Lyrical prose
Dispatches and writing advice from a midlist author misfiring in the gig economy.
Working from home my writing sometimes needs a musical kickstart. My book What Are Words Worth?, the diary of a jobbing writer, opens with me listening to Frank Turner’s song The Ballad of Me and My Friends. The song starts with Frank going through his address book trying to muster enough friends to make up the audience for a gig in London. The poignant chorus of, “None of this is going anywhere…” can seem particularly relevant to a freelance author. Though the song also gives some hope as Frank eventually ended up playing the song at Wembley.
Music can of course be a distraction as after playing Frank my iTunes library takes me to several other songs with Ballad in the title, The Ballad of Mott the Hoople, The Ballad of John and Yoko and The Ballad of a Well-Known Gun, all of which I’m tempted to play.
Today I’ve just played the YouTube video of Don’t Give Up by Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush inspired by West Ham’s poor start to the season and my search for a big idea. The song is sad, reflective but also strangely cathartic. Though as Peter Gabriel spends six minutes twenty nine seconds of the video locked in a tight embrace with Kate Bush you can see why his resolve might indeed have been boosted.
Much of writing is about proving people wrong. You are up against endless commissioning editors and agents who say no. My punk roots show with a liking for Wait and See by Stiff Little Fingers. The song chronicles all the naysayers who said they weren’t good enough to make it and has a chorus of “you’re not good enough!”, written at the height of the group’s success. On a more melodic note Kathy’s Song by Paul Simon, written in my home town of Brentwood, Essex, sees Paul asking why he bothers to write songs he can’t believe with words that he struggles to make rhyme, doubts shared by most of us at some time.
Similar songs about asking when your luck will turn in my mental jukebox are Waiting For The Great Leap Forwards by Billy Bragg and Tell Me When My Light Turns Green by Dexys Midnight Runners. At other times a simple burst of energy might get the tardy writer going and Teenage Kicks by the Undertones of Plan B by Dexys usually works.
Songs about writing can also be inspirational. Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy by Elton John was a childhood favourite and is the best album I’ve heard about the process of writing. It reminds me of sitting in my teenage bedroom dreaming of getting published. Bernie Taupin’s lyrics are wonderful, detailing the pair’s struggle to make it while sitting in greasy all-night cafes and the hope that they might one day write a standard. It even has a song called Writing.
Sometimes a song just makes you feel creative. Losing My Religion by REM has that effect, perhaps because it reminds me of being young-ish and sitting in a YHA breakfast room in New Zealand wondering what the future would bring.
More sophisticated writers probably write to a background of Mozart and Chopin, while younger scribes who are Swifties might prefer a bit of Taylor. But whatever your taste a bit of musical stimulus can sometimes prime you for a spell at the keyboard.
Pete May’s most recent book is Massive: The Miracle of Prague, published by Biteback. He is also the author of the memoir What Are Words Worth?