Writing Music For Hit Songs (Paperback)

by Jai Josefs (Author) "Many years ago I was introduced to a well-known producer with several platinum albums on his wall..." (more)
Key Phrases: subdominant minor chords, substitute sus, target chord, Billy Joel, Diane Warren, Garth Brooks (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"A wonderful and educational book that every serious songwriter should pick up and read." -- Diane Warren, hit songwriter for Michael Bolton, Céline Dion, Elton John, and many others

Product Description
This book is for everyone who dreams of placing a song on the Top-40 charts. From the musical basics through the completed song, Josefs reveals the hit-making mixture for rock, country, R&B, and theatrical forms. Illustrated with over 100 real-world examples.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 262 pages
• Publisher: Schirmer Trade Books; 2 edition (November 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0825672457
• ISBN-13: 978-0825672453
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,813 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very practical and easy understood approach to songwriting, February 14, 2000

By	Johan Vorster (Pretoria, South Africa) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Writing Music for Hit Songs: Including New Songs from the '90s (Paperback)

The author is clearly a seasoned songwriter with an abundance of knowledge and skill. Yet, he is able to explain the technicalities of songwriting in such a way that the not-so-professional hobbyist songwriter like myself can follow. Having not had formal music theory training myself I could easily catch up with the essentials without feeling it was a hopeless situation. The author managed to keep my attention and deal with the music theory in such a fashion that I could not wait to see his next topic. I found the approach very practical. In fact, I could immediately apply what I learned and the results were immediate. Still, an enormous amount of information is contained in this book and I am sure I shall refer back to the detail many times in the future. It has also helped me better understand songs that already became hits and the book is full of real examples.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The most useful book of music theory/songwriting I've seen, October 10, 1999

By	Sarah Erwin (Michigan) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Writing Music for Hit Songs: Including New Songs from the '90s (Paperback)

I've paged through many books about songwriting trying to find a way to understand how to construct music to complement my lyrics. This book finally solved my problem and has absolutely revolutionized my songwriting. I wouldn't recommend this book for someone who is a complete novice in music theory because it moves very quickly through a great number of topics. I took notes to make sure I got everything I could out of it! I haven't looked at another music theory book since. If you're serious about writing better music, buy this book!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finally theory applied to real songs..., March 7, 2006

By	J. Auen (Baltimore, MD USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

If you're sick of theory books that only use author's etudes or "Grandfather's Clock" type traditional songs as context, then this book is for you. Dozens and dozens of real, commercial hit songs are used as specific examples to illustrate theory. Use this book with iTunes music store to hear the "big concept" theory (ie. Song Structure, Modulation, Groove, etc.) and use your own instrument to really dig into the specifics.

Do you want to know how Billy Joel came up with those chord changes? Do you want to apply creative harmony (chords) to a melody that you can't get out of your head? Do you want to make your songs more interesting melodically, harmonically or rhythmically? It's all in this little book (and much more).

Do you play and sing a lot of songs? Have you noticed similarities between them? Some similarities are obvious (1,4,5 chords for example). Some are less obvious and some are downright confounding. Often you have this tickle in the back of your brain that there is something more important going on.

There is.

Why does this chord work so well here? Why do Steely Dan, Stevie Wonder, Jimmy Hendrix, Dire Straits and so many other group's songs stand out? They sound so unique as to be instantly identifiable. Is there some pattern here?

Yes.

I'm so glad Jai Joseph did not go down the path of these BS internet sites advertising "The Secrets of Songwriting" or "The Secrets of Theory." There's no hype here. It's simply a very organized approach to applying music theory to the craft of songwriting.

I'm a guitar teacher in baltimore. I use this book with my more advanced students. Some do not read anything but guitar tablature (and they don't want to learn standard notation). They still benefit enormously from this book. Some are not songwriters (and they don't want to be), but they do want to be able to learn more songs. They want to learn them faster and retain them over time. They want to be able to figure them out just by listening to the CD. This book has been a godsend for them.

- Jeff Auen
- www.baltimoreguitarschool.com