Have You Found Your Key???

"Alone in the darkness…before the crack of dawn...The angler will rise and put the coffee on".  

 I wrote a song with my KY buddy Dale Pyatt called "The Angler".  It could have been called "The Songwriter" as the line applies to me and my songwriting and I think others find the quiet of the morning a perfect time to sit and try to fill a blank page with a new song :)

Remember my songwriter's mission statement:  To drink coffee...and make stuff up!!! 

So, sitting with a blank page I follow my usual procedure of pulling my guitar out, take a sip of java, make sure the pen and paper are at the "ready" and start strumming and "noodling" on the guitar.  I think everyone has a "pet key".  A chord when you pick up the guitar you automatically strum...like maybe a big old G chord...or maybe a D chord...or maybe I slap on the "drop D capo" and hit that big ol' E chord letting the low E just RING!!  I go "AHHHH...all is right with the world :)  

These are MY keys!!!  I would say that most of my songs are written in one of 3-4 keys.  Their sound is familiar to me and I'm comfortable with them.  They reside in my "songwriting box"  BUT sometimes we need to venture "outside of our songwriting box" to explore new sounds and maybe that will result in new sounding songs!  So this morning I might put the capo on the 3rd fret and playing out of a C position resulting in playing in the key of Eb.  Actually, Eb is a GREAT sounding key...I just don't go there often enough on the guitar...but...it is one of my "go to" keys on the piano.  So, if I decide to write at the piano maybe I'll try Ab or maybe Db.

Every key has a distinct sound!!!  With that distinct sound will come more and more musical ideas.  You see, if you just tend to write in one key you are cheating yourself of so many other cool sounds!!!  It is kind of like having more tools in your songwriting "tool box"!!!  If all you have is a hammer...then all the world is a nail"!!!  I have to remind myself of that all the time.

So, today when you pick up your guitar I challenge you to start out in a different key!!  Put the capo on the 4th fret and play out of a D position so you are playing in the key of F#!!!!  Whoa!!!  How wild is that?????  It just might be the key to writing that great song you've had in your gut for a long time but never could get the "sound" right.  You know...as songwriters we all have a "fingerprint" or "style" no matter how hard we try to avoid it.  Sometimes many of my songs start to sound kind of similar.  When that happens I need to take my own advice and get out of my "comfort keys" and explore that uncomfortable zone"!!

So today I challenge all of us to get in the key of F# and write a song....you might be surprised how it will turn out with an entirely new sound!!  Get wild and crazy and add some new tools to your toolbox.  Have you found your key???

Have a great day and remember:  Write more...whine less!

WRITE ON!!!

Brink  

The Bridge Over Troubled Waters?? To bridge or not to bridge!

Sometimes I'll play a song that I think is finished for some friends and someone will say, "The song needs a bridge!!".

First of all it makes me feel like that person feels the song is not that "stout" and maybe needs something more in the song...but...does it need a bridge??  Maybe it just needs better, clearer verses?  Maybe it needs a better chorus?  But, does it REALLY need a bridge. Well, I was thinking about a song I'm working on this morning and have that same dilemma and thought I'd throw some thoughts about bridges down on this morning's blog. Along with my own personal rules on bridges.

Rule #1:  If you put in a bridge it MUST be the climax of the song...it song must reach its PEAK on the last word of the last line of the bridge.  If it doesn't do that....LEAVE IT OUT!!!

Rule #2:  The bridge must "plow new ground".  If you just rehash what's in a verse or chorus and you aren't adding new "stuff" in a "new way"....LEAVE IT OUT!!!

Rule #3:  Does a bridge fit the genre of the music you are writing???  For example: if you are writing a bluegrass song, a bridge many times can be the "kiss of death".  The genre itself tends to reject songs with bridges.  Now...there are ALWAYS exceptions to the rule...but...overall a majority of the bluegrass world doesn't have much use for a bridge in a song. On the other hand...country music, gospel, and others tend to embrace a bridge...BUT...even then see Rule 1 & 2!!!! :)

Rule #4:  A bridge should take a musical detour from the verse and chorus to add excitement to the song at about the 2:00 minute point give or take.  It should raise the song to a new level musically and many times the bridge will lead into a key modulation or other to re-energize the ear of the listener.  In addition to a lyrical climax...the bridge should also bring a musical climax to the song.  If it doesn't....LEAVE IT OUT!!!

Rule #5:   WHEN IN DOUBT.....LEAVE IT OUT!!! In my opinion if there is ANY doubt that the bridge doesn't meet rule 1-4...I leave it out.

So...with these 5 basic rules in mind I'll go back to my song this morning and lay these rules over the top of the bridge and see if it breaks any of the rules.  Knowing basic rules of songwriting is helpful and as mentioned they are made to be broken as LONG AS YOU BREAK THEM FOR A GOOD REASON!!  If you consciously break a rule for the benefit of the song...that can be effective and very kewl sometimes but you should understand basic rules of songwriting before breaking them.

Good use of a bridge can do great things for a song but it can also destroy a song if not used properly.  I hope these rules that I use, might help you decide if a bridge is REALLY needed in your song and also if it is a quality bridge.  I'll let you know what I decide and if a bridge did or didn't work on my song today in a future blog and maybe post the demo of the song. :)  Of course as always, this is my 2 cents and your mileage may vary.

Have a great day...stay warm...and remember:  Write more - whine less!!!

Write on!!!!

Brink 

What do you see???

Imagery...paint the picture!!  Help the listener "see the song"!!!  To me this is what I strive to have my songs do for the listener.  To transport him/her into the song so they can actually see, feel, hear, taste and even touch it...in other words to actually "live it".  I'm not sure who shared this advice with me many years ago but it is some of the best advice I've ever gotten for songwriting and I use it in EVERY song I've ever written.  It is a 4-word question:

WHAT DO YOU SEE???

I was told..."don't make it harder than it is...write what you see!!"  There is a fine line in songwriting between getting a song too personal to your own life where others may not be able to relate and also on the other end be to vague to bring people "into" the song.  If I write a song about "home" and sing that song, I want EVERY listener to be envisioning "THEIR" home!  Every listener is taking their own journey in their mind back to what "they" know.  If I get too specific about MY home then I may lose the listener and they no longer can "relate" to the song.  

So back to "WHAT DO YOU SEE???  I am going to use an example of using "what do you see?". I sat down to write a song one day and had not a clue what to write about.  One of my techniques for breaking this "block" is to put myself in a place or situation and close my eyes...look around...what do I see????  This particular day I imagined myself up in my grandmother's attic (why I'm not sure LOL) and I started looking around in my mind.  WHAT DO I SEE? Well I saw cobwebs, old rafters, dusty magazines, old boxes, etc.   And then I saw AN OLD ARMY UNIFORM!!!!!  At that point I had my "AHA" moment for this song. I figured there was a story in that old army uniform.  So I began to tell the story starting with what I saw in my head.  Remember, songs are 3 minute movies and the lyrics are the camera lens allowing the listener to SEE the song.  So I started:

"One day in grandma's attic...I came across a dusty box
Laying on a wrinkled uniform and some old brown army socks
The words were worn and faded...it said 'old Havana brand'
The rubber band was brittle...and it broke right in my hand."

I tried hard to describe what I saw in my grandma's attic.  WHAT DID I SEE???  the box was dusty, the uniform was wrinkled, old brown army socks, faded cigar box...I didn't have to say cigar box because I just described the box and it hopefully is obvious what it is by the description.  You can also help by asking "WHAT DO I FEEL?"  WHAT DO I SMELL?", WHAT DO I TASTE?"  I try to incorporate as many "senses" as possible to help the listener experience the scene!!  I felt that there would be an old rubber band around the box and most people have touched and old rubber band that just disintegrates when you touch it.  (this turned out to be one of my favorite lines of the song).

Back to the next verse:

"My body started shakin'...as I saw what lay inside
It was a letter from my grandpa...the day before he died
I had heard the stories...grandma told us 'bout the war
The postmark just said 'Normandy, 1944'. "

What do you feel, what do you see???  JUST WRITE THAT DOWN!!!  You see words by themselves don't bring out emotion.  IT IS THE PICTURE THAT THE WORDS PAINT THAT BRINGS OUT THE EMOTION!!!! When you sing of your mother who has passed away there are NO words that can describe the feeling of sadness etc...BUT... it is the picture the words paint that will cause the tears to come.  

Back to the song:  Once I got to this part of the song and had written 2 verses and hopefully brought the lens of the camera (words) in the attic, to the box, and now IN the box to the letter it just followed that the chorus HAD to be what the letter said. Again, I closed my eyes and tried to picture the letter and what it might have said.  Tried to picture Normandy and what would I write back to my family.  Here is the chorus:

"It read, "I will always love you...I miss you more and more
But freedom for our children...is a thing worth fighting for
So if I should die tomorrow...please don't weep for me
Just tell our children's children...why we're living free
With love from Normandy."

Paint the picture....WHAT DO YOU SEE??  Write it down.  Don't get too clever or try to enhance things too much....describe what you see for the listener and it will go a long way in writing songs that hopefully bring the listener into the song so they can see, hear, feel, and touch the song!!

Have a listen to my recording of "With Love From Normandy"...but be forewarned!!...grab a tissue :)  There is a 3rd verse and bridge to bring the song into the present but won't lay that out here...I'll let you listen to how the song came together from a blank page to a final song by just asking the questions "WHAT DO YOU SEE???".  Give it a try :)

https://soundcloud.com/brinksongs/with-love-from-normandy 

Have a great day and remember:  Write more and whine less!!!

Brink

My 80/20 Rule of Songwriting

When I do a songwriting workshop one of the most important things I like to talk about is my 80/20 rule of songwriting.  There are lots of 80/20 rules out there in life and I apply it to songwriting and in many respects this rule will determine how dedicated you are as a writer and in most cases how "strong" the song will be when finished.  Here is the basic rule:

Spend 20% of your time writing the first 80% of your song.
Spend 80% of your time writing the last 20% of your song.

When you get a great idea or hook for a song you are "fired up" and with the initial "rush" of thoughts and ideas the chorus and maybe first verse jumps out and is written with not a lot of "push back".  Now you have a great first verse with an attention getting first line, a great start to introducing the characters and storyline, a killer chorus that is really powerful and you are feeling good about this new song.   THEN....you have to write 2 more verses or maybe a verse and a bridge etc.  Here is where the struggle begins.

One of the differences between a seasoned writer/professional writer is the willingness to work through the struggle of of the last 2 verses and the "tweeking" phase of a song.  You see...for a song to be great the last verses/bridge needs to be as strong or stronger than the killer verse and chorus you have just written!!  This can be a harrowing task!! :)  The work, fight, struggle, frustration, or "throw up your hands" feeling comes on pretty fast. I have to fight the urge to JUST FINISH THE SONG feeling all the time!!!  See, this is where mediocre songwriting meets great songwriting...it is the crossroad to either so-so songs and great songs.  Which crossroad are you willing to go down.  A couple things I do:

1. I write the title of the song to the side and make sure EVERY line points toward the title...if it doesn't....deep six the line or change it.  You can't afford "fluff"...not even a "fluff" word :)

2. NEVER!!...did I say NEVER compromise the "meaning" of a word for a "rhyme"!!!  This is so important.  If you can't find the word that exactly says what you are meaning to say you will need to change something else...rework lines...or do WHATEVER IT TAKES to be true to the meaning/emotion of the song and line you are writing.  This is what makes it HARD but in the end makes the song GREAT!!!

Tweeking:  I am a tweeker!!  I analyze every word.  I recently wrote a song with fine writer Becky Buller :)  I loved it cuz she is a "tweeker" too!!  I start with a Macro-tweek, then a Micro tweek, then a Nano-tweek and end with the "God particle tweek" which is the smallest "tweek" known to man!!!  LOLOL...that was Becky's term and I still laugh about that!  I was happy to add one more level of "tweek" to my regime!  HEHE!  Once you have the completed the "God Particle Tweek....hopefully your song will be done.  Of course this is sometimes gut-wrenching and usually time consuming hence the 80% rule for the last 20%.

Well....I'm off to try and work on a couple songs today...one just beginning the 80% phase and one hopefully well into the "tweek" phase :)  So, hope you have a GREAT day and remember....write more and whine less!!!!

One final note of congratulations to Mike Cleveland & Flamekeeper who hit the Bluegrass Unlimited Charts for March in the #1 spot!!!!!  When I wrote this song for Mike I told him I thought it had a "shot" at top ten and then you never know from there.  Well, it made it!!!  #1!!!  Mike tells me this is his first #1 and while I'm happy to have a #1 song...I'm even happier for Mike Cleveland and all the boys as it is well deserved!  Thanks Mike for doing a FANTASTIC job in recording my song "Fiddlin' Joe!!!!  It's a GREAT feeling!!! :)

Write on!!!

Brink

Feeling Comfortable in Alligator Skin

Rejection, critiques, criticism (both constructive & otherwise), people calling your baby ugly are all things that fill a songwriter's world.  You've gotten a great idea, crafted it into a 3 minute movie that is a song, poured your heart and soul into making it "perfect" and are then ready to send it out into the world.  Kind of like letting go of your kids and sending them into a scary world on their own.  Once a song is "out there" it has to stand on it's own!!  No lengthy introduction, no "story on how you wrote it" etc.  Because if you are wanting to have your songs recorded it doesn't really matter how much I love my songs...it matters how much the artist and ultimately the fans/listeners love the song.

So you send your children (songs) to several artists to listen to (pitch).  Chances are good you won't hear anything back at all.  Sometimes "no feedback" is worse that "bad feedback"...at least you know where things stand!  Sometimes you do get the feedback that "the song just doesn't work for this project", "we have 2 songs already that sound similar", or maybe just "we just don't think the song is very good and don't send any more songs".  In other words YOUR BABY IS UGLY!!!

Now...if you have thin skin this can wash you out of the game pretty early or you can take it as a challenge and attack this with ALLIGATOR SKIN!  One important message here THE ARTIST DOES NOT OWE YOU ANY EXPLANATION AS TO WHY THEY DON'T WANT TO RECORD THE SONG!!!! Asking "why" they don't like the song is just not appropriate and many times a kiss of death for future pitches.  Some artists will offer feedback and if they do...learn from it and fight the internal reaction to get upset!  This is hard to do but will serve the writer well.

A couple things to check out:

1. Do you have a GREAT song???  I can tell you that every writer as soon as they finish a song thinks he/she has a GREAT song!!  At least I do!! LOL  And it should be that way if you are passionate about writing.  BUT...remember...it is the artist and ultimately the listener that will determine that status. Do all you can to get feedback on your song "BEFORE" you start throwing it to the world.  Play the song for trusted friends that will tell you if the song sucks.  These are VALUABLE friends to have.  Play the song for anyone that will listen and pay attention to their reaction.  Most will say "yeah...that's a good song" or "sounds good".  Pretty "tepid" reaction.  You are looking for MAN I LOVE THAT!!!  PLAY IT AGAIN!!!  and reactions in that vein :)

2.Once you have a great song....BELIEVE IN IT!!  Your song isn't for everyone so make sure you analyze the style of the song and work to match the song to potential artists...don't send a great song to an artist who doesn't do that style...it wastes both your time!!!  Target 2-3 great songs and be PROFESSIONAL about it. If you believe in the song keep pitching it!!  Remember Felice & Boudleaux Bryant pitched "Bye Bye Love" over 50 times before getting recorded and becoming one of the biggest songs of all time!

3. Don't just send songs out without permission.  I remember the old "query" card where I use to mail a postcard to ask permission to submit a song.  With the internet, mp3's, email, facebook it is easy to just FIRE off songs unannounced to many artists.  I have to say I've been guilty of this although I try hard to stick to asking first.  Once you have permission...DON'T send your entire catalog!  Send 2-3 songs that you truly believe are great and would sound even greater cut by the artist.

4. Be respectful!!  Be respectful of the artists time, talent, profession and most times common courtesy goes a LONG WAY.  Even if you don't receive that courtesy back don't let it bring you down.  Remember ALLIGATOR SKIN!!

So, today I'll try and contact a few artists and do my best to match a song or two to their sound and chances are HIGH that it will be rejected.  This is part of the game.  Remember, in baseball if you get a hit three out of every ten at bats you would be a lifetime .300 hitter and probably end up in the hall of fame!!!!  My goal is to be a lifetime .100 hitter in songwriting!!!  That's 1 cut for every 10 songs I write.  I think that is a HIGH goal to shoot for but shouldn't we all "aim high"!!!

Now get out there...put on your alligator skin...and remember:  Write more whine less!!

Have a great day!!!

Brink 

The Demo Dilemma

With the snow coming down it looks beautiful and quiet outside...nice day to stay in and maybe hit the home studio and do a couple demos.  My first consideration is "Is the song truly finished?  I don't want to demo a song that I don't feel is "done".  Then the big question...IS THE SONG A GREAT SONG???  Is it a good enough song that I feel strongly someone will "cut" and do I "believe in the song"?  If the answer is yes to those questions then this.....Every time I do a demo I have the dilemma of what kind of demo should I do???

Should I do a basic guitar vocal demo?  Does it sound better on piano/vocal?  Will I pigeonhole the song by doing a full blown traditional 'grass demo and turn off a progressive band when they listen?  My goal is to "showcase" the song in the best possible way but sometimes that means "production" just gets in the way!!

To me a quality guitar/vocal or piano/vocal is the best demo for someone to do and here is my thinking.  (By quality I mean it is a clear sounding recording, the guitar is in tune and mic'ed properly, the singer has a good voice and is on pitch and you can hear the lyrics easily and also the melody and chord changes.)  I don't want to pigeonhole the song in one style/genre or another.  I figure most good musicians can listen to a demo and as they are listening hear the song in the context of their band or style...I want them to be test driving the song in their head much like you would test drive a new car.  Put your hands on the wheel, feel it, smell that new car smell etc.  I want the artist to hear themselves singing the song and making it their own, they can hear the arrangement already because there is no production to get in the way!

Sadly, many of the people that listen to songs or screen them for the artists don't have ear to do this and need a full blown demo to hear all of this.  And therein lies the quandary...I would rather do a quality basic vocal/guitar demo but maybe I need to do a full blown demo to get the song past the "screeners" and on to the artist themselves who can hear all that. 

 There are exceptions to every rule and again keeping in mind that your goal is to "showcase" the "song" in the best possible light sometimes you need a mandolin chop, or a drum to feel the "groove" or maybe you need to do an electric guitar lead to highlight the "musical hook" of a song.  So this isn't a "one size fits all" solution but I need to think hard about what would make each song sound the best to the artist.

Cost is another factor depending if you need to go beyond your home studio to get a quality demo done.  These can run from $100 to $5-600.00.  These days recouping these kind of expenses is extremely difficult...but that's an entirely different blog entry!!!!  LOL

So here I sit thinking of 2 songs to demo today...full production?  Partial production?  Or should I go with the trusty quality vocal/guitar demo???  Decisions, decisions...maybe I should just sit down and write a new one!  :)

Y'all have a great day and stay warm!  Remember...write more and whine less! :)

Brink

If It Was Easy...Everyone Would Do It

Been one of those mornings where I sit down with my stack of partial songs and ideas and my mind just draws a "blank".  Writer's block...I guess that is what most people call it.  It is really frustrating but it is all part of the process I suppose.  Some people might think songwriting is easy and I hear about how 2-3 writers go into a room for 2 hours and come out with 3 new songs.  They live on a different planet than I do!!!  I LOVE the line in the movie A League of Their Own with Tom Hanks and Geena Davis.  (I'm a sucker for baseball movies anyway and always lose it at the end of "Field of Dreams" but I digress).  Tom Hanks talks about no crying in baseball and then says "It's the HARD that makes it GREAT!"  That's it for me!  I have used my rule of 80/20 for songwriting for years...that is I spend 20% of my time writing the first 80% of the song...and...I spend 80% of my time writing the last 20%.  For it is that final 20% which makes a song great!!  Always seems that we can get a killer first verse and then a killer chorus but then STOP THE TRAIN....we have to write another verse...and that verse needs to be stronger than the first verse...SECOND VERSE CURSE has reared it's ugly head.  But it is in the struggle and just plain hard work to get it exactly right....the right word for the exact meaning...the perfect melody to mirror the lyric...the story...the climax...this is what makes a GREAT SONG!!  I think one of the mistakes many songwriters make is to give in to the frustration and just do something to "finish" a song.  The song may be "good" but when you just "finish" a song to finish it, it very seldom turns out to be a "great" song. 

So for today I'll put my guitar away and come back tomorrow with an open mind, more ideas, and a better attitude and who knows...maybe that "magic" will happen where the words come and it all makes sense and comes together and hopefully a new "great" song is born.  Given that it is below zero outside maybe my brain is just froze up today LOLOL. 

Y'all have a great day and remember...Write more and whine less!! :)

Brink

Mountains and Music

This morning I am sitting here looking out our patio door at the snow and ice with my cup of coffee trying to fulfill my songwriter's mission statement....that is:  "To drink coffee and make stuff up".  My mind started to think about the mountains...specifically the mountains where I have lived.  The Many Glacier Valley in Glacier National Park and also the Togwotee Pass (pronounced 'toe-gah-tee') area near Jackson Hole and Yellowstone in Wyoming.  The mountains have always been an inspiration to me for writing songs.  Sitting for hours with a guitar in a meadow or by a cabin just looking at incredible scenery.

I think every songwriter has to find their source for inspiration.  Most often for me it is a quiet time and a place to reflect.  The business of songwriting is different I guess filled with writing appointments, hooks, computers/iPads etc, a 2 hour block of time to finish a song or two.  Maybe this is why much of the music today lacks heart, soul, authenticity! There is no time to reflect, imagine, create, and craft the music.  See that takes deep throught and time along with hopefully talent and a creative mind for the music.  Calling up someone and saying "let's meet tomorrow from 10-noon and write" rings hollow for me.  Maybe some writers can "turn it on and off" but many can't and that includes me.

I have a hard time writing, what I call "ditty" songs.  Don't get me wrong...I love to listen to great tap your foot, feel good songs that are just fun to play and sing...but...that isn't what I lean toward.  I lean toward songs that cut right to the heart, that have something to say, that evoke emotion whether laughter or tears.  I need quiet, introspective time without a time limit to write a song.  To me every song will write itself in its own time...that may be one day and it may be 2 years.  But, in a fast food world of songwriting many times that doesn't pay the bills.  Look on the country charts and look at the songwriters.  Just about every song will have at least 2-3 songwriters on the credits.  These are business relationships created to crank out songs and make a living.  Some writers are good at this....I am not.  We grouse at the quality of music out there these days and then fail to go to the source...the songwriters and the process that is forced upon them to finish so many songs every year per their contract.  What is the process, the goal?  To me EVERY song is a gift and I never take a song for granted.I feel very lucky that I don't have to make a living off my songwriting (although I'm not against being paid fairly for the work). Anyway, my mind puts me back in the mountains and the ideas start to come.  Sometimes we just need to sit, close our eyes, open our mind and let the ideas come.  Forcing inspiration just isn't something I can do.  So today I sit here at the kitchen table and stare out at the cold thinking about the mountains and music and how they are pretty much inseparable to me.  Hope you are staying warm on this cold February day and are inspired to be creative.  Yup...mountains and music does it for me...now back to drinking coffee and making stuff up!!! :)

Brink

A Songwriter's Struggles and Triumphs

You know, being a songwriter is NOT for the faint of heart.  Not only do you have to expose your "insides" to the public but have to have "alligator" skin.  You have to listen to people calling your baby (your song) ugly!!  I've been writing songs as long as I remember.  It is like breathing for me and can't imagine a time when I didn't or won't write songs.  While I've been writing my entire life it wasn't until about 15 or so years ago I decided to get "serious" about creating music. Throughout future blog posts I hope to mention some of the struggles and triumphs along the way.  Maybe it might help others avoid some of the pitfalls of trying to be successful as a songwriter.  Of course each songwriter has to decide what "success" is for them.  For many just writing a song for fun is a success...others if they can write a song that their own band performs, while others see success as having others record their original songs.  There is no right or wrong "success" as it is a personal decision, however the level of success that you wish to attain will play a major role in your activities, writing, work and development as a songwriter.  I hope to talk about those too as days progress.

I formally retired from my "day job" this month and will be ramping up my songwriting activities.  This will mean setting new goals and milestones for the next several years.  I think it is critical for each songwriter to lay out a 2-5 year action plan and mission so as to have a "roadmap" to follow.  Including small milestones so you can mark small victories really helps keep you positive along the way and keeps me focused on the road! :)

I've been extremely blessed to have close to 200 songs "cut" by some incredible artists...many of them my musical heroes!  That being said, many times in music as a writer or artist it is "what have you done lately!!???".  So, in many ways I feel like the Grandma Moses of songwriting really beginning my career in my 60's :)  But, I have never been so motivated (maybe because at my age your own mortality becomes an issue and feel an urgency to create as much as I can).  I've also been blessed to have some extremely talented co-writers as well and will talk about that in days to come.  I more than likely won't have much "profound" to say but will be sharing experiences and maybe discuss some issues about songwriting.  I hope you will join me.

I can tell you today I finished writing a song with my friend and long time co-writer, Paula Breedlove.  It is a gospel song called "In His Blood" and we plan on pitching it very soon.  In addition I received a phone call from my buddy and co-writer Wyatt McCubbin to guest on his radio show tonite while he plays a few of my songs and we will talk about the writing of the songs.  Should be fun.  It will be on tonight at 7pm EST on www.myclassiccountry.com  a station owned by bluegrasser Joe Mullins.  I hope many of you join me on my adventure in songwriting.  Remember....Write more...Whine less!!! :)

Brink