As a songwriter in Nashville, Maren Morris has always expressed what was on her mind and never pulled punches. Her demand for honesty from other women in “Drunk Girls Don’t Cry” is forthright and refreshing. An edgy sense of humor and fresh Hip Hop-style rhymes light up the lyrics of “Rich.” And she successfully combines elements of the Rock and Blues genres in songs like “My Church” and ‘I Wish I Was.”
So it shouldn’t have come as a total surprise when Maren agreed to lend the power of her voice and attitude to Pop/Dance smash “The Middle,” helping to make that song a #1 Pop smash. Now here she is back in the Country genre with another big hit single.
“The Bones” – Maren Morris
Songwriters: Maren Morris, Jimmy Robbins, Laura Veltz
TECHNIQUES TO HEAR AND TRY:
Give your singer plenty of character in the lyric.
Add a fresh twist to a familiar lyric phrase or cliché.
Change the beat emphasis in your melody to get attention.
Use a different phrase length in each song section.
Until recently you would only have heard a thoughtful, acoustic-based folk song like “Let Her Go” on college radio stations or eclectic NPR shows. Certainly not among Billboard’s Top 10 Pop hits. But there it is. If you haven’t heard this song on the radio then you’ve probably heard it on a national TV commercial or featured in prime time television series like Elementary and The Vampire Diaries.
Let’s take a deep dive into this song to see what makes it work so well and how you can use some of these techniques in your own songs.
TECHNIQUES TO HEAR AND TRY:
Use examples to express theme and emotion.
Start a song with a chorus.
Use a three-line melody pattern.
Create a slow dynamic build with production.
Listen to the song. Read the lyrics.
Artist: Passenger Songwriter: Michael David Rosenberg (aka Passenger)
The lyric, melody, and structure of this song are all reminiscent of the folk genre, with a nod to both authentic English ballads and the folk songs of the 1960s. If you still love to sing “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” then this song is for you! There’s even a subtle group sing-along on the chorus, almost as if everyone is gathered round the ol’ campfire.
But even though the retro underpinnings are clearly there, the melody has interesting twists that give it a modern edge. If you’ve got a few old fashioned folk songs tucked away (and I know some of you do) consider giving them a facelift with these tricks.
For all you Folk/Rock lovers out there, this is certainly your moment. Between Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, and half a dozen other artists, Folk/Rock hasn’t been this hot since the 1960s! So dust off your acoustic guitars, your harmony vocals, get a drummer who can play a cool syncopated beat to update your sound and you’re good to go!
“Gone Gone Gone” recorded by Phillip Phillips Writers: Derek Fuhrmann, Todd Clark, and Gregg Wattenberg Read the lyric here. Watch on YouTube
The Shortcut numbers below refer to specific chapters in my books “Shortcuts to Hit Songwriting” (“Hit”) and “Shortcuts to Songwriting for Film & TV” (“Film/TV”).
GENRE/STYLE – Folk/Rock, Indie Folk
What is a genre? Watch this video.
Here’s an acoustic-based hit song that builds into a big Indie Folk anthem. This song climbed up the Hot Adult Contemporary (Hot AC) charts not long after Mumford & Sons paved the way with their huge Indie Folk hit song “I Will Wait.” It reached #3 on the Rock charts (which is a very broad chart these days). Figuring out what genre this song is in is a little tough but I’m going to go out on a limb and call it Contemporary Folk/Rock or Indie Folk.
SONG STRUCTURE
The song form is…
VERSE / PRE-CHORUS / CHORUS
VERSE / PRE-CHORUS / CHORUS
BRIDGE / CHORUS (TAG out on the bridge)
The structure of this song is pretty obvious. Why? Because there’s so much contrast between sections – and I’m not just talking about the production! This is a great song to study for contrast.
Both the pre-chorus (“Give me reasons to believe…”) and chorus (“For you, for you…”) feature a big jump up in pitch at the beginning of the section.
But, more importantly, the pre-chorus melody features an ear-catching change in rhythmic feel, giving listeners a clean break between the verse and chorus. Listen to the song – you can’t miss it! Both the verse and chorus feature a melody with a mix of long and short notes, strong and weak beats. But the pre-chorus is just straight-ahead, even beats.
