Episodes

Episode #107: Yesterday’s Race (Song starts 2:48) Hi there. This is the podcast where you can sit back, be entertained and informed and – learn a little about the art of songwriting. I make a point of saying I’m not here to tell you how to write a song- but I am going to share how I write a song. I think it’s important to keep an eye on your surroundings. Relaxing, subdued lighting, maybe ‘shining up’ your creative space is a good idea. I have a collection of all sorts of knick- knacks in my stu...

Episode #106: Fingers In The Trees (Song starts at 5:52 & 26:00) Autumn is a great time of year. It’s a season which really resonates with me for some reason. I was camping in Bright, Victoria recently, camping by a stream (which you’ll get to listen to in this episode). The trees were all losing their leaves, the birds singing. The bare fingered trees are the image I had in mind when I wrote the song ‘Fingers In The Trees’. The sort of fingers that reach out against the twilight sky, the sunset...

Episode #105: What’s True To You (Song starts at 7:00 ) This is the podcast where you’re going to get to hear how it feels to be a songwriter, where the featured song of the week came from, some funny stories, etc. The idea being: to entertain and inform – and along the way hopefully shed some light on what is a very interesting creative process. Mistakes are a necessary part of learning. That’s what came to me, as I was listening back to the this song, reading through the lyrics. In this episod...

Episode #104: As Far As I Can Tell (Song starts at 4:50) Welcome. I love writing songs. There’s a 100-odd songs on this podcast, 13 albums on bandcamp, a selection on all the streaming platforms and YouTube channel, etc. One of the reasons I’m these producing these episodes is to help people. I teach, as it turns out. I’m also an artist. The blank canvas can be so confronting…I tell people to just throw some paint on that canvas. Just make a start. That’s what I do with songwriting. I never ques...

Episode #103: Life’s A Show (song starts at 2:48) On this podcast, I talk a lot about where a song comes from – the beginning. What about the end..where do you draw the line? When is something creative done? When is it finished? Which brings us nicely to the crux of the meaning of ‘Life’s A Show’. There’s a line in the song that says “There’s no end” Well, obviously, there comes the day when our number comes up and we check out. That’s part of life. Whereas, the great thing about creating s...

Episode #102: Lead The Way (Song starts at 3:40) This week’s featured song, Lead The Way, is song #693. There wasn’t a day where I decided I was going to write so many songs. I just committed to composing because I love it. There’s a line in the song that sort of sums it up: ‘Like a story that’s been written by an artists loving hand’. While the song comes through me, it comes from somewhere else – and this ‘somewhere else’ has energy and intention. That’s the way it feels. I just get the mes...

Episode #101: Thin Air (Song starts at 4.18) Welcome to a bit of chat and some music. As usual I’m sitting at the piano, hands on the keys, at the ready to accompany myself as I talk about whatever comes to mind. I imagine it’s a bit like playing piano along to a silent movie like they used to… or perhaps like adding music to a movie. It’s really good fun. Fun seems to be a big key to unlocking the creative process. I think it does us all good to listen to new music or maybe go to a gallery and ...

Episode #100: Stop (Song stars at 7:19) Hi there and …( cue fanfare) welcome to episode #100! Thank you for coming along with me on this journey. If it’s your first time here, you can just leap straight in – the episodes are not sequential. Although if you were to listen back, you’d see that there’s been a series of changes as I’ve gone along. It’s all happened naturally. In I think they are the best kind of changes to make. I think it’s necessary to stop and reflect in order to make the best ch...

Episode #99: Family Photo (song starts at 2:37) When I went to record this episode, I actually had another song in mind as went into my studio. But then my hands opened up the book on song #622.. Family Photo. This then lead on to my recording a version of this song, for the 2nd time, as part of the episode. Hey, it keeps it interesting, trying different things. I touched on this in the last episode. In fact I’m really aware of how the creative process is just an ongoing series of changes. When...

Episode #98: This Story (Golden Times) (Song starts at 5:14) Hi there, I see this week’s song was written in January 2012. That amazes me. At the time of recording this podcast episode, that is a decade ago. Wow! I think the thing is, when you create something, you are so far ‘in there’, in the creative zone, it seems you etch this time into your mind the memory. I think this might be because (in my opinion ), if you’re doing it ‘right’, you’re basing so much of what you’re doing on….feeling. ...

Episode #97: This Dream Will Do (Song starts at 5:24) Hi there, this episode is packed with all sorts. I’ve been on a holiday, camping beside the ocean for a couple of weeks. It was brilliant. I include some voice recordings I did while I was there. So you get to come on holiday with me on this episode. How does that pertain to songwriting? (I hear you ask). Well, when I go away and have a break, every time I come home and rest my fingers on the keys of my piano it seems there are songs waiting...

Episode #96: I’ll Tell You What (Song starts at 3:38 ) Sometimes you can really tell nature is talking to you. Birds tell you off for being too close to their nest. I think perhaps nature is talking to us constantly on a more subtle level. That’s the crux of today’s song. Here’s what inspired it: My concern for how out of touch we are with nature. It’s a wake up call sort of song. Almost in the mode of a protest song from the 60s, I suppose. On this episode, you’ll hear a couple of bird calls...

Episode #95: Plain Sailing (Song starts at 5:58) Hi there, If it’s your first time here, thanks for having a look at my podcast. What will you gain by listening to an episode? My goal is to put you in the shoes of a songwriter. Why would I do that? Well, for a lot of people it seems it’s only for the chosen few. At the risk of sounding like I’m attempting to demystify and simplify (which I’m not) what happens to be an extremely subtle art, what I’m doing here is showing some of the ‘ tricks’...

Episode #94: Full Moon (Song starts at 6:18) Here we are again, having a chat & allowing the conversation – the content – to be guided by the song of the week, which in this case is Full Moon, song #353. I wrote the song back in 1995. How does it feel to be a songwriter? It’s a joy. Have a listen again and find out more. I do my best to put the listener into the shoes of a songwriter. I look at the lyrics. There’s one line ‘justice now sits beneath the microscope’. The strange thing is: I wrote ...

Episode #93: Summer Sun (Song starts at 8:25 ) Welcome to an ‘End Of Year’ / Christmas special. Summer Sun (song # 576), was inspired by a memory of being the waves at the beach – the joy of being in the water, feeling completely free. I’ve really enjoyed this year of podcasting. In fact, I’d go so far as to say it really helped me during these Covid times. That’s the power of the art. I love how I’m connecting with so many people. I’ve always wanted to bring good stuff into the world and share ...

Episode #92: Foggy morning (Song starts at 4:47) Hi there, This week’s episode features my song ‘Foggy Morning (Not A Bird Call)’. This is song #680. I love composing songs. I like talking about the process and enjoy letting each episode wander just where it will, allowing the song to lead the way. It’s keeps things interesting and natural. Talking as much about anecdotes, ideas related to the song as I talk about the song writing makes this podcast relaxing and fun – a bit of a ‘chat over a cup...

Episode #91: Pictures Falling This has been so much fun, recording these episodes. Long may it continue. This is a pretty peaceful episode…before recording this, I was recording keyboards and mixing 3 songs. Paul Dredge (NZ co-songwriter) and I have another album well on the way. We are bouncing parts back and forth online. This week’s song appeared on the album ‘Walking Through A Dream’. It’s streaming now, a very relaxed listen. If you like guitar, piano, vocal harmony…. Check it out. ‘Picture...

Episode #90: Lost and Won (Song starts at 3:12) I composed the song Lost and Won in 2013. You can find it on the piano/vocal album ‘Don’t Miss The Bus’, on my bandcamp website: www.petepascoe.bandcamp.com I like to get to the beach as often as I can. The sounds of nature wash over me when I’m there. It helps to get me into a peaceful state so I’m able to tune into ‘something’ & get creative. You’ll hear that process on this episode. I share some of the sounds that came into my day yesterday. I g...

Episode #89 Queen St (Song starts at 6;58) This is the podcast where you get to hear how it feels to be a songwriter. How do I do this? What I do I talk about? The answers seem to come as I follow my nose, as I record what comes into my mind in the moment. As a songwriter, you instinctively know when to jot notes down, when a phrase catches your ear in a certain way. It might be something that someone says in passing, or a sentence or two that just pop into your mind.. For that to happen, I find...

Episode #88: Life Is (Song starts at 4:27) Welcome to another episode. It’s great that this podcast is being listened to and enjoyed by listeners around the world. I’m very grateful to you all for tuning in each week. I’m glad you’re enjoying it. I guess that’s the power of music, the intrigue… The interest in ‘where the heck does a song come from? This week again, we set out to come up with some more ideas about that. It’s certainly a journey of rediscovery for me as I look back on these songs....

Episode #87: The Drum (Song starts 5.14) Where did this song come from? The first line is: ‘The rocking train challenges my pen to stay upon the page’. Yep, I was on the train when I wrote these lyrics. It feels great to be a songwriter, to close my eyes and just write whatever pops into my mind. I don’t question it, I’ll just write something, knowing (and it definitely is a ‘knowing) that something will ‘answer’ me. It’s exactly like this. It feels like a sense of ‘give and take’, as you float ...

Episode #86: The Best Story (Song starts at 4:38) Hi there. Join me this week, as I go back in time again, to a wooden table and chairs at the local park. This is where I wrote the lyrics for this week’s featured song. I break a few songwriting rules with this song. Originally, there was no structure to the sentences – not one rhyme either. It could’ve remained a poem (I include a reading of the lyrics as a poem on this episode), but something enticed me – against all odds, really – to turn thes...

Episode #85: Made Me Realise (Song starts 7:20) This week’s episode has a nice laid back mood again. This is how I felt when I wrote Made Me Realise (song #41) back in 1987. I can still till remember the evening this song came to me as I let my fingers wander on the keys where they would and let my voice float where it chose to go. This is the podcast where one of my aims is to give you the feeling of how it feels to be in the shoes of a songwriter. I try to give you an insight as to where th...

Episode #84: At What Cost (Song starts at 4:38) Welcome. This week’s episode has very peaceful feeling about it. The 30 minutes or so just floated by for me, as I recorded it. I’m really enjoying myself as I talk, no notes, no pre-production. Tonight I just walked into my studio, thinking “What song shall I talk about..” And this one jumped out at me. I let the song lead the way each week. I’ve found over the weeks that by having fun, ‘playing’, if you will, it leads my thoughts to some concepts...