The "How to Write A Hit Song" Jingo Jango

As I mentioned in a post last week, tomorrow is the release day of the new Phredd album, Phreddtastic. To help celebrate that fact, I thought I'd offer up a little insight as to how one of the songs, "Jingo Jango" came about. Instead of telling you how Phredd and I wrote the lyrics, I thought I'd show you by copying the emails we sent back and forth that birthed the song. And yes kids, this is how ALL professional songwriters write their songs.

EDDIE to FRED:

Fred,
Are you up for writing a jingle for WJTL's listen live feature, a la those annoying freecreditreport.com commercials? Kinda like the poor sap lost his radio or something and didn't have a way to listen but now he does. I am actually going to lip synch the song since, just like in the commercials, the guy "singing" the songs isn't the actual singer. Did you know that? He's a French actor. True story, dude.
No rush on this at all. At all.
Eddie

FRED to EDDIE:

I love it.  Let's do this...
Come up with a title and then let's write (email) lines back and forth to write the song.
So you send me the title, and then...
Let the fun begin.
Fred

EDDIE to FRED:

"The No-Radio-Needed Jingo Jango"

FRED to EDDIE:

Jingo Jango Who need 'da radio?

EDDIE to FRED:

I thought I did til my boombox broke

FRED to EDDIE:

Cruel old joke, when my boombox broke

EDDIE to FRED:

(Now) My boombox won't tune in any mo'

FRED to EDDIE:

OK, I went a little crazy.  Start the second verse. :>)

Hey Radio Man now there's a void

Yeah you succeeded

My life's destroyed

No Radio Needed

Chorus

No Radio Needed (Jingo Jango)

Yeah, you succedded (Jingo Jango)

Casey Kasem pleaded

Rick Dees conceded

All your fears are now exceeded

Jingo Jango No Radio Needed

EDDIE to FRED:

Dude you are SOO much better at this, lol. I'm still trying to get my last contribution to fit in the structure...
Jingo jango, don' need da radio

FRED to EDDIE:

Now I don't have a life soundtrack

EDDIE to FRED:

I need music back, no tunes is pretty wack

FRED to EDDIE:

Wackitta wacka whacky no sound

EDDIE to FRED:

But Internet Man do what you can
Your technology
Can musically span
This dilemma probably

FRED to EDDIE:

Bridge/Middle eight

So I'm singing Papa papa papa papa

momma momma momma momma

Papa papa papa papa

Hm, Daddy Momma turn the radio on!

(OK Eddie - Big 3rd verse.  this is where we hit the point of the song.  The big finish so to speak.  You start)

EDDIE to FRED:

Jingo Jango what's dis by da radio?

FRED to EDDIE:

Why, its my portal to the internets

EDDIE to FRED:

Now I gets no worries or frets

FRED to EDDIE:

Cause I can tune in 24/7  (or - Cause I can tune in all the time)  if you like that better

EDDIE to FRED:

Listen online man if you're out of range

FRED to EDDIE:

Hey, we be streamin'

EDDIE to FRED:

You ain't dreamin'

FRED to EDDIE:

Hey, You ain't dreamin'

We be streamin'

NO RADIO NEEDED

Eddie, I think its done. The only other addition might be to talk over the ending, like listen online at wjtl.com or "get better speakers" or "nice profile pic dude."

EDDIE to FRED:

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha sweet!! You are sooo much better at this than me. I gladly stand in your shadow!

FRED to EDDIE:

already got the tune in my head

A few days later, Fred sent me an actual song based on what we'd written. As someone with no songwriting talent, I was crazy impressed that Fred was able to take our random lines and work them into a musical structure. He tweaked some words here and there, cut and moved and re-worded and the rest...well, I'll say it. The rest is musical history.

Here's the music video, set to Fred's original rough mix:

Phreddtastic is available online at the WJTL music store and will also be available on iTunes in the near future. A free download of the first single, "Text the Cell" will be available online at the WJTL website from Tuesday Dec 8-Monday Dec 15.