The Poet, The Musician, and The Singer

...are three different people. It took me years to understand that they don't necessarily understand each other.

Most commonly, musicians and singers view songwriting as something they can do between exercise workouts.

Sometimes a well-written song is the last thing someone notices in the presentation of an artist. I've played with musicians that don't get me at all.

I've sat through countless horrible modern classical pieces where someone has treated a poem as something that could automatically be "songified" as if they just had to apply some opera scales to it.

However, a good song cuts through. I'm reminded of that old joke:

Little girl asks mommy, "why don't I have a penis like Johnny?" Mom replies, "Honey, as a woman....you'll be able to have a penis anytime you want one." 

A good songwriter can have good musicians anytime they want 'em...