Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

Jackie DeShannon is best known for her hit records “What the World Needs Now is Love” and the self-penned “Put a Little Love In Your Heart.” The Songwriters Hall of Fame member and five-time Grammy nominee who won the coveted Song of the Year Grammy for “Bette Davis Eyes” joins us to chat about her remarkable career. PART ONEScott and Paul chat about their new theme song, Grammys lost and won, further reflections on Women's History Month, and why Paul's daughter is a little confused by Paul Stanley of KISS. PART TWOOur in-depth interview with the legendary Jackie DeShannonABOUT JACKIE DeSHANNONJackie DeShannon was one of the first women in pop music to write and record her own material. As an artist, Jackie is best known for her recording of the Burt Bacharach and Hal David classic “What the World Needs Now is Love,” as well as for her self-penned “Put a Little Love in Your Heart,” which was a Top 5 hit for her before being revived 20 years later to become a hit once again for Al Green and Annie Lennox. The five-time Grammy nominee who won the coveted Song of the Year Grammy for “Bette Davis Eyes” composed several classics, including “Dum Dum,” a hit for Brenda Lee, “Breakaway,” a hit for both Irma Thomas and Tracy Ullman, “When You Walk in the Room,” which was covered by The Searchers, and “Don’t Doubt Yourself Babe,” which was included on the debut album by The Byrds.Jackie appeared with The Beatles on their first American tour in 1964 and has collaborated with a wide range of artists including Randy Newman, Jimmy Page, and Van Morrison. Her songs have been covered by Marianne Faithfull, Ella Fitzgerald, Glen Campbell, The Everly Brothers, Cher, Gladys Knight & The Pips, Dolly Parton, Rick Nelson, Bruce Springsteen, Michael McDonald, and Taylor Swift. Jackie was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2010. 

Summary: Grand Ole Opry legend Jeannie Seely. a Grammy winner who placed nearly 30 singles on the Billboard country charts as an artist, joins us to chat about her craft as a BMI award-winning songwriter whose compositions have been recorded by Merle Haggard, Ray Price, Irma Thomas, Rhonda Vincent, Faron Young, Connie Smith, Dottie West, Willie Nelson, and others. She talks about co-writing with Randy Newman and Glen Campbell, shares her perspective on Nashville’s songwriting community as the former spouse of Hall of Fame songwriter Hank Cochran, tells us what she learned from Porter Wagoner, and sheds insights on the challenges women of her generation faced while making their way as respected country songwriters.   PART ONE: The guys chat about Paul's recent songwriting success with artist Lauren Daigle and look ahead to what they have planned for Women's History Month.PART TWO: Our in-depth interview with Jeannie Seely.ABOUT JEANNIE SEELY:Singer, songwriter, producer, actress, author and radio show host Jeannie Seely has been a staple of the Grand Ole Opry cast for more than five decades, and is now the Official Ambassador for the Opry. She rose to prominence with the #1 hit “Don’t Touch Me,” a multi-million selling single written by her ex-husband, songwriting legend Hank Cochran, that earned her a Grammy award and recognition from Billboard, Cashbox and Record World magazines as the Most Promising Female Country Artist. Earning the nickname Miss Country Soul, Seely placed nearly 30 songs on the Billboard country chart, including “It’s Only Love,” “A Wanderin’ Man,” “I’ll Love You More (Than You Need),” “Can I Sleep in Your Arms Tonight Mister,” the Grammy-nominated Jack Greene duet “Wish I Didn’t Have to Miss You,” and the self-penned songs “Farm in Pennsyltucky” and “He Can Be Mine.”Before she hit the charts as an artist, Jeannie found early pop songwriting success with “Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand),” a pop and R&B hit for Irma Thomas that she co-wrote with Randy Newman. Soon, country artists such as Connie Smith and Dottie West began recording Jeannie’s songs. Since then, her compositions have been recorded by Willie Nelson, Ernest Tubb, Ray Price, Little Jimmy Dickens, Tex Williams, Merle Haggard, Lorrie Morgan, Doyle Lawson, and Faron Young, who scored a Top 10 pop hit with “Leaving and Saying Goodbye,” which earned Jeannie a BMI award.  Recording for the Monument, Decca, MCA and Columbia labels, Seely is credited with breaking barriers for women in country music, and the four-time CMA Awards nominee hasn’t slowed down. She hosts her own radio show on Willie’s Roadhouse on SiriusXM, and co-wrote “Like I Could,” a recent bluegrass chart topper recorded by Rhonda Vincent. Her recent albums include Written in Song, which spotlights her own compositions, and American Classic, her most recent album which features “Not a Dry Eye in the House,” a duet with Willie Nelson that was released on Jeannie’s 80th birthday in 2020.    

Our guest is Diane Warren, an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Grammy winner with 11 Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song. The Songwriters Hall of Famer and ASCAP Founders Award winner is known for a long list of hits, including “Rhythm of the Night,” “Blame it On the Rain,” “Because You Loved Me,” “Don’t Turn Around,” “Unbreak My Heart,” “I Don’t Wanna Miss a Thing,” and “How Do I Live.” She joins us to talk about her wide-ranging career, and her upcoming first-ever studio album, The Cave Sessions, Vol. 1.   PART ONE:Scott and Paul chat about the Bruce Springsteen Super Bowl commercial, authenticity, Willie Nelson's reggae album, and Lady Gaga's meat dress. PART TWO:The guys pay tribute to Songwriters Hall of Famer (and former Songcraft guest) Jim Weatherly who passed away recently. Hear all about Scott's connection with the "Midnight Train to Georgia" writer that goes back many many years.  PART THREE: Our in-depth interview with Diane WarrenABOUT DIANE WARRENSongwriters Hall of Famer Diane Warren is an Emmy, Golden Globe, and Grammy winner (with a total of 15 Grammy nominations to her credit) who has been honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and is perhaps one of the most successful pop songwriters of all time. Her long list of Top-10 pop hits includes “Rhythm of the Night” by DeBarge, “I Get Weak” by Belinda Carlisle, “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now” and “Set the Night to Music” by Starship, “Who Will You Run To” by Heart, “I Don’t Wanna Live Without Your Love” and “Look Away” by Chicago, “Blame it on the Rain” by Milli Vanilli, “How Can We Be Lovers” and “When I’m Back on My Feet Again” by Michael Bolton, “I’ll Be Your Shelter” and “Love Will Lead You Back” by Taylor Dayne, “If I Could Turn Back Time” and “Just Like Jesse James” by Cher, and “When I See You Smile” by Bad English.But those are just a few highlights from the 1980s. In the ‘90s she became a five-time ASCAP Pop Songwriter of the Year, and was named Billboard Pop Songwriter of the Year for three years in a row thanks to writing hits such as “If You Asked Me To” and “Because You Loved Me” for Celine Dion, “Don’t Turn Around” for Ace of Base, “For You I Will” for Monica, “The One I Gave My Heart To” for Aaliyah, “Unbreak My Heart” for Toni Braxton, “Have You Ever” for Brandy, “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” for Aerosmith, “I Turn to You” for Christina Aguilera, “Music of My Heart” for Gloria Estefan, and “How Do I Live” for LeAnn Rimes, which became the longest-running song in Billboard chart history. Warren has earned eleven Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song between 1988 and 2020, including “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now,” “Because You Loved Me,” “How Do I Live,” “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing,” “Til It Happens to You,” which was a collaboration with Lady Gaga, “Stand Up for Something,” which was a collaboration with Common and “I’ll Fight” from the film RBG. She has continued to have her songs recorded by a wide-range of artists in recent years, including “Born to Be Somebody” by Justin Bieber, “I Was Here” by Beyonce, “Only Love Can Hurt Like This” by Paloma Faith, and “To Get Here” by Willie Nelson. Other artists who’ve recorded her songs include Barbra Streisand, Johnny Mathis, Jennifer Hudson, Patti LaBelle, Dionne Warwick, Roy Orbison, Al Green, Rod Stewart, Ringo Starr, Eric Clapton, Bette Midler, Lionel Richie, Faith Hill, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Bon Jovi, Alice Cooper, KISS, Joan Jett, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, Jessie J, Demi Lovato, Carrie Underwood, Adele, Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin, and Whitney Houston. A recipient of the prestigious ASCAP Founder’s Award, Warren has recently completed her first studio album, The Cave Sessions, Vol. 1, which features John Legend, Celine Dion, Mary J. Blige, Jason Derulo, Ty Dolla $ign, LP, and Darius Rucker who performs the lead single “Times Like This.” 

In addition to his own albums and mixtapes, artist, songwriter, and entertainer Eric Bellinger has co-written hits such as Chris Brown’s “New Flame” and Usher’s “Lemme See,” as well as songs by Justin Bieber, Trey Songz, The Game, and others. Eric joins Paul to chat about his remarkable career that spans pop, hip-hop, and R&B. PART ONEScott and Paul talk about musicians who are also great athletes and theorize about the connections between sports and music, including Paul's tales of his days playing basketball with Brian McKnightPART TWOPaul's in-depth interview with Eric BellingerABOUT ERIC BELLINGERSinger, songwriter, and producer Eric Bellinger balances his career as a performer with a long list of behind-the-scenes writer credits on hits such as Chris Brown’s “New Flame,” which topped multiple Billboard charts, “Lemme See,” an ASCAP-award winning song by Usher that reached #2 on Billboard’s Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, the Top 40 “Right Here” by Justin Bieber featuring Drake, and the theme song of the hit film Think Like a Man, performed by Jennifer Hudson, Ne-Yo, and Rick Ross.The list of other artists who’ve recorded Eric’s songs includes Selena Gomez, Ashanti, Keke Palmer, Brandy, Fantasia, Trey Songz, The Game, Tyrese, Tank, and Teyana Taylor. In addition to “New Flame,” Eric also earned recognition for his contributions to Chris Brown’s Grammy-winning album F.A.M.E., which included the songs “Fine China” and “Love More,” featuring Nicki Minaj. With over a dozen studio albums, mixtapes, and EPs to his credit, Eric Bellinger the artist has released singles such as “Valet” featuring Fetty Wap and 2 Chainz; “Type a Way” featuring Chris Brown; “Moist” featuring K Camp, and “Enough,” which directly addresses racial and societal injustice. His most recent album, a duo project with Hitmaka called 1-800-Hit-Eazy, will be released later this month. 

Nine-time Grammy nominee Ani DiFranco joins Scott and Paul to talk about her career as a fiercely independent singer-songwriter and activist, and share some insights into the social, political, and personal challenges that inspired her honest but hope-filled new studio album, Revolutionary Love. PART ONEPaul and Scott discuss the complicated legacy of genius songwriter/producer and convicted murderer Phil Spector, before paying tribute to the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in honor of the MLK holiday. They each choose a favorite song to emerge from the Civil Rights era and consider how King's message informs the artistic world today. PART TWOOur in-depth interview with the great Ani DiFrancoABOUT ANI DIFRANCOSinger, songwriter, musician, producer, poet, author, spoken-word artist, activist and entrepreneur Ani DiFranco has released more than 20 independent studio albums on her own label, Righteous Babe Records. Though often classified as “alternative folk,” DiFranco’s musical influences span a range of genres. After relentless touring, she reached a wide commercial audience in the late 1990s and early 2000s with albums such as Little Plastic Castle, Up Up Up Up Up Up, Revelling/Reckoning, Evolve, Educated Guess, and the gold-certified live album Living in Clip. The Grammy winner and nine-time nominee achieved her sole Top 40 hit as a songwriter when Alana Davis covered the DiFranco classic “32 Flavors” in 1997. The prolific and critically-acclaimed performer developed her own uniquely percussive guitar style and has collaborated with a range of artists, including Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon, Bruce Cockburn, Pete Seeger, Utah Phillips, Maceo Parker, and Prince. In addition to releasing her own music, her label has issued recordings by Sara Lee, Andrew Bird, Nona Hendryx, and others. Ani was one of the first musicians to receive the Woman of Courage Award from the National Organization for Women, and was honored with both the Woody Guthrie Award and the Southern Center For Human Rights’ Human Rights Award. Her memoir, No Walls and the Recurring Dream, was released in 2019 by Viking Books. The New Orleans-based DiFranco’s latest album, Revolutionary Love, is a timely social statement scheduled for release on January 29, 2021.   

PART ONE:Paul and Scott geek out about the Bee Gees documentary, and the nature of being the kind of songwriter who MUST do it, no matter what.PART TWO:Dan Wilson chats about how Liam Gallagher of Oasis inspired the first new Semisonic music in years; why his relationship with songs has always been very practical; how his first massive hit was born from a need to mix up the set list; the theory he once had about lyrics that he doesn't have any more; the lesson he learned from writing with Carole King that he's carried through his entire career; why it was a good thing that Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks rejected his song idea; how Rick Rubin informed his approach to music; the gritty details on the two-day process of writing "Someone Like You" with Adele; why Nashville's songwriting ethic impacted his process; the time a song was finalized over pizza with John Legend and Chrissy Tiegen; and how fellow songwriter Teddy Geiger indirectly inspired a most unusual format for Dan's collection of wisdom for writers and musicians. ABOUT  DAN WILSON:Songwriter, singer, musician, producer and acclaimed visual artist Dan Wilson is a Minnesota native and Harvard graduate who launched his music career with the band Trip Shakespeare, which was signed to A&M Records. He went on to co-found the rock band Semisonic, whose platinum-selling Feeling Strangely Fine album yielded the singles “Secret Smile,” “Singing in My Sleep,” and “Closing Time,” a chart-topping hit that earned Dan a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Song. He went on to reinvent himself as a behind-the-scenes hitmaker, earning a Song of the Year Grammy for co-writing “Not Ready to Make Nice” with the group then known as The Dixie Chicks, and writing three songs on Adele’s multiplatinum 21 album: “Don’t You Remember,” “One and Only,” and “Someone Like You,” which became an international hit and earned Dan an Album of the Year Grammy for his production work. Wilson has also found success in Nashville, co-writing Dierks Bentley’s number one hit “Home” and earning yet another Album of the Year Grammy nomination for Taylor Swift’s Red LP, for which he co-wrote and produced the song “Treacherous.” Dan’s long list of collaborators includes Carole King, Rachel Yamagata, Jason Mraz, Gabe Dixon, Weezer, Keith Urban, Josh Groban, James Morrison, P!nk, Leann Rimes, John Legend, Chris Stapleton, Panic! At the Disco, Cold War Kids, Noah Cyrus, Leon Bridges, Celine Dion, and many others.In addition to his acclaimed Words and Music by Dan Wilson solo concerts, he launched a social media series called Words & Music in Six Seconds. The series, which focuses on “forging collaborative relationships, seeking a community, testing out ideas in front of an audience, and writing better songs,” has recently been turned into a deck of 75 cards, designed by Dan, that distill his insights from nearly three decades of writing, performing, and collaborating with the world’s greatest musical artists. You can get your own set and find out more about Dan’s amazing career at danwilsonmusic.com. 

Merry Christmas! What better way to wrap up our 12 Days of Christmas mini-episodes than with “Christmas Time is Here” from A Charlie Brown Christmas? Today we share an excerpt of our 2017 conversation with Lee Mendelson who produced the classic animated special and wrote the lyrics of the song that has since been covered by Diana Krall, John Legend, Shawn Colvin, R.E.M., Mariah Carey, Tony Bennett, Barry Manilow, Toni Braxon, Lauren Daigle, and many others. Mendelson died on Christmas day in 2019, so we are so grateful to have had the chance to speak with him a couple of years before his passing. We know his memories will warm your heart!

It's Day 11 of our "12 Days of Christmas" daily mini-episodes spotlighting a classic holiday song and featuring an interview with the writer. On this Christmas Eve we reflect on "Breath of Heaven" with Chris Eaton, who co-wrote the song with Amy Grant. It has since been recorded by Vince Gill, Jessica Simpson, Donna Summer, Sara Groves, Melissa Manchester, and many more.

We're counting down the 12 Days of Christmas with daily mini-episodes spotlighting a classic holiday song and featuring an interview with the writer. On this tenth day of Christmas, we explore "Merry Christmas from the Family" with the great Robert Earl Keen. The Texas Heritage Songwriters Hall of Famer tells Scott and guest host Randy Poe all about the song that set the standard for redneck Christmases everywhere, and has been covered by The Chicks, Jill Sobule, Montgomery Gentry, and others.

PART ONEScott and Paul chat about the holidays and Paul's latest Christmas cut by Hamilton star Leslie Odom Jr.PART TWOThe guys catch up with Eagles songwriter and past Songcraft guest Jack Tempchin ("Already Gone," "Peaceful Easy Feeling") about his brand new holiday song and children's book. PART THREEOur in-depth conversation with thirteen-time Grammy nominee and two-time winner Walter Afanasieff who co-wrote and co-produced Mariah Carey hits such as the number one singles “Can’t Let Go,” “My All,” “Hero,” “One Sweet Day,” and the perennial holiday classic "All I Want for Christmas is You." Additionally, he produced some of the biggest movie soundtrack songs of all time, including “Beauty and the Beast,” “A Whole New World,” and “My Heart Will Go On" from Titanic. ABOUT WALTER AFANSIEFFThirteen-time Grammy nominee and two-time winner Walter Afanasieff is best known for his collaborative songwriting and production partnership with Mariah Carey that yielded hit singles such as “Can’t Let Go,” “Dreamlover,” “Hero,” “Without You,” “Anytime You Need a Friend,” “Butterfly,” “My All,” and “One Sweet Day,” a duet with Boyz II Men that was named ASCAP Song of the Year. It hit #1 in December of 1995 and stayed there for sixteen weeks—a record that remained unbroken for more than two decades. Their “All I Want for Christmas is You” was released in 1994 and has since become a holiday standard. It hit #1 on Billboard’s pop chart for the first time in 2019, giving Walter and Mariah the world record for the longest period of time between a song’s original release and its arrival at the top of the chart.  In addition to his success with Carey, Afanasieff carved out a formidable reputation as a go-to producer of hit movie songs. After co-writing and co-producing the Gladys Knight single “Licence to Kill” from the James Bond film of the same name, he went on to produce “Beauty and the Beast,” “A Whole New World” from Aladdin, “Even If My Heart Would Break” from The Bodyguard, and “My Heart Will Go On” from Titanic, which became the best-selling single in the world for 1998. Additionally he produced “Some Day” from The Hunchback of Notre Dame and the Academy Award nominated “Go the Distance” from Hercules.Other hits from the Walter Afanasieff songbook include “Can You Stop the Rain,” a #1 R&B single for Peabo Bryson that earned a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Song, “Missing You Now,” a #1 Adult Contemporary hit for Michael Bolton, “If You Go Away,” a Top 20 single for New Kids on the Block, Savage Garden’s #1 pop single “I Knew I Loved You,” and Ricky Martin’s massive global hit “She Bangs.”The long list of additional artists Walter has written and produced music for includes Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Luther Vandross, Destiny's Child, Kenny G, Andrea Bocelli, Johnny Mathis, Kenny Loggins, Barbra Streisand, Christina Aguilera, Marc Anthony, Babyface, and Josh Groban.