Bob Dylan, noted singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the folk-acoustic tradition. Singer-songwriters often provide the sole accompaniment to an entire composition or song, typically using a guitar or piano; both the compositions and the arrangements are written primarily as solo vehicles, with the material angled toward topical issues—sometimes political, sometimes introspective, sensitive, romantic, and confessional. Contents [hide] * 1 History * 2 North America, United Kingdom, and Ireland * 3 Cantautori, the Italian tradition * 4 Latin traditions * 5 Soviet Union and Russia * 6 Bulgaria * 7 Romania * 8 Netherlands * 9 Norway * 10 Periodicals that include coverage of singer-songwriters * 11 See also * 12 References * 13 Further reading |
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[edit]History

Théodore Botrel
The concept of a singer-songwriter can actually be traced to ancient bardic culture, which has existed in various forms throughout the world.[citation needed] Poems would be performed as chant or song, sometimes accompanied by a harp or other similar instrument. After the invention of printing, songs would be written and performed by ballad sellers. Usually these would be versions of existing tunes and lyrics, which were constantly evolving. This developed into the singer-songwriting traditions of folk culture.
Traveling performers existed throughout Europe. Thus, the folklorist Anatole Le Braz gives a detailed account of one ballad singer, Yann Ar Minouz, who wrote and performed songs traveling through Brittany in the late nineteenth century and selling printed versions.[1]
In large towns it was possible to make a living performing in public venues, and with the invention of phonographic recording, early singer-songwriters like Théodore Botrel and George M. Cohan became celebrities. Radio further added to their public recognition and appeal.
During the period from the 1940s through the 1960s, sparked by the American folk music revival, young performers inspired by traditional folk music and groups like the Almanac Singers and The Weavers began writing and performing their own original material and creating their own musical arrangements.[2]
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[edit]North America, United Kingdom, and Ireland | This article may contain excessive, poor or irrelevant examples. Please improve the article by adding more descriptive text and removing less pertinent examples. See Wikipedia's guide to writing better articlesfor further suggestions. |
See also: American folk music revival

Singer-songwriter Woody Guthrie
The term "singer-songwriter" in North America can be traced back to singers who developed works in the blues and folk music style. Early to mid-20th century American singer-songwriters include Leadbelly,[3] Jimmie Rodgers,[4] Blind Lemon Jefferson,[5] T-Bone Walker,[6] Blind Willie McTell,[7] Lightnin' Hopkins,[8] Son House,[9] and Robert Johnson,[10][11] (Johnson was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as an "Early Influence" in their first induction ceremony in 1986,[12] he was ranked fifth in Rolling Stone's list of 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time [13]). In the 1940s and 50s Woody Guthrie, and Pete Seeger,[14] along with Lee Hays and other members of The Weavers performed their mostly topical works (Seeger performed solo and as part of the Weavers) to an ever growing wider audience.[15] These proto-singer-songwriters were less concerned than today's singer-songwriters with the unadulterated originality of their music and lyrics, and would lift parts from other songs and play covers without hesitation. The tradition of writing topical songs (songs regarding specific issues of the day, such as LeadBelly 's "Jim Crow Blues" or Guthrie's "Deportee") was established by this group of musicians. Singers like Seeger and Guthrie would attend rallies for labor unions, and so wrote many songs concerning the life of the working classes, and social protest; as did other folksingers like Josh White, Cisco Houston, Malvina Reynolds, Earl Robinson,Ewan MacColl, John Jacob Niles, and Doc Watson, while blues singers like Johnson and Hopkins wrote songs about their personal life experiences. This focus on social issues has greatly influenced the singer-songwriter genre. Additionally in the 1930s through the 1950s several jazz and blues singer-songwriters emerged like Billie Holiday, Ray Charles, and Nina Simone, as well as in the rock n' roll genre from which emerged influential singer-songwriters Jerry Lee Lewis, Buddy Holly, Chuck Berry, Roy Orbison, Sam Cooke, Richie Valens, and Paul Anka. In the country music field, singer-songwriters like Hank Williams, Patsy Cline, Tammy Wynette, Loretta Lynn, George Jones, Merle Haggard, Roger Miller, Billy Edd Wheeler, and others emerged from the 1940s through the 1960s, often writing compelling songs about love relationships and other subjects.
The first popular recognition of the singer-songwriter in English-speaking North America and Great Britain occurred in the 1960s and early 1970s when a series of blues, folk andcountry-influenced musicians rose to prominence and popularity. These singer-songwriters included Bob Dylan, Jackie DeShannon, Johnny Cash, Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson,Paul Simon, Neil Young, Leonard Cohen, Joni Mitchell, Van Morrison, Jimi Hendrix, Brian Wilson, Tom Waits, Otis Redding, Marvin Gaye, Tom Rush, Phil Ochs, Tom Paxton, Arlo Guthrie, John Denver, Jackson Browne, John Prine, Grace Slick, Dave Mason, Jim Croce, Fred Neil, Roger McGuinn, Janis Joplin, Joan Baez, Judy Collins, David Crosby, Donovan,Stephen Stills, Randy Newman, Steve Goodman, Gordon Lightfoot, Paul Brady, Jesse Winchester, Johnny Tillotson, Sylvia Tyson, Ian Tyson, Nick Drake, Tim Hardin, Laura Nyro,Carly Simon, John Fogerty, Eric Andersen, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Joan Armatrading, Emmylou Harris, Taj Mahal, Cat Stevens, Bruce Cockburn, Harry Chapin, James Taylor, Jerry Jeff Walker, Lou Reed, Gram Parsons, Nick Gravenites, Rick Nelson, Richard Fariña, Tuli Kupferberg[16] Mark Spoelstra, Don Mclean, Patrick Sky, Jimmy Buffett, Mickey Newbury,Janis Ian, Dan Fogelberg, Dave Van Ronk, Waylon Jennings, Dolly Parton, and Frank Zappa. People who had been primarily songwriters, notably Carole King, Townes Van Zandtand Neil Diamond, also began releasing work as performers. In contrast to the storytelling approach of most prior country and folk music, these performers typically wrote songs from a highly personal (often first-person), introspective point of view. The adjectives "confessional" and "sensitive" were often used (sometimes derisively) to describe this early singer-songwriter style.
While the members of rock bands of the era were not technically singer-songwriters as solo acts, many were singer-songwriters who created songs with other band members including Paul McCartney, John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr, Mick Jagger, Keith Richards, Jerry Garcia and Bob Weir, Elton John (with Bernie Taupin), Justin Hayward,John Lodge, Robbie Robertson, Ian Anderson, Phil Collins, Peter Gabriel, and Peter Frampton; Don Henley, Glenn Frey, and many others like Eric Clapton found success as singer-songwriters in their later careers.
By the mid 1970s and early 1980s, the original wave of singer-songwriters had largely been absorbed into a more general pop or soft rock format, but some new artists in the singer-songwriter tradition (including Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Madonna, Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty, Mark Heard, Lucinda Williams, Kate and Anna McGarrigle,Patti Smith, Elvis Costello, Cyndi Lauper, Kate Bush, Rickie Lee Jones, Stevie Nicks, Cheryl Wheeler, Loudon Wainwright III, The Roches and Warren Zevon) continued to emerge, and in other cases rock and even punk rock artists such as Peter Case, Paul Collins and Paul Westerberg transitioned to careers as solo singer-songwriters.
In the late 1980s, the term was applied to a group of predominantly female U.S. artists, beginning with Suzanne Vega whose first album sold unexpectedly well, followed by the likes of Tracy Chapman, Nanci Griffith, k.d. lang, Shania Twain, Sarah McLachlan, Sheryl Crow, Lisa Loeb, Joan Osborne, and Tori Amos, who found success first in the United Kingdom, then in her home market. In the early 1990s, female artists also began to emerge in new styles, including Courtney Love and PJ Harvey. Later in the mid-1990s, the term was revived again with the success of Mariah Carey, Kylie Minogue and Canada's Alanis Morissette and her breakthrough album Jagged Little Pill.

Lady Gaga is a notable singer-songwriter of the 2010s.
Also in the 1980s and 1990s, artists such as Bono, The Edge, Dave Matthews, Duncan Sheik and Elliott Smith borrowed from the singer-songwriter tradition to create new acoustic-based rock styles. In the 2000s, a quieter style emerged, with largely impressionistic lyrics, from artists such as Norah Jones, Conor Oberst, Sufjan Stevens, David Bazan, South San Gabriel, Iron & Wine, David Gray, Ray LaMontagne, Meg Hutchinson, Steve Millar, Jolie Holland, Richard Buckner, Jewel, Jack Savoretti, Richard Shindell, and John Gorka. Some started to branch out in new genres such as Kurt Cobain, Noel Gallagher and Eddie Vedder. Others used drugs as a mind-altering way to boost creativity; for example, Emil Amos of Holy Sons took drugs daily from age sixteen on, wrote over 1,000 songs, and landed a record contract with an indie label.[17]
Recording on the professional-grade systems became affordable for individuals in the late 1990s. This created opportunities for people to independently record and sell their music. Such artists are known as "indies" because they release their records on independent, often self-owned record labels, or no label at all. Additionally the Internet has provided a means for indies to get their music heard by a wider audience. During the 2000s Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lana Del Rey, Ellie Goulding, Taylor Swift, Katy Perry and Lady Gaga are amongst the newest generation of singer-songwriters to emerge.
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[edit]Cantautori, the Italian tradition | Domenico Modugno "Nel blu dipinto di blu" (1958)Modugno's "Volare" was the Billboard Hot 100 single of the year 1958. | Problems listening to this file? See media help. |
Cantautori (Italian plural; the singular is cantautore) is the Italian expression corresponding to singer-songwriters in English. The word is aportmanteau of cantante (singer) and autore (writer).
Even if the first internationally renowned cantautore was Domenico Modugno with his song "Volare" in 1958, currently the most famous cantautore in Italy is Fabrizio De André.[citation needed] His songs are still popular today. In his works he often told stories of marginalized and rebellious people. In Italy he is considered as a poet because of the quality of his lyrics.[18]
Among the other best known are Lucio Battisti, Gino Paoli, Francesco Guccini, Roberto Vecchioni, Lucio Dalla, Francesco De Gregori, Claudio Lolli, Franco Battiato, Rino Gaetano, Ivan Graziani and Ivano Fossati.
Of the younger generation of artists, Samuele Bersani, Jovanotti, Carmen Consoli, Daniele Silvestri, Cristina Donà, Max Gazzè, Luciano Ligabue, Vinicio Capossela, and Zuccherohave often been tagged as modern cantautori.
The Neapolitan cantautore Pino Daniele has often fused genres as diverse as R&B, pop, jazz, rock, fusion, blues and tarantella to produce a sound uniquely his own, with lyrics variously in Italian, Neapolitan, or English. Similarly Paolo Conte was often tagged as a cantautore, but was more into the jazz tradition.
In the 1980s Vasco Rossi was renowned for his "rock" music mixed with Italian melodies. He was nicknamed the "only Italian rockstar" (l'unica rockstar italiana).[19]
The word has been borrowed into other languages, including Spanish, Portuguese, and Catalan cantautor, French chantauteur, Maltese kantawtur, Romanian cantautor, andSlovenian kantavtor.
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[edit]Latin traditions
Beginning in the 1960s and following the Italian cantautori style of the 1950s (like the one of Domenico Modugno), many Latin American countries developed singer-songwriter traditions that adopted elements from various popular styles. The first such tradition was the mid-60s invention of nueva canción, which took hold in Andean countries like Chile,Peru, Argentina and Bolivia.

Brazilian singer-songwriter Caetano Veloso
At around the same time, the Brazilian popular style bossa nova was evolving into a politically charged singer-songwriter tradition calledTropicalismo. Two performers, Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso became two of the most famous people in all of Brazil through their work in Tropicalismo.
After World War II it was developed in Italy a very prolific singer-songwriter (in Italian cantautore) tradition, initially connected with the French school of the chansonniers, and lately developed very heterogeneously. Although the term cantautore normally implies consistent sociopolitical content in lyrics, noteworthy performers in a more inclusive singer-songwriter categorization are: Domenico Modugno, Luigi Tenco, Gino Paoli, Sergio Endrigo, Fabrizio De André, Francesco De Gregori, Antonello Venditti, Roberto Vecchioni, Ivano Fossati, Lucio Dalla, Francesco Guccini and Franco Battiato.
In neighbouring Malta, the main singer-songwriters are Walter Micallef, Manwel Mifsud and Vince Fabri. They all perform in Maltese.
Spain and Portugal have also had singer-songwriter traditions, which are sometimes said to have drawn on Latin elements. Spain is known for the Nova Cançó tradition — exemplified by Joan Manuel Serrat and Lluis Llach; the Portuguese folk/protest singer and songwriter José Afonso helped lead a revival of Portuguese folk culture, including a modernized, more socially-aware form of fado called nova canção. Following Portugal's Carnation Revolution of 1974, nova canção became more politicized and was known as canto livre. Another important Spain singer-songwriters are Joaquín Sabina, José Luis Perales and Luis Eduardo Aute .
In the latter part of the 1960s and into the 70s, socially and politically aware singer-songwriters like Silvio Rodríguez and Pablo Milanés emerged in Cuba, birthing a genre known asnueva trova. Trova as a genre has had broad influence across Latin America. In Mexico, for example, canción yucateca on the Yucatán Peninsula and trova serrana in the Sierra Juárez, Oaxaca are both regional adaptations of trova. Today, Guatemalan Ricardo Arjona qualifies as Latin America's most commercially successful singer-songwriter. Although sociopolitical engagement is uneven in his oeuvre, some see Arjona's more engaged works as placing him in the tradition of the Italian cantautori.
In the mid-1970s, a singer-songwriter tradition called canto popular emerged in Uruguay.
With the influence of Tropicalismo, Traditional Samba and Bossa Nova, MPB (Música Popular Brasileira), or Brazilian Popular Music, became highly singer-songwriter based. For years solo artists would dominate Brazilian popular music with romantic cynicism alla Jobim or subliminal anti-government messages alla Chico Buarque. After the end of themilitary dictatorship in Brazil, Brazilian music became less politically and socially conscious. The censored Raul Seixas or the humorous spiritualist Jorge Ben were slowly obscured by funk carioca, axé music and Brazilian disco. In recent years, however, a new stock of socially conscious Brazilian singer-songwriters is beginning to break the almost strictly dance-music momentum that has reigned since the 1980s (see the 'Brazilian folk/folk-rock sub-article in Brazilian Music).
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[edit]Soviet Union and Russia
Main article: Bard (Soviet Union)

Soviet and Russian bard Bulat Okudzhava
Since the 1960s, those singers who wrote songs outside the Soviet establishment have been known as "bards". The first songs traditionally referred to as bard songs are thought to be written in late 30s and early 40s, and the very existence of the genre is traditionally originated from the amateur activities of the Soviet intelligentsia, namely mass backpacking movement and the students' song movement of 1950s and 1960s. Many bards performed their songs in small groups of people using a Russian guitar, rarely if ever would they be accompanied by other musicians or singers. Though, bards using piano or accordion are also known. Those who became popular held modest concerts. The first nationwide-famous bards (starting their career in 1950s) are traditionally referred to as the First Five: Mikhail Ancharov, Alexander Gorodnitsky, Novella Matveyeva, Bulat Okudzhava, Yuri Vizbor. In the 1960s, they were joined by Victor Berkovsky, Yuliy Kim, Sergey Nikitin, etc.
In the course of 1970s, the shift to the classical 6-string guitar took place, and now, a Russian guitar is a rare bird with the bards. In the same period, the movement of KSP (Kluby Samodeyatelnoy Pesni – amateur song fan clubs) emerged, providing the bards with highly educated audience, and up to the end of 1980s being their key promotion engine. Bards were rarely permitted to record their music, partly given the political nature of many songs, partly due to their vague status in the strictly organised state-supported show business establishment of the USSR. As a result, bard tunes usually made their way around as folk lore, from mouth to mouth, or via the copying of amateur recordings (sometimes referred as magnitizdat) made at concerts, particularly those songs that were of political nature. Bard poetry differs from other poetry mainly in the fact that it is sung along with a simple guitar melody as opposed to being spoken. Another difference is that this form of poetry focuses less on style and more on meaning. This means that fewer stylistic devices are used, and the poetry often takes the form of narrative. What separates bard poetry from other songs is the fact that the music is far less important than the lyrics; chord progressions are often very simple and tend to repeat from one bard song to another. On the other hand, in the USSR the chief bard supporter was the state Union of Composers, and the main bard hater was the state Union of Writers. A far more obvious difference was the commerce-free nature of the genre: songs were written to be sung and not to be sold. The similar genre dominated by singers-songwriters is known assung poetry in other Post-Soviet countries.

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[edit]Bulgaria
Singer-songwriters are popular in Bulgaria under the name "bards", or "poets with guitars". Their tradition is a mixture of traditional folk motifs, city folklore from the early 20th century, and modern influences. In the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, the Communist regime in the country started to tolerate the Bulgarian "bards", promoting the so called "political songs", performed usually by one-man bands. A national festival tradition was established, under the title "Alen Mak" (Red Poppy), a symbol with strong Communist meaning in Bulgaria. At the same time, there were some prominent underground figures which were against the official Communist Party line, such as Angel "Jendema" Angelov, Yavor "Yavkata" Rilov, and Velizar "Valdes" Vankov. After the collapse of Communism in 1989, the singer-songwriters' tradition was re-established. Currently, the Bulgarian "bards" enjoy several festivals (local and international) per year, namely the PoKi Festival (Poets with Guitars, Poetic Strings) in the town of Harmanli, the Bardfest in Lovech, the Sofia Evenings of Singer-Songwriters, and others. Major figures in the Bulgarian tradition are Dimitar Taralezhkov, Angel "Jendema" Angelov, Yavor "Yavkata" Rilov, Velizar "Valdes" Vankov, Dimitar Dobrev, Andro Stubel, Branimir "Bunny" Stoykov, Dorothea Tabakova, Mihail Belchev, Assen Maslarski, Grisha Trifonov, Plamen Stavrev, Vladimir Levkov, Margarita Drumeva, Maria Batchvarova, Plamen Sivov, and Krasimir Parvanov.
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[edit]Romania
Despite the communist isolation, the tradition of singer-songwriter in Romania flourished beginning with the end of the 1960s and it was put in the context of the folk music, with its three main styles in Romania: ethno folk, American-style folk and lyrical (cult) folk. The framework for many of these initiatives came under the form of Cenaclul Flacara, a series of mass cultural events with an inevitable ideological touch. Still, with the merit of supporting great opening initiatives: the appropriation of Western artists like Bob Dylan, Joan Baezand others from the Woodstock generation, the public performance of gospel-like music, the opening to big international issues (pop culture, accountability of the leadership, tension surging during the Cold War-with surprisingly neutral positions etc.). Overall, the Romanian folk, in general, could be marked as an underground cultural movement, somewhere between non-aligned and protest music.
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[edit]Netherlands
Ede Staal (Warffum) (1941–1986), was a Dutch singer-songwriter from the Northern province of Groningen who sang mainly in the Groninger dialect of Dutch.
Currently, a new wave of contemparary singer-songwriters is being led by Belgian artist Jente Pironet.
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[edit]Norway
Maria Mena contemporary singer-songwriter.
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[edit]Periodicals that include coverage of singer-songwriters * Rolling Stone, focus on music and popular culture * Dirty Linen, focus on folk and world music. * No Depression, focus on alternative country styles. * Paste, eclectic music coverage. * Pitchfork Media, focus on independent artists. * Sing Out! focus on folk styles. * Broadside focus on folk music, and folk-rock.
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[edit]See also * List of singer-songwriters * Protest songs in the United States * Cantautori * Swedish ballad tradition * Composer * Lyricist * List of Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees
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[edit]References 1. ^ Anatole Le Braz, "The Pardon of the Singers", The Land of Pardons, London, Methuen, 1926, pp. 45–104. 2. ^ Cohen, Ronald D. Rainbow Quest: The Folk Music Revival & American Society, 1940-1970. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2002). ISBN 1-55849-348-4 3. ^ "Leadbelly Foundation". Leadbelly.org. Retrieved 2010-09-22. 4. ^ "Jimmie Rodgers: The Father of Country Music | Mississippi History Now". Mshistory.k12.ms.us. 1933-05-26. Retrieved 2010-08-20. 5. ^ Dicaire, David. Blues Singers: Biographies of 50 Legendary Artists of the Early 20th Century, pp. 140-144. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Company, Inc., 1999. ISBN 0-7864-0606-2. 6. ^ Wenner, Jan (2010). "47; T-Bone Walker". Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time. Wenner Media Websites: Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 November 2010. 7. ^ http://toto.lib.unca.edu/sounds/piedmontblues/mctell.html University of North Carolina 8. ^ Russell, Tony (1997). The Blues: From Robert Johnson to Robert Cray. Dubai: Carlton Books Limited. pp. 145–146. ISBN 1-85868-255-X. 9. ^ National Guitar.com 10. ^ "The 50 albums that changed music". The Observer (London). 2006-07-16. Retrieved 2008-11-01 11. ^ Booklet accompanying the Complete Recordings box set, Stephen LaVere, Sony Music Entertainment, 1990, Clapton quote on p. 26 12. ^ "Robert Johnson Inducted at: The 1986 Induction Ceremony". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum Inc. 13. ^ "100 Greatest Guitarists". rollingstone.com. Rolling Stone. 2008-11-28. Retrieved 2010-08-15. 14. ^ Spivey, Christine A. This Land is Your land, This Land is My Land: Folk Music, Communism, and the Red Scare as a Part of the American Landscape. The Student Historical Journal 1996–1997, Loyola University New Orleans, 1996. 15. ^ "Sing out, warning! sing out, love!": the writings of Lee Hays, by Lee Hays and Steven Koppelman (Amherst and Boston: University of Massachusetts Press, 2003), p. 116. 16. ^ Broadside Volume III, cover 17. ^ Chris Martins (March 10, 2011). "Sober People Scare the Shit Out of Me". LA Weekly. Retrieved 2011-04-28. 18. ^ Lyrics of Fabrizio De André songs 19. ^ Vasco Rossi (in Italian)
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[edit]Further reading * Alarik, Scott, Deep Community, (2003), Black Wolf Press. [1]