- Sep 15, 2005
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keen for some input and feedback regarding bands with multiple songwriters, something that has always held some interest for me.
as far as I'm aware it works in a few ways;
1) 2 or more individuals write their own completed songs and bring it to the band, dictating the parts that the rest of the band will play
2) 2 or more individuals write their own material, but allow some scope for interpretation from the other songwriters/band members
3) 2 or more individuals write songs *together*, i.e. work on a single composition - this can also be broken down further, e.g. one person will write lyrics and another will write the music, or someone may focus on the verses and someone else on the chorus ..
There's heaps of bands I like with multiple songwriters, usually two but sometimes three and occasionally more - with these bands, there's always a certain chemistry that makes it work despite the individual songwriters having their own particular approaches and tendencies ...
I don't wanna make this about who is the 'best', just interested in other peoples views and their favourites.
Some well-known and slightly lesser known groups that I can think of :
The Beatles - the classic example, and to me an endlessly fascinating one, the partnership of Lennon & McCartney (with a fair few contributions from George Harrison and a handful from Ringo) is both well-known and shrouded in mystique - it's fairly well documented that in their early recording days, McCartney and Lennon would work 'eyeball to eyeball' on some material, sitting in a room and nutting out songs together. As the Beatles career progressed however this became rarer, as the famed partnership of Lennon and McCartney more frequently preferred to compose on their own.
Fleetwood Mac - three singer/songwriters ... I pick and choose when it comes to these guys, but all three have something to offer imo - Christine McVie has a classic style, kinda 'safe' but executed with a certain class - really strong vocalist too, listen to any of their live stuff and she is always spot-on whereas Stevie Nicks can be all over the shop. Stevie Nicks herself has some amazing songs, but a lot of hers would probably be more collaborative efforts with Lindsey Buckingham, as she wasn't a strong musician early in her career - I get the impression Buckingham would interpret and embellish upon her melodic ideas - but she shouldn't be undersold by any means, she's written some great songs that could only be her.
Lindsey Buckingham is easily the most idiosyncratic of the bands songwriters, although he has a big Beach Boys fetish he proved himself capable of pretty much anything during his heyday - I'd also make a big bet that he was the most autocratic songwriter in the group, he could play everything and would at times attempt to do it all himself without using his fellow band members whatsoever.
Teenage Fanclub - three singer/songwriters, although Gerard Love and Norman Blake are arguably have a stronger body of work than Raymond McGinley - these guys all work the same corner, guitar-based harmony-driven pop songs, but the interest (to me) lies in the distinctive differences in their approaches.
If anyone is known from Teenage Fanclub it's probably Norman Blake, but I think Gerard Love's stuff is more consistent and often just better - the guy can write a sweet bit of power pop.
Gomez - three singer/songwriters - Ian Ball is probably the most versatile and progressive songwriter, Ben Ottewell rightfully tends to showcase his powerful, blues-y vocals and slide guitar work, and Tom Gray likes to dabble in a 60's vibe - I think all three have worked on each others songs, particularly earlier in their career, there's a few jointly-credited compositions among their body of work.
anyway, there are plenty of others I enjoy but this OP has become a small essay; interested to hear if anyone else finds this topic discussion-worthy ..
as far as I'm aware it works in a few ways;
1) 2 or more individuals write their own completed songs and bring it to the band, dictating the parts that the rest of the band will play
2) 2 or more individuals write their own material, but allow some scope for interpretation from the other songwriters/band members
3) 2 or more individuals write songs *together*, i.e. work on a single composition - this can also be broken down further, e.g. one person will write lyrics and another will write the music, or someone may focus on the verses and someone else on the chorus ..
There's heaps of bands I like with multiple songwriters, usually two but sometimes three and occasionally more - with these bands, there's always a certain chemistry that makes it work despite the individual songwriters having their own particular approaches and tendencies ...
I don't wanna make this about who is the 'best', just interested in other peoples views and their favourites.
Some well-known and slightly lesser known groups that I can think of :
The Beatles - the classic example, and to me an endlessly fascinating one, the partnership of Lennon & McCartney (with a fair few contributions from George Harrison and a handful from Ringo) is both well-known and shrouded in mystique - it's fairly well documented that in their early recording days, McCartney and Lennon would work 'eyeball to eyeball' on some material, sitting in a room and nutting out songs together. As the Beatles career progressed however this became rarer, as the famed partnership of Lennon and McCartney more frequently preferred to compose on their own.
Fleetwood Mac - three singer/songwriters ... I pick and choose when it comes to these guys, but all three have something to offer imo - Christine McVie has a classic style, kinda 'safe' but executed with a certain class - really strong vocalist too, listen to any of their live stuff and she is always spot-on whereas Stevie Nicks can be all over the shop. Stevie Nicks herself has some amazing songs, but a lot of hers would probably be more collaborative efforts with Lindsey Buckingham, as she wasn't a strong musician early in her career - I get the impression Buckingham would interpret and embellish upon her melodic ideas - but she shouldn't be undersold by any means, she's written some great songs that could only be her.
Lindsey Buckingham is easily the most idiosyncratic of the bands songwriters, although he has a big Beach Boys fetish he proved himself capable of pretty much anything during his heyday - I'd also make a big bet that he was the most autocratic songwriter in the group, he could play everything and would at times attempt to do it all himself without using his fellow band members whatsoever.
Teenage Fanclub - three singer/songwriters, although Gerard Love and Norman Blake are arguably have a stronger body of work than Raymond McGinley - these guys all work the same corner, guitar-based harmony-driven pop songs, but the interest (to me) lies in the distinctive differences in their approaches.
If anyone is known from Teenage Fanclub it's probably Norman Blake, but I think Gerard Love's stuff is more consistent and often just better - the guy can write a sweet bit of power pop.
Gomez - three singer/songwriters - Ian Ball is probably the most versatile and progressive songwriter, Ben Ottewell rightfully tends to showcase his powerful, blues-y vocals and slide guitar work, and Tom Gray likes to dabble in a 60's vibe - I think all three have worked on each others songs, particularly earlier in their career, there's a few jointly-credited compositions among their body of work.
anyway, there are plenty of others I enjoy but this OP has become a small essay; interested to hear if anyone else finds this topic discussion-worthy ..
