Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

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 fourth day of Christmas, we explore "Feliz Navidad" with writer and original performer Jose Feliciano. The Latin Songwriters Hall of Famer and 7-time Grammy winner tells us all about the creation of his holiday hit that's since been covered by Michael Buble, Celine Dion, Kacey Musgraves, and Garth Brooks & Trisha Yearwood.

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 third day of Christmas, we explore "Santa Baby" with co-writer Phil Springer. The former Brill Building writer (who was 91 at the time of our interview) tells us all about the creation of the holiday hit that's since been covered by Madonna, Michael Buble, Taylor Swift, Kylie Minogue, Ariana Grande, Trisha Yearwood, Gwen Stefani, 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 second day of Christmas, we explore Stevie Wonder's "Someday at Christmas" with co-writer Bryan Wells. The former Motown staff writer, who also co-wrote Stevie's Top 10 hits "A Place in the Sun" and "Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday," tells us all about the writing of the holiday hit that's since been covered by The Jackson 5, Diana Ross, The Temptations, Jack Johnson, Justin Bieber, and others.

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 first day of Christmas, we explore Elvis Presley's "Santa Claus is Back in Town" with Songwriters Hall of Famer, Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, and one of Rolling Stone's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time, Mike Stoller.

Part One:Scott and Paul chat about recording a special song as a gift for your loved one, shout-out our most recent Patreon supporters, make wild speculations about Bob Dylan, and discuss why spite motivated Scott to get a second Grammy nomination.  Part Two:Our in-depth interview with Erika EnderAbout Erika Ender:Though best known as the co-writer of the international hit “Despacito,” Panamanian-born Erika Ender is an accomplished songwriter and singer who has written or co-written more than 40 chart topping singles. Working in Spanish, Portuguese, and English, Erika’s songs have been recorded by artists such as Justin Bieber, Akon, Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee, Mark Anthony, Chayanne, Gloria Trevi, Gilberto Santa Rosa, Prince Royce, and Jenny Rivera. She’s one of only two women to write a Spanish language song that’s climbed to the number one spot on Billboard’s Hot 100; she’s the only Hispanic woman to be nominated for a Song of the Year Grammy; and she was the youngest person ever inducted into the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame. The two-time Latin Grammy winner was named by People en Espanol magazine as one of its 25 Most Powerful Women and she has carved out an impressive artist career of her own with successful singles such as “Abreme La Puerta,” “Luna Nueva,” “Cheque Al Portador,” “Quien Sale No Entra,” Sigo Caminando,” “Darnos un Dia” and “Te Conozco de Antes.”    

Luke Laird is one of Nashville’s most successful songwriters. He has written two dozen #1 country hits, earning him six separate CMA Trip Play awards, each of which recognizes the achievement of penning three #1 country songs within a 12 month period. The two-time Grammy winner has been named both ACM and BMI Country Songwriter of the Year. Highlights of his catalog include Kasey Musgraves’ “Space Cowboy” which earned him a Grammy for Country Song of the Year, Rodney Atkins’ “Take a Back Road” which was named BMI Country Song of the Year, Little Big Town’s “Pontoon” which earned an ACM nomination for Song of the Year, and Tim McGraw’s “Diamond Rings and Old Barstools,” which was nominated for a Country Song of the Year Grammy. Two of his most revered songs are Kenny Chesney’s “American Kids” and Eric Church’s “Give Me Back My Hometown,” which were both nominated for CMA Song of the Year, ACM Song of the Year, and the Grammy for Country Song of the Year. Laird built his reputation as a country chart topper with the Carrie Underwood hits “So Small,” “Last Name,” “Temporary Home,” “Undo It,” and “Mama’s Song” before going on to write chart toppers such as “A Little Bit Stronger” for Sara Evans, “Drink in My Hand” and “Talladega” with Eric Church, “One of Those Nights” for Tim McGraw, “Downtown” for Lady Antebellum, “I See You” and “Fast” for Luke Bryan, “Gonna” for Blake Shelton, “Head Over Boots” for Jon Pardi, and “T-Shirt” for Thomas Rhett. He’s written other massive hits for Miranda Lambert, Chris Young, Brad Paisley, Jason Aldean, Darius Rucker, and Frankie Ballard, and has had his songs recorded by George Strait, Zac Brown Band, Dierks Bentley, Maren Morris, Midland, Rascal Flatts, Lindsay Ell, Ashley Monroe, Toby Keith, Sheryl Crow, Amy Grant, Florida Georgia Line, Jessica Simpson, and Cassandra Wilson featuring John Legend. In addition to his success as a songwriter, Laird has produced Thomas Rhett, Brett Eldredge, Jake Owen, Sam Hunt, Ingrid Michaelson, and Kasey Musgraves, earning Grammy recognition for his work producing her albums Same Trailer Different Park and Pageant Material. He recently released his first album as an artist, the deeply personal Music Row.  

PART ONEScott and Paul talk about their friends at Pearl Snap Studios and pinch themselves over having the opportunity to talk with Elvis Costello.PART TWOElvis Costello discusses his new album Hey Clockface and talks about the record that set him on his musical journey; why he still likes writing in a notebook; the reason he resists the urge to go to an instrument too soon when he gets a melodic idea; the songwriting question he asked Bob Dylan; why he thinks he’s missed out on some cover songs; how he knows when a song is finished; the track on his new album that represents a songwriting “first” for him; his experiences in the studio with a gun-toting producer; and what he learned about the marriage of lyrics and melody from his co-writing relationships with Paul McCartney and Burt Bacharach. ABOUT ELVIS COSTELLOReleased between 1977 and 1979, Elvis Costello’s first three albums—My Aim is True, This Year’s Model, and Armed Forces—were all included in Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. That early period of his recording career yielded now-classic singles such as “Alison,” “Watching the Detectives,” “Pump it Up,” “Radio Radio,” “Oliver’s Army,” “Accidents Will Happen,” and others.Though he established his career as a rock artist and reached commercial heights in the US with the pop hit “Everyday I Write the Book,” Costello’s more than thirty studio albums cover a breathtaking range of stylistic ground, from Almost Blue, his early 1980s album of country covers, to The Juliet Letters, his 1993 collaboration with The Brodsky Quartet, to North, an album of ballads partially inspired by his wife Diana Krall that topped Billboard’s Jazz chart in 2003, to Il Sogno, his first full-length orchestral work, which was performed by the London Symphony Orchestra, and topped Billboard’s classical chart in 2004, to Wise Up Ghost, a 2013 collaboration with Questlove and The Roots. In between, he’s continued to release albums both solo and with his bands The Attractions, The Imposters, and The Sugarcanes. Always an adventurous collaborator, Costello entered into a fruitful songwriting partnership with Paul McCartney that yielded more than a dozen songs, including Costello’s Top 10 single “Veronica” and McCartney’s “My Brave Face.” He went on to release entire collaborative albums with Richard Harvey, Burt Bacharach, Allen Toussaint, and others. He has written lyrics for compositions by Charles Mingus, Billy Strayhorn and Oscar Peterson, as well as musical settings for lyrics by Johnny Cash, and Bob Dylan. His songs have been covered by a range of artists including George Jones, Chet Baker, Dusty Springfield, and Solomon Burke. Costello has been nominated for fourteen Grammy awards, two of which he won, as well as an Academy Award for co-writing “The Scarlet Tide” with T-Bone Burnett for the film Cold Mountain. He has received two Ivor Novello awards for Songwriting, the Americana Association’s Lifetime Achievement in Songwriting award, and the ASCAP Founder’s Award, which was presented by Burt Bacharach. He was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, and was named one of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time by Rolling Stone magazine. His genre-stretching new album, Hey Clockface, was recorded in Helsinki and Paris, and was released on October 30.  

PART ONECo-hosts Scott and Paul pay tribute to the legacies of Eddie Van Halen and Johnny Bush, two songwriters from very different genres who recently passed. PART TWOOur in-depth interview with the amazing Ledisi where she reveals her wide-ranging influences; gives us the inside track on working with Rex Rideout, Raphael Saadiq, and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis; talks about the hand Prince played in shaping her career, and explains why she geeked out when she saw Bruce Springsteen at the Grammy Awards. ABOUT LEDISILedisi is a singer, songwriter, and actress with a dozen Grammy nominations in categories including Best New Artist, Best R&B Album, Best R&B Performance, and Best R&B Song. After several years on her own independent label she signed with Verve Forecast Records for her album Lost & Found, which hit the Top 10 on Billboard’s R&B Albums chart. She went on to release a string of albums for the label, all of which hit the Top 5 on the US charts. In addition, she landed more than a dozen hits on Billboard’s R&B singles charts, including “Alright,” “Goin’ Thru Changes,” “Pieces of Me,” “Stay Together,” “I Blame You,” “High,” “All the Way,” and others. In addition to her twelve Grammy nominations, Ledisi has won two Soul Train Music Awards, been nominated for Best Female Artist three times at the NAACP Awards, and is an NAACP Spirit Award honoree. She performed at the White House seven times at the request of Barack and Michelle Obama, and has maintained consistently high critical acclaim—from her first album to her most recent release, The Wild Card on her own Listen Back Entertainment in partnership with BMG. 

Part 1 - Paul and Scott reflect on their experiences with legendary songwriters Mac Davis and Al Kasha, two Songcraft guests who recently passed away but left an important legacy,Part 2 - Our in-depth interview with Lucinda WilliamsABOUT LUCINDA WILLIAMSOne of the most revered songwriters on the face of the earth, Lucinda Williams was once crowned “America’s Best Songwriter” by People magazine. She first gained widespread attention after Mary Chapin Carpenter made her song “Passionate Kisses” a Top 5 hit, which earned Lucinda a Grammy award for Country Song of the Year. She went on to release a string of critically-acclaimed albums that garnered her a total of 15 Grammy nominations spanning the genres of rock, pop, country, folk, and Americana. One of the primary architects of the Americana genre, Lucinda has received more Americana Music Association award nominations than nearly any other artist, and she was the first female recipient of the AMA’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Songwriting. VH1 named her one of the 100 Greatest Women in Rock & Roll, while Rolling Stone named her among its 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time. In addition to her own success as an artist with songs such as “I Just Wanted to See You So Bad,” “Right in Time,” “Essence,” “Righteously,” “Are You Alright,” “Come On,” and “Real Love,” the daughter of famed poet Miller Williams has also had her songs recorded by Tom Petty, Elvis Costello, Emmylou Harris, Willie Nelson, Patty Loveless, Bettye LaVette, and many others.  

PART ONEScott and Paul dive deep on Rolling Stone's controversial revision of its "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list and discuss how valuation of music changes with the progression of each decade.PART TWOOur in-depth career spanning conversation with Will HogeABOUT WILL HOGEAs a songwriter Will Hoge is perhaps best known for “Even if it Breaks Your Heart,” a #1 country hit for Eli Young Band that earned a Grammy nomination for Best Country Song as well as both CMA and ACM nominations for Song of the Year. Originally recorded on Hoge’s own album The Wreckage, it is one of many acclaimed compositions from the pen of the outspoken singer-songwriter who celebrates both his southern heritage and progressive social views. In addition to performing “You Make Me Happy,” the theme song to the CBS sitcom Still Standing, Hoge has released more than a dozen albums. Though his music ranges from rock to folk to Americana, his single “Strong” earned mainstream country radio airplay and was featured in a national Chevy truck commercial. He has collaborated with writers such as Brett Beavers, Tommy Lee James, Hillary Lindsay, Gordie Sampson, Chris Stapleton, Hayes Carrl, Brendan Benson, and Wade Bowen. Other artists who’ve recorded his songs include the group Trigger Hippy and Lady A, formerly known as Lady Antebellum.   American Songwriter Podcast Network