Songwriter's Diary

This section of the website is for anyone who is interested in the creative process.  I know I'm interested in how other artists go about what they do.  Here are some thoughts behind some of my songs.

Songwriting is a huge part of my life.  I have melodies and guitar riffs going through my head all day long.  I go to sleep thinking about new song ideas, and I wake up with words to a verse or chorus.  I find myself rearranging songs in my mind while I eat dinner.  You might say it's a gift...or an obsession...but it's what I do, and who I am.  Whether I'm good at it or not is personal opinion.  Regardless, my goal stays the same...the next song will be the best song I've ever written.

A common question I'm asked is "What comes first?  Words or music?"  It happens different ways, but a lot of my songs begin with one line or theme.  A lot of times that will trigger a melody in my head.  I always have a small tape recorder handy so ideas don't get away.  I even carry a recorder with me when I drive.

I also start songs by just playing guitar and jamming on riffs.  When I've found some things that click together, I start arranging the parts into a basic structure.  When it sounds demo-worthy, I begin programming drum patterns on my drum machine.  After I get the whole song programmed and I'm happy with the arrangement, I start laying things to tape.  (For the "All Day Sucker" cd, I just used a little Tascam 8-track, but it got the job done.)  I start with the drums...then I record the rhythm guitars...then I add the bass.  At this point, I usually finish writing the words, and then I put on my lead vocal.  I'll then figure out the vocal harmonies and add those.  The last thing is usually a lead guitar part, or little textures that will add to the song.

Doing demos has been a really good thing for me.  It allows me to work on things without the pressure of a studio clock, and it also allows me to sit back and listen before I commit it to a cd release.  I usually write and demo about 30 to 50 songs for each cd,  and then I cut it down to 14 or so by the end.

Here are some thoughts behind the album All Day Sucker:

I started writing songs for a solo album around '99 when I was still with Galactic Cowboys.  When GC decided to do one more cd, I gave some of those songs for that (Let It Go) album.  I ended up writing a new batch of tunes that would become the All Day Sucker cd.  I shopped the demos, and signed a deal with SAR Records.  Though I didn't have a band at the time, label higher-ups suggested I give the project a band name.  They felt that it would be better for their marketing strategy.  I came up with the name Crunchy, and the cd was released in 2001.

All Day Sucker

Although this song alludes to your basic boy/girl relationship theme, it also expresses my frustrations with my life in general.  I suppose I'm like anyone who has gotten burned a few times, and whether it's a relationship or a bad business deal, it all hurts.

In the studio, I went for a guitar sound that would rock, but would also allow space for the bass and vocals.  I cut back on the distortion and tried to make things compact.

I did a harmony guitar solo on this song that was surely the influence of my love for bands like Thin Lizzy and Wishbone Ash.

If Only

This turned out to be the radio single off the cd.  The live version of Crunchy performed this song for a few million people on the Mancow radio show in Chicago.

Lyrically, it's a song about the longing for love and missed opportunities.

She's A Freak

You might think this was another boy/girl song, but I actually wrote it about my dog Chloe.  The song started with line, "She's a freak and she's alright with me."  I built the rest of the song around the opening riff.  I wasn't sure about this song until I finished the demo.  I tried some different vocal harmonies, and I really liked the end result.

Baby Zit

I had been messing with the harmonic riff that opens this song for years.  I kept thinking that I would use it in a song someday, and this was it.  I had fun with the lyrics, which are based on a cartoonish character I created named Baby Zit.

Love (Comin' Out Of Our Ears)

This is one of my favorite tunes on the cd.  It started with the riff that opens the song and I built it around that.  I had a lot of fun in the studio with this one.  I used my Zon 8-string for the bass and I borrowed Jeff Scheetz's Les Paul for the guitar tracks.  I had a couple cheerleaders come in and add some "hey, heys."

I get asked about the line "Can't bust a rhyme like a popular chump."  and to whom I am referring.  Hint...Limp Bizkit...Nookie...get it?

Missile Silo

My wife, Diane, and her brother were sitting at the kitchen table discussing how cool it would be to buy a missile silo out in Kansas and turn it into a house.  I got a melody in my head and ran down stairs to sing it into a tape recorder.  Most of the words came from that conversation.

There are some songs that really fall into place quickly, and this was one of them.  I wrote and recorded everything on the demo in a couple of days, and the cd version sounds pretty much the same.

Sorority Girl

One day the line "You were never a sorority girl" ran through my head, and I wrote it down in my notebook.  I went back to it later and ended up writing the whole song.  It's based on the "artsy" girls and people that I knew in college.  It's basically about following your own tastes, rather than following your peers.

The album version was much like the demo, except I had used a Casio keyboard on the demo for that Cars vibe.  That part was mimicked with a guitar for the cd.

2 Hearts (Beatin' In You)

Most people figure out the meaning to this song pretty fast.  It's fairly obvious that I'm talking about my wife while she was pregnant.  I wrote the chorus first and built the song from there.  For some reason, the chorus is usually the easiest part for  me.  Finding a good way to lead into the chorus is sometimes more of a trick, and my favorite part of this song is actually the pre-chorus.  Overall, I was really pleased with the way the melody drives this tune.

I used a Fender Strat on the verses and a Les Paul on the riff parts.

Rabbit

I was out in my backyard one day, when I saw this little rabbit hiding by a bush.  I went in and got some lettuce and tried to feed him, but I only got within inches.  Like a bolt of lightning, he shot down the block in about 3 seconds.  I turned the words into a spiritual metaphor for God's love never failing us.

I'm not really a keyboard player, so I used a synth guitar for the string parts.

70 Ways 

A friend of mine was going through some problems in his life and he told me that he had bought about 70 shirts to pass the time.  We sometimes us different things to distract ourselves from the pain we feel.  

I used a talk-box in a few places.  That was a lot of fun.

The Underground

One of those songs that came together pretty fast.  It started when I was just messing with some chord patterns and started singing a melody over the top.  That ended up being the verse.  I came up with the chorus and the riffs after that.  The words were written about my frustration with the music industry and some of my experiences in Galactic Cowboys.

The Thing

This was kind of a fun song that I wrote about all the teen-pop that was going on at the time.  I tried to sneak as many references into the lyrics as possible, but I had to leave a few names out.  (I was unable to come up with a good rhyme for "Jessica Simpson.)  Though I'm happy with the cd version, I still like the demo I did for this song even better.

Didn't 

My daughter was just a baby when I was writing for this album, and I would sit on the floor with her and play my acoustic guitar.  Sometimes it was the only thing that would stop her from crying.  This song is one of the tunes that came out of me playing for her.  When I did the demo, I turned it into a rock song.  I wrote the lead guitar parts to sound kind of like keyboards.

Jerk Store

The idea for Jerk Store came right out of an episode of Seinfeld.  I didn't write it about anyone in particular.  I'll leave it up to you as to whom it applies.  I just thought it sounded funny.

I was really pleased with the bass sound for this song.  I used the 8-string, and split the high-end and low-end onto to two separate tracks.  It was an all-out attempt to be Tom Peterson from Cheap Trick, and I think I came close!

I recorded some little sounds and noises, and I placed them between songs on the cd.  Most of  them were from my daughter's toys.  They are there for sentimental reasons, and for my own amusement.  The cd closes with one of those samples...The End.

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