Ted Nugent has been making the headlines with his remarks about politics, but he recently initiated a discussion about songwriting. In a new interview with Heavy Metal Pages, Uncle Ted touched upon his fellow musicians’ songwriting techniques and compared Jon Bon Jovi’s style with how AC/DC and ZZ Top write their songs.
Songwriting is a creative process that requires inspiration and a long time to think about how the song would progress, as several elements contribute to the sound. However, some artists sit down and play instruments with an instinctual urge, turning those jams into songs they write lyrics onto. According to Ted Nugent, he is in the latter group of musicians. In the interview, he listed some songs from his catalog, like ‘Crave,’ and commented on the songwriting process of some artists.
“An artist can only deliver the musical sensations and creativity of that moment,” said Ted Nugent after listing all of the hit songs he wrote proudly. “Now there are some pop artists, like Bon Jovi, for example, I’m sure that he sits down and thinks about tempo, chord changes, and lyrics that he thinks will sell. There’s nothing wrong with that; that’s awesome. He’s a very talented artist.”
“But for some of us,” Nugent continued, “I don’t know many others — I think Kid Rock is primal; I think all of our favorite bands, AC/DC, Van Halen, and ZZ Top, all my favorite bands, play from the guts. They create music in an open, uninhibited jam atmosphere, playing the licks, the patterns, and the grooves that stimulate and excite us. So, on ‘Shutup & Jam!’ and ‘Crave,’ I think the song ‘Crave’ is one of my top one percent songs ever.”
So, Ted Nugent believes that artists like Jon Bon Jovi spend time thinking about tempo, chord changes, and lyrics that are highly likely to sell. Although Nugent praised Jovi’s talent, he added that some artists such as him, Kid Rock, AC/DC, Van Halen, and ZZ Top play in an uninhibited jam atmosphere and create music through that experience. It seems like he favors this technique more.
