Guitar skills: When it comes to chord progressions, you don’t have to break new ground to write great songs. In fact, some basic chord progressions have been used repeatedly in hundreds of pop and ...

Which comes first: chords or meloody? That's the chicken and egg question facing any music maker staring at a blank DAW screen, and there's no right answer as to which you need to nail first. And ...

This chord progression genuinely makes no theoretical sense, but that’s exactly why I had to turn it into a song. Sometimes ...

Ivan Dillard remembers a key moment in his coming out process — actually, his second coming out. Ivan — born Aleah — had “tried to be a lesbian for 10 years! Oh, how I tried and tried!” he sighs. Then ...

Following Cropper's passing at the age of 84, we explore the songwriting genius behind one of his most beloved collaborations ...

After legal teams clashed over whether or not Ed Sheeran plagiarized Marvin Gaye's 'Let Get It On,' a jury found the singer not liable. Sheeran denied the allegations. His lawyers argued that the only ...

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. Songwriting can be an arduous process sometimes, and there are occasions when we need all the ...

To celebrate the 30th anniversary issue of American Songwriter (Jan/Feb 2015), “Measure for Measure” served up a smorgasbord of 30 handpicked, solid gold chord progressions. This e-book supplements ...

Paul Simon guitarist Jim Oblon shows you how to tailor your leads to the classic I-VI-II-V progression – a jam night staple that’s a lot of fun, too ...