Ashlee Simpson’s single ‘Outta My Head’ represents the lowest point in modern music.

“It was written by SIX!!! people. As a comparison, ‘Yesterday’, the most covered song in history, was written by Paul McCartney, one man, in his sleep”.

“So what’s gone wrong in the last 40 years, that we’ve gone from Yesterday to “Ay ya ya ya ya”?

Paul McCartney is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, multi-instrumentalist, poet, painter, record producer, and film producer.

“Well, McCartney was a songwriting genius, right? Well maybe, but that genius didn’t spring out of thin air. He’d done his homework, and was steeped in rock’n’roll and blues, folk, ragtime, musicals, Tin Pan Alley standards, church hymns and classical music – all influences working on him when he composed”.

“The writers of ‘Outta My Head’ are influenced by market forces and the few hit records of the last 18 months, all of which eschew melody for the novelty of the studio and the tyranny of whatever rhythm is moving the club floors at this particular moment.”

“But for the last 3 years it’s been a downward spiral, with popular music across genres deteriorating massively as writers and performers completely misplace the melody.”

Do you want to be a better songwriter? well, you have to write more meaningful melodies and lyrics that touch the soul. If you have only listened to records during the last 10 years, the chances of writing songs that touch millions of people are slim to none. Start listening to these records now…

8 albums every budding songwriter needs to hear