Hello Songwriters!
This week's featured instructor is Steve Leslie. Steve is a Nashville-based songwriter, performer, music publisher, and a popular songwriting clinician whose workshops have been held all over the US and in Canada.
Steve has a jazz/guitar degree from Morehead State University and taught jazz history and private guitar lessons before heading to Nashville in 1992. For nine years he was a staff writer at EMI where he wrote songs recorded by Kenny Rogers, Mark Chesnutt, George Strait, Darryl Worley, Rhonda Vincent and Neal McCoy, to name a few. And in 2004, Ricky Skaggs' album, Brand New Strings, whose title track was written by Steve, won the Grammy for Best Bluegrass Album of the Year.
Since 2007 his company, New Modern Songs, has published works by Darryl Worley, Darius Rucker and Rhonda Vincent, all written by Steve. He also has two albums of his own, In The Middle and Greater Gravity, and he is venturing into new territory by composing his first musical - the romantic comedy, Umbrella.
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Really, I'm a lucky guy. I've had the opportunity to make my living doing what I would do for free. I write songs. I sing songs. I try to get other people to sing my songs. And while I'm doing all of that, I make time to pass on the things I've learned. I teach. That's me in a nutshell."
-Steve Leslie
You can learn more about Steve at steveleslie.com.
Steve's Writing the Big Chorus Series
Delayed Gratification and the Power of One: Part 1
Delayed Gratification and the Power of One: Part 2
Steve's Chord Series
Chords As Adjectives: Part 1
Chords As Adjectives: Part 2
Have a great week!
