Lyricists

Collaborations

Songwriting collaborations can take different forms. Some composers and lyricists work closely together on a song, with each having an input into both words and tune. Usually a lyricist fills in the words to a tune already fully written out. Dorothy Fields worked in this way. Lyricists have often added words to an established tune, as Johnny Burke did with the Erroll Garner jazz standard "Misty". Some partnerships work almost totally independently: for example, Bernie Taupin would write lyrics and hand them over to Elton John, who set them to music, with minimum interaction between the two writers.