Here’s A Song From My Very Soul, Written By Somebody Else
In the current pop music world it isn’t unheard of for some of our number one music heroes to use unnamed writers to help write their music. Ghostwriters work behind the scenes to create the next huge hit to put your beloved rock superstar back on top of the musical heap. It’s not well recognized but there’s a lengthy history of ghostwriting in the music world. Let’s take a look at some of the performers using ghostwriters and how ghostwriting has influenced music year after year.
Do you know that Mozart had been a ghostwriter? He used to ghostwrite songs for the affluent patrons of the arts. In 1939 Patrick Standford was a ghostwriter for various symphonies and motion pictures.
In the movie business, music ghostwriting is fairly secretive. It’s regarded as unethical by several folks however it is extremely common. Within the very early days of movies, a composer called David Raskin worked as a music freelancer for Charlie Chaplin. Chaplin was credited as the score creator.
In pop music, musical ghostwriting also is a component. Every now and then a qualified songwriter is brought in to help with either unskilled songwriters, or someone who may possibly be suffering from writer’s block. Sometimes a freelancer may compose verse and songs in the style of a musician and still get little or no feedback from the individual acknowledged on the song sheet.
At times a ghostwriter is credited as an affiliate or comparable innocuous term. More generally, they just do not appear anywhere-they are a true ghost. Occasionally legal activity takes place when a musical ghostwriter attempts to claim royalties- usually after song becomes a hit. Sarah McLachlan got into a challenge having a music performer who claimed that he had a considerable contribution to her very first album, “Touch.”
In hip-hop, ghostwriting keeps growing every year. In reality, it does result in some controversy. Purists don’t like it, and point to the use of it as a good example of “bad capitalism.” This is due to the perception of rapping as “expressing yourself” and that writing for someone else isn’t pure “self-expression.” Some emcees like Chuck D of Public Enemy, Inc. feel that is a mistaken view because not everyone is a gifted lyricist and not everybody is equipped to be a vocalist. He says a rap song may possibly call for a lot more talents than a solitary person has.
Almost All ghostwriters have secrecy conditions, or they may appear within the liner notes, and in some instances they are allowed to discuss their contribution out in the open. You might see a credit inside the liner notes for “vocal arrangement,” which may well mean it was a ghostwriter. Several years ago there were hip-hop ghostwriting services which appeared online, and provided artists with rhymes for free of charge.
Ghostwriting has a long tradition in popular music, from Mozart to today’s hottest rappers. As long as the song can be a hit, the person that penned it will have a job. And in today’s American Idol-centric music world where unknowns and celebrities alike are looking for the most effective tunes, ghostwriters will continue to play a major role. The next time you are singing along to your favorite music there is an excellent chance your favorite pop superstar didn’t write one note.
