Using Structures To Increase The Impact of Your Song
Most songwriters are familiar with the basic building blocks of a song. Things like: verse, chorus, bridge, refrain, hook, etc.
But beyond verses and chorus and hooks, there are other ways to construct songs using a tool I call Structures. Structures not only help organize and give form to your song, they also increase it's impact. Structures are about using the elements of song form (verses, choruses, bridges, hooks, etc.) in a way that's tied to the meaning of the song.
Here are some great examples of how Structures use the building blocks in a special way. For example:
Chorus as Summation - (often uses a lead-in to the chorus such as "Because..") Examples:
"Eye Of The Tiger" by Jim Peterik (Survivor)
"Happy" by Pharell
Refrain as Summation - the refrain sums up the point of the song
“Blowin’ In The Wind” by Bob Dylan
“Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall” by Bob Dylan
Chorus or Refrain as Identifier - The chorus or refrain focuses on the person who's the subject of the song
"Gloria" by Van Morrison
"Liberian Girl" by Michael Jackson
“Beautiful Boy” by John Lennon
Verses as episodes in one story
"Coward Of The County" by Roger Bowling and Billy Edd Wheeler (Kenny Rogers)
"The Gambler" by Don Schlitz (Kenny Rogers)
"I've Committed Murder" by Natalie Mcintyre / Darryl Allen Swann / Eddie Harris / Jeremy Ruzumna / Kiilu Beckwith / Carl Sigman / Francis Albert Lai (Macy Gray)
Verse as episodes in 2-3 separate stories
"Glory Days" by Bruce Springsteen
Verse sets how it is; chorus sets how it should be
"That's The Way I Always Heard It Should Be" by Carly Simon
Chorus as rallying cry
"Born In The USA" by Bruce Springsteen (Perhaps one of the most misunderstood song lyrics ever. It's actually a protest song! Ha ha!)
"R-O-C-K In The USA" by John Mellencamp
"We're Not Going To Take It" by Dee Snider (Twisted Sister)
Character sketch verses tied together by a refrain.
"Eleanor Rigby" by Paul McCartney (Beatles)
There are tons of different Structures and I'll be exploring them in a podcast episode. Also, by analyzing Structures, you can find great ways to put together a song or develop a lyric. Start a place in your notebook for Structures. It will be an endless source of inspiration.