Songwriter's Rhyming Dictionary

As a keen singer / songwriter, I often need to come up with decent lyrics very quickly, as well as avoiding obvious, overdone rhymes.

Sammy Cahn's Songwriting Dictionary was the first of its kind to be written from the singers', amateur or professional lyricist or jingle writers point of view, unlike other dictionaries that are geared towards linguists and poets. If you can rhyme parlimentary with elementary and get a good tune out of it, you're a better writer than me! Lyrics are not the same as poetry!

Perhaps most enlightening is the 30 page introduction from Sammy Cahn, himself, explaining the creation of some of his best-known and loved works. This is a masterclass from Sinatra's favourite lyricist, worth the price of the book in itself.

Regardless of whether your tastes run from pop, jazz, musicals, punk (me!) or heavy metal, you can learn something from the intro! Hits and good songs, are hits and good songs, regardless of genre. The fact that his songs are still being sung today is testament to this.

WHAT IT IS NOT - it is not a ready reckoner of rhymes that will give you a surefire hit. Sammy himself says that a rhyming dictionary should provide ideas, not be a substitute for creative thinking and originality.

I personally use a lot of near or impure rhymes in my work (mainly because my singing voice allows me to get away with it!), to break free of stale lyrics. However, there are times when this can be a cliche in itself, so I'll reach for Sammy's tome.

A great price for a great little book!