What can you say about the exceptionally talented poet, novelist, and prolific singer/songwriter Leonard Cohen.that hasn’t already been said? Well, the Song Talk Radio action team didn’t worry about that. Bruce, Neel, and Phil simply dove into their memories and had a close look at three of his many, many songs. Bruce brought the poetic Bird on …
metaphor
Where’s Bob Dylan?
Okay, so we couldn’t get Bob to come to the studio for the show. Not surprising considering how the Nobel Prize people can’t find him either. On this show about Bob Dylan we discussed: The new film from Ron Howard – The Beatles, Eight Days a Week How the Beatles wrote songs Should the Nobel Prize …
“A song is good if you like it,” says Patrick Ballantyne
Bruce, Neel and Phil were all happy to have Patrick Ballantyne back in the Song Talk Radio studio for the third time. He always brings great songs (listen to “Make Believe” and “Sky” for proof) and lots of experience to share about the songwriting process for our listeners. When writing a song, he starts with …
Protest Songs: What makes a good one?
For our latest theme show, we take a look at some of our favorite Protest Songs and try to figure out what makes an effective one. We looked at River Runs Red by Midnight Oil, Eve of Destruction by P.F. Sloan, and Phil talks about how his band The Parkdale Hookers, went about writing their punk-anthem …
Exploring poetic lyrics with Liz Jaremyn
The ever talented Liz Jaremyn returned with two great songs. Here’s some stuff we talked about: Liz Jaremyn’s previous show in 2014 Download the lyrics for Liz Jaremyn’s songs Overcoming writer’s block vs forcing it exploring song structures How many sections should your song have? Liz Jaremyn’s YouTube Channel Writing Better Lyrics – Pat Patison …
Brian Sasaki Returns: Exploring Olde Timey Jazz Swing
Brian Sasaki, a musical force of nature, swept into our little studio with three band members (Michael on bass, Stanley on violin, and Kyle on drums) and really rocked the joint. His energetic and all-out-there tunes hook you right from the start. Look Out the Window featured Brian on guitar and kazoo (check out Tomasz Sacha on …
Putting a fresh spin on the familiar with Callie Deacon
Young singer-songwriter Callie Deacon shared her exceptional songwriting talent, impressing the guys with her ability to spin familiar phrases and ideas into original ones. Callie takes strong cues from Taylor Swift and Shawn Mendes. We talked about: why writing on the guitar is more fun than the piano (please note: this is the sole opinion of …
James Clark, Metaphor Man – from punch bowls to circus clowns
James talks about the use of metaphor and subtext in his songs, and performs “Devil’s Punchbowl” live in the studio. Be sure to check out his band the James Clark Institute!