The British Are Humming: Non-American Songwriters Weigh In

Updated:

June 29, 2009 1:07 pm

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British songwriters discuss their craft

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When it comes to recognizing talent, the UK and the good old US of A don’t always see eye to eye. Sure, we can all agree on the brilliance of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones…but when it comes to evaluating the net worth of bands like Oasis, Pulp, Blur, or Echo and the Bunnymen, we are often of two different minds. It’s nothing personal – just a regional thing, after all. I’m sure they scratch their heads at the thought of Kid Rock.

Recently, UK newspaper The Gaurdian interviewed a handful of British tunesmiths about their craft, including Donovan, David Gray, and Jarvis Cocker.

Here’s a quote from Albert Hammond (the songwriter and father of the Strokes’ Albert Hammond Jr. was raised in London):

“You have to have it in you,” says Hammond on creating hits. “I wouldn’t know where to start teaching somebody else. I can hardly play an instrument. I don’t even know the names of the chords. I just know that my songs have an emotional story behind them and that comes out in the music.

Read the rest of the article here.