Songs For Covers

You may or may not know it, but there are miles upon miles of recording artists out there searching for great songs.  Believe it or not, so many performers, including some of the world’s greatest vocalists, guitarists, keyboard players, even record producers, have one serious drawback: their songwriting ability is amazingly poor, in some cases downright atrocious.

The annals of the music industry are littered with artists who made the fatal error of thinking he/she was not only a great performer but also a great songwriter.  Many a band and solo artist have struggled on to eventual oblivion simply because they refused to consider recording or performing anything not written by themselves.  Okay, I’ve no doubt you can cite artists who are, and have written and performed their own product so successfully they have become legends in just a few short years – The Beatles, Elton John, Billy Joel, Simon And Garfunkel, etc., etc.  This ‘super combination’, as I call it, of being able to not only rank as a top performer, but also write great songs is, however, quite rare - a bit like trying to find gold nuggets on every street corner.

For the other ninety-five percent of recording artists, those that made it into the big time, did so because they swallowed their pride and picked a song penned by someone who actually knew how to write a song. I don’t care how successful an artist is on any show or competition if the songs he/she records are poor (no matter how good the performance), then his/her days in the recording industry are numbered.

If you’re a songwriter only, don’t worry a morsel if your guitar or keyboard playing is dismal or so bad you can only play inside a soundproof basement, the songs you’re writing may be brilliant.

Of all the different genres, in my experience, those most receptive to covering songs are in middle of the road. Remember, in order for these artists to stay on top and sell records in vast quantities, they need great songs. That is why they are always on the lookout. Songs for covers is a technique you can acquire.

From Masters Of Songwriting
http://www.MastersOfSongwriting.com