Anatomy of a Hit
Hit song analysis
View all Anatomy of a Hit Articles

Coming Soon:
Beyonce—Irreplaceable
Corrine Bailey Rae—Put Your Records On
KT Tunstall—Suddenly I See

Nelly Furtado–Promiscuous
Ne-Yo—So Sick
James Blunt—You're Beautiful
Rascal Flatts–What Hurts The Most
Eminem—Lose Yourself

Norah Jones —Don't Know Why
Avril Lavigne —Complicated
Alan Jackson—Where Were You When The World Stopped Turning?
Pink—Get the Party Started
Craig David—Fill Me In
Alicia Keys—Fallin'
Train—Drops of Jupiter
Janet Jackson—All For You
Dido—Thank You
Sisqo—Incomplete
Macy Grey—I Try
Faith Hill—Breathe
Destiny's Child—Say My Name
Santana/Rob Thomas—Smooth
Ricky Martin—La Vida Loca

More Anatomy of a Hit Articles...

Classic Songcraft Articles
Reprints from Cat's columns in The Music Connection and LASS/NAS Musepaper

Outside vs. Inside Songwriting
Cat describes the change of opportunities in today's songwriting scene from Outside Songwriting for established artists to Inside Songwriting for original acts.

Grabbers and Shakers
Cat lists many of hue characteristics that make a pop song a hit song including what grabs a listener's attention and what keeps an audience involved all the way through to the end.

A Songwriter's New Year's Resolutions
Cat lists some goals and resolves we as songwriters can make to improve our writing and our careers for the coming year.

Other Classic Articles

The Hispanic Invasion
Today's pop scene has much in common with that of the mid-'60s. American pop music is being invaded by foreigners. Only this time the British aren't coming, it's the Hispanics.

1999: A Year of Retro and Recycling
Cat looks at the year 1999 in pop music and saw a return to recordings with older more melodic writing and more romantic dance styles including latin dance styles. Hot and sexy began to replace alienation and rebellion as the millennium turned.

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Articles and Writing Issues from other Songwriters and Instructors

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Songcraft, pop format and marketing issues

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Cat Cohen and the phrase "Anatomy of a Hit" are trademarks of Cat Cohen UnLimited

Theoretically Speaking
with David "Cat" Cohen
from the Los Angeles Songwriters'Showcase Musepapaer - 1996


Grabbers and Shakers
What Gets and Keeps Songs On The Charts?

As a songwriter, like many other artists, I see the whole world as my canvas. A song idea can come from anywhere, anyone and at anytime. The craft of songwriting for me likewise is an unending study as my songwriting vocabulary can be enriched at the most unexpected places.

A case in point is recently I was asked to participate in market testing and evaluating a new TV series pilot. Along with fifty or so other "guinea pigs" I was ushered to a seat in a viewing room equipped with an electronic gadget whose knob ranged from extremely interested on the right to extremely bored on the left with neutral in the middle. As I viewed the program I was asked to move the dial as my level of interest grew and faded. This was done to record when and if the show grabbed and how well it kept my attention.

I immediately saw how I could apply this to songcraft. The bottom line of any pop song or recording is does it grab someone's attention and does it keep it? All the rules of songwriting are subordinate to this principle because the goal of commercial writing is to keep a listener involved all the way to the end and make him/her want to hear/play a song again and again. People behind music industry desks must have a good read on this because they make a living choosing which songs to record, release and promote. In this world of channel surfing a radio/video programmer has the same priority. Songs that don't grab and keep by and large don't get programmed. A hit song in any genre or format grabs its audience and doesn't let go.

Let's look at some grabbers and keepers in hit songwriting. The most obvious immediate grabber in a pop recording is an infectious groove. A hot or sensual groove puts a feel good message up front and gives a signal that what one is hearing is ready to be played on the airwaves. Above this introductory rhythmic feel is usually a distinctive instrumental (occasionally vocal) hook called the signature that tells the listener which song is coming up. This is the part that DJ's often talk over before the song really starts. Almost every Top 40 song has one, and a good signature gets industry people as well as general audiences leaning into a song instead of away from it. The next opportunity for grabbing is in the first two lines of lyric which describes a situation, scene and relationship to which the listener can easily relate. If these lines don't grab, no matter how good the song is later, it's an uphill battle from then on. The last and perhaps most important place to grab an audience is in the chorus where a memorable repetitive or button hook
focuses the listener's attention on the main lyric and musical statement of the song. All or most of these are present in hit recordings, especially ones that stay hits for along time.

What keeps a listener involved in a song can come from several things such as the performance and production. The emotion, style and technic of a great vocalist can certainly keep one's attention. An artist as riveting as Patti LaBelle could sing the phone book and keep my attention, but I am a fan, not a general listener when it comes to her. A great performer needs a great song. Likewise, a fabulous production can keep some people into the feeling of a song, wowing listeners with sound hooks and fills that thrill. Yet, what really keeps an audience involved all the way to the end is song structure. This I feel is the true art of songcraft, and a poorly structured song even with all the accoutrements is in trouble. Good structure is a balance of repetition and contrast, with sections that take us just far enough away from the other(s) and bring us back. A verse and chorus must have appropriate contrast just as a pre-hook must contrast the verse preceding it as well as the chorus it sets up. A bridge needs to give us the added dimension we seek in a song at the appropriate time, not until the basic song has been established and not for too long a time so it upstages or wanders too far from the chorus.

This is just a thumbnail sketch of some elements I've been able to pinpoint in hit songwriting. One thing I have learned in this business is that there is no formula for success (or we'd all be using it). Try listening to your songs and songs of other writers and analyze when and if they grab you and how (if) they keep your attention.

David "Cat" Cohen's
Handy-dandy list of hit song essentials

Grabbers
Groove -
BPM and texture are appealing and relevant
Subdivision of beat fits style and format

Signature -
Instrumental Riff is distinctive to the song
Turnaround punctuates introduction

First 2 lines of lyric -
Character relationship we can identify with
Subject matter is relevant
Situation and setting are identifiable

Repetitive or button hook -
Most distinctive melodic phrase or riff is pronounced
Basic lyric statement of song is clear
Hook is repeated for emphasis or set up to deliver at end of chorus

Keepers
Lyric -
Story builds interest into the chorus
Story develops interest to make second chorus even more effective
Bridge adds new dimension or twist to the story

Groove -
Maintains and/or builds intensity

Melody -
Good intervallic architecture
Phrasing has variety and contrast
Sub-hooks also repeat and contrast

Harmony -
Chord progressions match emotion and style

Form-
All sections are well defined and contrasted
Some sections repeat before adding new ones
e.g. - AB AB C AB
ABC ABC D BC

© 1996 David "Cat" Cohen