Usually when I tell my students they can write a song in 5 minutes I get a big eye-roll and a “yeah right!” sort of comment.
But the truth is that with a little bit of theory under your belt, writing music really isn’t all that complex for the most part. Try this out:
Now granted, I made that pretty simple, and often that’s really all there is to it. It can get complex if you want, but most of the greatest songs of all time didn’t use more than a few chords.
In fact, many songs have the exact same chords as the comedians in this next video will show you (by the way, the 4 chords are I, V, vi, IV which in the key of G are G, D, Emin and C)
So there you go songwriters – get out that pen and paper, pick 4 numbers and write the next great classic song!
And if you want to learn more about what Guitar Theory can do for you, check out the Guitar Theory Made Useful DVD course.
131 replies to "How To Write A Song In 5 Minutes Or Less"
Great video, great connection to Aussie comedians to demo concept.
Aussie Chris
great learning lesson for me. thks
Buddy Guy on Jimmy Kimmel last night doing Red House check it out.
I HAVE BEEN WRITTING SONGS SINCE THE 60’S. IN 1968 OUR BAND DAWAN, HAD A HIT SINGLE CALLED “THE GIRL I LOVE”. ON KRLA, AM RADIO TOP 10. I HAVE SONGS THAT ARE ALL MINOR CORDS AND SOME THE WTH 7TH DEMINISED CORD WHEN THE CHORUS COMES IN.
ONE THING YOUR RIGHT, BUT LISTEN TO THE EAGELS AND SEE ALL THE DIFFERANT CHORDS THEY USE. NOT ALL SONGS USE ALL THE SAME CHORDS. WISH I HAD YOUR EMAIL I WOULD SEND YOU A FEW OF MY DEMOS.
Griff remember the classic 1957 tune ‘Tequila’ by the Champs? It would be nothing without that F7 dim chord. I have trouble getting your fast enough I wish there was a good replacement!
Hey Griff, a blues classic “She Caught The Katy” Eb to Edim7 recorded by Taj Mahal, the Blues Brothers and Albert King among others. Check out Gary Gilmore’s recording on Taj Mahal’s recording and Duck Dunn’s interpretation of the same tune with the 1980 Blues Brothers recording.
Nice one. I’ve never used that chord construction method in all the years I’ve been playing and it’s so simple, as you rightly say. My learning nowadays is mostly about the theory side, being self taught, I just couldn’t be doing with theory, it was a case of pick up the guitar and see where you go. However, since I’ve been downloading your lessons and having bought your BGU DVD course, it’s amazing just how much of an improvement there has been in my knowledge and my playing of the Blues in particular. I’ve recommended your site to many people over here, so, thanks for the knowledge you put out to us all. Ray (UK).
Outstanding every time you load a video for us to learn from as you are the ultimate teacher bar none in your approach to showing the student from a understandable demo and clear explanation. thank you as always
Griff,
Don’t play diminished chords?
O.K…..they are rarely used. However, I have composed and recorded a pretty good rock song in which a straight up diminished chord is essential to the song. The main riff is actually based loosely on Beethoven’s 5th symphony. I cannibalized the main riff of the symphony, and hybridized it with rock and jazz.. I know you get tons of mail, but I hope I can send you the recording so you can hear a rare but effective use of a diminished chord. If you somehow get this, and you are interested in a unique song, please get in touch!
Really well done lesson n very digestible, one of the best I’ve seen for simplicity n some unlocking of music theory . Once one understands this process it makes it easy to lift chords from songs u hear n want to learn. Maybe a quick reference to the 6 th note being the relative minor of the root Key chord would be helpful to know as relative minor shares two of the notes found in its relative major chord. Darn good stuff , job well done
I know how to apply this to any Major Key … how do i apply it to minor ?
As usual,simple. but really works wonders.to tell you the truth I showed this theory to my friend and now he is has come a long way. Thankx very much Griff.
thanks for the video i would like to purchase the dvd but i am not able to at this time due to madical bills. i would like to thank you for all the great licks you have tought me and others.
this is by far the best mathod i have found.
Thanks again Griff … Now I know how to write my ” One Hit Wonder ” . You’re the best !!!
Things can be a little confusing for me when it comes down to theory and a bit overwhelming also.But this vid is so usefull and helpful that its so much easier to understand regarding Keys,notes and building chords.it really is the best way to teach.Thanks Griff.
Thanks Griff,I do like your theology on the five minute song thing, i shall keep that in my files.
Also nice lol at the comedy video,thanks again wayne.
Hi Griff, u hav a way of breaking down and explaining theory! This lesson was brilliant. U just demystified a thing which I was confused for many years. Gotta giv u a 11 out of 10 for this lesson. Cheers.
Great.love that Gibson.(and tele)….I’m ready to get my ideas down on paper..Thanx Griff
Hi Griff…..
This is a great reminder…. .simple stuff sounds and works the Best..
I am really enjoying your site…..
Steve M.
Hey Griff! I really love the lessons and as a semi-accomplished player you’re giving me new ideas, techniques, or just food for thought! As a songwriter I have to say don’t steer your students away from those 7th Chords. Those chords are interchangeable with the minor chords within the scale. No where is this more demonstrated than in the writing of Lennon/McCartney. Not only does this change the whole flavor of the chord, but it gives you a fourth tone within the chord structure to build your melodies and harmonies and leads around. For example: if you use A7 (A C# E and G-the seventh note) in place of Am (A C E) it takes you to a whole new place. Take the progression in your lesson and change those two minor chords to seventh chords and as a aspiring songwriter it opens up all kinds of new possibilites. If you listen to some of the older Beatle’s stuff (“I Call Your Name”, “I’ll Follow the Sun”, “Hold Me Tight” etc.) John and Paul (largely self-taught) had figured this out. Probably why their music has endured for fifty years!
Thanks for the help your providing to all of us, and keep ’em comin’
B
I hate the auto correct on my phone,!
Hey Griff, I think you have great lessons. I’ve been checking purge theory to see if I’m missing anything . Because I learned in bits and pieces from slot of places. I understand the major scale how to harmonize it. Intervals , how lntervals how they affect major Scales to make minor , minor harmonic,minor and major pentatonic , blues scales. All the triads how sustained chords remade exotic scales. Am I missing any. Would your video still help me?
G’day Griff. It seems I spent thirty years or so searching for the lost chord – I didn’t know it was a relatively minor thing !!!! An old friend once told me to choose what I wanted to play “you can do Jazz and play 20,00 chords in front of 3 people; or you can Rock and play 3 chords in front of 20,000 people!! My choice was to play 4 chords in front of everyone !!!! May your God smile on all of us.
Griff, thank you so much, I’m working on a new project and that was very helpful to me!!
The easiest explanation I remember hearing on writing a song, great job. On my website I have theme music video. You can hear what you explained.
Thank You,
Brian
I wish you had made this video downloadable!
It seems that anyone can make it big time with 4 chords. Write 100 songs and who knows maybe one of them or more can make it through.
It has taken me about 40 years to figure this out …. You have answered all my questions in a 7 minute video!!! Rock on and now I can accompany myself with just about any song!
very good, Great to see how cords can go together; Michael
Thanks for making things easy to understand. Makes learning this stuff more fun.
absolutely bang on, thank you. the comedians were good.
When you put it like that, it is easy , something so simple can be really cool , Thanks .
Loved the comedians but seriously, nicely put across as usual
Always helpful and entertaining. Thanks.
wow i never new that… what a great help and insight to chord progresion thank you so much
Another great lesson Griff, thank you. The comedians by the way are Australians. I had to point that out being an Ausie myself.
As almost always is the case, begin and keep it simple; add sophistication only when it really moves the music to be fresh and, of course, sounding great. Nice clip !
See Griff. That email about you being easy to a “hear” this is a so perfect example of you laying it out and then applying it. Super job. You made a normally complex task (for beginners) very simple and easy to understand.
Thats awesome. I do that with finger style in different keys and finger patterns and I can play for hours. True about diminished chordss though. I have never been able to make them fit anywhere. They sound out of key. Thought it was just me not placing them right.
thankyou , I have learned the 123456 chords more commonly known as the caged keys
but with your theory applied to it I can now finish a song I have written and was always struggling on putting chords to it
thanks again
Thanks Griff, You are always helping me understand with your easy way of showing how it works without killing me with details I don’t understand. Great job. You are a good friend. dave
I va
Thanks for making this a lesson easy to understand
Hello Griff, I’m not a famous songwriter, I only write songs and I do mostly open mike when I have the chance, but I use the same structure you are teaching and it always works
Great lesson Griff. I appreciate your time and effort.
Hi Griff, could you explain something for me please. If we are playing as in the example in the key of “G’, do you need to start with the root eg “G”chord..If you dont and lets say you start with the “C’ chord,do you still play the same chords like you would if starting on G,… G maj, Amin, Bmin, C maj, Dmaj, Emin.or because we have started on a “C’ does that mean the chords are then…Cmaj, Dmin, Emin, Fmaj , Gmaj, A min. I have played the second bit starting with a C and dosent sound right. So i presume then, you decide what key eg “G’. Work out the chords and then start where ever you want. I think i read somewhere once that you should always end up on the song with the chord that the key is in.?? thanks sempei
Thank you for the explanation of what a key involves. I’ve avoided learning this because I thought it was a lot of memorizing. It took me about a half hour but its something I won’t forget.
I really appreciate these lessons!
Ed Mintun
Thanx Griff, always a pleasure to hear from you. Simplicity rocks. Comedians were hilarious. Best regards. Joe
always something to learn and very informative
Thanks as always Griff for the great info. Hate to be the ‘village idiot’, but have been waiting for someone to ask about your strum pattern, as that is what makes your stuff sound so great to me. So, guess I will ask…….? Also, what is the timing for chord changing (if that makes sense)? Thanks again.
good lesson griff. liked the comedians
Thankyou
Great stuff! Now I have some useful ideas in writintg songs, thanks Griff!
Hi Griff,
This made sense of something someone tried to teach me some time ago but….
Your comment about if you want it sound minor then begin on the 2,3 or 6 chord. Does this mean a song beginning with Am is not in the key of A but could be in C or G for example? The inference being that the key of a song is always a major?
Example “House of the rising sun”:
Am C D F
Am C E
But if this is in C then the E should be minor…or is this an exception?
House of rising sun is in the key of a minor. The i chord is am and the E7 is the V chord.
Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, Griff. You are a master
at teaching. I think I finally understand the importance of scales.
But for the 7th note, why is a whole step from E (two frets)
leave you with an F# instead of F?
Hi, its because in the scale the step between E and F is only a half step.
Wow, as a basic C A G E D player, this makes it come together. I’ve had a lyric written for about six months but couldn’t put it to music. After this video, it came together in about 6 minutes.
Thanks very much for making it simple.
This is really enlghtening Griff! Thank you!
Thanks again,
David
great ,,you make it look so easy ,was it( adam ants) .,playing counting the beat,,,, an 80,s song ,,ha , maybe he was leaning to write songs ,, at the time,,thanks man,,cheers,,,
Great Lesson, I was actually introduced to this stuff in guitar 101 back in my college days but the way you present it makes a lot morse sense.
Thanks Griff
Very cool !!!;)
thanks griff,you make it look so easy.its taken a while but i think im getting it at long last.cheers mate
You know Griff I think that was the video that will make it all click. the fact that the circle of chords is on my frettboard never occured to me until know. All i have to do is pick the root note or key and count up the notes of the fretboard to get my chord progressions is awesome and simple. this was a very important video for me. you are a teacher… I have taken 20 or so other video lessons and no one has ever done that before. It is so obvious that other teachers dont think it needs sayin. Believe me when you are as dumb as me it needs sayin!!
very helpful
Another awesome, clear and easy PEARL of musical wisdom. Your lessons are worth every penny and more. Thanks!
spot on marra great as always forby sunderland
Keep em commin Griff!!!
cool
Hey Griff,
I love when I see your emails in my inbox. This lesson is right to the point and how right you are with all the classic hits over the last 50 years. Chord structure and the rest is easy, This lesson got me writing again. Thanks for the great words of wisdom.
Jimm Memphis
Griff. Thanks . you have unlock the I IV V theory for me.All this while I was wondering how they were derived. It certainly spurs me up to spend more time playing the guitar than watching TV programs. You are simply a great teacher. For all you know I had the “C” chord on the guitar neck in a day regards to your first video lesson. I do play a bit of barre chords so it makes things easier for me. Thanks again..
Great vid, but wish I could download it. My bandwith is so slow It is a major problem. Its not goos seeing you talk without moving your lips. Please give a link to the file. But thanks for the Vid, Brilliant.
This turned on a light bulb for me. I’ve been trying to figure out a song I heard in the movie Horse Whisperer, Looking for a soft place to fall, This idea helped me find most of the chords. Thanks.
Unbelievably clear! I finally understand that whole numbering business! If I understand right, the I IV III and V in the key of C are C, F, E and G.
Thanks, Griff!
kool Man, so simple but if you don’t have a great guy like u to inform one like me i would have wonder aimless for years to come across this thanks and if your in Toronto drop by for a well deserved Beer Alex b een writing and have use it not know what I was doing .
Thanks Griff, that works in my mind ,i never thought of it that way. Ken
Knocking it out of the park Griff! That was clearly great. thanks so much!
Griff As a beginner but not!! in your video of major scales. I would like to know in the F# scale just where do you find a E# note ?? Thanks Jim
Absolutly amazing! Thanks Griff.
Hi Griff,
You never cease to amaze me.
Great stuff Griff, Will pick up my “Guitar Theory” course next week.
I may already know the answer to this question and not be aware of it but here goes. Let’s say I’m noodling in “A” and I decide to noodle around with the combo of the V, III, I, and VI. Do I form all of those chords at the 5th fret? If so, I don’t know how. This has been a confusing issue for me from the start Griff. I can form something like 12 chords using the 3rd fret or lower, not including barre chords, but, when I go higher than the 3rd fret I seem to lose the sight picture of how a chord should look or sound at that fret, do you follow?
I guess I’m saying I only know how to form open chords. Sad really after over 2 yrs of noodling but, to be fair, I have very little time to practice. I think the answer may lie within the 5 positions of the major scale shapes but I’m not sure. Thanks Griff. G
Nice one!I really enjoyed it!wow!all dat song on a 4chord progression!very hilarious!.lol thnx griff.
Great lesson! Simple , concise and great teaching tool. Thanks for all your efforts and passion in educating the guitar playing community.
So far this is the most important lesson I have seen. It opens the door for songwriting.
Keep this stuff coming! Love it, it’s very helpful!
Thank you so much for a fantastic video. That’s one of the most useful things I’ve seen since starting guitar. Reason being that our band always expects me to come up with a chord progression on the fly. This is going to make things so much easier.
If the rest of your course is this good, count me in!
Thanks for the lesson it was simply brilliantly simple! For a dyslexic song writer you have given me a great avenue into getting my music structure right without a whole swathe of theory to stumble through.
Tom Taylor
The video was from an Aussie program called the “Footy show”. Which is the one for the Rugby league, most likely done in Sydney.
Nice re-familiarization of song structure lesson. I had forgotton about the 2nd, 3rd & 6th being the subdominant minor. It got me in discussion with my wife about the perfect 4th and perfect 5th and we ended up bringing out the keyboard. thanks!
VERY GOOD NOW I CAN TRY TO MAKE SONG ON MY SHEET MUISIC THANK YOU
Griff, That 2nd video was great! Where did you get it from?
Thanks,
Tom from Atlanta with a cain
GRIFF, write a song in 5 minutes was great. thanks will give it a go.
Hey, Griff
Great stuff. I’ve been tinkering with theory
and harmonic structure for many years
but you are a master at cutting right to the
chase.keep up the good work.
There’s a great song by Neil Young called “Crime in the City (Sixty to Zero Part I)” it sums up this way of thinking when it comes to song writing.
You’d find it on an album called “Freedom”.
Simply put – well done!
I liked learning to avoid the 7 and the 3 Chords in progressions. 3 is too much like the 1. 7 is hard to use. Knowing what is used a lot and what is hard to use helps us a lot.
However, I like those odd chords like diminished (and sharp and flat 5’s, etc). A Brahms waltz I’m decoding has lots of diminished chords and half-step movements. He uses all 12 notes in the melody line yet never seems to jar. They all fit perfectly!
Back to simple, I can get intrigued with simplified classics like by Satie and Schuman only to discover they were using standard Blues chords and movements way back in the early 19th century. Wonderfully beautiful, they turn out to be simple structurally, sometime made out of only two or three chords.
While I’m here, I had a blast recently trying to jam with Lidst’s “Sonata in B minor,” which is impossibly complex and totally wild. Even accomplished pianists can’t do it. But working totally by ear and trying to replicate returning themes, it sort of worked out sometimes! The theory is way beyond me, but the tricks and patterns are sort of accessible if I can stay loose.
Thanks, Griff, for this concise foundation for composing!
(For those wanting this and the more elaborate devices it leads to, I also like Rikky Rooksby’s “The Songwriting Sourcebook.”)
Griff,
I just gotta say this. I did’nt realize how much we really need this theory,
I mean, anyone trying to play with out it, surly is not going to write and or play at their best.
Dan Denley has good theory courses too, I bought one. but as soon as I get the money together I’m coming after this course from you too(guitar theory made usefull). in case anyone wants to help me get it, that’d be real nice too.
ps. any takers out there for the helping, Griff knows my E-Mail address
Thanks these video lessons you are posting gives the non theoretical muso’s a great jump start to what its like to be versed in music. Keep it up its great.
Thanks
David
oh and forgot IM 43 yrs old now so i went 20 yrs not playing and in 7 months u got me back in to shape and a lot better guitar player and still getting better everyday .. thank you .. Tim
I got your blues videos 7 months ago to resharpen my skills i stop playing by age 20 cause of the death of my father it just hurt to bad … he was a great guitar player and singer by age 14 was on stage with him playing rythem guitar for him and his band… so i got your videos on the blues scales and set down and put them in and clear my mind lik ei had never pick a guitar up and relearn my scales … and i play everyday now and have wrote some blues songs .. i have tracks on soundcloud.com and i am getting out there again and playing … thanks to you … my name on soundcloud is Tim1968 feel free to check them out and listen to your great teaching at work … thank you … Tim
Sounded like the chord run was more like E-B-C#-A, in the Axis video.
very funny video gonna try writing my own next hit, thank you for the info. joe
Great question from Andrew Bryan, who should be congratulated on critically thinking about the music theory lesson, and taking it to the next step. And obviously, a great answer, Griff. I very much enjoy the lessons and the comments
Griff, this was really interesting and entertaining at the same time.
Thanks,
Jack
WOW, superb, I felt I had ‘over subscribed’ to BGU but it just gets better. Many thanx Griff
The boy’s are very clever Griff. They do know what they’re doing. But you have simplified and given me forward thinking. I thank you.
You clever dude Griff
The attached video really brought home and enforced the lesson.
As with all the lessons this one goes to the library to keep going back and reviewing.
Excellent. i have played guitar on and off for years but never got to grips with the various theoretical aspects which you have a knack of making really easy and enjoyable to learn. Keep it up – look forward to the next lesson.
David
WOW, a lot to this but you make it simpler. I’ll study this video more and try it. Thanks…
That’s awesome, very helpfull Thanks Griff
Thanks for that really great lesson, short and sweet ! Loved the other video, got a really good laugh with it ! Thanks again
Tom
Both videos were great and really make the point of how many songs can be composed from the same four chords. Thanks for fun.
Griff,
Succinct, easy to understand. Great demo you posted with those guys from my neck of the woods. As I’ve said before, you bring a lot of joy to many of us around the world.
Griff
You have done it again. You have taken a concept I have struggled with for many years and have made it clear and simple in less then 7 minutes. Keep the goodies coming!
I enjoyed that lesson, that was good it was alot better than how the notes work too elementary
Conrad
making songs up is the best part about playing I think. Thanks. I got at least one tidbit that will make my efforts that much easier and fun. Who the hell needs to learn other people’s songs? They have already been done! LOL.
very good indeed …
This is fabulous. Everytime I watch one of your videos I learn something new and so wonderful.
I know, my job, is to get my guitar re strung (thanks for yesterday about strings) and off I go.
You are so helpful in these videos. The next step of course has to be me and my guitar.
But whatever I learn here, seems, strangely, generalizable to life, in a very interesting way. There is a chord and accord, and I see something going on here, that might just help me really learn to play!
thank you Griff, for your enthusiasm and all that you teach. And this video I am so eager to put to work.
Hey Griff,
I can’t do facebook stuff for a good reason. I appreciate your lessons & you make it simple & clear. KISS principle I guess. but it gels with me & I am actually getting an understanding of a lot of stuff I touchedc on through out my many years. I am still trying but know that father time will eventually beat me in the long run. being able to play a few songs all the way through will be great & this lesson in particular is I think an aha moment. Regards Wayne & have a great day
Hi Griff ……… Thought that was brilliant …. I like to write songs and spend hours trying to find the right chords ….. I sort of knew it but it needed someone to tell me to get that oh yea moment .theres so much info your trying to learn but no practical use for it.Thanks …by the way is that “Guitar Theory Made useful” course free post and packing ( cheeky )
hi Griff ,I always enjoy your lessons,I think I can start to see the light at the end of the tunnel when I will one day say I am a guitarist.Please check out my song on youtube “psalm96 malachi” would appreciate your comments.I did not play on this but wrote it and sang it.A big thanks to you
Alex
Oh Ya I lose track of time when I get in to this frame of mind. Thanks for letting me no that its normal
wow – thanks Griff – great lesson.
I’ve been feeling a bit ‘uncertain’ as I’ve realised that many of the songs I’ve written follow a D A Bm G pattern or similar HOWEVER that wonderful video showing the huge range of melodic lines available within such a pattern gives me some heart.
Also – thanks for having ‘open’ comment section……I don’t want to communicate via a Facebook portal.
@Andrew – “After Midnight” is a good example of a “bluesy” song that isn’t blues. The essence of blues is really mixing the major and minor 3rds together. So it’s not uncommon to see situations like this where the 1 chord is major (as in the D) but really behind the scenes it’s more of a dominant 7th chord. Then it goes up to the minor 3rd and the 4th (the F and G)
“La Grange” by ZZ Top is the same thing…. A and then up to C and D. It’s basically a translation of the old John Lee Hooker idea brought into the modern era.
To play over it use the blues scale. When you hit the I chord (the D in this case) You can grab the F# note to accentuate it… but you wouldn’t have to.
Very useful & very well (& simply) explained Griff but now you have me searching for a song with a Dim. chord in it !
LP
Hi Griff,
Great lesson and very good fun playing with the numbers. One of the frustrating things we students have it that the theorists give us the rules and the composers appear to break them. My example is J J Cale’s song “After Midnight”.
The chords are: D F G and A. In the chord of D the notes are D F# and A. In the scale the notes are: D Em F#m Gmaj Amaj Bmin C#Dim (I think – If I’ve learned correctly from your theory course). So there isn’t an F anywhere. Can you help by explaining why the F chord works in the song?
I hope I haven’t got it wrong and I’m just making an idiot of myself.
All the best,
Andrew
RJ – With G you can do no wrong. I didn’t pick G for the Axis of Awesome Video, just worked out that way. G is everywhere in GuitarLand 🙂
Griff! Sometimes it takes a simple approach (maybe a few) to reach a step up in understanding. THIS video (and your teaser on theory) did it for me! I knew the individual parts, but never made the connection. Just like when someone mentioned that there are only 5 notes in pentatonic – a light went on in my head! Of course there are 5! Duh… penta… duh… I just never made the connection – I was just focused on the patterns.
hand rolled dude ..sweet thanks for the info ..
Griff, you always choose G
Hey Great stuff
Great Post Griff!