Even Better Than The Real Thing? A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. When it comes to consuming music we can safely put people into two camps, those that don’t mind a level of artificial manipulation in their music and those that do. By that I mean that it is fine for any record by Lady Gaga or Nicki Minaj to have a large degree of...

They Might be Giants – Difford and Tilbrook, Schlesinger and Collingwood. A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts.   For young songwriters now, the maze of choice of who to investigate and learn from is vast and daunting, and at Inside Songwriting we will take the time to regularly mention writers you should know about. This weeks...

The Importance of Being Intro A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. First impressions are important and count hugely in helping to create a lasting impression, no more so than in the art of songwriting. In talking to a young writer the other day I outlined a familiar argument, one I’ve often employed in encouraging any songwriter to...

It Was 50 Years Ago Today A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. July 6 1964, the world premiere of A Hard Day’s Night not only gave a besotted world another chance to embrace the lovable Liverpool mop-tops, this time on celluloid, it marked a quantum leap in the art of the musical. The Beatles and their collaborators pushed the...

Vale Gerry Goffin, a Songwriting King. A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. The world lost one of the true masters of song last week, Gerry Goffin, a writer synonymous with the golden age of ‘60’s Brill Building pop. One half of the iconic song writing husband and wife team Goffin and King, Gerry succumbed to natural causes...

Stagecraft & The Singer-Songwriter A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. A key weapon in the arsenal of any singer-songwriter is their presentation on stage, regardless of the quality of their songs, their voice or their musicianship. The dimension that good stagecraft adds to any performance can not be underestimated but oddly it...

Badfinger, bad luck, bad management… and the accidental standard. A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. Most aspiring writers dream of coming up with a standard, a song so compelling and assured it connects to the collective subconscious and becomes an ongoing feature of the musical landscape, a song for the ages. Some arrive...

John Mayer – King Of California, Ryan Adams – Court Jester A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. It may be time to reassess the critical merits of John Mayer as a writer in relation to the comments from Mr Mandy Moore, the Alt-country aging enfante terrible Ryan Adams. Every songwriter has a benchmark work/artist that...

Musicianship and songwriting – Do you want a diminished ninth with that? A weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts. One question that keeps popping up over the journey, in regards to writing, is what level of musicianship is required in order to write a great song?  That’s something I wanted to address in this weeks column and it’s...

Musycks Musings & Topical Tips 01: You’re The Voice? A new weekly column by Inside Songwriting contributor, Michael J Roberts.   So it’s that time of year again, The Voice hits our TV screens like a karaoke Godzilla and it’s singers akimbo as closed eyed, try-hards preen and vocal cords are stretched to within an inch of their lives! I get to indulge...