Saturday Sessions: Eddi Reader on writing melodies

Scottish singer and songwriter Eddi Reader is known for her own songwriting, and for her contemprary interpretations of Robert Burns. Though the power of words is very present in her work, when she’s working on a song, melody where it starts for her.

“There’ll be a melody sense. I’ll mess around with it, I’ve got this acoustic guitar, and you have to have an instrument. For me. I could just walk about making up melodies with my voice, but when I have a guitar, I know of have to work. It’s a bit like knitting or crocheting, and I have to really remember when I’m putting my fingers. So what happens is I tend to come upon a note or a chord set that leads me to something that’s really melodically juicy. I just let this juicy little melody mess around in my head, but it doesn’t belong to any words yet. I’m pretty lazy and a bit shy about all that. Pinning it down feels like finishing, and I find it hard to commit to anything that includes a deadline or a time -- unless of course I really like the words!” she says.

Stay tuned for more Saturday sessions, thought provoking ideas about teaching, learning, and creating music from musicians including Matt Heaton, Del Suggs, Emily Smith, Gretchen Peters, and others.

A nod to a musical friend passing on: Cape Breton fiddler Jerry Holland died on Thursday. Here’s a brief remembrance from fellow musician Susan Gedutis Lindsay
Goodbye, Jerry Holland.

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