Songspeak - Conversations on the Art and Craft of Songwriting - Cliff Downs.
Tennessee MTSU Recording Industry professor Hal Newman, and occasional guest hosts, interview ASCAP songwriters.
Topics include the process of writing songs, how one becomes a songwriter, tips for being a successful songwriter in the music industry. Songwriters also perform a few of their songs. The programs are recorded in front of MTSU students enrolled in Recording Industry courses. A question and answer session follows each discussion.
A native of Alabama, Cliff had his first chart success at the age of 19 while still attending the University of Alabama. After moving to Nashville upon graduation, Cliff began to write and record demos which led to a pop record deal at Atlantic Records in New York. Cliff and Randy Goodrum wrote and produced several songs for EMI Artist Wendy Moten, which went to number one in Japan. Cliff had two songs recorded by Wynonna Judd and has also written songs for jazz artist Richard Elliott. In addition, he has had songs recorded by B.J. Thomas, Bad Company, Glenn Campbell, as well as number one songs for contemporary Christian artists "Sierra" and "Lisa Bevill."
One of the highlights of his career was producing a star-studded single for Atlantic Records called "One Heart at a Time." Artists on the project included Garth Brooks, Michael McDonald, Faith Hill,
Olivia Newton-John and many others.