On the topic of songwriting, which is what ryanwelton.com is supposed to be about in part: I don't talk enough about lyrics. And that's going to change.

There used to be a time I didn't pay attention to them much.

In the 1980s, I'd listen to Chicago and Toto and all these great studio bands and I would wonder who in the world needed words. Listen to this MUSIC!

However, as an artist, I came to realize the music part of a song is like sex. It's important to the overall marriage, but you eventually have to talk to your spouse, which means there needs to be some substance there.

Lyrics are substance. It's why Dylan is a god and why Springsteen is still influential, even though he hasn't had a chart hit in almost 20 years. Rightly or wrongly, words are why rap and hip-hop are not only popular but influential.

The process of writing words, for me, isn't one of communicating inner pain or resolving conflict. It's about creating aesthetically pleasing combinations of words in hopes of building a coherent lyric set to music.

I don't sleep with a notebook by my bed.

But if something comes to mind, as it did a year ago when the phrase "cigarettes and Certs" came to mind, I pop it in a Notepad file and store it away. Eventually, I wrote a song and gave it that very title. Click on my "originals and covers" tab to go listen to it.

The process can become a mix-and-match shopping trip, particularly if a writer is in need of a great first line of a verse or chorus. Take Peter Allen's song, "Arthur's Theme," which he wrote with Carol Bayer Sager, Burt Bacharach and Christopher Cross back in the early 1980s. They won an Oscar for it.

And, it had one of the great first lines ever for a chorus: "When you get caught between the Moon and New York City."

Independent of the song, what does that bring to mind? To me, I can't separate it FROM the song. It paints a picture of a boyish dreamer, a manchild perhaps, which is exactly who Dudley Moore portrayed in Arthur.

But that line was actually part of another song Allen co-wrote with Sager. Perhaps it wasn't finished. Perhaps it was never demoed. Maybe it was a throw-away. I don't know.

The line was so good though that he lifted it from that tune and plopped it into this one, which is something songwriters do all the time. Lyrical recycling.

The process of writing lyrics, for me, is one where I sit down and do it all at once. I open a rhyming dictionary. I surf the Web for ideas. I'll watch TV online. I'll veg. I'll take a phone call. I'll read the paper. But I'll do it all with my lyric sheet open.

And I don't get up until I have at least a lyrical construct in place.

However, when it comes to the details, the phrase turns, the tense, the search for that great opening line or great title, I get writer's block constantly.

And that's where this little creative trick can really bail you out.

The point is simple: Don't get so married to your phrases and lines that you aren't willing to recycle them. If you know you have a home-run melody, like Allen and Co. knew with "Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)," then you have to take one for the team and sacrifice that already-used lyric.

Don't think for one second that if I'm faced with a once-in-a-lifetime writing opportunity on a song with a great melody and an opportunity for big success that I won't reuse a phrase or line I had put to bed long ago.

Per the VH1 Hip-Hop Honors countdown of the 100 greatest hip-hop tracks of all time, I decided to post my Top 5.

Some context though.

I'm not a purist. While I respect Public Enemy and Eric B & Rakim and DMC and the Beastie Boys, I sort of just like what I like.

Lyrically, all five of these tracks are strong, but from more of a pop-culture bent. There isn't the social fight aspect of these songs that is contained in the work of PE and others, although I think my No. 1 track should be written in history as, I think, the most influential song of my lifetime.

"Straight Outta Compton" influenced pop culture, music, business, society, dress, art, everything, and it did so at an impact level. While a lot of the book-smart critics praised PE and the Beastie Boys and De La Soul, musicians took note of this track and said, "DAMN!"

Anyway, here's my Top 5 hip-hop songs of all time with notes below each.

No. 5 - "O.P.P. -- Naughty By Nature"



A largely forgotten track, this song was way more popular in the early 1990s than anybody 30 and older would care to admit.

No. 4 -- "Today Was A Good Day -- Ice Cube"



I know many men who can recite this entire song without blinking. Besides, who hasn't "messed around and got a triple-double."

No. 3 -- "Cowboy -- Kid Rock"



I think Kid Rock could make a case for the best rocker of this decade.

No. 2 -- "Mama Said Knock You Out -- LL Cool J"



I remember when the MC battle between LL and Kool Moe Dee was a big deal, and while I liked me some KMD ... James won this battle. What I love so much about this song and many of these hip hop tracks is how good the words are. Anybody with any semblance of pop culture knowledge will get "Don't call it a comeback," the moment you say it. That is one of the great first lines in music history.

No. 1 -- "Straight Outta Compton -- NWA"



This track is not for everybody. It's raw, angry and there is a ton of language in it. However, if music critics revere punk music for any reason, they must pay homage to this. It's not only more musical, it's more intelligent and vastly rawer than anything that came out in the 1970s. Why? Because for a lot of kids in various parts of the country, this was real life.

You've probably heard by now that VH1 recently named its 100 greatest hip-hop songs of all time. I can't really debate their list.

VH1 picked a lot of the songs based on social impact and musical influence, and I'm merely a creature of the physical. I like what sounds good and the lyrics that resonate with me. I'm putting together my Top 5 hip-hop songs of all time and need a little more time to research.

However, I ran across a song that underscores why I am and always have been a fan of O'Shea Jackson, better known as Ice Cube. The song is "Until We Rich," a duo of sorts between Cube and Krayzie Bone, and the message of the song is two-fold: success and responsibility.

It has been fascinating to watch Cube's career progress. He's just a year older than I am, but those of us children of the 80s have watched this guy grow from his days with NWA until today, when he's mostly known as an actor, director and movie mogul.

I'm sure a lot of social criticisms of hip-hop are fair, and I'm not interested in debating them. However, the musical value is crystal clear. Hip-hop is to the spoken word what jazz is to music. And like jazz, a lot of hip-hop doesn't resonate with me one iota.

But what I like, I really like -- and this "Until We Rich" tune is one I like not only on the musical front but also the lyrical. The music is sampled from a Glenn Jones hit called "Show Me" ... Anyway, enjoy it, and listen to the words.

My favorite line is: Television, it'll keep your ass wishin' forever.

This should really be required listening for any teen, except -- uh -- maybe the part where he sings about lighting his joints with ones and having nothing but fun. Other than that, there are some major pearls of wisdom in this one.

As a songwriter, I am highly appreciative of the 1970's era of outlaw country from Texas. Guys like Guy Clark and Ray Wylie Hubbard and Waylon, Willie, David Allen Coe and more

Oh, and New York's own Ronald Clyde Crosby, better known as Jerry Jeff Walker. A New York folk artist who became entrenched in the Austin music scene, solidifying his place in songwriting history with classics like "Mr. Bojangles."

Here he is singing his composition after a quick discussion with Don Meredith on the Dinah and Friends show from the late 1970s.

There are certain songs I grew up with, and you may have grown up with them, too. While I'm 38, the music I was raised on came from the 1930s and 40s.

Jazz standards. Big bands. Movie theme classics.

Speaking of the latter, my first jazz tutorial on the new ryanwelton.com is going to be focused on the theme from the 1947 Lana Turner, Van Heflin and Donna Reed classic, Green Dolphin Street.

These tutorials won't be a step-by-step look at how to play the song note by note. We'll leave those for when I show you how to play a pop song. Because this is a jazz standard, we'll just have to assume you at least have the piano basics down.

My goal as will always be my goal is to give you at least a little something new you can add to the song. That is, if you play it regularly. And if you love piano jazz or jazz with a Latin flavor, "On Green Dolphin Street" is a must.

Because this is my first written jazz tutorial, I'm explaining my methodology a bit more than I will in future posts. First, if you want to play jazz piano, go buy a Real Book. When learning or teaching a new song, I break it up into parts, measures even, if complicated enough. "On Green Dolphin Street" is easy enough though that I only break it up into three parts.

Part 1: Latin flavor and four chords.

You'll have Cmaj7, Cm7, D7/C, Dbmaj7/C to play before returning to a Cmaj7. And I'll presume you know how the song goes.

Lover, one lovely day ... love came, planning to stay

I tend to overexaggerate the Latin percussiveness of this first part, but I make the left hand part super easy on myself, and it will take you five seconds to pick up.

• When playing the Cmaj7, put a C and a B in your left hand.


• When playing the Cm7, make your left hand have a C and a Bb in it.


• When playing the D7/C, go with a C and an A in the left.


• And when playing the Dbmaj7/C with your right, just go with a C and an Ab in your left.

In fact, this whole first part of "On Green Dolphin Street" is about walking down from B to Bb to A to Ab. In the Real Book, there is a transition chord between Part 1 and 2 of the song, and it says A7.

I say, "SCREW A7." In your left hand play an A and a G, a 7th. In your right play a G with your thumb and then with fingers 2-4-5 play an C#, F# and A#. I call that my Stevie Wonder chord because it's exactly what he uses in "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life," and you can use it anytime you have an A7, if you want to spruce it up.

Part 2: Swing it.

The progressions are pretty standard: D to G to C to F to Bb to Eb. I do believe we call this your basic circle of fourths pattern. The exact chords are Dm7 to G7 to Cmaj7, and I recommend you play the G7 with a big fat E chord in the right hand. It's super dissonant.

The second part of this is an Fm7, Bb7 and an Ebmaj7. If you already play this tune and/or play jazz, I'm not introducing you to anything new. However, in the video I've posted below, I did come up with a pretty salty bass line, and I'll give it to you note by note starting with the Dm7.

D, E, F, F#, G, A, Bb, B, C, C, B, A, C, D, Eb, E, F, G, Ab, A, Bb, C, Db, D, Eb

It's cut time, but you have to play it like one would on a bass for it to sound right, so walk it up. Play it enough times super slowly, and it will get reinforced into muscle memory. Promise.

There is a quick turnaround between this swing section and the next part, which is a repeat of Part 1. Dm7 to G7 to Cmaj7. Nothin' but a thing.

In jazz piano, you can always toss that E chord on top of the G7. Do so, and it will become second nature. Again, I promise.

Part III: The End.

So, you play the opening Latin part, and then you navigate the swing section, and you return to the Latin part. In essence, you then return to the swing, but it's really more of a song wrap up. Instead of walking the circle of fourths, you go from a Dm7 to a Dm7/C, to a Bm7b5, to an E7b9 to an Am6 to an F#m7b5 to a B7, Em7, A7, Dm7 ... blah blah blah.

If you're a player, this ain't a whoop. However, if you struggle with your left hand, this song makes it easy for you to make it easy. If that makes sense. When navigating from the Dm7 to the Bm7b5, just walk your bass line down from D to C to B. And then as you navigate from the Bm7 to your E to A to F# to B to E to A, etc., here's what you do: Play in your left hand the note of the chord. For example if the chord is Bm7b5, play a B in the bass.

Not hard to figure out, right?

Figure out the next chord you have to play. Hint: At the end of On Green Dolphin Street, it's an E7b9. Count how many beats you have between Chord 1 and Chord 2, and then fill each with a note in your left hand. It can be almost any note in scale.

I usually play the note closest to the next chord. And, on faster songs with a swing beat, I typically plot out a left-hand bass line by reviewing the chords, counting the beats in between them and writing a bass line in my head, committing it to memory. Memtal memory as well as left-hand physical memory.

Look, I know I'll probably get a message or two saying this made no sense. So, I'll try to end each of these with some takeaways, something simple any aspiring jazz pianist can take with them:

Takeaway 1: When you have an A7 chord, play an A and a G in the left hand with a G, C#, F#, A# in the right. Trust me. It sounds tight.

Takeaway 2: Here's a little trick for G7 chords in jazz: Play an E on top of it. In the left hand, stick to your 7th -- a G and an F. But play a big fat E with the right hand, and it'll sound like something from Bill Evans.

Takeaway 3: Write bass lines for yourself by reviewing all the chords you'll be playing, counting the beats between each and filling each with notes. In the back of your mind, pretend your left hand is playing a stand-up bass, and think like that instrument. Listen to that instrument, and emulate it.

In piano jazz, I have a serious envy of those guys who can run off solos with their right hand with proficiency and rhythm and speed. However, I hear all the time from folks who have issues with their left hand.

Take it from me, playing a great walking bass line is all about planning out your notes in advance.

If there is a song you'd like me to break down, please give me a shout by clicking contact at the top of ryanwelton.com.

Now, here's me playing the classic, "On Green Dolphin Street."

With the wonderful sax of Oklahoma's own Chris Hicks, this smooth jazz original of mine from 2001 is kind of a stand-out, I think. It's called "Nocturnal".

A lot of times in instrumental songwriting, I blend ideas together. In other words, often I don't write a singular, cohesive song. In this case, the foundation for the verse was taken from something I saw my dad play back in 2000. It was a progression, one that I morphed into the entire verse.

However, all of this is merely the setup for the chorus, which is one of the stronger I've written if I may say so myself. Chris interpreted the melody in the middle of the chorus a bit differently than I did, but it works out.

But you have to stick around at least until the bridge. He slam dunked the bridge, essentially concatenating his melody on top of mine. What a wonderful musician.

Anyway, if you dig smooth jazz, I hope you'll give it a listen.

Believe it or not (and I refuse to), Peter Cetera turned 64 on Saturday. Damn.

We all know how awesome he was with Chicago back in the day, but his solo career wasn't shabby either. OK, "Glory of Love" was never my bag, but there were songs in the 80s and 90s he did outside of Chicago that I really, really liked.

Here are a few, the first of which was a tune called "Wake Up To Love," which was one of my favorites from his CD Solitude/Solitaire:

This is so 80s, you might cringe. However, this entire CD was really good.

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From the same CD, here's a ballad called "Only Love Knows Why," which to me was super reminiscent of work done on Chicago 14.

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Then there were a pair of great duets in the 1990s that you might have forgotten, the first of which was with "Wings" star Crystal Bernard, a tune called "Forever Tonight."

Sure, these days, all actors get into singing, but Crystal kind of stunned us all with this one. And, this tune really underscores what folks love about Peter's voice. It's just crystal clear, particularly way up high.

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Finally, on the tour of Peter Cetera songs you might have forgotten comes this duet with Chaka Khan, one of the more underrated pop songs of the 1990s. It's called "Feels Like Heaven."

Believe it or not, I've never posted a cover of a Stevie Wonder song. Until now.

Here's a quickie version of "Isn't She Lovely" I threw together tonight.

This is one of the great R&B songs of the last half century, but did you know that it was written by three white guys?

Jay Graydon, David Foster and the great Bill Champlin, who happens to be one of the best blue-eyed soul vocalists of my lifetime. Alas, I ain't Bill Champlin, but it's definitely a tune I'll keep working on.

Thought I'd give a go at a classic 1970s Brit-pop tune. This is "Cruel to Be Kind" by Nick Lowe.

Consider me a full-fledged nerdfighter.

This is becoming one of my favorite channels on YouTube, a channel started between two brothers who wanted a way to communicate with each other. Many subscribers and page views later, the vlogbrothers make creative, silly but often super educational videos for their fans, which are called nerdfighters.

I'm new to this channel, but I'm enthusiastic enough about them after a dozen or so videos to INSIST that you go subscribe.

I was asked if I knew Van Morrison's "Into the Mystic" tonight at my gig, at Othello's in Norman -- and unfortunately I hadn't worked it up. But I definitely know the song and have heard my friend Sharon nail it many times.

What a great song, and this is a version from Jen Chapin (yes, Harry's daughter). Jen's voice is extraordinary, particularly on the higher notes. Anyway, if you like Van Morrison, this is one to add to the collection.

Methinks more female artists should pay homage to Roseanne Cash, whose early 1980s pop and country hit sounds great nearly three decades later.

In fact, when I hear this, I hear influence on everything from Mary Chapin Carpenter to Sara Bareilles.

Best version of this 1970s classic comes from former Linda Ronstadt backup singer Valerie Carter, whose voice is one of the best I've ever heard.

Her 1977 CD "Just A Stone’s Throw Away" is pretty much a masterpiece, one of the favorites in my collection, a 1970s-styled pre-Ricki Lee Jones blend of Rhoades keys and West Coast Country harmonies.

And her version of "Ooh Child" is the best of 'em all. Case closed.