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Thursday, 3 September 2020

The Write Advice 135: LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III


When I first began writing, my songs were coming at a rate of two or three per week.  Sadly, almost nothing comes at that rate anymore.  But when you're young, you're full of it and it pours out of you –– piss and vinegar, fire and brimstone, and my personal favorites, Sturm und Drang.  Later, the output slows down, and eventually you're just left with a trickle.  If this is getting a little too urogenital for you, let's switch metaphors.  Fishing.  Writing songs is like fishing.  You sit in the boat and you wait.  It's true you have to know the best spot, time of day, what bait to use, the difference between a nibble and a strike, and most important, how to get the damn fish into the boat.  Talent is essential, craft is crucial, but for me it's mostly down to waiting and luck.  And in my line of work, luck is not random.  It's definite and discerning.  It's invisible, but it's there.  It's mysterious and also obvious.  I don't understand how inspiration works and I don't want to.  Don't mess with grace and divinity.  You can write songs with hard work, sharp pencils, and a rhyming dictionary, but without luck they won't swing.  No luck means no fish.

Liner Notes (2017)

 
Use the link below to visit the website of North American singer/songwriter LOUDON WAINWRIGHT III:
 
 
 

 
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