It is well documented that, when Paul McCartney started working on the song “Yesterday”, he gave it the title “Scrambled Eggs”. According to some sources, “Yesterday” is most recorded song of all time. Would the same have applied if the song had kept its original title? I doubt it, and I strongly suspect that McCartney meant the original title to be both a working title or placeholder and a bit of a joke. In this and many other cases, the title forms the hook of the song, meaning that the song is easily recognised from its title.
What is the purpose of a song title? In most cases, it gives a first impression of the song and reveals the song’s theme. It needs to be memorable, but also easy to discover, e.g on a playlist, and able to connect with audiences, e.g. by evoking emotion or imagery.
Some song titles are clever plays on words, while others are commonly used phrases. The intention, in both cases, is that the name will stick in the mind of the listener. “Take Five”, a jazz instrumental by the Dave Brubeck Quartet, is named after a common phrase, used by musicians and others, meaning to take a short break from their work. It is also meant to draw attention to the fact that the piece is in the fairly unusual 5/4 time signature. Common phrases such as “Poker Face”, “I Should Be So Lucky” and “Who Do You Think You Are” have all found their way to the top of the charts. Songs, which are based on analogy, sometimes use the analogy to form the title. “From a Jack to a King” and “The Gambler” are songs about love and life, but use the analogy of a card game both in the lyrics and the title. Some titles, such as “Smells Like Teen Spirit”, “Viva La Vida” and “Bohemian Rhapsody”, don’t even appear in the lyrics. Titles can be made memorable by shocking the listener, some of the Sex Pistols songs being good examples.
Creating titles for instrumentals needs a different focus. Sometimes the title is taken from a film or TV show where it appears, e.g. the Eastenders or Coronation Street themes. Otherwise, the mood of the piece is what usually leads to its title. I have already mentioned one instrumental, “Take Five”, where the title is a play on words but also helps to convey the mood. Titles such as “Side Saddle”, “Apache” and “Albatross” create mental images in the brain, and are appropriate for the music. Other criteria for creating titles include using the rhythm pattern of the instrumental hook to suggest a lyric, e.g. “Wonderful Land”. Indeed, some versions of ‘instrumentals’ such as “Zambesi”, “Mouldy Old Dough” and “One Step Beyond” feature a voice singing only the title of the song. Twenty-first century instrumental hits such as “Levels”, “Sandstorm” and “Animals” tend to have more subtle titles; however, the principle is the same.
Since I mainly write instrumental music, I am influenced by the concepts mentioned in the last paragraph. Some people recommend that you start with the title, but I find that doesn’t work for me. This means that I have to find a title after a fair proportion of the piece has already been written. This can be difficult and sometimes the final title is my second or third attempt. Indeed, I often ask mentors or friends if a certain title is appropriate.
My latest release, “Tempura Mutantur (Changing Times)”, uses the “Take Five” technique of having two meanings – the change in time signature from 6/8 to 4/4 and back, plus the fact that the style of the arrangement is from two very different eras. The piece on which I am currently working has no title as yet, but has the name “Trance 2” as a placeholder. In fact, “Song 2” by Blur was originally a working title! Choosing a better title for “Trance 2” is the number one item on my ‘To Do’ list.