Jim Peterik, best known for co-writing “Eye of the Tiger” “The Search is Over,” and numerous other hits for his band 
Survivor as well as hits for the likes of .38 Special and other popular ’80s bands plus his childhood band “The Ides of March”, knows how to write a hit song, so he was happy to be asked to write the second edition of “Songwriting For Dummies,” with Dave Austin and screenwriter Cathy Lynn.
So how do you know if you’ve written a great song — one that can actually go places in a tough and often incestuous music word?
“ Now there’s the million dollar question,” said Peterik, en route to a radio interview with Lisa McClowry, one of the up and coming artists he is working with, and one of the many artists whose songs he dissects in the new book, line by line, beat by beat, to see what makes them so popular.
“If you think you have a great song, then get out there and play it for people, friends, family. The one that gets the most applause, or if you’re writing a dance song, the one that gets them all out on the dance floor, that’s how you can gauge the response. Because feedback is the thing,” he said adding the first edition of Songwriting For Dummies came out in 2002, so the “dummies” decided it was time for an update.
“The first Songwriting for Dummies sold a quarter of a million copies so it was a best seller in 2002, but now there have been a lot of changes in technology which make home recording easier,” he said adding he wanted to include new software like Garage Band into the book.
“Now, it’s a lot easier to record a professional demo from your own home,” he said adding he has two studios in his home as well as a full-time engineer.
“So I’m not a textbook person. I rely on my engineer,” he said.
“ When I wrote the first edition, it took a year. I remember cycling around Czechoslovakia with my wife and writing a chapter of the book while it sitting in a courtyard in Prague. This edition took four months,” he said adding because the Dummies series has a set formula, it took a while for Peterik to organize his knowledge in the way they wanted.
For example, the book includes various passages exploring the various aspects of songwriting such as lyric style, parts of songs like bridge, chorus, and verses as well as includes shorter passages like “Tips,” “Off the Record” “Remember” and “Words of Wisdom,” which includes quotes from famous songwriters including Jim Peterik himself which means he writes in the third person a lot because that is the style the “Dummies“ wanted.
Songwriting for Dummies provides a solid and thorough overview of what makes a great song, by examining great songs by the likes of the Beatles and other chart-toppers including a lot of modern hits, how to write one and how to get it out there so people can hear it. It is easy to follow and fun to read.
There are sections on rhyme, rhythm, song structure, melodies as well as the business end of the music business.
There are also sections on Internet marketing, new technology, writing music for TV and movies, collaboration, the music business and contracts and trying to make it in Nashville, which is one of the many projects Peterik is involved with along with as new Ides of March CD called “Still 19” working with up and coming artists and pitching songs to Nashville artists.
“I have a song-plugger in Nashville. I go down there about once a year. It is a great market for songwriters because there are a lot of great performers there, though not a lot of them write. It is a tough market, around every corner there are cubicles filled with people writing great songs 24-7. But there are great opportunities for you if you write a great one,” he said.
“ I like to write a song with a message, not a preachy message, but something like “Hold On Loosely” or “Eye Of The Tiger,” which is something people can relate to,” he said adding the time was right for a rewrite of “Songwriting For Dummies.”
“I didn’t just want to dissect old standards. We wrote a lot about the flavour of the year, which, in 2002, was boy bands, which are not as relevant in 2010,” he said, crediting co-writer Cathy Lynn for some of the more modern examples in the book.
“ She listens to the radio a lot more than I do. I don’t listen to the radio as much as I should, I’m busy writing the songs. She was great for choosing the songs,” he said.
“ The biggest challenge is relating to the young people. I mean, I’m almost 60 so I don’t want to lose touch with people. So it is a challenge to keep it fresh. A lot of the “dummies,” and I don’t mean that in a bad way, I mean that they are just starting out writing songs, are in their early ’20s. But this book is good for not only them, but anybody who is interested in songwriting and interested in the stories behind songs like ‘Eye of the Tiger,’” he said.
Whenever James Taylor goes on stage, he always tells the stories behind the songs,” Peterik continued adding the lyrics for some songs are printed and examines piece by piece, while others are only given by name, requiring the reader to find a copy of the the song and listen to it.
“We couldn’t get the rights to some of them. Some publishers are sticky about allowing the lyrics to be printed others are happy to have lyrics reproduced,” he said.
“Songwriting is a lot more different than 10 years ago,” he said adding in his day, writing hits in the ’80s, there was more of a defined verse, chorus, pre-chorus, verse structure.
“Newer songs by people like Beyonce are a lot more free-form, there might be a verse and a big chorus, but there really are no rules now. That’s what I have learned writing this book,” he continued adding his son Sijay is a songwriter as well, though quite different than his songs.
“He was still working on them when I was writing the book, so I didn’t analyze them. Sometimes he’ll let me help him with them. They aren’t reminiscent of mine at all, they’re more R and B influenced. Very Steely Dan-like,” he described.
In addition to working with artists like Lisa McClowry, he is looking at getting “Eye of the Tiger” placed in the TV series Glee, which is the new golden ring for songwriters hoping to get heard on television, he also has a new CD with the original line-up of the ides of March, ( who had a couple mid ’60s hits including “You Never Listen,” and a hit in 1970 called “Vehicle,” who recently released their new CD “Still 19,” with the original line-up.
“I’m very proud of it. It features the horns that we were known for. And it’s the original line up which is a record. Ides of March is the longest running band with the original line up. We got back together in 1990,” said Peterik who has called the Chicago suburb of Burr Ridge home for the past 20 odd years.
