FIRST OF MANY FIRSTS
Posted on April 10, 2017 by Ronnie Scott
Hello Friends,
This is my very first post, on my very first website, describing my first trip to Nashville for music in over 30 years. As you know from my bio, I am giving this songwriter thing a go after a lifetime of loving music and writing it as an amateur. As a certifiable “back-porch” poet, I’d like to think I’m starting out with at least a thimble-full of talent. I’ve done tons of research and committed myself to this. So, you take those things and you go to Nashville to check it out. I chose Tin Pan South week along with the Nashville Songwriters Association International (NSAI) “Spring Training” event. I was quite nervous. Again, I haven’t been back to Nashville for this purpose since I was serious before, back in the early 1980’s. I guess you go to spring training before you’re ready to play ball, right? It was the right choice for me and I learned so much.
Real pros spoke to us about the real world of songwriting. They played their songs for us and shared the beginnings and the back-stories. I ate it up. My favorite pro out of a roster of all-stars was Annie Tate. She made us all laugh with her laid back, hippie style. She gave us advice on co-writing. The best line of the entire event was in reference to a time when she and another great writer were working and the co-writer was on fire. He spewed out line after line of magical lyrics. She told us if that ever happens to you, “just try to stay out of their fucking way!” Oh, my – the attendees roared.
The gentleman that wrote and produced “All About that Bass” for Meghan Trainor, Kevin Kadish, was amazing too. At my age, that song was not exactly on my play list although I’d heard it a time or two. To hear the story behind it and to hear him play it the way it was written was incredible. I absolutely loved it! The audience sang along while I scrambled to Google the lyrics. What a neat tune!
So, I have a little Spring Training under my belt now. I have newfound perspective from some of the greats. I’ll go home and continue to polish my songs and try to master this elusive craft – songwriting. A good first step toward what I hope to be many more firsts.
Take care all.
-Ronnie