Writing Uptempo Songs

[sprees]

I play piano and write most of my songs by messing around on the piano until an idea comes to me. The problem is, I don't come up with any real good up-tempo songs, which I'm starting to think is because of the fact that Im playing piano melodies backed up with quite strong harmonies, whereas uptempo songs are kinda sparse on harmony (e.g. a long stretch of melody may be played over just the chord C).

Also, what defines an up-tempo song? because obviously if I just doubled the tempo of a slow-mid speed song it wouldn't sound right.

So basically, how does everyone else write up-tempo songs, and do you find them harder to write?

Thanks,

Spreesi

[john]

Hey sprees

Welcome to Songstuff!

Take a little time to drop a post in the Introduce Yourself board. It's a good place to find out about other members too.

One of the main reasons slower songs don't work ata faster speed is simply the rhythm losing it's feel, and the fact that both melody and instrumentation arrangement are suited to that slower rhythm. Normally this means that they are too busy for the faster tempo. The opposite is true going from fast to slow. You tend to find that there is a lack of ideas and you will almost immediately want to add ornamentation to the melody and fill out the instrumentation.

For me the easiest way to tackle this is to change the perspective you take to starting a song. Start by setting the tempo, and creating a basic drum line. Try then adding the chords or bass line. You will now be creating them within the context of the faster beat, so they will be more appropriate. From a rehearsal point of view, just get the beat going first and play along.

it may take a while to settle in, but I find varying my writing perspective is the best way to keep my music from being stale. St least to me it's not stale!

Hope this helps

Cheers

John

[Lazz]

I think there can be a lot of mileage in changing the 'pulse' for a tune.

There are still a whole bunch of 'standards' in my gig-book, for instance, because people like to hear the familiar, but I still like to make 'em my own and so bend 'em accordingly. One of the characteristics of a 'good' tune, according to my personal criteria, is that it lends itself readily to such re-interpretations. But, of course, not everything succumbs willingly to such an approach. If at all.

Never been able to find an effective re-arrangement for any of Elton John's material, for example. They seem pretty immutable to me and unsuitable for re-interpretation - or, at least, I've never found a way. Burton Cummings found a new way to perform his old Bachmann-Turner Overdrive hit 'You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet' as a a very convincing Sinatra-style strings and big-band lazy slow swing arrangement, though. And the Neville Brothers manage a highly danceable version of Leonard 'music-to-slash-your-wrists-by' Cohen's 'Bird On A Wire". In my own pad, I have a pretty up-tempo reggae arrangements of that same song plus the maybe even more unlikely 'You've Lost That Loving Feeling'.

So it can definitely be pulled off. Of course, it always involves some re-harminisation or other. But that's at least half the fun. And with your jazz and classical chops you've already got a working vocabulary to do the job. Toughest part of the gig for me is coming up with the intitial starting idea for a re-working of a known piece.

Common approach for me, and one that means I can can retain a lot of the original harmonic density (as well as expand it), is not to double the tempo, but to double the 'feel' instead. That's why I started out by calling it changing the 'pulse'. The bars go by at the same rate as before, but the rhythm churns out a double time feel. Startlingly pleasant things can happen. With re-harmonisation, you could even end up with a 'new' tune.

[Donna]

Hey Sprees,

This can be a toughie - certain periods I've written only slow songs.

Both John's and Lazz' ideas are good. And I've tried both of those ways in the past with good results.

It will take experimentation and maybe a few false starts. It's amazing how one's view can open simply by being willing to do the experimenting.

The only idea I have is a goofy one: try to see life in cartoons - remember the older ones? That's great music, and very uptempo.

Or look at real life cartoons - children playing, particularly young ones.

[john]

Hey sprees

how are you getting on with writing uptempo songs?

[EdWilliams]

Hey Sprees,

They say that Nashville is drowning in ballads. Now, I don't know if you're writing country, pop or metal, but if you want to write up-tempo stuff, try this:

When writing, tap your foot and smile.

Works for me.

Ed Williams

www.ejwmusic.com

[Rudi]

When writing, tap your foot and smile.

Works for me.

Ed Williams

www.ejwmusic.com

Worked for Ray Charles too.

I don’t have a problem writing them (any more than others), but tend to do as John said, start with the rhythm, or at very least incorporate the rhythm into my starting point, be it a snatch of melody or a chord pattern.

As for arrangements, there’s lots of fun to be had there. I’ve never played it live, but I re-interpreted ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ into an up-tempo 2/4 song. It sounds like sing-along pub tune that way & disrespects the sentiment of it enchantingly.

There is a local young punk rock style band here in the Southampton area called ‘Stout’. They do a storming high-speed rendition of Kate Bush’s ‘Wuthering Heights’ that is so far removed from the original, that many people can’t even recognise it.