Matt,
Do you know the three greatest songs ever written?
THE LONG AND WINDING ROAD
YESTERDAY
THE ONE I JUST WROTE TODAY!!!!!!
Everybody is so busy trying to get their OWN STUFF OUT THERE, THEY ARE REALLY NOT LISTENING TO ANYONE OR ANYTHING.
This is EXTRODINARILY TRUE FOR LYRIC ONLY WRITERS.
About anyone can write a song. We start doing it at 5 years old.
"I DO NOT LIKE GREEN EGGS AND HAM, I DO NOT LIKE THEM SAM I AM!!"
The problem is when you are tryhing to write somethign that people would actually want to purchase with their time and money OR ATTENTION SPAN.
A lyric only writer has no sense of melody,meter, the public, the interest of people they don't know.
They are just WRITING STUFF DOWN!!!!
I go routinely to lyric forums on all the forums I am involved with,. And every once in a while I go to some of the Facebook, Reverb nation, pages, song contests, and of course the endless parade of people I work with, that are on writers nights, open mics, and those people that I JUST HAVE TO HEAR!!!!
The songs are usually morose, unending tales of WOOOOOOOEEEEE!!!!! They are about every abberant behavior, every negative thing that goes on in life, the same stuff we see endlessly on the news everyday,the recycled nonsense that was overused when it was first written 100 years ago, re-stating the same thing that has been over restated a billion times, and no new information whatsoever.
But they are happy to tell you that you will LOVE THEIR LYRICS TO THEIR MUSIC.
I don't really know where they get the gall to do that. They are the ones who are limited in their understanding of the form. They generally HAVE NO FORM. Usually when you get to the third page or the sixteenth verse you usually are still looking for a chorus or even where the title or hook is supposed to be. But they will tell you over and over how much YOU NEED THEM. Oh, you've got a song too? Oh, fine. BUT LISTEN TO THIS!!!! WAIT'LL THEY GET A LOAD OF ME!!!"
The proper way to deal with it, is to read a couple (three is my limit),see if there is anything there. Trust me. There won't be. Tell them that 'You don't hear anything that you can use right now." And GET THE HELL AWAY!
If they can't play you some FINISHED SONGS, you don't need them. I am very hard on lyricsists because most of them are NOT lyricists.Even my friend, the brilliant JIMBEAU HINSON, who is a REAL lyricist, has a GREAT VOICE and performance style. If you can outright Jimbeau, you are in a different class. They can't.
I have just never met a pure lyricist that has no musical abilities, at least to be able to hum or indicate a little musicality, that can stand up. If they can at least sing a little or get some musical ideas out of their inner brain, they at least have something in the game. Those that just write lyrics with nothing else ARE POETRY WRITERS.
And THE ONLY PEOPLE WHO CARE ANYTHING ABOUT POETRY WRITERS ARE OTHER POETRY WRITERS.
They pay to be included in these "poetry collection" books. That of course are only bought by OTHER PEOTRY PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THE SAME BOOKS. They make for good things to put in the bookshelves of those houses they have for the Neighborhood home shows, where the real estagte people have visitors come through. They go to poetry slams or readings. They either smoke too much dope or drink too much tea, because they would bore anyone with a brain. I think they should be used in pre-schools, to bore the kids to sleep.
Then there are the RAPPERS...... Okay, I'll lay off that one. LOL!
Like everything in music, you be polite, and get them to go elsewhere. Never make enemies, never make a big deal, just kind of let it go away on it's own. They'll find smoeone else to bother. Actually one of my MOST FUN GAMES IN NASHVILLE is getting converstations going among people that i really don't care for. I'll say something that gets them talking to each other, then silently slink away. I really laugh my butt off an hour later when they are still talking and trying to find someone else to shove the other person on to.
YOU REALLY GOTTA LEARN TO ENTERTAIN YOURSELF IN THIS BUSINESS!
MAB