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Have you ever noticed that as you get older, time seems to go by at a much faster pace than it did when you were young.  I was reminded of that just today. 

I am writing this article from my mother's home in California.  Earlier today I began looking at some of the books in the bedroom where I am staying.  In that book case I found the first book that I ever purchased about the music business.  It is the 1980 edition of the Song Writers Market.  I had to smile when I picked it up off the shelf.  A thousand memories ran through my mind of how "green" I was when I bought that book at a local book store.  I was full of dreams, and I didn't have a single clue as how to make those dreams come true.  This book seemed like the answer.  It contained an extensive list of publishers, record companies and producers. 

I looked at some of the listings that I had marked, such as WORD RECORDS, MCA SONGBIRD, RAY OVERHOLT MUSIC, and several others.  Almost all of the contact information has changed since then, and some of these companies no longer exist.

It was just a reminder of what a changing business this is, and just how fast 25 years can pass. But one of the things that caught my attention was a chapter on proper demo submission methods.  I read through it and found that most of the advice in this 25 year old book is still valid. The article made six major points.  Here they are.

1.  Keep musical introductions short.  They should not be more than four bars.      Someone listening to your demo wants to hear the song, not the intro to the song.  The intro is not what you are trying to get them to record.  Get to the lyric in a timely manner.

2.  Place your best song first.  Then put the next strongest song in the second slot,    and so on.  Of course, all the songs should be worthy of presentation. 

I took #2 just a step further.  I put my strongest song first.  Then I played it back and listened to it several times.  At that point, I decided that I could write one better, so I did.   My advice is, put your strongest song first, then go write a better one and send it too.

3.  Don't submit more than four songs per demo unless the company specifies that   they will listen to more.

Most publishers, record companies and artist will today will listen to five songs per demo.   It is much easier for them to fast forward through songs they are not interested in today, because most pitches are made by CD or MP3 file.   But if the company tells you that you can send more, by all means do it.

4.  Listen and inspect each demo before sending it.  There might have been a glitch in the recording, or even worse, it may not have recorded at all.   Even worse, you could be sending the wrong song.

I wish I had followed that advise when I mailed an artist a cassette tape back in the late '80's.   I used a "used" tape.  I thought that since my songs were on side A that it didn't matter what was on side B.  I didn't know that the artist would listen to both sides of the tape.  Well, needless to say, they picked a song from side B.  The only problem with that was, I didn't write the song that was on side B. Always, always, always check your demo before you send it.

5.  Never send out your last copy.  Always keep one in stock - preferably your master (the original). 

Don't expect to get your demo back.  If the company does not want to use the song, they will throw it away.   You can send a self addressed stamped envelope if you want your demo back, but most professional writers don't. 

6.  Lay down the copyright law.  On all lyric sheets and lead sheets, current copyright information should be listed.  If you are the copyright owner, then you should specify that right on the lyric sheet.  If the song has already been published, then that should be listed.

Where were you in July 1980?  Were you writing songs like I was?   If not, where do you expect to be in 2030?  Will you be writing about the outdated advice you read in my article way back when?  Only time will tell. Until next time, keep on writing!

Reader Comments

In July 1980, I was not even 2, probably trying to get my mom to let me hold my new baby brother (then would've been 3 months old).
You were buying books back then?? Man, how old are you? ROFLOL!!

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