A Full Recap of Songcraft Session 5

(Photo collage courtesy of Betty)

Boy, where do I begin?

Our latest Songcraft session last Friday was such a blast! For the first time, we had so many people presenting so many songs that we exceeded the time. (That, to me, is a very good sign.)

We had a total of 12 attendees including myself, if I remember correctly.

Of course, I was rather disappointed with the high level of noise pollution that surrounded us during the session. We not only had to contend with the renovation work that was going on in the other rooms, but also the rather loud noises the group in the adjoining room was creating. Nevertheless, we managed to go through with our session unperturbed despite the disturbances.

(However, I’m wondering if we should continue using the Substation going forward, considering the fact that the noise disturbances might be a recurring problem? That is something we will look into as we approach next month’s session.)

Anyway, that aside, Betty mentioned that she came away from this latest session with a different feeling from the other sessions (she means it in a good way). And I agree. Every session seems to throw up delightful surprises in its own special way.

One thing I’ve noticed this time round is that the level of collaboration going on between everyone is getting higher and higher. And people seem to be taking their song presentations more and more seriously! Kah Loong & I faithfully did our rehearsals before the start to make sure we nailed our parts down, Firdaus got Betty to play some keyboard parts for his song, Chris got Ivan (the “Instant Guitar Solo” Man) to come up with solos and licks for his songs, and Betty, Huileng and I presented a song together, etc.

It shows we’re taking our music seriously. And that we’re enjoying the whole songwriting process, especially the joy of collaborations. Which is cool.

We had a number of new friends last Friday, and it was extremely wonderful to meet with all of them. At the end of the day, one of the main aims for starting Songcraft was to reach out to all the songwriting enthusiasts in Singapore, and we’re always really glad to have new friends join us.

We’ve realised that songwriters are all wonderful people, haha!

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Ok, on to the actual session.

Betty’s 1st song - “The Father So Loves Me”

The entire song can be heard (here).  

I was so glad I didn’t have to be the “sacrificial lamb” yet again to go first this time round. Betty bravely & gallantly offered to go first. (Well, her new MacBook went first, to be exact.) But I still have to give her credit for agreeing to go present first.

This is a very cute song. Betty intended for it to be a children’s song, and I think she was successful in doing that. (The “helium-induced” voice effect certainly helped a lot.)

This is one of Betty’s first creations using her newfound GarageBand software. You can read a more in-depth writeup of her creative process (here).

I thought the drum beat was rather unique. It reminded me of those tribal kind of drums (like something you’d hear on “Survivor” the reality TV show). And because the helium effect actually brought Betty’s voice to a higher pitch, she had to sing at a much lower pitch to achieve the desired effect. Perhaps that’s why I felt there was some kind of indescribable “mystical” quality to the song. Somehow the melody didn’t exactly fit with the backing accompaniment, but then in other ways, it did. I don’t know how to describe it. It just sounds rather unique to me.

One more point to note was that as Betty does not currently have a piano keyboard to plug into her MacBook, she actually played out her parts using the MacBook’s keypad! How’s that for invention!

But nonetheless, great job on GarageBand, Betty! I’m sure you must have had lots of fun with your first experiment…and I’m sure there’s plenty more creative stuff to come from you in the near future.

Betty’s 2nd song - “Fly”

 

Huileng presented a piano piece during the 3rd Songcraft session back in June, and in typical fashion, Betty wrote the lyrics for it. (This is the 3rd time that Betty has written full lyrics to a tune composed by Huileng. The two previous songs are “By The Window” and “Praise Him”.)

During the 3rd session in June, Huileng mentioned that she thought of the word “Fly” when she composed the tune, so Betty wrote her lyrics based on that motif. Upon the composers request, Betty also wrote male & female parts for the song.

The clip you hear above is sung by Betty and myself, while Huileng played the keyboard.

Firdaus commented that the song sounds like those inspirational theme songs you hear at the Olympics, e.g. “One Moment In Time”. True! Now that you mentioned it, haha! Ivan also added that the song reminds him of Linda Ronstadt…to which I said “and Whitney Houston”!  

Then somehow whilst discussing about this song, we launched into an interesting discussion on what a “bridge” exactly is. Some called a “bridge” the “pre-chorus”. Ivan was the best…he called a “bridge” a “break”. (A bit off lei, Ivan! Haha!)

Kah Loong’s 1st song - “A Song For God”

As Kah Loong was suffering from the flu, he couldn’t really do much singing that night. Hence he presented his first song via recording. 

The full song & lyrics can be found (here).

This song was written last November. It is essentially a simple but earnest Christian song written to express a person’s dependence on God. According to Kah Loong, the chords to the song are rather simple.

I think this song is in the mould of Kah Loong’s usual style of writing sincere, heartfelt and yet simple songs. (I shall refrain from using the phrase “painfully sincere” anymore, haha!)

Kah Loong’s 2nd song - “We Need The Girls”

Kah Loong wrote this song last year too (he seems to be clearing his backlog recently!), and this song was a reflection of what was going on in his cell group at that time. (More info on this song can be found here.)

Initially he had recorded it in a “sentimental keyboard” kind of arrangement, but he told me he would have preferred something more upbeat & playful, and asked me to help him with the accompaniment. I then suggested using the classical guitar instead, and hence I played the guitar last Friday with the strumming pattern I felt best suited the way Kah Loong had envisioned for the song to sound like. I also added in some harmonies, as I felt it would have enriched the song.

Personally I feel that it’s amazing how Kah Loong writes so many great melodies using the standard C-Am-F-G chord progression. He has quite a number of songs with this progression, and many of them are excellent. Another of my favourite C-Am-F-G songs by Kah Loong is “She’s Too Young”, which he presented many sessions back.

Someone commented that the song sounded nice with the harmonies, and that it reminded him of the Beach Boys. I think it’s largely due to the fact that the melody is so lively & catchy. The harmonies are just a natural response to the melody & feel of the song.

Great job, Kah Loong. I like this song and really enjoyed performing it with you.

Kah Loong’s 3rd song - “Mei Teng”

The recorded clip to this song can be found (here). You can also find the full lyrics and the background story to the song (here).

I shan’t elaborate on the background story to this song (you can read it on his blog)…but let’s just say there seems to be a recurring theme in some of Kah Loong’s songs, haha!

Kah Loong initially gave this song the title “I Like Mei Teng”, but upon Mart’s suggestion to keep the title unique & catchy, he changed it to the short & sweet title of “Mei Teng”.

Whilst disussing about this song, we launched into a discussion on the concept of a “hook” in songwriting. I think this song has a pretty strong “hook”. It is the 5 recurring notes in the first line of each verse, e.g. “waiting for a girl”.

I also commented to Kah Loong that this song could really do with a solo. I think it would definitely enhance this song.

Jeremy’s song - “S.O.S.! (Singapore, Oh Singapore!)”

Ok, so this was my one and only song for the night. It was a pretty barren few months for me, hence I had only one song to show for. (You could say it’s due to “writer’s block”, or simply just a lack of creative talent.)

The full lyrics to this song can be found (here).

This is essentially my birthday gift to Singapore. It was supposed to be done during National Day last month, but somehow I didn’t have enough time or ideas to complete the song back then, and it dragged on all the way till last week when I finally sat down to complete it.

This song probably has the most verses I’ve ever written for one song. I suppose it’s because I seem to have a lot of things to write about when it comes to Singapore.

As you can see, the lyrics are not really your typical “NDP song” kind of lyrics. I wanted to write lyrics that were more tongue-in-cheek, to highlight the love-hate relationship most of us Singaporeans have with our beautiful nation of Singapore. (I certainly had a lot of fun writing the lyrics to this song!)

Ivan suggested doing a rap version of this song. Er, to be honest, that thought has never crossed my mind…but if you’d like to have a go at it Ivan, feel free to do so!

Carrie’s 3 songs - 1) “Stolen Moment” 2) “Cactus” 3) “Boyfriend Song”

Carrie’s style of songwriting is so fresh & unique. It’s unlike anything we’ve heard before in the circle. Really cool stuff!

She initially gave us one choice out of three songs - one about a juggling ball, one about a cactus, and one about a boyfriend (now her husband). In the end we cleverly managed to coax all 3 songs out of her, plus induced her to share a 4th song which was currently still in the works! (We’re good, aren’t we?)

I thought Carrie’s strength is that she writes songs about interesting objects which people don’t usually write about. Whereas most songwriters tend to write songs about cliche stuff such as love & relationships, Carrie writes songs about interesting things such as juggling balls, cactuses and crayon boxes. Mart commented that Carrie is extremely creative & talented in her songwriting.

Someone also commented that Carrie has a very nice voice, which perfectly complements her kind of songs.

All in all, we were very entertained (is this the right word to use?) by Carrie’s songs, as they were all so captivating.

She also gave us a preview of the 4th song, which she was trying to work on. That song had some really cool, exotic chords being used. There’s a very distinct “bossa nova” feel to it.

Lingfeng’s song - “Dear Child”

This is a Christian song which Lingfeng wrote back in 2001.

To me, it is a song about reassurance. It’s about the singer asking God if He loved him/her, and God replies in the most comforting & reassuring manner. After all, God is our great Comforter.

Lingfeng explains that she probably wrote this song back when she first got her guitar, and although it is a simple 3-chord song, I think the melody is soothing & lyrical. As Lingfeng mentioned, the song is meant to be like a lullaby.

I commented that the “lullaby” effect could possibly been enhanced if there was guitar-plucking accompaniment instead of strumming.

Anyway, I shall now post the short & sweet lyrics to this song as I don’t think anyone’s seen them yet.

Dear Child

I was praying
Then I asked Je-sus
Did He loved me
He said to me

My love is more than
You can comprehend
Your life is
Most precious to Me
My dear child
You’re in My arms now
Sweet child
Come to Me

© 2001

Chris’s 3 songs - 1) “We Are”, 2) “Everything”, 3) “Sky”

Chris performed his 3 songs in typical polished fashion. This time round, he roped in Ivan to help him play all those cool guitar solos & licks (which Ivan did admirably).

The 1st song “We Are” is a song which Chris has shared with us before. It’s one of my favourite songs of Chris’s. I like the entire melody, and I think this song could be a hit song if ever he decides to record it!

“Everything” is a slightly more upbeat song. Check out Ivan’s solo at the end!

“Sky” is a really cool number, but I think not many people can pull it off like Chris can, cos the chorus is so extremely high. But Chris has a very good voice, so it’s pretty much a walk in the park for him.

Great stuff. And great collaboration with Ivan too. I think Chris and Ivan could start forming a band soon - Chris being lead vocals/rhythm guitar, and Ivan being the lead guitarist.

Firdaus’s 3 songs - 1) “Chase Your Dreams”, 2) “Walk On, Walk On”, 3) “It’s All Right Now, Little Johnny”

Firdaus has been rather prolific in his songwriting the last few months, churning out song after song. He says it’s because school hasn’t started yet, haha!  

“Chase Your Dreams” has got really nice lyrics. It’s about telling someone to go pursue your ambitions and not be afraid to do so. Very catchy tune too. I like the line “don’t ever be afraid to dance that dance”. I think this is an inspirational song that could be used to inspire dozens of young kids to follow their dreams (e.g. becoming a songwriter!).

“Walk On, Walk On” was rather interesting because of the sudden change in tempo when the song reached the chorus. Interesting effect. And nice out-of-the-box thinking on Firdaus’s part.

As for the last number “It’s All Right Now, Little Johnny”, Betty helped play the marimba intro to the song and also provided the backing vocals. This is actually a rather somber song because it depicts a young boy (Little Johnny) having killed someone. Firdaus says he had intended the “it’s all right now” part to sound something like how Dido performed it with Eminem in the hit song “Stan”. I can see where he’s coming from.

(This is just a neutral comment: I thought the premise of the song “It’s All Right Now, Little Johnny” reminded me a lot of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” , because there’s a part that goes “Mama, just killed a man, put a gun against his head, pulled my trigger now he’s dead…” and so on. Just a comment.)

Ivan’s 2 songs - 1) “Love On A Train”, 2) “Once Upon A Star”

You can hear the complete song for “Love On A Train” (here), and also see (here) for the full lyrics and background story.

The song is based on a Flickr photo I posted to the group, to see if anyone was inspired to write a song based on it. It seemed like a very poetic picture to me, and I was glad to see both Ivan and Mart (see below) taking up the challenge and writing their songs based on it.

Ivan’s story is about a man thinking back to his childhood, where he remembers seeing this girl on a train. He remembers how he fell in love at first sight, and now wonders what might have been.

I think it complements the picture rather well, don’t you think?

Ivan also shared with us another song which he did recently. The full story can be read (here), and the song can be heard (here). Great piano work!

As I told Ivan, he tends to produce “mood pieces”, i.e. his songs capture a particular feeling or mood.

Mart’s song - “My Dream Someday”

Next up to share was Mart. Mart is a very talented composer, and he shared with us his latest work “My Dream Someday”.

I like the message of this song. It’s talking about how we can all work towards a better world…a world without famine or wars.

It’s based on the same photo on Flickr, which inspired Mart greatly. I think it’s a beautifully constructed song.

Great job, Mart!

Huileng’s Piano Piece 

As I mentioned before, Huileng is talented at composing beautiful pieces on the piano. This piece is her latest composition. It is her 4th keyboard composition for the Songcraft circle.

I seriously think Huileng should compile a CD of her piano compositions one day. It would be collection of very soothing, sentimental pieces which puts the listener in a contemplative mood (which I like).

You can just imagine her compositions being used in those poignant moments in movies. I wish I could compose pieces like that!

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All in all, I really enjoyed our 5th Songcraft session. Glad to see so many collaborations and so much creative output from everyone.

I guess the future of songwriting in Singapore looks bright!