During this series of How not to write a song, I have tried to show you the nuts and bolts of songwriting. I also wanted to share the demo making process. Here are some things that you will need to have completed before demoing the song. Lyrics- You will need a typed or a legible hand written page of lyrics with the chords. I will get my lyrics on my music stand and practice it to get better at singing it. After I get the kinks worked out I will hit the record button on my Roland digital work station.
I will set up my microphones and tune my guitar. If I need new guitar strings I will replace them. I am now ready to record. I will do my best to play and sing my song. I don't do individual tracks for my rough demos. I hit the record button and play and sing. I am not the best singer so the main thing I am trying to do is come across with feeling.(especially in the guitar playing) I want the vocals to be clear so you can hear the lyrics and not just the guitar.
I will do multiple takes of my song. I can have the words right in front of me and still sing the wrong words. So it might take me five or six takes to get an acceptable one. Acceptable does not mean perfect singing. It is singing the correct lyrics and playing the right chords. Pretty basic stuff. I am going to share my rough demo, a better demo, and the final demo of the song, Sing.