Comedy Songwriting
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@jennieb Jan 2022
Hi, haven't really seen anything like this on here so thought I'd drop something about it! I do comedy songwriting. Its partly because I love comedy and making people laugh and being silly, but also because I find it so hard to express my more vulnerable views and emotions through my lyrics. So, was wondering people's approach to comedy songwriting and the composing you do with it?
And how to people feel about performing comedy music, like how is it different to performing the usual stuff?
Would love to know. -
@nathansurles Jan 2022
I write some funny songs. Good comedy songs take talent and skill. I like to make songwriters characters in my songs if I know they are ok with it and I can do it in a tasteful way.
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@cblack Jan 2022
I've written comedy novels before, but most of my lyrics have been more serious. But you've inspired me to write at least 1 comedy song this year! :D
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@bradbrubaker Jan 2022
I do some comedy songwriting as well as "serious" music. (I'm using quotes here because I know that comedy music can be treated with the same amount of seriousness in its composition as so-called "serious" music.) I've found the funny stuff tends to get the most requests. That said, the one time I paid a PR person to promote my music more widely, he said it is much harder to promote comedy music as it has more limited audience than "serious" music. The usual audio-centric outlets he turned to did not pick up my stuff as much as it did "serious" music. This was frustrating.
As for my approach, my goal is always always always to write a good song first, something catchy people can remember. I think I do this pretty well. Next, with a comedy song, I make an effort to write more than a one-time use novelty song that gets less funny with each listen. I try to do this by delivering more than just a punchline in the chorus.
I know a lot of comedy songwriters write songs around one particular subject (hashtags, for example) and then name the song accordingly ("The Hashtag Song"). Personally, I try to avoid this in hopes the song won't be thought of simply as a joke song. That said, titles like "The Hashtag Song" (or whatever buzzword is currently trending) probably does help with the YouTube views. (Don't look to me for advice on YouTube views or getting more plays. I have very little success with that.)
Performance-wise, I play some comedy shows where I stick to the funny songs, but I also play more traditional shows. In those shows, in mix the songs up, some comedy and some "serious." I like playing the comedy songs and they get a big reaction live, but I wish people had more interest in my "serious" songs as those tend to be more tied to deeper, sadder stuff. Not that comedy songs can't be emotional or deep--some of the best ones are. -
@pearlmanhattan Jan 2022
I write some silly songs, hope to write more!
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@pearlmanhattan Jan 2022
I write some silly songs. I hope to write more
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@tawny249 Jan 2022
I have written a few very silly songs, but it's HARD to write good funny material. At least it is for me. Some people can really churn them out - especially parodies. It takes me a long while to write a halfway decent parody most of the time.
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@cblack Jan 2022
Oh! This reminds me of the Aussie comedy band, "Machine Gun Fellatio". If you don't mind explicit content, they're quite good. Saw them live once.
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@bradbrubaker Jan 2022
@cblack - I shall give them a listen, haha
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@jackdawfactories Jan 2022
Comedy music can be a truly wonderful thing! My recommendation from my own experience is to spend just a little longer on those lyrics finding the right joke that will stand the test of time.
I used to do a lot of comedy songs, to the point of performing shows at comedy festivals and the like, but looking back on the stuff I used to do I don't think it holds up. I was young then and didn't really understand the concept of "punching up/down" in comedy - often times there are easy laughs to be had at the expense of others to some degree, and that's something that can be easily avoided with just a little more thought. -
@jennieb Jan 2022
Woahh this post has already got A LOT of attention! Wasn't expecting it to but so happy that others like this kind of thing. I'm not a great comedy songwriter by any means, it's just my way of getting that part of my brain out there. I hopefully will improve over the course of FAWM. Will be sticking around here in case anyone wants to chat about comedy music! I highly recommend the Brett Domino Trio. The Horne Section are a great listen too
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@fuzzy Jan 2022
I usually crank out a couple of "comedy" ukulele songs in addition to my usual weirdness.
I dunno, I find it pretty easy to come up with funny lyrics when I'm in the mood; most of them are written in about fifteen minutes (some might say that they sound like it, too!).
As for easy laughs at the expense of others, @jackdawfactories, I think my first song for last year's FAWM was "George Harrison, The Least Talented Beatle". :) -
@tawny249 Jan 2022
I very much hope people are aware of @thefaithfulsidekicks . It's Eric and Jen Distad's fun geeky band, and they do mostly comedic material. You know, Eric, that guy who helps run the website. ;) When a band can write a song entirely in SQL, I think they've got something solid there.
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@jackdawfactories Jan 2022
@jennieb I interviewed Alex Horne a while ago for a now-defunct magazine! Lovely fella. Also I can't hear the Jurassic Park theme without thinking of Brett Domino.
@fuzzy I think making fun of a Beatle counts as punching up, personally. ;) -
@kanttila Jan 2022
Comedy is possibly the hardest of all styles to write in. How do you make a comedy song that people want to listen to more than once, like Weird Al's stuff, that doesn't just feel like a novelty.
I don't try to make "comedy" songs, though many of my songs are silly. I have a maniac energy when making music and in the moment I'm recording I feel compelled to do stupid things. I think of improv as the best comedy, something that isn't stiff.
So instead of sitting down to write a "comedy" song I just write silly lyrics if they come to me. Same if it's a serious song. and people can interpret it how they wish.
I had a VERY hard time writing serious songs at first, but then I found you can mix everything together and convey your serious emotions through humorous lyrics.
I don't know, I guess comedy is something you can't really explain in a way. I don't think about it deeply, my approach is to just let out the crazy energy that brews inside me when I'm recording and writing songs. I don't analyze what I find funny either, it just...is! -
@jennieb Jan 2022
@fuzzy yeah i find i can get a first draft out fairly quickly. then, i develop the lyrics and the jokes with the music, so they can be combined fairly naturally. my last song that i wrote was genuinely about Greggs. take what you will from that. excited to see what you come up with this year!
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@jennieb Jan 2022
@jackdawfactories no way!! oh, alex horne is one of my all-time favourite performers. very jealous of you!! taskmaster got me into comedy in the first place
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@jackdawfactories Jan 2022
Taskmaster is the reason TV was invented, I'm pretty sure
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@jennieb Jan 2022
Absolutely it was. Taskmaster is the king of all TV at this point
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@mandolinda Jan 2022
When I started songwriting (last year) I found it easier to be somewhat silly, and not expect too much. But I seem to be clever at humorous lyrics, as noted by the comments given. Don’t ask me how to do it though, because I am as befuddled as anyone.
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@abudabard12514 Jan 2022
Who are your big comedic influences?? I always try to steal jokes and joke structures from a variety of sources, myself. (usually TV.... usually The Simpsons...
usually John Swartzwelder, who am I kidding?)
I LOVE writing me some comedy songs! There's so many good approaches. My first focus when writing something funny, "Where's the expectation, and should I honor it?" If I set up a joke with an obvious rhyme that the listener will expect, do I just fully dive into that rhyme?
an hilariously banal example:
"I had a lovely daughter
who's boyfriend's name was chuck
I wouldn't let her marry him...
_______________"
It's a guarantee the listener already decided that 4th line. Do you try to bait and switch and go in a different direction? There are so many rhymes for "chuck" (If you even want to go the direction of perfect rhyme)! So many possibilities! and not just for the last line! The word "lovely" is a ripe spot for a gag.
Also it's such a fundamentals game, keep the melodies and chord progressions clear to the point where you don't have to think about them. You'll have a much harder time delivering the joke if you're fumbling with complicated stuff.
Knowing rhyme scheme and scansion and having a good grasp of vernacular language with a command of funny sounding words so you can make good lyric choices. Most importantly, the intention of the character should be clear. I always go back to Sondheim on this (while his lyrics aren't usually a scream, they're so freaking solid that you can't help but understand what he's talking about. It's infuriating, really.)
Looking forward to hearing from the comedy delegation of FAWM this year! I'm gonna watchlist you all!*
*I am phenomenally caffeinated. -
@wobbiewobbit Jan 2022
i write and perform comedy songs. i have been able a bit more recently, to come round to just songs, and they have a bit of humour, maybe, or not.
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@bradbrubaker Jan 2022
@jennieb & @jackdawfactories - Learning about and watching the entirety of Taskmaster has been one of my pandemic wins.
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@kiffa Jan 2022
A brief history of my adventures in comedy songwriting...
Some of the first songs I ever wrote were parodies, back around 1984 (no, that's not a joke). Back then, if I bought a 45 that had an instrumental version on the B-side, chances were I'd end up using it to record my own version.
A few years after that, my brother and I purged our teenage frustrations by writing and recording original dark comedy songs with titles like "Mr. Personality Disorder Man (Abrasions And Lacerations, Part 1: Bloody Knuckles)". They were kind of murder ballads... without the ballads. We were young lol.
In the 2000s I spent some time in the furry fandom (again, not a joke) and that's when I returned to parodies, teaming up with a friend to write and record comedic songs about furries and general internet culture (including the video game "Five Nights At Freddy's" and the disastrous tumblr-themed convention DashCon), parodying such artists as U2, David Bowie and Simon & Garfunkel along the way. We managed to gain a nice little following for a while, but went on 'indefinite hiatus' in 2016, as we both found ourselves feeling disconnected from the fandom. We're still friends though, and record the odd 'comeback single' every once in a while, the most recent being a "Cat's In The Cradle" parody about the wonderfully awful "Cats" movie in 2020.
My first FAWM outing in 2008 included a couple of funny songs (including a lost song written from the point of view of a "Scooby-Doo" villain), but I haven't used comedy much in my sparse FAWM efforts since then. If inspiration strikes, I'd love to employ a bit of humor again this year! -
@kiffa Jan 2022
Here's a link to the aforementioned "Cat's In The Cradle" parody, with me on vocals. It's one of the only songs online that I can link up without sending you to a furry website, and I don't want to put any of you through that lol.
I will include a couple of warnings here-- one for some strong language, and one for a reference to potential self-harm, which might be triggering for some. And you'll definitely be able to enjoy this more if you've seen the "Cats" movie.
http://chirb.it/whdBzc -
@mikeskliar Jan 2022
interesting thread- and yeah, I've written my share of 'comic' types of songs. I think my go-to songwriters for that stuff is , first, Loudon Wainwright III, who mixes the comic with the tragic and really has mastered the form, and , going back a bit, people like Tom Lehrer, (who is still as of this writing, alive, in his mid 90's- and tom, if you're out there, its not too late for a comeback!) So just if anyone wants a taste, here's a song of mine from about 2015 or so, talkin' bout social media and 'likes' and all https://mikeskliar.bandcamp.com/track/youre-fine-how-am-i
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@erikdidriksen Jan 2022
@jackdawfactories - I love the Brett Domino Trio, but I can't think of the Jurassic Park theme song without thinking of Mr. Swallow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hxv3Av7-d6Q
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@opossum Jan 2022
Hey y'all! Folks tell me my songs are funny so I reckon I'm doin' some of that there "Comedy Songwriting"! But I ain't sure as I just write about life as an opossum. If anyone would wanna check for me, here are a couple I wrote last year that seem purty funny to me!
https://fawm.org/forums/topic/12066/
https://fawm.org/forums/topic/12067/ -
@jennieb Jan 2022
So glad people are interested in this kind of thing
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@spunky4455 Jan 2022
Comedy lyrics are the only lyrics I feel comfortable singing. It's the yin to my instrumental yang. I left a couple of live video clips on my website.
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@rosedeschamps Jan 2022
Over 20 years as a performer, I have by far had the most success as a musical comedian. Writing comedy songs is a lot of fun! I’ve always had a storytelling approach to songwriting, which lends itself well to comedy. However, I think most of my comedy success comes down to the fact that my comedy skews a little filthy but I look like a Cabbage Patch Kid.
Couple of my comedy songs on YouTube:
https://youtu.be/EyIAHHbFjwY
https://youtu.be/UW69s7x_0h4
I’m by no means an expert but here are some of the things I keep in mind writing comedy songs:
- Setting up a punchline to land in a catchy chorus
- Juxtaposition between subject matter and overall song feel
- Getting some solid jokes in after the first chorus to keep momentum
Looking forward to seeing some comedy this FAWM! -
@acromie Jan 2022
I've been writing kids music for a few years now which usually means I'm writing silly earworms. This year's focus is on mushroom songs, so I'm sure there'll be a few comedic ones thrown in.
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@dreamscuba Jan 2022
Wow...lots of interest. In recent years, when I have written songs during FAWM where I have also written lyrics and sung (reference: man having a root canal without Novacaine), I have typically done a funny/comedy/silly song... I expect to do at least one during FAWM this year.
I am quite a fan of Tenacious D with the seriousness of classic rock, yet with tongue-in-cheek content... Jack Black is also pretty kick-ass on vocals. -
@aflinner Jan 2022
I usually try to get at least one new silly song in just for fun during FAWM. For me, the trick is to come up with a funny concept, then commit to it just like any other more “serious” work.
Some things I’ve done in years past:
Rapped out a whole synopsis of the first “Back to the Future” movie.
Did a rap basically going through a made-up Chinese food menu.
Produced a song explaining how to properly format a resume, done in the style of “Hamilton.”
Produced a song in the style of a boy band expressing a fondness for granny smith apples.
Probably do another one this year. Have to remember to check this thread out later to see what others have come up with. -
@katpiercemusic Jan 2022
I tend towards the lighter and more comedic when I write too. I had trouble writing more serious stuff, but I think that's partly because jokes are my defense mechanism, so it's hard for me to tackle something serious without making joke. My approach tends towards word play and subversion. I grew up in a house that loved language and word play so a lot of my lyrics reflect that, I think. The subversion comes from looking much younger than I am. I looked 12 when I was in college, so people didn't know what to make of me. I found that a lot of folks underestimated me. I just learned to use that, get under their defenses and then let them have it. So when I started writing, that came out a bit. I love performing funny songs, especially to new audiences, because again, I'm good at setting up an expectation and then subverting it. But I find now that I'm doing a lot more busking, I have to rethink how I approach things. If a song is wordy, or it takes a while to get to the payoff, then I need to wait until I have someone really listening to go there. So now I'm trying to write more short form attention grabbers.
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@gubna Jan 2022
I think I've done some of this. I have a song I did on Fawm a couple years ago which was called Melted Butter. I still laugh every time I hear it. I wrote a song last year called Klepto Granny.
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@wobbiewobbit Jan 2022
so many of these comments i totally agree with and relate to. i am looking at more short songs (wanna start a tik tok collection) the commitment thing i agree with and always cite Flight of the Conchords for being a great example of that. and also i love the nerdy performer side of the punchline/chorus etc... where else but in comedy music do you get to tell the same joke repeatedly?
great points, i have been performing comedy songs live since the late 80s and most of what i write here is to some degree comedy, not all though -
@spingo Jan 2022
Very very few of my released songs don't have at least a little humor in them. I come out with maudlin ones like anyone, but those are put aside--I figure there are enough of those in the world, and I'm more on a mission to give people a little mild amusement to make their lives a tiny bit easier, like Matisse's armchair.
I'm not a particularly expressive singer, so they come out pretty dry, which suits my sense of humor just fine. I would feel wrong all knee-slappin' and jumping around.
I look at the puzzle a little like having an idea and figuring out how to make a clever tweet out of it. -
@wobbiewobbit Jan 2022
nicely said @spingo
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@tseaver Jan 2022
Like @katpiercemusic, I use lots of word play when I write, and sometimes get completely silly, producing some of my favorite songs from FAWMs past.
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@spingo Jan 2022
@wobbiewobbit <curtsy>
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@tuneslayer Jan 2022
I grew up listening to funny songs. Homer & Jethro, Spike Jones, Allen Sherman, Tom Lehrer, Weird Al . . . check my bio for more. So it shouldn't be too surprising that I consider myself a writer of funny songs, and that some of what i've written is, objectively speaking, funny. But lookng over my repertoire I see that comedy/funny songs are actually in the minority. That's just the way Euterpe messes with me.
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@fuzzy Jan 2022
Here's a question; do you draw a distinction between "comedy" songs and "humourous" songs?
Thinking about it, I don't really write too many comedy songs. A lot of my output may be called humourous, however, even some of the instrumental stuff. So, not really laugh-out-loud funny, but rather weirdly amusing.
Where is the dividing line for you, if you even think that way? -
@yam655 Jan 2022
My stuff leans toward dark comedy, "potty humor", and absurdism far more than actually funny stuff. People die in a lot of my songs, there's a lot of poop in my songs (I released a whole album about the subject), and stuff just gets weird.
The most depressing song I ever wrote was about being a sandwich. I got a lot of feelings out with that one and I reference it quite a bit, but I never actually listen to the song.
Going absurd may be a way for you to sing about your emotions in a way that feels safer than drawing out the whole story in a song.
Relatedly, I like to ask people absurd questions to get to know them. People are far less guarded when it feels safe to answer truthfully. My favorite question for this is: "It's my theory that all vegetables are out for world domination. If you were a vegetable, which one would you be, and how would you go about taking over the world?"
Also, songs can be like stories, so the characters in them can be entirely fictional.
If you have a set of songs and some are fictional and some are absurd and some are just funny, it provides convenient cover for a song or two that's drawn directly from your lived experience. That is, if you do decide to try one of those at some point.
(I just realized that my song "Do You Like Beards?" -- which includes gluing hair to a person's face if they can't grow their own beard -- might be considered funny. That song is 100% serious.) -
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@complexissimple Feb 2022
I usually end up doing a few comedic songs on purpose and a few on accident. I'll let you know what my process is when I've actually written one and figured it out!
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@debs Feb 2022
My recipe for comedic songwriting tends to be potty humour + parodies. I stay as true to the original as I can, hoping to juxtapose a great performance with utter ridiculousness.
