Today’s article in songwriting is going to focus on point of view. I hope it is helpful in improving your own point of view choices when writing your own songs. Let’s begin.
What exactly is point of view?
Point of view (hereafter referred to as PoV) is the perspective from which the songwriter, or storyteller, is coming from. How the story is being told. There are several PoVs and I’m going to list and explain each one next.
Third Person Narrative
Third person narrative is when the storyteller is singing about other people or events that he is not directly a part of. A great example of this PoV is “Jack and Diane” by John Cougar.
“This is a story about Jack and Diane”
Right away you can tell that he’s telling a story about these two kids growing up in the heartland. He is not in any way a part of the action. He’s just telling a tale of other people. This is an example of third person narrative.
First Person Narrative
This is when the storyteller is telling a story about himself. An example of first person narrative is “Let It Be” by The Beatles.
“When I find myself in times of trouble
Mother Mary comes to me
Speaking Words of wisdom
Let it Be”
“And in my hour of darkness…etc.”
The singer is referring to himself through the song. When HE finds himself in times of trouble. When HE is in his hour of darkness.
Second Person Narrative
This is when the singer is singing to a second party using the word “you” in the song but the subject matter doesn’t involve anything the “you” does with the narrator himself.
An example of second person narrative is the song “For No One” by The Beatles.
“Your day breaks, your mind aches
You find that all the words of kindness linger on
When she no longer needs you
She wakes up, she makes up
She takes her time and doesn’t feel she has to hurry
She no longer needs you”
The narrator is singing to another person about problems that person is having with yet another person, but not the narrator.
In other words, it’s like saying to the person “You gave her everything you had to give and yet she didn’t return your love.”
Second person narrative songs are probably the least common form of songs in popular music. The most popular is probably the form I’m going to cover next.
Direct Address
This PoV is when the singer is singing directly to the person and the conflict is directly between the two of them.
You can sum up the general theme of direct address in one line.
“I gave you my heart and you tore it apart you no good bitch.”
This is basically every “You done me wrong song” ever written.
Need an example of direct address PoV? No problem.
“Without You”
No I can’t forget this evening
Or your face as you were leaving
But I guess that’s just the way
The story goes
You always smile but in your eyes
Your sorrow shows
Yes it shows
No I can’t forget tomorrow
When I think of all my sorrow
When I had you there
But then I let you go
And now it’s only fair
That I should let you know
What you should know
I can’t live
If living is without you
I can’t live
I can’t give anymore
I can’t live
If living is without you
I can’t give
I can’t give anymore”
This is the classic “Without You” written by Pete Ham of Badfinger and first performed by Harry Nilsson and then Mariah Carey. The singer is singing directly to the woman who he can’t live without. I can’t live without you. This is direct address. You are battling it out directly with the one you love, hate, think is a dope, whatever. It’s just you and this person and the rest of the world is watching.
So there you have it. That’s a basic explanation of the various PoVs.
Moving on.
What do we do with all this? How do we decide what PoV to use when we sit down to write a song? Well, we want to pick a PoV that best fits the kind of song we want to write. What is it we want to say in our song?
If you want to tell a girl you’re in love with how you feel, probably the best way to do that is simply to tell her directly. That’s direct address. Sure, you can subtly tell her by telling an esoteric story about this guy who loved this girl but didn’t know how to tell her (3rd person narrative) but will it be as effective? Will the girl who you’re trying to tell that you’re madly in love with her get that it’s about her? The chances are pretty slim.
What if you have a friend who is having problems with HIS girlfriend and you want to tell him how to handle the situation? What’s the best way to do this?
Second person narrative, of course. It’s not the only way (again, you can tell a story and hint at it) but its the most effective way to get the point across.
And if you want to get something off your chest that’s bugging you personally, again, you can hint around the problem by using third person narrative, but wouldn’t it be more effective if you simply wrote…
“Man, I am really pissed off and here’s why.”
Taking the path of shortest resistance is usually the most effective way to get the idea across. Don’t beat around the bush.
And of course if you want to be really creative, like some songwriters are, you can mix your PoV. Just try to do it in a way that doesn’t totally confuse your listener.
What I’ve covered above are the basics. But they should be enough to have you coming up with a PoV that will clearly get the point across that you’re trying to make in the most efficient and effective manner.
For The Love Of Music,
Steven “Wags” Wagenheim