Jackson Browne Quotes

Sometimes I have a melody in my head; sometimes it's just a verse. I read lines from a book or movies that I watch and grab a few quotes and start writing on paper. From there, I record a really rough version and work on the song.

I've been writing and composing songs since I was 5 years old.

I've actually had a melody on my guitar since the day I learned how to play it, back when I was 7. And for some reason I can't add lyrics to it.

I can write music but I'm not much for words.

There's many, many ways to write a song. But generally, sitting down at a table and writing is not one of them.

I keep this crazy notebook of song ideas.

For me, making music just starts with a simple melody, and lyrics will come sometime after that.

I was never a 'sit down with a notepad and write lyrics' kind of person.

If I try to write a song, I will completely fail to write a song. But if I'm just holding my guitar and I just start humming, then I'll have a song in an hour.

I don't think I've ever actually written from inspiration, actually had a song just go, 'Bing!' I only recall that happening to me twice - once was with 'Terrapin' and the other was 'Wharf Rat.' I mean, that's twice in a lifetime of writing!

I don't spend afternoons practicing my guitar to get better. I do read, though, to get inspiration for my lyrics.

I compose melodies in my head and then interpret them musically with my guitar and keep them recorded. The guitar helps me to build unique chord structures on simple melodies.

The most difficult thing for me as an artist, as a creator of music, is lyrics. But everything else, I just do it.

I'm always writing music.

I'm not one of those guys who can just take a guitar into a room and come out with a song. I need all my instruments dotted around.

My focus on everything is songwriting, so I write all of my stuff by myself.

I always find that, when it comes to writing songs, if the melody and the chords are working, we're 90 per cent there.

I was writing tons of music in my spare time. I might be on location somewhere, and I'd go home and I'd have my guitar and my little keyboard or something and write music. Or if I was at home, on my piano. I've always been a late bloomer with a lot of things, just in general, so I think this was something that needed to come to fruition in this particular way.

I fell into lyric writing because of music. I backed into it.

I've always thought of music as something which gives the words their flight and their wings and the music often comes first, although sometimes I'll have a concept, a title idea, a lyric idea that I want to write and the lyric will come first.

Yes, basically, like you said, I'll work out a chord pattern and work out the lyrics over that.

Every song has a bouquet, which is the music. If you can put words with something that is really apt, then you've done it.

The first thing that inspires any song is a chord progression. When I have one I really like, I get into the lyrics even more.

Everything I see and hear... I will take ideas from anyplace, anywhere, anytime, and life has become a song to me. I'm always looking for a song.

But then you have to write a song, so at that point, I picked up the reins and started to write lyrics.