John Lennon's 'EASY' Songwriting Formula

In this video, we investigate the songwriting formula of John Lennon and go deep on the specifics of narrative, rhyme scheme and rhythm.

-----------------

ABOUT BENNY

Hi, I'm Benny. My passion for music and creativity stretches across multiple disciplines and art-forms. I am a founding member and songwriter / lap-slide guitarist for one of Australia's best and most bearded country-bluegrass-folk bands, THE GREEN MOHAIR SUITS. To date the Mohairs have released 4 full-length albums and tour both nationally and overseas.

I am also the Founder and Head Producer of SILAMOR STUDIOS, a boutique studio specialising in Composition for Film, TV and Interactive Media. I write extensively across various instrumental and lyric-based genres and has been commissioned for major projects by Adobe, Cathay Pacific and Audible. I currently release original songs under the name SILAMOR.

I am also passionate about education and have taught song and lyric writing as well as film composition for JMC Academy, Collarts and the Australian Institute of Music. I design and regularly facilitate workshops on creative process and innovation.

Links to Bennny's music are here:

The Green Mohair Suits

SILAMOR

#songwriting
#howtowritesongs
#howtowriteasong
#songwriting
#johnlennon
#songwritingtips

[htws]

Correction: 'Something' is absolutely written by George Harrison and was not meant to be on that list - in the frenzy of scripting, filming and editing I got my lists mixed up - it happens. Thanks for understanding. Benny

[crashcondo]

Great stuff! People don't hear YOUR story in YOUR music. They hear THEIR story in YOUR music! Be plainspoken, straightforward and cut to the quick of it!

[BuckBarker]

I have written over a thousand songs in my life. My first ones when just a child were what were known then as bubble gum songs. Due to the fact they appealed to that age group. I’m 70 now and have been retired for 12 years.
The songs that I’ve written in last 12 years have had themes such as: Dealing with pain, death, tear jerkers, cheating, lust, and of course love.
I have to have a “hook”. I read things, see things on YouTube or TV, or hear something someone might say. I think, ”that’s a song “. After that I simply write a story around the hook, and set it to rhyme. Once this is finished I assign it a genre . I then use the appropriate instruments to achieve the desired sound of that genre. Also, I feel one of the most important details in the creation is attitude. Try to impose your attitude upon the singing and playing.
I have always approached writing with the mindset of establishing a method and a technique. Once you have perfected your technique, never deviate. Play the instruments in the same order, use the same levels when recording, and once your tracks have been laid down, get away from it a few days before mixing and mastering.
As far as the Beatles are concerned, I think they were exceptional talents. But, the great talent only gets you so far. You have to have a determined work ethic. Which I think was very obvious. Also, the amount of songs that you write hones your ability. But if you have a passion for music and for creating it, you’ll never work one day in your life. Cheers!

[geody]

The great thing about a back beat is that you really can't lose it, and not just in certain situations, but, and I really mean this, any old time you use it.

[DennnisDubeau]

The same Lennon saying " Half of what I say is meaningless.." - excerpt of Julia

[nouveau]

Songwriting is such an enigma. It’s good to acknowledge the importance of “rules” or guidelines, and this video is great, .. if it helps. Don’t get hung up on formulas and rules. That’s where songs become predictable. It’s good to hear about how others write, especially Lennon. I’d like to hear McCartney’s thoughts. My thought is: be constantly writing lyrics. Be constantly writing chord progressions. Dedicate a block of time in your week in trying to smash the two things together. Know that you are going to write some crap. But in being prolific some good stuff will emerge. Good luck!

[gurleyco]

Vulnerability, authenticity, and consistency. Be raw, true to yourself, and stay on the bus. This is the way. 🔮🧙‍♂🕴

[judgetimbers]

This is quickly becoming my favorite channel on YouTube.

[dougsmith]

I tend to hear a melody or beat and rattle it around in my head until the words fall in place. Rarely do the words and music come together but when they do it’s like magic.

[mr.k]

Lennon also liked to drop in an instrumental pause or musical change in those places when his lyrics didn’t rhyme. You can see that perfectly in those two examples: Imagine & Lucy

[imaonarseal]

I was lucky enough to have a songwriting module as part of a general music course some years back. It was very inspring and led me to write some of my best songs. Your channel elaborates many aspects of the craft we didn't have time to cover in detail. It has reignited my passion for pursuing this great art, which I feared was lost. Thank you.

[tommydaniels]

Man this channel is unbelievably good. Thank you so much!

[illinoisan]

It’s good to remember why we have meter and rhyme. They are remnants of our ancient oral tradition. Before writing the only way to pass down culture from one generation to the next was by memorization, so mnemonics were invented to aid the memory, meter and rhyme. When you structure your lyrics following meter and rhyme, you are creating patterns that humans have evolved to seek, recognize and delight in. A technique I use is to not write anything down while I’m composing. If I can’t remember it, it wasn’t any good.

[oldmossystone]

in Lucy in the Sky, "Look for the girl with the sun in here eyes, and she' gone" is rhyming gone with sun. If you try it with say 'light' instead of 'sun', the finality of 'gone' doesn't have the same impact. It's subtle. there is also phasi-rhyme of 'cellophane' and 'green'... it's going for a psychedelic feel, so the patterns are more fluid and unexpected, and the connections are more delicate, but they are there!

[druwk]

It’s all good. I believe “Something” was a Harrison song? One of my favorite Beatles tunes 😊
Great advice, especially the first part. I enjoyed the dissection of rhyming couplets and patterns. Breaking up normal rhyming schemes, but still having a flow and natural feel…not easy.

[freemansmith]

Great video; interesting analysis, organized very nicely and delivered succinctly. Thankd, Marty

[TTarragon]

"In musical theater, perfect rhyme is really the only rhyme that counts"
Lin-Manuel Miranda: Hold my coffee

[Jonathan-pyxr]

I learned a lot from this video… I’m going to go back and look at some of my lyrics

[samuelegiuseppelongo]

A top notch presentation, very generous & inspiring. Grazie mille!

[Kev]

Ya know what....even though 'Something' was written by George, there is a definite John connection. In the film Get Back George is having trouble with a lyric in the song and John tells him to just stick any ol' word in there until the right one presents itself. Obviously that right word did present itself because its a masterpiece! So of course it turns out he wasn't just giving that advice to George but to all of us 'mere mortals' as well! Great video by the way!