesn't sound like "my song" but rather it sounds like a "great song."Or, of course the alternative is to write singer/songwriter songs that are amazing enough that anyone would want to sing them. Tough task! I used to receive feedback that a song is a good "Allie-song" or that it's in my own little Allie-genre. But actually those aren't really compliments - not to a songwriter who wants to write a song that's a Third Day song, or an Alison Krauss song. I've often wondered if I didn't sing on the demo (since I don't really have a radio-voice), would the song sound more commercially appealing? It's probably worth consideration, especially if I'm writing something outside my vocal range or styling abilities. But of course, it still comes down to whether the song is great or not. No hip and trendy vocals of demo singer/production can mask a poorly written song, in my opinion (and because I've tried.)

So, I've gone between focusing on writing songs I intentionally can't sing myself, and then just embracing my own style and writing for my own voice/genre. I guess there's a balance. If I completely forsake my singer/songwriter quirks, I might lose some of my uniqueness as a writer. But if I wrote only for myself, the songs wouldn't have as much general appeal. Or at least they probably wouldn't follow the conventional rules (which are there for good reason). Probably the best practice in keeping my individuality, but being challenged to write better and different is to COWRITE. Used to be a scary word, now it's one of my favorites. Being with other writers always brings out a new expression, a new combination of fingerprints. That's fun.

I was once given the advice to remove not all, but just a little of my fingerprint from my songs. I think what that meant was to really listen to what I've been writing, and detect patterns in the melodies and vocal stylings that would be considered my "fingerprint." Then, see if there's a different way to move that line, or sing that word -- especially in the style of whatever artist I have in mind to pitch to (in my dream-pitch-land). By merging my signature style with the artist's style, I can make the song sound like something they would sing. Or by creating an all new motif for the song, it could help an artist branch out and try something new.

I said all of that to say (bridge): I have no idea what I'm talking about. But there's something to this... the skill of not erasing the special grooves that make my singer/songwriter fingerprint unique -- but easing up on the pressure I use to make my mark. Letting my quirks be subtle, and writing the song that other people feel like was written just for them. The universal appeal with a pinpointed emotion and fresh sound. If you have this all figured out, will you be my friend and teach me?

Allie