Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

Jamie Floyd is a West Palm Beach, Florida native who grew up in a musical family where she had the opportunity to perform as an opening act for Rascal Flatts, James Taylor, and others. By the age of 11 she’d signed her first production and publishing deals, eventually relocating to Nashville where she found success writing for other artists. She’s best known as the co-writer of “the Blade,” which became the title track to Ashley Monroe’s 2015 album and was named one of the top songs of the year by NPR Music. Co-produced by Vince Gill and featuring a guest appearance by Miranda Lambert, the song became the album’s centerpiece and helped earn the project a Grammy nomination for Best Country Album of the Year. Others who’ve recorded Floyd’s songs include former Brooks & Dunn front man Ronnie Dunn, who featured the song “Once” on his debut solo album, which went to the #1 spot on the Billboard country chart in 2011. Jamie’s song “Trouble Get Me Off Your Mind” was performed by R&B powerhouse Brian McKnight in Dolly Parton’s 2013 TV film A Country Christmas Story, while Hayden Panettiere’s character, Juliette Barnes, performed Jamie’s “Mississippi Flood” on the hit ABC television series Nashville. Floyd’s songs have also been heard on MTV’s Finding Carter, Lifetime’s The Client List, the CW Network’s Beauty & the Beast, and the Lifetime original movie, Manson’s Lost Girls. The SESAC honoree has enjoyed her cross-genre success by writing songs by day and waiting tables by night. The hard-working dual-career up-and-comer is a model for what it takes to carve out a space in Nashville’s increasingly competitive musical landscape. With her recent Sunshine & Rainbows EP attracting new fans and increased industry attention, Jamie Floyd is one to watch! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Doobie Brothers lead singer, guitarist, and founding member Tom Johnston wrote 9 of the first 13 singles issued by the band between 1971 and 1975. These include the hits “Listen to the Music,” “Long Train Runnin’,” “China Grove,” and the classic rock radio staple “Rockin’ Down the Highway.” His voice can be heard on additional Doobies hits, including “Jesus is Just Alright” and “Take Me in Your Arms (Rock Me).” After being sidelined by health issues, Michael McDonald replaced Johnston in the band, with Tom eventually going on to a solo career. He released two albums for Warner Bros., scored a Top 40 single with the self-penned “Savannah Nights,” and performed the song “Where Are You Tonight” for the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, which sold over 11 million albums in the US alone. He returned to the Doobie Brothers in the late 1980s, writing the Top 10 single “The Doctor,” and going on to pen such songs as 1991’s “Rollin’ On,” which was a hit on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock chart. Additionally, he wrote the title track for their 2011 album World Gone Crazy. In 2014, the band released the album Southbound, featuring duets with well-known country performers Blake Shelton, Hunter Hayes, Toby Keith, Chris Young, Brad Paisley, and others. Johnston continues to front the Grammy-winning Doobie Brothers alongside fellow founder, guitarist and songwriter Patrick Simmons. The band has sold more than 48 million albums, including The Best of the Doobies, which is among the 100 top-selling albums of all time.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The legendary songwriting team of Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart found early success with songs such as “Lazy Elsie Molly,” which was a Top 10 R&B hit for Chubby Checker, “Come a Little Bit Closer,” which was a Top 5 pop hit for Jay & The Americans, and the instrumental theme song for the long-running soap opera, Days of Our Lives. The pair are best known, however, for writing and producing more than 20 songs for The Monkees, including “Last Train to Clarksville,” “(Theme From) The Monkees,” “I Wanna Be Free,” “(I’m Not Your) Steppin’ Stone,” “She,” “Words,” and “Valleri.” As artists, the Grammy nominated duo found success in the late 1960s with the self-penned Top 40 hits “Out & About,” “I Wonder What She’s Doing Tonight,” and “Alice Long (You’re Still My Favorite Girlfriend).” Bobby Hart wrote a number of hit singles apart from Tommy Boyce, including “Hurt So Bad,” which was a hit for Little Anthony & The Imperials in 1965 before finding subsequent chart success with the Letterman, Jackie DeShannon, and Linda Ronstadt, who made it a Top 10 pop hit in 1980. He also wrote Helen Reddy’s #1 single “Keep on Singing,” as well as Lane Brody’s #15 country hit “Over You,” which was included in the film Tender Mercies and earned Bobby Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations in 1983. He continued to score on the R&B and pop charts into the 1980s with New Edition’s “My Secret” and Robbie Nevil’s “Dominoes.” Most recently, the Monkees recorded Boyce & Hart’s “Whatever’s Right” on their critically acclaimed 2016 comeback album, Good Times. In 2015 Bobby published his autobiography, Psychedelic Bubble Gum: Boyce & Hart, The Monkees, and Turning Mayhem into Miracles.    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Still in his 20s, Seth Mosley has emerged as one of the most sought-after and influential creators in the Christian music genre. Beginning as the founder, lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter of the band Me in Motion, Seth went on to become the go-to producer for major artists such as Newsboys, Michael W. Smith, Audio Adrenaline, and Toby Mac. In 2015 alone he scored a staggering eight #1 hits, including for KING & COUNTRY's "Fix My Eyes," Francesca Battistelli's "He Knows My Name," Mat Kearney’s “Air I Breathe,” and Jeremy Camps' "He Knows." In total, Seth has written nearly thirty charting radio singles. He was named Billboard Christian Producer of the Year for 2013; was awarded a Grammy for his production work on the Best Contemporary Christian Music album of 2014; was named SESAC Christian Songwriter of the Year in 2015; and took home four Dove Awards that same year, including both Producer and Songwriter of the Year. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Jon Foreman is the front man and primary songwriter for the spiritually-minded alternative rock band Switchfoot. The group has released nine studio albums, including 2003’s The Beautiful Letdown, which sold more than two and a half million copies, earning it double platinum status. Their last six albums have hit the Top 20 on the Billboard 200 Album chart, with five of them going to #1 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart. With RIAA certified Gold selling singles “Meant to Live,” “Dare You to Move,” and “Stars,” Switchfoot has won 14 Dove Awards, including Artist of the Year, which they took home in 2005. They won a Grammy for Best Rock Gospel Album in 2010 for their Hello Hurricane LP. Foreman has released two albums with Nickel Creek’s Sean Watkins under the name Fiction Family, as well as two thematic series of critically acclaimed solo EPs. His songs have been covered by Mandy Moore, Taylor Swift, Mutemath, Meatloaf, Amy Grant, and others. In 2001 Foreman was honored with the Les Paul Horizon Award as the most promising up-and-coming guitarist at the annual Gibson Guitar Awards in Los Angeles. He is an avid surfer and a contributor to the Huffington Post, where he blogs about life, music, and culture. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In 1995, Billboard magazine listed the Top 20 countrysongs of the previous 35 years. Bill Anderson wrote four of those20 songs, and has continued writing them ever since, becoming theonly country songwriter to land a Top 40 hit in seven consecutivedecades. After signing with the Decca label in 1959, Andersonreleased 37 records as an artist that reached the Top 10 onBillboard’s Country singles chart - eight of which climbedto the #1 position. Though wildly successful as a performer, Billis also a prolific songwriter who penned most of his own hits,including the classics “Po Folks,” “Mama Sang a Song,” “8 X 10,”and “Still,” which was named Billboard magazine’s Song ofthe Year in 1963. His initial songwriting success began in 1958when Ray Price took “City Lights” to the top of the charts for 13weeks. The song became a standard that charted repeatedly in the1950s, 60s, 70s, and 80s. Similarly, his “Tips of My Fingers,”reached the Top 10 four different times with versions recorded byRoy Clark, Eddy Arnold, Steve Wariner, and Anderson himself. Billteamed with Roger Miller to co-write “When Two Worlds Collide,”which was a hit for Miller in 1961, Jim Reeves in 1969, and JerryLee Lewis in 1980. Other major hits from Bill Anderson’s vastcatalog include Lefty Frizzell’s “Saginaw, Michigan,” ConnieSmith’s “Once a Day,” and Porter Wagoner’s “Cold Hard Facts ofLife.” After a hiatus, Anderson returned to songwriting in the1990s, co-writing hits including Vince Gill’s “Which Bridge toCross (Which Bridge to Burn)," Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss’s CMASong of the Year “Whiskey Lullaby,” and George Strait’s CMA and ACMSong of the Year “Give It Away.” Bill was elected to the NashvilleSongwriters Hall of Fame in 1975, and inducted into the CountryMusic Hall of Fame in 2001. He has received multiple Grammynominations and more than 50 BMI performance awards. Anderson wasnamed BMI Country Songwriter of the Year six times, and was thefirst country writer ever honored with the prestigious BMI Iconaward in 2002. The Academy of Country Music similarly recognizedhim with their inaugural Poets Award in 2008. His autobiography,Whisperin' Bill Anderson: An Unprecedented Life in CountryMusic, will be released by the University of Georgia Press inSeptember, and is now available for pre-order atBillAnderson.com.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

After finding early success with international pop acts such as Milli Vanilli, the German-born hitmaker Toby Gad went on to write and produce a string of international #1 singles, including Beyonce’s “If I Were a Boy,” Selena Gomez’s “A Year Without Rain,” and Nicole Scherzinger’s “Don’t Hold Your Breath.” He has twice been the recipient of the prestigious ASCAP Song of the Year award, first in 2008 for Fergie’s “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” and again in 2015 for John Legend’s “All of Me.” Toby’s contributions to officially certified Gold and Platinum album releases alone represent sales of more than 73 million units worldwide. Other artists who’ve recorded his songs include Ricky Martin, Miley Cyrus, Donna Summer, Brandy, Jordan Sparks, Robin Thicke, Alicia Keys, Demi Lovato, Jazmine Sullivan, Jessie J, One Direction, Kelly Clarkson, Carly Rae Jepson, Leona Lewis, and Madonna.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Beginning his career as a key player in the UK folk revival of the early 1960s, Donovan scored early hits with “Catch the Wind” and “Colours.” Embracing jazz, world music, and psychedelic influences, he expanded his sound and found success with the major hits “Sunshine Superman” and “Mellow Yellow” in 1966. Additional hits followed, including the Top 20 US singles “Epistle to Dippy” and “There is a Mountain,” as well as the Top 10 hits “Hurdy Gurdy Man” and “Atlantis.” He has recorded nearly thirty albums. Donovan’s songs have been recorded by Neil Young, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, Richie Havens, Van Dyke Parks, Jefferson Airplane, the Animals, the Allman Brothers Band, Cher, Eartha Kitt, Glen Campbell, Johnny Rivers, Duane Eddy, Buck Owens, Chet Atkins, Kenny Loggins, Susanna Hoffs, Joan Jett, Sarah McLachlan, Richard Thompson, and many others. He was awarded the prestigious BMI Icon award in 2009, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2012, and inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2014. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Shelly Peiken is a multi-platinum songwriter best known for co-writing Christina Aguilera’s #1 hits “What a Girl Wants” and “Come On Over Baby (All I Want is You).” She was nominated for a Best Rock Song Grammy for penning “Bitch” with Meredith Brooks, who took the song to #2 on the Billboard pop chart in 1997. Additionally, she’s penned songs such as “I Wanna Be With You” for Mandy Moore and “Out From Under” by Britney Spears. Celine Dion has recorded four of Shelly’s songs, while Miley Cyrus, NSYNC, David Archuleta, Selena Gomez, Demi Lovato, Plain White T’s and Gladys Knight have each recorded two or more songs from the Peiken catalog. Others who have covered Shelly’s music include Jessie J, the Divinyls, the Pretenders, Reba McEntire, Lisa Loeb, Jennifer Lopez, Expose, Aaliyah, Backstreet Boys, Vanessa Hudgens, Smash Mouth, INXS, Keith Urban, Michelle Branch, Natasha Bedingfield, and the cast of the hit TV show, Glee. Shelly is a regular blogger for the Huffington Post and has recently released her first book, Confessions of a Serial Songwriter.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

After serving in World War II, Irving Burgie attended Juilliard where he studied classical voice. He eventually fell in love with folk music, and landed a steady gig as a Calypso singer at a Caribbean-themed Chicago nightclub in the early 1950s. Returning to New York, he became known as Lord Burgess on the Greenwich Village folk scene. He contributed eight songs to Harry Belafonte’s Calypso album in 1956, which became the first million selling LP in any genre, and spent an astounding 31 weeks at #1 on the Billboard pop chart. Burgie went on to write the majority of Belafonte’s hit albums Belafonte Sings of the Caribbean in 1957 and Jump Up Calypso in 1961. In total, he wrote more than thirty songs for Belafonte, including the hit singles “Jamaica Farewell,” “Day-O,” “Don’t Ever Love Me,” “Cocoanut Woman,” and “Island in the Sun.” Thanks to his strong reputation for popularizing island music, Burgie wrote the National Anthem of Barbados in 1966. In addition to Harry Belafonte, other artists who’ve tapped the Irving Burgie catalog include Sam Cooke, Julio Iglesias, Taj Mahal, The Kinks, Jimmy Buffett, Marty Robbins, Don Williams, Arlo Guthrie, The Righteous Brothers, Tom Rush, Carly Simon, Chubby Checker, and Patti Page. “Day-O” continues to live on, and, in more recent years, has been sampled by Jason Derulo in “I Don’t Wanna Go Home," and by Lil’ Wayne in “Six Foot, Seven Foot.” Burgie was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007.    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.