Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul start the festivities off with a very important discussion about which artists carry their wallets on stage. PART TWO - 07:30 mark Scott and Paul call up Dennis, who reveals the major compliment he once got from Barry White; how the first song he ever co-wrote became a hit for Diana Ross; the shocking original lyrics for “Maniac” that were inspired by serial killer John Wayne Gacy; how an earthquake that totaled his house led to an important career change; why he isn’t necessarily proud of the story behind one of his major country hits; what he looks for in a co-writer; and how his early musical leanings were shaped by the two Philadelphias: Pennsylvania and Mississippi. ABOUT DENNIS MATKOSKY Dennis Matkosky is best known for co-writing “Maniac,” which was included on the Flashdance soundtrack and became a #1 pop single that earned Golden Globe, Academy Award, and Grammy nominations. Matkosky took home a Grammy award for Best Album of Original Score for a Motion Picture, and continued to find success for the next decade with Billboard charting singles recorded by pop, R&B, and Adult Contemporary artists such as Boz Skaggs, Smokey Robinson, Al Jarreau, Eddie Money, Chicago, and James Ingram. Dennis eventually relocated to Nashville, where he landed a Top 10 country hit with LeAnn Rimes’ recording of “I Need You” before going on to hit #1 with Keith Urban’s version of “You’ll Think of Me.” Other artists who’ve hit the country charts with his songs include Clay Aiken, Reba McEntire, Lonestar, Martina McBride, and David Nail, who hit the Top 10 with “Red Light.”  The list of additional performers who’ve recorded Dennis’ songs includes Diana Ross, Sergio Mendes, Teddy Pendergrass, Johnny Gill, George Benson, Kool & the Gang, Laura Branigan, Sheena Easton, CeCe Winans, Joe Cocker, Rascal Flatts, and the cast of the hit television show Nashville.

EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE In celebration of Father's Day Scott and Paul discuss the influence their dads had on their musical development. Plus, you'll hear a recording of Paul's late dad, Dr. Tom Duncan, singing his only known original song! PART TWO - 09:13 mark Woody Bomar's in-depth interview SYNOPSIS Scott sits down in Nashville with his dad to get the story about how one of Roy Orbison's bandmates became Woody's guardian angel; why he got shot at on the way to a gig; how he went from pitching Kris Kristofferson's songs to writing #1 hits of his own; why he signed a young teenager named Taylor Swift to her first publishing deal; the reason he says his first cut might actually be his last; and what inspired him to write an album's worth of songs about Route 66 after an exciting career working with country music's biggest names.  ABOUT WOODY BOMAR Woody Bomar began his music career as a songwriter, landing two #1 hits with Conway Twitty’s “We Did But Now You Don’t” and Jim Glaser’s “You’re Getting to Me Again.” He hit the Top 20 with Loretta Lynn’s “Cheatin’ on a Cheater” and had songs recorded by Lee Greenwood, Lynn Anderson, TG Sheppard, Rhonda Vincent, Hank Williams, Jr., and others. Bomar eventually moved to the other side of the desk at Nashville’s Combine Music, where his duties included promoting the songs of Kris Kristofferson, Dolly Parton, Guy Clark, Tony Joe White, and others. Woody soon departed and teamed with business partner Kerry O’Neil to launch Little Big Town Music with former Combine writers John Scott Sherrill and Bob DiPiero. Serving as President and General Manager, Bomar would go on to sign a stable of songwriters that earned fifteen #1 hits, as well as thirty Top 10 singles and more than 500 major cuts by artists such as Faith Hill, George Strait, Tim McGraw, Reba McEntire, Diamond Rio, Kenny Chesney, Waylon Jennings, Vince Gill, Neil Diamond, Dusty Springfield and Peter Frampton. Little Big Town was ultimately purchased by Sony/ATV, which hired Bomar as Senior Vice President and General Manager. During his eight year tenure with Sony, Woody signed Dierks Bentley, Rascal Flatts, Josh Turner, Marty Stuart and Blake Shelton, and was instrumental in bringing Taylor Swift, Gretchen Wilson, Eric Church and Miranda Lambert to the company’s roster. In addition to the new signings, Woody worked with an existing catalog of songs by Tom Douglas, Dean Dillon, Rodney Crowell, Gretchen Peters, Bobby Braddock, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Hank Williams, and many others. After departing Sony/ATV Woody  launched his second independent publishing company, Green Hills Music Group, where he continues to advocate for great songwriters and secure recordings by artists such as George Strait, Luke Bryan, Jake Owen, Rascal Flatts, Hunter Hayes, and Hilary Scott of Lady Antebellum. Woody is a two-time recipient of The Nashville Songwriters Association’s President’s Award and is an inductee into the Middle Tennessee State University’s Mass Communications Wall of Fame.

PART ONE Scott and Paul reveal the winner of their latest contest. Find out who's getting an autographed copy of Steve Dorff's memoir! PART TWO - 02:39 mark Is "Stutter Rock" a thing? The guys connect some dots and dig into a surprisingly pervasive trend in music history. PART THREE - 8:05 mark Scott and Paul's origin story - including a particularly disappointing night backstage at a Guess Who reunion show PART FOUR - 12:52 mark Randy stops by Songcraft World Headquarters to talk about his new George Harrison tribute album; how The Guess Who got its name by accident; his Alex Trebek connection; how he bluffed his way into musical success; why his approach to songwriting is all about borrowing and re-purposing; the '60s band he thought was even better than The Beatles; what he spent all his money on instead of drugs; the Bachman-Turner Overdrive hit that ripped off an Antonín Dvořák classical piece only to then be ripped off by The Doobie Brothers; and why one of his biggest hits was an inside joke with his brother that was never intended to be heard by the public. ABOUT RANDY BACHMAN As the co-founder, guitarist, and primary songwriter of two legendary classic rock bands, Randy Bachman has earned over 120 gold and platinum records. After landing a handful of Top 10 singles in Canada, The Guess Who scored a string of Bachman-penned hits, beginning with “These Eyes,” a Top 10 single Randy wrote with bandmate Burton Cummings. They went on to find success with “Laughing,” “Undone,” “No Time,” and “American Woman,” which was the first single by a Canadian band to hit #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The B-side, “No Sugar Tonight,” claimed the #1 spot soon after. Randy walked away from The Guess Who at the height of the band’s success, recording an instrumental album and forming the group that would come to be known as Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Like Paul McCartney before him and Dave Grohl after him, Randy is one of only a small handful of artists to find major success with more than one band. During his stint with BTO he wrote their biggest hits, including “Let it Ride,” “Takin’ Care of Business,” “Hey You,” and “You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet,” which was an international hit that topped the charts in multiple countries. Bachman has reunited in various configurations with his Guess Who and BTO bandmates over the years, in addition to collaborating on various projects with artists ranging from fellow Canadian rock legend Neil Young to his son, Tal Bachman, who is best known for the 1999 hit “She’s So High.” Randy is a best-selling author, a member of the Musicians Hall of Fame, the host of the Vinyl Tap radio show, and a continually prolific songwriter, musician, and recording artist. His most recent album is By George – By Bachman, a tribute to the songs of George Harrison.

PART ONE Scott and Paul announce the five Patreon supporters who are getting signed copies of Billy Edd Wheeler's memoir. Then they fill you in on how you can snag one of two signed Beth Nielsen Chapman CDs for yourself! PART TWO - 02:45 mark The guys talk about cover songs that have become better known than their original versions. PART THREE - 12:34 mark Scott and Paul's in-depth conversation with Beth Nielsen Chapman Beth stops by Songcraft International Headquarters to chat about her new record; how a traumatic childhood field trip set her on a path of creative reflection; why one of her songs took 18 years to complete; the movie that inspired her to start writing songs again after she quit for four years; why a chance encounter with a Beach Boy inspired her to move to Nashville; how she got commissioned to write songs for Willie Nelson; the unusual way Trisha Yearwood discovered one of her songs and made it a hit; and how a song deeply personal song about losing her husband to cancer became an inspiration to Elton John. Singer/songwriter Beth Nielsen Chapman is best known for co-writing “This Kiss,” a #1 country hit and Top 10 pop hit for Faith Hill that earned a CMA Song of the Year award. Other chart-topping hits from her catalog include Tanya Tucker’s “Strong Enough to Bend,” Willie Nelson’s “Nothing I Can Do About it Now,” Lorrie Morgan’s “Five Minutes,” Martina McBride’s “Happy Girl,” and Alabama’s “Here We Are,” which she co-wrote with Vince Gill. As an artist, Chapman has released a dozen albums and placed eight singles on Billboard’s Adult Contemporary charts, including “Walk My Way,” “All I Have,” and “I Keep Coming Back to You.” After her husband lost his battle with cancer, Beth worked through her grief by digging into an emotionally rich body of songs that includes “Sand and Water,” a song that was later covered by Elton John on his 1987 world tour. The long lists of artists who’ve recorded Beth’s material includes Neil Diamond, Michael McDonald, Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, Roberta Flack, Bette Midler, Keb Mo, Trisha Yearwood, Waylon Jennings, The Indigo Girls, Don Williams, Mary Chapin Carpenter, and Jim Brickman who scored a #1 Adult Contemporary hit with her song “Simple Things.” The two-time Grammy nominee has been honored by The Alabama Music Hall Of Fame and was the recipient of The Distinguished Artist Award from the Alabama State Council on the Arts in 2009. She was inducted into the Songwriter’s Hall of Fame in 2016.

PART ONE Scott and Paul let you in on how you can score your own autographed copy of Steve Dorff's new memoir, I Wrote That One, Too. PART TWO - 02:45 mark Mother's Day is coming up soon! Paul counts down 5 of his favorite songs about moms before Scott lists 5 of his favorite songwriters who are also mothers. PART THREE - 12:11 mark Scott and Paul head over to Steve Dorff's house to get the inside scoop on why he sees color when he hears music; the reason that knowing how to write a great song is only half of songwriting success; how he accidentally wound up playing piano on a classic soul record; what he did to make Dusty Springfield throw a chair at him; how he bluffed his way into film scoring; the time he wrote one of the most iconic TV show theme songs of all time in just 15 minutes; and why he hears Boys II Men in his head when George Strait sings one of his biggest hits. ABOUT STEVE DORFFSteve’s Dorff’s songs have been recorded by hundreds of artists, earning him nominations for six Emmy awards and three Grammys. His first major success came with the soundtrack for the Clint Eastwood film Every Which Way But Loose, which yielded three #1 singles, including the title song. Similarly successful soundtrack albums would follow, such as: Bronco Billy, which earned him #1 hits with “Cowboys and Clowns” for Ronnie Milsap and “Bar Room Buddies,” a duet for Eastwood and Merle Haggard; Any Which Way You Can, which spawned a Top 10 hit of the same title for Glen Campbell; and Pure Country, which earned George Strait two #1 hits, “I Cross My Heart” and “Heartland.” In total, Dorff has written nine #1 country hits from motion pictures, more than any other songwriter in history. In addition to his soundtrack success, Dorff has written #1 hits including “I Just Fall in Love Again” for Anne Murray, “Through the Years” for Kenny Rogers, “Don’t Underestimate My Love For You” for Lee Greenwood, “Hypnotize the Moon” for Clay Walker, and “The Man in Love with You” for George Strait. Other artists who’ve recorded his songs include Barbra Streisand, The Carpenters, Celine Dion, Cher, Dolly Parton, Dusty Springfield, Garth Brooks, George Jones, Gladys Knight, Jackie Wilson, Kenny Loggins, Randy Travis, Ray Charles, Reba McEntire, Roy Rogers, Ringo Starr, Smokey Robinson, Whitney Houston,  and Willie Nelson. In addition to his songwriting, Dorff has scored countless films and TV shows, including Spenser: For Hire, Murphy Brown, The Singing Bee, Just the 10 of Us, Murder She Wrote, Major Dad, Reba, and Growing Pains, for which he composed the hit theme song “As Long as We Got Each Other.” In 2017 he published his memoir, I Wrote That One, Too: A Life in Songwriting from Willie to Whitney, and he’s a 2018 inductee into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

PART ONE Scott and Paul pay tribute to a Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame member who recently passed away. PART TWO - 02:55 mark Like it or not, tax day is upon us! The guys each pick three of their favorite songs about money or taxes. PART THREE - 10:55 mark Scott and Paul's in-depth conversation with Bruce Sudano Bruce comes over to hang out with Scott and Paul at Songcraft world headquarters, where he explains how he hounded Tommy James into giving him a shot; why he says he became a "cocky self-assured arrogant jerk" before he figured out how to be a good songwriter; the reason "Bad Girls" was almost a Cher song; the controversy that erupted when Michael Jackson recorded his song; why Donna Summer went on "The Tonight Show" to help save Bruce's parents' marriage; how his 30 year love story with the disco queen influenced his songwriting; and why he thinks he might be at the end of a creative streak. Bruce Sudano is a Brooklyn-born songwriter, singer, and multi-instrumentalist who first hit the scene when Tommy James and the Shondells recorded his “Ball of Fire” in 1969. He spent the better part of the next decade focusing on his own bands, Alive N Kickin’ and Brooklyn Dreams. The latter group collaborated with Donna Summer on “Bad Girls” and other songs, which led to a personal relationship between Bruce and Donna. The pair married in 1980 and remained together for 32 years until her untimely passing in 2012. The team of Sudano and Summer wrote “Starting Over Again,” which became a #1 country hit and Top 40 pop hit for Dolly Parton. In addition to his multiple Donna Summer cuts, Bruce has also had charting singles recorded by Jermaine and Michael Jackson, Robert Palmer, and Reba McEntire. Others who’ve recorded his songs include Tammy Wynette, Steve Wariner, Point of Grace, and Snoop Dogg. Bruce has released a half dozen solo albums, including his critically acclaimed 21st Century World in 2017.   

PART ONE Scott and Paul have some fun talking about artists who look just like they sound - and those who don't! PART TWO - 11:23 mark The guys talk about their Patreon page, Billy Edd Wheeler's new book, and how five lucky listeners can score a free signed copy for themselves. PART THREE - 18:00 mark Scott and Paul's in-depth conversation with Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Billy Edd Wheeler Scott & Paul chat with the Yale-educated "hillbilly poet" about how Pat Boone covering his song gave him a crash course in music business shenanigans; why he wishes Richie Havens hadn't covered "High Flyin' Bird" at Woodstock; the reason legendary songwriter Norman Gimbel said he'd never make any money; the advice Jerry Leiber gave him about how to write lyrics; why he felt like a "man without a country" while appealing to both commercial country audiences and playing at the Newport Folk Festival; the time he picked up the phone to discover Elvis on the other end of the line; and a big revelation about which "Jackson" the iconic song actually refers to. Billy Edd Wheeler’s early chart successes were collaborations with the legendary songwriting team of Jerry Leiber and Mike Stoller, who worked with Wheeler more than they did any other outside writer. The team of Leiber & Stoller & Wheeler’s first significant hit came with The Kingston Trio’s Top 10 pop recording of “The Reverend Mr. Black” in 1963. The trio then found success on the country charts that same year, scoring a Top 10 hit with Hank Snow’s version of “The Woman Who Loved the Man Who Robbed the Bank at Santa Fe And Got Away.” Wheeler is best known for writing “Jackson,” a major hit for Johnny Cash and June Carter in 1967, and “Blistered,” which was a Top 5 hit for Cash shortly after. Other artists who reached the Top 20 with Wheeler’s compositions include Hank Williams, Jr., Johnny Duncan, Jerry Reed, Elvis Presley, and Kenny Rogers, who took “Coward of the County” to #1 on the country chart, and #3 on the pop rankings. Additionally, Wheeler’s songs have been recorded by Judy Collins, Jim Croce, Richie Havens, Bobby Darin, Neil Young, Gram Parsons, Jefferson Airplane, Jerry Lee Lewis, Flatt & Scruggs, Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn, Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazlewood, Merle Haggard, Glen Campbell, John Denver, Jimmy Buffett, Wanda Jackson, Chet Atkins, George Strait, Warren Haynes, and others. As an artist, Billy Edd has released nearly 20 albums, and has placed seven singles on the Billboard country chart. His first, “Ode to the Little Brown Shack Out Back,” became a Top 5 hit in 1965. He has earned multiple ASCAP awards, and is a member of the West Virginia Music Hall of Fame and the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001. Wheeler, who pursued his graduate studies at the Yale School of Drama, is also an accomplished playwright, painter, and author, most notably of a revealing new memoir, Hotter Than a Pepper Sprout: A Hillbilly Poet's Journey From Appalachia to Yale to Writing Hits for Elvis, Johnny Cash & More.

Grammy winner Tony Banks is the co-founder and keyboardist of Genesis, which helped define prog rock in the ‘70s with lead singer Peter Gabriel and emerged as a pop powerhouse in the ‘80s after drummer Phil Collins took over the lead vocalist role. Banks and Mike Rutherford were the only two musicians who were members of the band throughout Genesis’ entire history from the late 1960s through the early 2000s. He is a co-writer of Genesis classics, including “The Knife,” “The Musical Box,” “Supper’s Ready,” “Firth of Fifth,” “Follow You Follow Me,” “No Reply at All,” “That’s All,” “Invisible Touch,” “Throwing it All Away,” “Land of Confusion,” “Tonight Tonight Tonight,” “In Too Deep,” “No Son of Mine,” “I Can’t Dance,” and “Hold On My Heart.”     In addition to releasing five solo albums, Banks began scoring films in the late 1970s, including a British horror movie called The Shout, a science fiction film entitled Starship, and Quicksilver, staring Kevin Bacon. It was his work on the Faye Dunaway film The Wicked Lady that first exposed Banks to working with an orchestra, reigniting his long time love for classical music. In 2004 he released Seven: A Suite for Orchestra, which featured the London Philharmonic and marked the start of a series of classical albums. The most recent is simply titled Five.   As a member of Genesis, Banks has sold over 21 million albums in the US alone. He received a Prog God Award at the Progressive Music Awards in 2015, and was named among MusicRadar’s “greatest keyboard players of all time” in 2011. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame alongside Genesis bandmates Peter Gabriel, Phil Collins, Steve Hackett, and Mike Rutherford in 2010.

Best known as the writer and performer of “American Pie,” Don McLean and his songs have hit the Billboard pop, country, and adult contemporary charts nearly twenty times. Staples of his catalog include “Vincent (Starry Starry Night),” which hit #12 in the US and landed at the top of the UK chart; “Castles in the Air,” which charted twice with different versions in 1971 and 1981; and “And I Love You So,” which was covered by Bobby Goldsboro, Perry Como, Johnny Mathis, Glen Campbell and Elvis Presley. McLean’s compositions have been covered by Madonna, Fred Astaire, James Blake, Chet Atkins, Garth Brooks, George Michael, Harry Connick Jr., Josh Groban, Ed Sheeran, and others. He was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2004 and received the BBC Folk Music Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012. “American Pie” was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002 and was named one of the Top 5 Songs of the 20th Century by the Recording Industry Association of America and the National Endowment for the Arts. McLean has recorded nineteen studio albums. His most recent is Botanical Gardens.

Bob DiPiero has written 15 #1 hits, including “Southern Voice” for Tim McGraw, “If You Ever Stop Loving Me” for Montgomery Gentry, “Blue Clear Sky” for George Strait, “Daddy’s Money” for Ricochet, “The Church on Cumberland Road” for Shenandoah, “Money in the Bank” for John Anderson, “Little Rock” for Reba McEntire, and “American Made” for The Oak Ridge Boys. Neal McCoy’s recording of his song “Wink” stayed at #1 for 4 weeks in 1994 and was named BMI’s most performed country song of the year. Other highlights from DiPiero’s catalog include Faith Hill’s “Take Me As I Am,” Reba McEntire’s “Till You Love Me,” George Strait’s  "Cowboys Like Us" and Vince Gill’s “Worlds Apart, which was named Song of the Year at the Country Radio Music Awards in 1997. Other artists who’ve recorded Bob’s songs include Garth Brooks, Toby Keith, Travis Tritt, Rhett Akins, Billy Ray Cyrus, Patty Loveless, The Mavericks, Marty Stuart, Darius Rucker, Etta James, Martina McBride, Neil Diamond, Trace Adkins, Steve Wariner, Lonestar, Tracy Byrd, Sunny Sweeney, Easton Corbin, Toby Keith, and Little Feat with Bob Seger. Bob received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for his song “Coming Home,” which Gwyneth Paltrow performed for the film Country Strong. He was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007, was named Songwriter of the Year at the Nashville Music Awards in 1998, and received the prestigious BMI Icon award in 2017.