Who Are The Top 10 Greatest Songwriters of All Time?

Author : Hughes Nelson

Songwriting is one of the most human things a person can do. Writing songs can be emotionally revealing and listening to tracks with great lyrics can also help listeners relieve stress. A stunning voice and surreal composition are important for a song to be great. Similarly, songwriting and the lyrics of the track are equally important. Through music and songwriting, writers live on forever. But do you know about the Greatest Songwriters that have ever lived in the international music industry? The list is big as the talent is massive but here are the top 10 names in the list. Read along to know the details.

10/10

Stevie Wonder

 Songwriting was not just a personal expressive activity for Wonder but he said, “I feel there is so much through music that can be said” and his music has exactly been doing that. An extremely versatile songwriter, Wonder displayed social commentary in songs like “Higher Ground,” and “Living for the City“. On the other hand, he showed unembarrassed sentimentalism on tracks like “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” and “I Just Called to Say I Love You” and exultant love on tracks like “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours“.

9/10

Joni Mitchell

 Joni Mitchell is among those few artists who shaped the “coffee-shop folk culture of the Sixties” and then came out of it to become the flag bearer of L.A.’s Laurel Canyon scene. But her sheer brilliance cannot be restricted to one movement. She started with simpler yet meaningful writings such as “Clouds,” “Both Sides Now,” and “Big Yellow Taxi.” But then she changed her writing style into something more personal and intimate. Her albums from ‘Ladies of the Canyon’ to 1974’s ‘Court and Spark,’ displayed “a jazz-bent studio pop” along with Blues.

8/10

Paul Simon

 This New York singer-songwriter is known for his versatility and ability to switch between styles with precise attention to melodies and rhythm. This was indeed a rare quality in artists of the folk era. Songs like “The Sound of Silence,” “Mrs. Robinson,” and “Bridge Over Troubled Water” shaped an entire generation. But he was just getting started as even after the breakup of Simon & Garfunkel in 1970, he kept on producing hits after hits, such as “American Tune,” and “Graceland.”

7/10

Carole King / Gerry Goffin

 One of Pop music’s most creative and inventive songwriting partnerships was between Goffin and King. Another impressive fact about this partnership is that their winning streak kept on being lit even after their marriage ended. King mainly handled the melodies whereas it was Goffin was in charge of the lyrics. “Up on the Roof,” “Will You Love Me Tomorrow,” and “One Fine Day” are some of their unforgettable hits.

6/10

Mick Jagger / Keith Richards

 Mick Jagger and Keith Richards deserve credit for defying rock music’s essential components, which are nasty wit, explosive chorus, and persistent riff. They write some of the most personal manifestos filled with political dimensions like “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” and “Get Off My Cloud”. Some of their other hits are “Gimme Shelter” and “Jumpin’ Jack Flash”.

5/10

Smokey Robinson

 “My theory of writing is to write a song that has a complete idea and tells a story in the time allotted for a record” – this is what Smokey Robinson said about his songwriting process. This melodic genius was behind Motown’s greatest hits and is one of the most influential and innovative R&B artists of all time. Some of his most elegant, poetic songs are “Shop Around“, “My Girl“, “Get Ready,” along with Marvin Gaye’s “Ain’t That Peculiar”, the Marvelettes’ “Don’t Mess With Bill”, etc.

4/10

Chuck Berry

 Chuck Berry was the first singer-songwriter of rock and roll and is widely popular for his expressive and brilliant songwriting talents. In his career, he was abundantly inspired by Muddy Waters and learned the power of “songs of novelties and feelings of fun and frolic” which he later used to transform a country song “Ida Red,” into his debut single, “Maybellene“. His creations were mythic and celebrated American freedoms. Some of his popular soundscapes are “Back in the U.S.A.”, “Brown Eyed Handsome Man” and “Promised Land”.

3/10

John Lennon

 The list of top 10 songwriters of all time cannot be completed without another Beatles member, and that is John Lennon. He is best known for his vocal duets and primary songwriting with his band member Paul McCartney. To talk about Lenon’s songwriting, ingenuity and originality are the best words to describe it. Some of the most memorable songs that the artist wrote are “Watching the Wheels” and “Imagine”. In one interview with Rolling Stone, he said, “I’m interested in something that means something for everyone”.

2/10

Paul McCartney

 Sir James Paul McCartney is an English singer-songwriter who rose to fame with one of the biggest boy bands of all time, the Beatles. Being called the greatest melodist of Pop music, McCartney is so much more than just silly love songs. Even though his songbook includes some of the most performed and well-crafted love tunes from the past half-century, his versatility reaches far away. Songs like “Temporary Secretary“, “Helter Skelter”, “Yesterday“, “Let It Be”, “Listen to What the Man Said”, etc.

1/10

Bob Dylan

 “A song is like a dream, and you try to make it come true. They’re like strange countries that you have to enter” – this is what Bob Dylan had to say about writing songs. With his transformative vision for American music, the artist soon gained fame and establishment as a singer-songwriter. He once said that he wanted to write songs that are bigger than life, and so he did. His ability to express his emotions, tell stories about what happened to him, and make them relatable to his audience made him secure the top place in this list of top 10 Greatest Songwriters of All Time.

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