Inspiration
Lesson time: (6min 11sec)
Course preview
This lesson is part of the course Learn guitar and songwriting with KT Tunstall
Watch a preview of the full course below.
Lesson transcript:
Writing a Song That Changed My Life
I'm going to take you through the process of writing a song that completely changed my life.
The Pressure of Expectations
It was written in my basement apartment in London after I had signed my record deal. As always, the label was pressuring me:
- "I'm sure she could write another single. Come on, let's get another single!"
This pressure can be overwhelming for an artist. It's terrible to have to write a song that you hope will be popular. All of this leads to awful mental turmoil about what's good, what's me, and what I can say. You don't want that on your mind; you just want to express yourself.
The Inspiration Strikes
It wasn't an attempt at doing that. It was about 2 a.m., and I was looking through my albums and CDs, remember those? I was particularly drawn to Patti Smith's Horses, which is an essential record for me. Patti Smith and Chrissy Hynde are important figures because I came into the industry wanting to be recognized as a musician, not just a female musician.
Both artists transcended their gender as musicians, and I always loved that.
- There was an androgynous vibe to them.
- Whenever I stepped on stage with my guitar, I felt this kind of masculine, boyish energy, and I saw that in them as well.
I was looking at the album cover, taken by Robert Mapplethorpe, and reflecting on the weird nature of an artist's image. You're trying to be yourself, but it often becomes an augmented version of yourself.
The Moment of Realization
When you know the person taking the picture, it's different. You've ceased to look at the camera, and you're looking at the person you have a relationship with instead. That changes everything.
Patti's expression in that picture is extraordinary, relaxed and confident. There is no effort, and it struck me at a moment when I had been trying to "make it" for ten years.
The Trap of Trying
That constant trying energy is not conducive to creativity. It can fuel you, but I find that the effort to force something is rarely fruitful.
- Instead, it's better to be lost in the process of creation.
- Looking at Patti, I thought, "Damn it, she's not trying, and she looks so awesome."
The Birth of "Suddenly I See"
After sharing that story, the lyrics of "Suddenly I See" came to me. They are straightforward, what you see is what you get.
I admire writers like Carole King for their ability to express feelings clearly without disguising them in complexity or flowery language.
I was sitting in the basement, looking at the album cover, and the experience of writing this song was extraordinary. I finished it in about half an hour, which may sound arrogant, but it truly felt like a song that just flowed into my brain.
The Flow State
When you write that quickly, it feels like you're remembering something you already knew. It's familiar, and everything clicks into place. Spiritual leaders talk about being "in flow," and that's what it felt like, coming through you as if you were just dictating.
It's a strange feeling, and I wouldn't begin to explain what that is. I'm just grateful for it.
The Importance of Space
In my experience, songs like that only come when you have space in your life, both before and after that magical half hour of writing. If I'm busy all the time, it's unlikely that I'll write something amazing in half an hour.
I also don't write songs that quickly anymore. Maybe I'm overthinking it, after all, I haven't had a hit like Suddenly I See since then. Who knows?
About the instructor
Photo credit: Tom Oxley Since scoring a worldwide smash with her debut album 'Eye To The Telescope' in 2004, which went on to sell over 5 million copies, KT Tunstall has remained at the forefront of UK singer-songwriter talent. KT followed up that early success with the albums 'Drastic Fantastic', 'Tiger Suit' and 'Invisible Empire // Crescent Moon' in 2007, 2010 and 2013 respectively, keeping the platinum sales rolling and cementing the Scottish singer-songwriter's reputation as a major recording talent, as well as a mesmerising live artist. 2012 and the years that followed saw a seismic shift in outlook - the loss of her father, a divorce, and a relocation to Venice Beach, California. After a period of healing, soul-searching, and a change of scenery, 2016 hailed the arrival of the first of a trilogy of KT Tunstall's albums, the critically acclaimed UK top 10 album 'KIN'. The trilogy evokes, separately and in sequence, spirit, body and mind. With 'KIN' being her phoenix-from-the-ashes 'spirit' album, 2018 marked the second offering of that trilogy, the 'body' album 'WAX'. KT Tunstall has toured the world many times over. She outsold every other female artist in the UK in 2005, won the 2006 Brit Award for Best British Female Solo Artist, won the Ivor Novello Best Song award for her huge, self-penned hit 'Suddenly I See', and a Q award for Track of the Year. She also landed a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance with 'Black Horse and the Cherry Tree' and lent her tunes to a host of movies and TV shows ('Suddenly I See' being used in the iconic opening scene of the modern classic Meryl Streep film 'The Devil Wears Prada'). The first single from her latest release, 'The River', was named one of Rolling Stone's 'Songs You Need To Know'. The last few years have seen something of a creative rebirth for KT Tunstall. Upon relocating to the west coast of the USA, she was accepted as one of six annual fellows for the Sundance Film Institute's Composers Lab (hosted by George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch in Northern California) and has since scored music for short and feature films. She has also been awarded the Inspirational Artist gong at the Women In Music Awards and was chosen as the first ever female Grand Marshal (following the likes of Sir Sean Connery) to lead April 2018's annual New York Tartan Week parade. In May 2018 she and Mike McCready, of legendary multi-million selling Pearl Jam, released a cover of Tom Petty's huge hit single 'I Won't Back Down' with proceeds going to Pearl Jam's Vitalogy Foundation. In 2018, KT performed sold-out intimate headline shows across the UK and US and toured worldwide supporting acclaimed artists including Simple Minds, The Pretenders, and Barenaked Ladies. 2019 saw KT perform a large headline tour across the UK and Europe with her all-female band, playing festivals all over the UK (including a headline set at Glastonbury Festival). She toured the US & Canada, Japan, China, the Netherlands, Mexico and Brazil, as well as supporting Hall & Oates on their UK arena tour. Touring continued for KT in early 2020 with headline shows in the US, performing with Jools Holland across Europe, and playing New York's legendary Madison Square Garden, supporting Hall & Oates. In her Song Studies course, KT pulls back the curtain on the guitar parts and songwriting craft behind her biggest hits - a rare chance to learn how a Brit Award-winning, Grammy-nominated songwriter actually builds a song. read more