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	The Craft and Business of Songwriting - Reviews
	John's Book REVIEWS TABLE OF CONTENTS UPDATES ORDER NOW FROM AMAZON.COM ORDER A PERSONALLY AUTOGRAPHED COPY			WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT THE CRAFT AND BUSINESS OF SONGWRITING The Craft and Business of Songwriting offers a practical, street-level look at todays world of songwriting. It's essential reading for anyone contemplating a career as a professional songwriter. Read and learn. Diane Warren World's most successful contemporary songwriter John Braheny's "The Craft and Business of Songwriting" is the first resource our organization recommends to learn the business legalities and creative techniques of Songwriting. Our 12,000+ Just Plain Folks members agree, citing John's book as their #1 Favorite Music Industry/Educational Resource Book. Brian Austin Whitney Founder of the Just Plain Folks Music Organization Your book basically helped me to organize what talent I had and motivated me to do something with it. It helped me turn my dreams into reality. It's amazing to me how much of the information that is now a basic part of my writing, teaching and business repertoire is contained in its pages. It was a Godsend for someone like me living outside the music business inner circle. Thanks for all you've done to teach and inspire me. Jon Ims Hit songwriter ("She's In Love With the Boy") What a wonderful resource this book is. It has so much valuable information to offer. Anyone interested in learning the ins and outs of the business and craft of songwriting should have this book on their shelf." Pat Pattison Professor, Berklee College of Music Author, "Writing Better Lyrics" I wish this book was available when I started writing songs. It covers every aspect of songwriting. You won't just read it once and put it away. You'll refer to it constantly. Jay Graydon Grammy award winning songwriter and producer. A veritable songwriters bible. This is a definitive work on the subject of songwriting for both hobbyists and career-minded hopefuls. . . . delivers the goods with clarity and style. National Academy of Songwriters. I'm awed by the comprehensiveness of the book! What a service you've performed for songwriters -- so much information in one place! Sheila Davis author of The Craft Of Lyric Writing and The Songwriters Idea Book What a tremendous help your book has been. The Craft and Business of songwriting was recommended to me by my songwriting organization, (Austin Songwriters Group). It is often used as a reference during meetings. I think almost all of our members have a copy. Mark Hacker Austin Texas This is the most comprehensive, well rounded book on the subject of songwriting by a man who is considered the formost authority by many. As founder of the Los Angeles Songwriters Showcase, John Braheny has earned the respect and admiration of the songwritng community at large. What makes this book so powerful is John's unique ability to cover the craft of songwriting equally as in depth as the business end. Therefore, having this much information on both aspects of songwriting makes this my number 1 choice as a point of reference for all related topics. Think of this book as a very good investment if you wish to pursue songwriting as a career. Li'l Hank's Guide For Songwriters (halc@halsguide.com) from Sherman Oaks, CA Braheny's book actually does deliver the goods. Presenting practical and artistic advice and information in a manner that will stimulate and inspire the reader, simultaneously providing an education in the hows and whys of songwriting. The book makes use of plenty of current examples of good songwriting and gives you a logical and surprisingly practical path toward improving your own. I found the "business" half of the book particularly interesting; it does a fine job of explaining fairly dry, business-type stuff in clear and easily-understood language. The thing I like most about The Craft and Business of Songwriting is that it's written evenly and fun to read. Although it concentrates on the basics for beginning writers, there's enough of the little important things covered to make it a valuable reference tool for even an industry pro. Dan Fredman Music Connection Magazine (Braheny's) experience has spawned a book that's packed with street-level information about how (and why) today's industry works relative to marketing your songs as a writer or writer/artist. Though its conversational style makes it easy for a newcomer to understand, it's a book that will also be a valuable reference to professionals for its discussion of publishing, self-publishing, collaboration, demos, record deals and the realities of the jingle, television, film music and other markets. In the craft section, Braheny's point of view is that there are no hard rules, but there are some basic principles that determine the most effective ways to communicate within the freedoms and restrictions of a specific medium. He says, "I want to encourage writers to stretch creatively by helping them to understand why some techniques or forms may work in one situation and not in another, rather than laying down rules that they can hear being broken every day." Lyricists, for example, will love a fascinating section describing the findings of scientists about how the imagination processes lyric information There is such a broad spectrum of useable information in this book that even the most experienced pros can learn something, if it's only to learn how to explain something they already intuitively know. Society of Composers and Lyricists -Score No book can make an artist or musician into a songwriter, but there is more information presented here than can be found in most college music classes. No matter what level of professionalism you have currently attained, this book offers useful tips that will help songwriters to have a better perspective on their careers. The Grammy Pulse The most practical and informative text on the topic of songwriting I have ever read. A masterpiece! Wayne Smith Program Director, Songwriters Workshop Office of Continuing Education, Cal State Poly. Univ., Pomona, Calif. In college, I wrote a thesis entitled, A Songwriters Guide to Troubleshooting Songs. I have read hundreds of books, journals and articles. Two books stand out firmly in my mind, John Braheny's, The Craft and Business of Songwriting, and Sheila Davis', Successful Lyric Writing. Both books are absolutely essential to the diet of a starving artist hoping to develop into a serious songwriter. Lou Heffernan American Songwriter Magazine Well folks, by now you should know how much I respect and admire John Braheny. He was kind enough to allow me to reprint one of his articles in the very first issue of The Muse's News and mentioned this very site in an article he wrote for Keyboard Magazine a while back. He's now been kind enough to allow me to give away a copy of his book and BOY - what a book it is. Okay. Be honest. You thought all that information couldn't possibly FIT in one book, right? I know. I confess to being skeptical myself. I can now say with some authority however, that not only did John manage it, but he managed it and made me laugh at the same time. The book itself, whether he's talking about the creative process or the nature of the business, is filled with snippets of humor that made me chuckle. Like Pat's book, John starts out with exercises and suggestions about how to get your creative juices flowing. He speaks of using his guidelines as "principles" rather than as "rules". After all, rules are made to be broken, right? Principles leave one much less constricted and guide rather than hem in. The book itself is designed with that in mind. There are examples and explanations about types of rhyme, different types of formatting for verses and choruses and even discussion about song dynamics such as changes in tempo and density lyrics. I'm only touching on a few of the many fine points raised. He even goes into details on different methods of writing music and talks about how to make the most of a collaboration along with the legalities involved. Mostly, the first section of the book dealing with the creation of the song itself, gets the reader thinking. I know from personal experience that I need exactly that when I'm sitting down to write. Where does one look for inspiration and what does one do with it once it's found? The second part of the book deals with the business - and that's where John's true mastery comes out in impressive detail. Having been involved in various parts of the business over a length of several years, he's very well suited to know what will work and what won't (though he's quick to admit there are exceptions to every rule). The business section deals with such gems as royalty questions, publishing issues, when and why to self-publish, how to choose a studio when making a demo and what you can get away with doing at home, and how to go about marketing your music. The bibliography even makes a very handy reference guide to trade magazines, songwriting organizations and other resources as well as many other books on the subject of songwriting. John addresses every point with his humorous, no-nonsense narrative and quite apart from being an extremely handy resource, it's a pleasure to read. I still don't believe he got all that information into one place. Talk about "bang for your buck"! This is a keeper I'll be going back to on a regular basis. Jodi Krangle The Muses Muse