If you think of all the songs you have written, is there one that feels more meaningful or important than the rest? I don't mean just for FAWM 2023, but in all your songwriting.

Yes, I ask because I just posted what feels like my most meaningful song to YouTube, but also because I would love to know what other songwriters find meaningful (that can be deeply personal or more broad).

Please share links to what you think of as your most meaningful song and tell us why it's meaningful to you. I will listen to them all.

An explanation of why I think A Selfish Pain is my most meaningful song is probably unnecessary, but for anyone who doesn't know, my home country (Canada) has a terrible history. Here's a Wiki link if you're interested in knowing more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_Indian_residential_school_system

And here's my song, which I know isn't important and won't change the world, but if I get one more person to act, will be worthwhile: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_pn49OAyL0

Thank you.

I think my most meaningful song this FAWM was my meditative, psychedelic acapella "Friend In Fire" as it honors the memory of my grandfather through my family's tradition of gathering around the campfire. Hope someday to add music to it, either on my own or through collab. But as it stands, I had fun playing around with vocal harmonies and trusting my voice to deliver the message.

https://write.fawm.org/songs/22616

@theenglishassassin A Selfish Pain is brilliant, just had a listen and am just in awe processing the music and the message. So glad you shared it here.

It's still lyrics-only, but it's probably this one https://songcraft.io/song/song-2d54f6c7-8e49-4883-ac13-fbe94b300ce2

It's just very raw and personal. It's apparently not relatable though, since the comments I got were along the lines of "I would have taken this prompt in a much more personal direction".

Hi @chrismyth02 - Your song is beautiful and I totally understand writing about family who are no longer with us. I wrote a rather long song about my grandfather's life, from crawling on hands and knees as a young man in a South Wales coal mine, through to working as an air raid warden in a midlands city that was heavily bombed during WWII. One night he was buried under a wall that fell after a bomb exploded. Amazingly he survived to be able to tell me all his stories.

Thank you so much for your appreciation of A Selfish Pain. I am very glad to hear that it is resonating with different listeners.

I released this song and it is very meaningful to me about the sort of depression that arises from not taking opportunities when they arise and regretting it later.
https://share.amuse.io/oIJlGGxCpmjP

Hi @complexissimple - Those are definitely some powerful and bleak lyrics. It feels 'very' personal to me. The 'animals trapped' theme in the lyrics works really well
I can't say that I 'know' what you are expressing in your lyrics, because the creativity in writing leaves a lot that can be interpreted, but what I get is that you either feel totally trapped by something/someone, or actually are trapped (maybe hospitalized). And that you know no way out from whatever has you trapped.
I would be interested in hearing a demo with music and vocals if you even get one made.

Limbo Land is beautiful, @rowanb
Clever lyrics, a beautiful voice (with great harmonies) and that classical guitar is just gorgeous. This is class.

I think my most meaningful this FAWM is a tune called Wreckage. A wonderful collab too.

I listened to these songs here. Some beautiful stuff. Kind of interesting that both Hamster and Limboland used the phrase clip my wings!

I wrote this one last FAWM. For the album version I got my wife to do the vocals:
https://markhorning.bandcamp.com/track/pandoras-legacy

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r3aoTfr-wck

Wrote this one last year, and it's got a very clear and important message. Thank you, @katestantonsings and @davidtaro for making it happen!

I have two that are my absolute faves. They kinda go together both stylistically and story!

Just Passing Through
https://m.soundcloud.com/johns-95/just-passing-through-john-staples

Paper Flowers
https://m.soundcloud.com/johns-95/paper-flowers-by-john-staples

This year, it couldn't be anything other than "Easter Sunday" (https://write.fawm.org/songs/14369). It's about a tragedy that took place in my hometown in 1980, and the town's (as well as my own) difficulty coming to terms with it. It's also a tribute to a life cut too short, and it's the first time I've written anything like it.

As far as something that applies to me more directly, I'd have to pick "Survivor's Guilt" (https://soundcloud.com/i_am_kiffa/survivors-guilt-demo) from last year, a musing on how depression and emotional trauma shape (and in my case, hinder) personal development.

Probably this one: https://write.fawm.org/songs/19192 Although it's not personal it addresses a serious issue.

My most meaningful song? Well, they're all so deep and meaningful! Maybe this one called "Let's Go (eat garbage, cross roads and poop)",
https://radiopossum.bandcamp.com/track/lets-go-eat-garbage-cross-roads-and-poop

Or maybe my very first song Opossum Tale,
https://radiopossum.bandcamp.com/track/opossum-tale

Honestly and sincerely, that whole first EP of mine is mighty fine,
https://radiopossum.bandcamp.com/album/ray-d-opossum

That's a tough task, in my view....to pick your most meaningful song. I've sometimes been surprised by listeners who resonate especially with a song I like but didn't anticipate a strong reaction. It's kind of like picking a favorite kid or grandkid. All that said, I'd say I'm very happy with "Moments of Love" (https://write.fawm.org/songs/22529) and "29" (https://write.fawm.org/songs/21554), the former because the images feel honest and not trite and seem to connect for people and the latter due to the unusual craft self-challenge to use a favorite sonnet as the basis for the song and not having a chorus.

I really didn't think I had a single song that was "most meaningful" but after I stopped thinking about it I started singing this song and I realized that it's at least a likely candidate.

A friend (and employee) was killed on the way to work when a kid pulled out to pass on a curve while speeding and ran directly into him.

https://youtu.be/JcrYhBTXBDQ

Cool idea for a thread. Thanks for giving me the chance to monologue. This is one from FAWM 2019 that means a lot to me because it is one of my better attempts to describe my love for one of my children: https://soundcloud.com/hypnotist/nobodys-maid
[edit: and having just listened to A Selfish Pain I can totally see why you consider it to be important, it sounds great - love the vocal work on this]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yOvGCAaHrY0&ab_channel=billWhite

my most meaningful song if only because, 40 years after having written it, the theme remains dangerously relevant. Five Seconds to Midnight. From 2009-2012 it remained in the top ten of the neil young-curated anti war video playlist.

You can set out to write a meaningful song but ultimately you don’t control whether that is achieved. You can say if it is meaningful to you but it’s overall fate lies in the hands of strangers.

Hi @yewnorker - It IS strange how both @complexissimple and @rowanb reference 'clipped wings' in their songs.
Your lyrics for Wreckage are beautifully constructed. The way you use storm and ocean as analogy is very clever and extremely well done. I know that this will resonate with loads of people.

Hi @mhorning - A song about life and death certainly captures meaning. I particularly liked, "The Ferryman, can go and soak his head!" and "That horse might learn to sing, that pig might learn to fly." Great lyrics.
I wrote a more light-hearted and chatty kind of song about death, called, "Hey, Death" that you may fancy checking out.
https://theenglishassassin.bandcamp.com/track/hey-death

Hi @nadine - Fit Right In is utterly stunning. It should be used in a film. And the message in the lyrics is so important (and what great and clever lyrics they are!)
I embraced not fitting in way back, but then I didn't have the struggles that many people do. It's so important that humanity embraces our diversity. We are strong 'because' we are diverse and don't conform.

Both great songs, @johnstaples
I can hear why they are meaningful to you. I particularly liked the melody and the structure of this chorus:

just passing through
and I'm thinking of you
tonight
I'm still thinking of you
as I'm passing through
this life

And the structure of the verses in Paper Flowers is clever and unusual, with what feels like an extra line at the end.

Great songwriting.

Hi @kiffa - I totally see why you wanted to share Easter Sunday. It's a terrible thing, but an excellent song, and you do a great job by making that slight but important change in the last verse. Very moving. I'll listen to your second song later.

Great lyrics, @johns and beautifully performed by @gordon
I particularly loved your chorus:
I was looking in the wrong places
In the woods and by the sea
I had to look inside myself
To find that inner peace

Opossum Tale is definitely the stand out for me, @opossum

How can you beat lyrics like this? Brilliant :)

What's that awful smell
It's my butt
I bet you wish
I'd kept that bugger shut

and:

Now I'm living in the space
below your roof
I'm poopin' everywhere
and that's the truth

Moments of Love is so meaningful, @paulharrison because it feels so real. Those lyrics just transport me. I wasn't there, but I recognize what it would feel like to be there. Beautiful.
I'll come back to listen to the second song later.

That's very sad, @tcelliott
It's shitty when friends are taken from us too soon. Thank you for sharing. It made me think of my best friend who died about 15 years ago and although it hurts, I'm glad I can still spend time in my head with him.

Nobody's Maid is utterly beautiful, @brisk
I'd love it even if I didn't know the back story. Just a gorgeous song.
Thank you for your kind words on A Selfish Pain. The truth is that is isn't important, because songs rarely are (especially songs by unknowns), but it is definitely meaningful, and I hope it inspires action.

This is a very meaningful piece of music I made a few years back. The emotions clap back to me when I hear it and make me almost unable to breathe. One day I’ll be able to play it again. Not quite yet. https://youtu.be/hrSzj1d0Y0s

You nailed it, @billwhite51
My sense of hope (I do still have some) comes from the fact that 40 years ago I 'knew' I wouldn't live into my early 20s.
WWIII was going to happen and happen soon. Thankfully I was wrong 40 years ago, even though I knew I was right at the time. This tells me that no matter how grim things look (and they look grim on many fronts), none of us actually knows what the future holds.
This makes me choose to be optimistic, because the older me decided that it's better to be optimistic and wrong, than pessimistic and right, and boy, was a pessimistic as a young man!
All the best.

Most of my songs are written in the hopes of raising a smile, but this one wasn't
https://youtu.be/K9N-Qtl9iD8

I kinda agree AND disagree with you, @daveyboy103
I suppose it hinges on the meaning of 'meaningful.' ;)
I very much mean it from a personal viewpoint. Of course I would personally like my meaningful song to be more broadly meaningful to listeners, but since I can't control that, I don't even bother going there. It's meaningful to me and that needs to be enough (otherwise writing and releasing songs would be too painful).
All the best!

The emotion is clearly very strong in your song, @orbit_carver
Powerful.

Thank you so much for sharing this, @strumandstress
There is so much truth, love, and sadness in When The World Leaves You Behind.
I too love to raise a smile (you wouldn't know it in most of my songs, but FAWM definitely found me more in jokey territory). But sometimes we just need to write those words that mean a lot to us, no matter how sad or upsetting they might be.
Best wishes.

This song started out from the depths of despair for me (things are better now pls don't think I am fishing for sympathy) but I literally sat at my piano to pray. Trying to take care of everyone elses' problems and health and ignoring my own. Feeling invisible. A quiet strength inside me held onto the "Fleeting Moments" of being true to myself that was left while trying to still care. Ever have compassion fatigue or burnout? A friend/colleague grabbed my shoulders and said "you matter too". Sometimes it is only in hindsight we realize how strong we are. I started this song during 50/90 and finished over the summer with some new friends. I'm proud of it. I hope you like it, too @theenglishassassin Thanks for the prompt!
https://open.spotify.com/album/4E9NSllPHKyp2r6X5TRtC4

It's been interesting to the songs listed here. So many different topics, but I really feel that these songs changed your mind, your way to live or carry a deeper message for somebody else .

I've been doing backing tracks for nine years, and just started digging in with lyrics + vocals this FAWM. So, it'll be at least a few writes before I have something significant to share.

In the meantime, I am publishing here on a weekly basis...

https://soundcloud.com/fatboyjamz/sets/songs-of-healing-and-growth

There are some wonderfully heartfelt songs and lyrics here. Even if the meaning gets personal or opaque, the sentiment comes across clearly. 👏

Oh wow, @katestantonsings - Please understand that any reference by me to Kate Bush is meant as a massive compliment. It's not the specifics of your voice, because you have your own distinct voice for sure, but the song production, with little whispered vocals and that smooth fretless bass makes me think of so much that makes me a crazy Kate Bush fan. So I'm thrilled to hear someone else capturing that beauty and strangeness in song (in a unique way). Fleeting Moments is perfection.

@theenglishassassin one of the coolest comments I’ve read all FAWM; thank you so much! I wrote the demo during 50/90. The fretless bass is my fav part, too!! I LOVE Kate Bush. You’ve made my day :)

Thank you for sharing, @fatboyjamz

My son who died when he was 7 would have been 24 on his birthday last November. I was 24 when I got married and I wondered...what if he had a soulmate, What if someone was looking for him and he is gone.
https://write.fawm.org/songs/15775

@tamsnumber4 Your song made my eyes water 💕it’s a beautiful loving tribute in song.

I'm just so sorry for your loss, @tamsnumber4
I cannot even get close to imagining what it must be like to have a child die.
You created something truly beautiful and heart-wrenching in Lost Soulmate. Thank you so much for sharing.

@theenglishassassin I just listened to A Selfish Pain and I believe it IS an important song! The music sets the appropriate tone, strong and steady! The lyrics tell the story so very well! Excellent work!!

This is a song about living and doing things today. There may never be another chance there never may be a tomorrow .

https://soundcloud.com/garrett-kirby-472150950/wish-i-could-say

Thank you, @johnstaples
For me, the word important carries certain connotations. If my song was capable of creating real positive change, I'd think it was important. I hope with all me heart that it can, but believe that because it won't be heard by that many people, then it's extremely unlikely to be an 'important' song (by my definition).
But it is very meaningful to me, and I hope it is meaningful for the few people that it touches, and I hope that some of those people decide to act and do what they can to make things better.
Kindest regards,
Phil (the guy behind The English Assassin)

Thank you, @gm7
You nailed it. Today is all we have, so cherish it.
Maybe we'll get a tomorrow, but by then it will be today again.

My collaboration with @gbg2016 on the song David and the Lilypad, in tribute to a very dear friend and former roommate who passed away last year: https://write.fawm.org/songs/16932

That's beautiful, @mikegtz
A lovely tribute to your friend.

One of my most meaningful songs is a tribute to someone I met by listening to a podcast where he was a guest a few years ago — a young comedian named Rob with a late stage cancer diagnosis. He began sharing his thoughts about mortality and dying in social media, and we connected in Instagram message. He would often livestream his oncology visits. I wrote this song for him. Rob died earlier this week — his dad reached out to me to let me know because they’d both been following my music. I’m honored to have known him even from afar.

I wrote it shortly before FAWM started.

“There Goes Life”
https://youtu.be/QQTewmiQHFU

That's a very sad and beautiful song, @newukenewyork
"There goes life, like a blur," is a line we should all pay attention to, so we make sure to appreciate what we have.
Thank you for writing and sharing this.