Chapter 5. The Hit-Makers

Despite the restrictions of form, structure, pattern and range, songwriting is a highly individualistic profession. While it is a fairly simple matter to lay down definite rule^ and regulations, and to generalize about the best methods of writing successful songs, the truth of the matter is that it is almost impossible to say "do thus and thus and you will have a best-seller." The proper ingredients can be described, but it depends entirely upon the individual how these ingredients are to be mixed and used, and on what the end result will be.

Successful songwriting, in other words, depends upon not only following the rules, but also on having the proper amount of natural talent, good taste, good sense, and experience. One of the reasons that the seasoned professional composer can turn out successful songs at a fairly rapid rate is not necessarily that he has more talent than a non-professional, but simply that through trial and error he has finally hit upon an approach and working procedure that is best suited to his own ability.

This does not mean that he will use the same melody over and over again, but it may mean that he has found that he is particularly adept at turning out a certain type of song, or that he works best with a collaborator, or that he prefers to write the lyric first, or the tune first, or that his melody ideas are most successful when he uses certain harmonies, or certain patterns. The point is that this working procedure is something that the individual songwriter must evolve for himself.

Among the professional songwriters, these working habits are so pronounced and so highly individual that it is often possible to spot the composer or lyric writer by the style of the composition. Cole Porter songs, for instance, are, for the most part, extremely stylized both an lyrics and melody. The trick rhyme schemes, the humor and imagination shown in the lyric provide a definite Cole Porter signature. This individual style is also evident in his music, particularly in some of his older songs which had a fairly strong melody line.

If you should play in succession such songs as Night and Day, Begin the Beguine3 I've Got You Under My Skin, and At Long Last Love, you will find a strong similarity in the main melodic themes. This is no indication that Porter is lacking in creative ability or imagination. The fact that he has written many other successful songs which are definitely original is sufficient indication of his creative scope. Porter merely hit upon a combination of note patterns (using the chromatic scale) which struck his fancy. The tendency to use this progression over again was probably entirely unconscious and had merely become part of his particular style. The fact that all of these songs were hits is sufficient evidence that his hunch was a good one.

Porter's style is especially suited to the production-type of song. The sophistications, tricky lyrics and quick wit shown in his songs requires the footlights to put the song over in proper style.

Irving Berlin, in sharp contrast to Porter, has no definite signature to his music and is equally adept at writing straight ballads or smart show numbers. Berlin, who is admittedly, one of the finest songwriters in the history of Tin Pan Alley, is heartily admired and liked by his fellows in the trade. His talent, through the years, has matured and expanded, constantly developing new facets, constantly staying in touch with the times. His older songs such as Always, What'll I Do?, Remember? A Beautiful Girl Is Like a Melody did have a definite Berlin signature. But Berlin refused to permit his numbers to be stylized. His beautiful God Bless America, his show numbers from "This Is The Army" and his outstanding ballad White Christmas are only a few examples of his facile ability.

Berlin, the man, is just as interesting as Berlin, the songwriter. He is modest and extremely shy. Beginning his career as a singing waiter he has had a constant struggle toward success. Although his education has been meager, he is a natural lyricist with an aptness for juggling rhymes and words that few can surpass. There are many legends about Berlin. One of them is true

He cannot read or write music. To this day he picks out tunes with one finger on the black notes, using a special piano with an adjustable keyboard to shift from one key to another. A "musical stenographer" jots down the tunes for him as he composes them.

Other legends are not true. One, for instance, that "a little black man" actually writes all of Berlin's tunes, is utter nonsense. This, and other legends still persist, although few believe them. Perhaps it is to the man's greater credit that these tall tales do not phase him in the least. He simply goes on, in his own quiet way, turning out hit song after hit song and maintaining his tradition of "the great little man" of Tin Pan Alley.

One of the phenomena (and there are many of them) of Tin Pan Alley is the songwriting team. The team is usually composed of two writers, lyricist and composer, whose talents and abilities are so perfectly matched that they can operate as one unit, mutually inspiring each other. The most famous example of the songwriting team was the Gilbert and Sullivan collaboration. A few years ago, there were quite a few of these teams . . . Gordon and Revel, Warren and Dubin, Robin and Rainger, and, of course, Rodgers and Hart. Most of these teams have broken up and there are few, if any4 steady teams at this writing. However, this type of collaboration is usually so successful, that the songwriting team, as such, will never be outdated.

Richard Rodgers, of the Rodgers and Hart combination is now teaming up with Oscar Hammerstein II. The work of this team has resulted in a succession of hit songs, and. it is quite possible that Rodgers has found a collaborator on par with his former partner, Lorenz Hart. Rodgers' music is strictly in the production style and has no particular signature although the composer is fond of using unusual harmonic progressions and of occasionally switching to the minor key for the "release" section of his songs. His use of strange harmonics is shown in Oh What A Beautiful Morning, I'm A Gal That Can't Say No, and People Will Say We're In Love. Rodgers usually writes out the melody line, indicating the harmony by means of chord symbols.

His inspiration is based largely upon stage situations, which probably explains why he is one of our best production writers. He, himself, has admitted that he rarely writes spontaneously, but has to study the script, looking for a situation that gives his creative powers an impetus.

Hoagy Carmichael should be an inspiration to the new songwriter who is discouraged by the constant rejection of his songs and feels that the world is "agin" Jim. Hoagy, who has made his name in Hollywood as one of our top-flight songwriters, had a tough struggle up the ladder to fame. Carmichael learned to play piano by ear from his mother, whose ragtime playing was the delight of Bloomington, Indiana, where he was born. He played his way through law school in Indiana University with a three-piece orchestra. Planning to take the law profession by storm, Hoagy whiled his spare time away writing songs and collecting rejection slips.

One number, written at this time was "Riverboat Shuffle." A group of professional musicians, "The Wolverines," heard the number, liked it and made a recording of it. Finally the record came to the attention of a New York publisher who immediately got in touch with Carmichael, and published the song. This was Hoagy's first published number. Hoagy was impressed, but still not convinced that he could make a living from songwriting. He did not change his mind when Paul Whiteman picked up "Washboard Blues" and plugged it into a hit. Hoagy obtained his law degree and went back to Florida to hang out his shingle. Clients failed to materialize and Hoagy joined up with Jean Goldkette's orchestra. After a few months he organized his own orchestra and then set out to Hollywood with the completed scripts of Stardust and Lazybones. He received a cold reception in the film capital and finally returned to New York where he entered a publishing house as an arranger. Two years later, Hoagy resurrected "Stardust." It was accepted, at first, as an instrumental piece and then, much later, rocketed into fame as a popular hit. Hoagy, at last had made the grade. He was besieged with offers. Lazybones followed Stardust, and then Hoagy returned to Hollywood to work on pictures, interrupting his work occasionally to write a hit song for musical shows.

Jerome Kern is another star performer who has had an interesting career. Kern's music definitely reflects his classical training. Most of his training was done abroad at foreign universities where he concentrated on composition of "serious" music. Nevertheless, he had the urge and ability to write in the popular vein for at the age of thirty-five he had already written twenty-five musical comedies. While he was abroad, he had the good fortune to meet Charles Frohman, the producer and secured a job with him for fifteen dollars a week. Returning with music for twenty plays, he finally wrote the score for "Show Boat" which started him on his way to fame. Kern's songs all have a lasting quality. Such numbers as "Ol' Man River" and Smoke Gets In Your Eyes are still being played and enjoyed by thousands of people. Bern's inclinations and talents are directed entirely to the production-type of song. His songs need a good "build-up" for their first plug, but once started in this manner, they soon take the public by storm. Although his numbers do not have a definite signature, many of them have a slight classical treatment which is highly individual. All of them are distinguished by a strong, sweet, simple melody line.

In addition to the top-ranking songwriters who manage to stay in or near the hit class with every song they write, there are hundreds of other professional songwriters who are capable of turning out an averagely successful number but rarely turn out a hit song. These songwriters are usually able to make a fair living from their profession but a good number of them supplement their income by other means.

It must be remembered that the hit song is a rarity and not an everyday occurrence. A publisher considers himself extremely lucky if he has four outstanding hits in a year. The average is far lower than this. Skilled as the publisher is in anticipating public reaction, he can rarely predict whether a given number will be a hit or just a run-of-the-mill song. He does know, of course, that he will run a better chance of striking a hit with a song by a top-ranking songwriter, but even this is not a sure-fire certainty. All of the top-flight songwriters mentioned above have had a goodly number of "flops" to their credit. On the other hand, quite a few hit songs have been written by newcomers to the field, or by professionals who by a streak of luck just happen to hit upon a happy combination of words and music.

A good example of this is the type of professional known in Tin Pan Alley as the "song doctor." This songwriter has, admittedly, no original idea of his own. He is, however, a good workman and usually, a first rate musician. Although he lacks the original creative spirit to turn out successful songs on his own, he can, when collaborating with others, spot weaknesses in the music or words, and by means of some expert juggling, interpolation, and editing, convert a weak song into one that has hit potentialities. Usually, when one finds a team of three or more songwriters listed as authors of a song, one, at least of this number will be a "song doctor."

One of the best known "song doctors" in Tin Pan Alley's current list of songwriters is Sunny Skylar. Although Skylar is by no means an expert musician and can only pick out melodies with one hand, he has a good experienced ear for market requirements, and for the weaknesses in a song that might interfere with its successful reception.

A good instance of Skylar's success as a song doctor is evidenced in the hit number, Besame Mucbo. The original song with words and music by a Spanish songwriter, had been purchased from a South American publisher by a large New York publishing house. While the number had strong possibilities, it was written in a strictly foreign style and required considerable changing before it would meet North American standards. The chorus, for instance, was shorter than the accepted 32 bars, the ending was not quite satisfactory, and the Spanish words, of course, had to be translated and fashioned into the conventional "pop" lyric. This was a big order, but Sunny carried it out in a masterful style. He took part of the verse and combined it with the chorus, he wrote a new ending, new lyrics and, with the help of an arranger friend, a brand new harmonic accompaniment. The revised Besame Mucho thanks to the doctoring of Sunny Skylar, had been fashioned to American tastes and was soon on its way to hitdom.

Song doctoring is a common practice among certain of the well-known bandleaders. Although the majority of these men are first-class musicians, they lack actual creative talent. However, experienced in catering to public tastes, and in playing and orchestrating hundreds of popular songs, they have a keen sense of public likes and of the commercial appeals that are required to make a song "click." Many of these bandleaders are able to "suggest" changes in a number that will help to convert a "dog" or a "corny number" into a best-seller. Of course, it is a distinct advantage both to the original song-writers and to the publisher to have this type of cooperation from a top-notch bandleader for there is at least some assurance that the bandleader will give preferred plugs to the song that he has helped to doctor.

This, of course, is not standard practice. While this type of collaboration is quite legitimate, there is always the implication that the bandleader may have received a "cut-in" on the song as a form of bribe for plugging the number. In most instances, however, the bandleader has done an honest job of collaborating and song-doctoring, and the cut-in is perfectly fair.

A word should be said here concerning "cut-ins" and paid plugs. It should be perfectly plain to the reader that there is an extremely keen competition in the field of songplugging. With the limited number of "name" bands, and the hundreds of new songs that are published every month, the rivalry among publishers and songpluggers to get their numbers properly exploited can be likened to a fierce but bloodless battle.

Certain unscrupulous bandleaders and radio stars, aware of this keen competition have requested or accepted bribes in the form of money or gifts for performing a new number. Although this was a practice frowned upon by all the music associations and by all the large legitimate publishers, there was very little that could be done to keep it under proper control. When ASCAP and other associations imposed penalties upon publishers who succumbed to "cut-in" demands upon the part of bands and singers, various subterfuges were resorted to. Publishers were asked to have special arrangements made (by the band arranger) for which they paid exorbitant sums, or they were told that the bandleader expected a handsome "Christmas gift," etc. Some bandleaders promised a plug only if the publisher would bring large parties (and spend large sums) to the hotel or roadhouse where the band was performing.

At the time of the New York World's Fair, some bandleaders were requesting-and obtaining-bribes that ran as high as one hundred dollars for one performance of a song.

Fortunately, this entire bribery and cut-in practice has been brought under control. The practice is obviously unfair to the smaller publishers who cannot afford to pay for their plugs. It is also unfair to the bandleaders and radio performers who prefer to be independent regarding the numbers they perform and therefore refuse to accept bribes or payments for plugs.

If, in attempting to market his song, a new songwriter should contact a bandleader or singer who promises to help him get the song published providing he is permitted to cut in on the song and have his name listed as one of the songwriters, he, the songwriter, should analyze the situation thoroughly before agreeing to the proposition.

If the bandleader actually offers to doctor the song and improve the music or lyric contents, and if the offer seems sincere, the songwriter can consider that he has had a lucky break, and should, by all means, accept the proposition. On the other hand, it is quite possible that the bandleader has seen hit potentialities in the song and is taking advantage of the songwriter's inexperience to obtain a cut-in on a sure-fire number. In other words, the songwriter should always be cautious about making cut-in arrangements. He certainly should never suggest them, himself. If they come voluntarily from the bandleader, they should be studied carefully from the viewpoint of honest interest.

There are a few bandleaders who have marked ability in the music-writing field. Raymond Scott, Duke Ellington, Reginald Forsythe, and many others have won recognition and fame as composers of dance music. The numbers written by most of these men are not popular songs, in the strict sense of the term, but they are excellent rhythm numbers showing an able and facile handling of harmony, counterpoint, and intriguing rhythms. Such numbers as Mood Indigo, Black and Tan Fantasy (Ellington), 18th Century Drawing Roam, The Toy Trumpet (Raymond Scott), Dodging a Divorcee, Serenade to a Wealthy Widow (Forsythe) are good examples of this type of composition.

All of these numbers are highly stylized, and the trained listener can usually identify the composer without much difficulty. They all are the work of trained musicians who are able to combine classical technique with popular song requirements. Many of these numbers are the direct result of "jam sessions" in which a few members of the band start interpolating on original themes. If the reader has ever attended any of these sessions, he will understand just how these numbers are born.

The average songwriter, both professional and amateur, steers clear of rhythm numbers. Not only are they difficult to write but they require specialized plugging. In fact, they are usually written to fit the instrumentation and style of a particular band. If they become popular they are re-orchestrated for more general use. Furthermore, since few sheet copies of such numbers are sold, they "pay off" principally in performance fees which, of course, can only be collected by the songwriter if he is a member of ASCAP.

In studying the work of the hit-makers-whether their specialties are "pop" songs, production numbers, novelties or rhythm numbers-one salient fact must be noted. These men all have a natural talent in their respective fields. They have learned through experience, to put their talent to its best possible use. Not every song they write is a success, but as they gain experience as they develop their own working formulas, as they learn to mold their own creative abilities into a form that produces the best and most consistent results, so, in a direct ratio, does their percentage of outstanding hits increase.

One cannot take the work habits, style, or formula of any successful songwriter and imitate them with any degree of success. This has been tried, but it simply will not work. The outstanding feature of any successful song is its originality and, obviously, this cannot be achieved by blind imitation of another's work.

Summing up, it is important for the new songwriter to learn the extent, direction and limitation of his own creative ability and then to take the fullest advantage of expressing that ability in his work. This is something that cannot be done over night. It requires an honest objective view concerning his work, the fortitude to accept adverse criticism and to view, with a certain amount of skepticism, the biased opinions of friends or others "who do not want to hurt his feelings," sufficient self-conviction to carry on despite rejections, and, finally, the determination to abandon the entire project if it is made apparent through a fair period of trial that his talent is too limited to compete successfully with professional songwriters.

This is sometimes a bitter pill to swallow. The writer, has, on innumerable occasions, attempted to persuade certain amateurs that they lack the creative ability to meet commercial standards. This, of course, has only occurred after thorough analysis of a good number of songs has made this fact apparent. Many of these songwriters were able to take this advice "in their stride" but others were convinced that the writer had some ulterior motive in dissuading them iron their chosen profession.

The aim of every new songwriter should be to find the weak points and the strong points of his work. If the weak points consist of such elements as improper structure, poor harmony, or other such basic factors, they can be easily overcome through practice and study. In the same manner, the strong points should be analyzed. These may indicate that the songwriter should specialize in a particular type of song, that his harmony is better than his melody line, that collaboration with another songwriter is advisable, or that his forte is in lyrics rather than in melody. Whatever these strong points may be, it is important that the songwriter develop them to their fullest extent and make the best possible use of them. Furthermore, as he writes additional songs, he should again seek outside criticism and note whether he has corrected the faults which were apparent in his earlier numbers. During this period of trial and error, the songwriter will (assuming that he has talent) develop his own working formula that may add his name to the list of hit-makers.

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