Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

Kendell Marvel built his career as a behind-the-scenes songwriter for Gary Allan, Chris Stapleton, Jake Owen, Lee Ann Womack, Blake Shelton, and George Strait before reinventing himself as a gritty Southern troubadour and making an album with The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach.  EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE  Scott and Paul chat about a wild news story from this past week involving a previous Songcraft gues...

The sixteen-time Grammy nominee and three-time winner joins us to talk about his remarkably varied body of songwriting from country to to rock to political songs to Americana and contemporary folk. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE  Scott and Paul tell you how you can hear their wild story about getting ready for the Steve Earle interview, and they explain why this episode is particularly special. PART TW...

The three-time Grammy winner, two-time ACM Songwriter of the Year, and star of NBC's Songland joins us to talk about a few of his 40 #1 hits, including "Mama's Broken Heart," "American Kids," "Vice," "Body Like a Back Road," and more.  EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE  Scott and Paul put in a plug for Pearl Snap Studios! PART TWO - 3:02 mark The guys have a conversation about some of the worst cover song...

Matthew Sweet joins us to unpack his process of writing power pop gems like "Girlfriend," "The Ugly Truth," "Sick of Myself" and many others. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul analyze mix tapes, cool bands, and "older brother rock." PART TWO - 5:29 mark Paul and Scott jump on the phone with Matthew Sweet, one of the nicest rock stars on the planet, to get the lowdown on how a postcard from...

Frequent Willie Nelson collaborator, award-winning producer, and co-writer of the CMA and ACM Song of the Year "Give It Away" Buddy Cannon joins us for an in-depth conversation.   EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about their friends at Pearl Snap Studios and share a listener-submitted clip highlighting what Pearl Snap can do for you, too! PART TWO - 3:47 mark Paul shares a recent eye-...

Best known as one half of the legendary folk rock duo Indigo Girls,  Grammy award winner Emily Saliers joins us to discuss her remarkable career.  EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul announce the winner of the signed copy of Layng Martine's memoir, Permission to Fly , and give an update on their call for demos recorded at Pearl Snap Studios. PART TWO - 3:06 mark The guys talk about how their...

The Rockabilly Hall of Fame inductee who’s been called The Father of Nashville Rock talks about a successful career that’s seen his songs covered by everyone from Martina McBride to The Beatles. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about the last chance to enter to win a signed copy of Layng Martine's memoir, Permission to Fly, as well as ask listeners to send in their recordings they've...

The Grammy nominee and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer joins us to talk about “Rub It In” (Billy "Crash" Craddock), "Way Down" (Elvis Presley), “The Greatest Man I Never Knew” (Reba McEntire), and his new memoir, Permission to Fly . EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul call up Tommy Smith, one of their top tier Patreon subscribers to chat about Songcraft, life, and his budding recording st...

The two-time Grammy nominee and alt.country pioneer joins us to discuss his career as an eclectic and fiercely independent singer songwriter. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul chat about the classic conundrum of getting annoyed when your favorite artists get too popular, but also getting annoyed when people don't catch on their greatness. PART TWO - 8:20 mark Paul plays a friend's brand new...

CMA and ACM Song of the Year winner Larry Weiss chats about his amazing career from the Brill Building to "Rhinestone Cowboy" and more. Plus, up-and-comer Jenny Tolman stops by to preview her cool new record.  EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul discuss the recently-aired Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony and chat about some of the artists who've not been inducted yet, but should be...

The Motown legend behind "Dancing in the Street," "Stubborn Kind of Fellow," "It Takes Two," "Devil with a Blue Dress On," and "Beechwood 4-5789" opens up about his life and career. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about Pearl Snap Studios, their new rock star Patreon subscriber, Motown's 60th anniversary, and that lost Marvin Gaye album. PART TWO - 12:43 mark Scott heads over to Mick...

Rock & Roll Hall of Famer and multiple Grammy nominee Chris Hillman joins us to talk about his songwriting with The Byrds, The Flying Burrito Brothers, The Desert Rose Band, and much more. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about the Motley Crue movie and the pros and cons of musical biopics. PART TWO - 9:45 mark Scott and Paul head up to Ventura to meet Chris Hillman and find out how h...

Two-time Grammy nominee and co-writer of Kelly Clarkson's global hit "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You) joins us to discuss his multifaceted career. But first, Scott and Paul talk about whether or not it's still OK to listen to Michael Jackson's music. EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about the loss of Dick Dale and Hal Blaine, and remind listeners of their friends at Pearl Snap Studio...

The San Francisco folkie who became a Nashville hitmaker with "Life's a Dance," "Don't Laugh at Me," "I Think About You," Grown Men Don't Cry" and more!  IN THIS EPISODE: PART ONE The guys discuss Paul's 2019 Grammy experience and Scott's recent revelation about the importance of Steve Seskin. PART TWO -   9:08 mark Steve Seskin sits down with Scott to talk about the lessons he learned busking on...

Songwriters Hall of Fame and Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Smokey Robinson talks about his Motown legacy and his string of timeless hits, including “Shop Around,” “You’ve Really Got a Hold on Me,” “The Tracks of My Tears,” “My Guy,” “The Way You Do The Things You Do,” “Cruisin’,” and more! PART ONE Scott and Paul chat about Pearl Snap Studios and share the behind-the-scenes details of how the...

With over a dozen Top 5 singles on the Billboard country chart, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Famer Tim Nichols has been a hit machine for years with songs such as “Heads Carolina, Tails California,” “The Man I Want to Be,” and "Live Like You Were Dying." EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul talk about their earliest concert experiences. PART TWO -  8:09 mark Scott and Paul get on the phone wi...

Songwriters Hall of Famer, half of the legendary Ashford & Simpson, and one of Rolling Stone magazine's 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time chats about "Ain't Nothing Like the Real Thing," "I'm Every Woman," "Solid," and more of her many hits! PART ONE Scott and Paul belatedly announce the winner of the Mark Otis Selby CD contest from our recent Tia Sillers episode. PART TWO -  3:18 mark Paul get...

The Grammy and Oscar winner behind "Rainbow Connection," "We've Only Just Begun," "Rainy Days and Mondays," "An Old Fashioned Love Song," "Evergreen (Love Theme from A Star is Born)," the "Love Boat" theme, plus songs recorded by Elvis, Ray Charles, Daft Punk, and many more! EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul reveal some of the newest perks of Patreon support. PART TWO -  9:17 mark Songcraft...

Four writers discuss their holiday hits: William Bell ("Every Day Will be Like a Holiday"), Tia Sillers ("A Joyful Noise" by Jo Dee Messina), Robert Earl Keen ("Merry Christmas From the Family"), and Paul Duncan ("Light of the World" by Lauren Daigle) EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul discuss their favorite holiday records of all time. PART TWO - 23:12 mark Four songwriters talk about their...

The Grammy-winning songwriter behind “There’s Your Trouble” (Dixie Chicks),  “I Hope You Dance” (Lee Ann Womack), and “That’d Be Alright” (Alan Jackson) talks about her heartbreaking personal losses, her professional triumphs, and how they’ve all worked together to make her the person and songwriter she is today.   EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul chat about great songs they never want to...

EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul chat about why interviewing Chris Barron is a particularly significant milestone for them. PART TWO - 5:18 mark Chris Barron stops by Songcraft World Headquarters to chat about why he calls his musical background a “dog’s breakfast;” what his music teacher told him that blew his mind about songwriting; the reason he doesn’t like Eddie Vedder’s voice; what h...

EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul do a little housekeeping, including sharing listener-submitted additions to their "terrible artist mashup" game from last episode, announcing the winner of the signed Lamont Dozier CD contest, and sharing more information about our friends at Pearl Snap Studios .   PART TWO - 6:28 mark Mike stops by Songcraft World Headquarters to talk about the outside-the...

PART ONE Scott and Paul reveal their pick for the "other" greatest songwriter of all time to complete the list of 100 they introduced on the last episode. And they remind listeners how to enter the contest to win an autographed Lamont Dozier CD.  PART TWO - 5:14 mark The guys reveal their new favorite game of combining two artist names to create music you wouldn't want to hear. R. Kelly Clarkson?...

SUPER-SIZED DELUXE DOUBLE EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott and Paul celebrate their 100th episode by looking back on the origins of Songcraft and answering Rolling Stone 's list of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time by counting down their own list of the 100 OTHER Greatest Songwriters of All Time .  PART TWO - 19:37 mark The guys revisit their love of Pearl Snap Studios in Nashville. PART THR...

EPISODE DETAILS: PART ONE Scott turns the microphone around to ask Paul about the four songs he co-wrote on the album that just debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200 album charts behind Paul McCartney and Eminem. PART TWO - 6:58 mark Scott and Paul call up Jeff Hanna to get the inside scoop on the early days of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band when Jackson Browne was playing kazoo; how Jeff first got into...