Estimated reading time 4 minutes
Table of Contents
Introduction
Do you need to know what a groove is? Do you want to learn how to write incredibly cool songs? The groove is the part of your song that makes you want to move to the beat. However, writing successful songs isn’t magic – it’s a skill that can be learned. Keep reading What’s a Groove? (Including How to Write Hot Songs) to learn how to write a killer groove.
This article uses musical terms. For definitions, see the Glossary at the end of the post.
What’s a Groove and How to Write Hot Songs #1: What’s a Groove?
What’s a groove?
- Have you ever listened to music that gets your foot tapping, making you want to move to the beat? That’s your groove. But how do you use it to write powerful music?
- The music’s feel can be created by any instrument or group of instruments within your band.
- It can consist of single notes, intervals, or chords, but the top notes should sound melodic and catchy.
- A large part of your song’s groove comes from your music’s rhythm, and so it usually starts in the rhythm section.
- It’s either the beat or the riff (or both) that pulls you in. Thus, the groove usually functions as the song’s hook (so called because it “hooks” you into listening to more of the song).
We’ll specifically focus on the hook in three classic rock songs where the main guitar riffs for each function as the hook and sets the groove.
What’s a Groove and How to Write Hot Songs #2: How Does It Work?
There are many ways to write a great groove. However, here’s a trick taken from the classic rock guitar riff repertoire:
- Play on the beat, then off the beat, and back on the beat again.
- Having said that, there’s a lot of variations on this concept, and no two songs are written exactly the same way.
- Therefore, you can be flexible in how you use this idea.
Below are three examples of how it works in guitar-oriented rock.
Mobile users: for best results reading the music, rotate your screen 90o to the right.
Video: Smoke on the Water
Smoke on the Water, and many other songs (e.g., Proud Mary and Sunshine of Your Love) follow this basic pattern of alternating on and off beats:
- Smoke on the Water starts with the main riff.
- In the rhythm staff example above, the first three notes fall on beats 1, 2, and 3, while the next three fall on the off beats (the “ands” which are represented by the “+” signs). The line ends with a return to the beat at beat number 3 in the second bar.
- The second line is like the first until you get to the fifth note, which ends on the off beat.
For more info on counting rhythm:
Video: Jumpin’ Jack Flash
Jumpin’ Jack Flash’s main riff is a variation on the pattern:
- The main riff is the second riff of the song and enters after the lead vocalist (Mick Jagger) says, “Watch it!”
- It plays on beats 1 and 2 in the first measure. Then, it has a series of three note motifs starting on the “and” of 3 in bar one, the “and” of 1 in bar two, and the “and” of 3 (also in bar two).
- Line two repeats line one.
Video: Frankenstein
The Frankenstein main riff shows how this concept can be applied to the sixteenth note level of rhythm:
- Frankenstein starts with the main riff. (Not to be confused with the video intro.)
- The other two riffs shown above were at the eight note level of rhythm, so that they alternately played on the beats and on the “ands.”
- However, Frankenstein has the “on feel” happening on the beats and the “ands” and the “off feel” on the weak part of the beat (i.e., “e” and “a”).
My Version
If you want to hear my version of the classic rock groove pattern, click on the soundtrack button below.
80s Hard Rock Riff:
To learn how to play this riff:
What’s a Groove and How to Write Hot Songs #3: How Do You Write It?
If you want to write a hot groove, you need to start with the rhythm section:
- The rhythm section usually consists of guitar, keys, bass, and drums.
- The bass and drums establish your beat.
- The guitars and keyboards add melodic and harmonic elements.
So, how do you start?
- You need to get together with your band members and start jamming.
- Come up with lots of ideas and record them all, even though most of your ideas will be mediocre.
- However, in any jam you’ll usually be able to find at least some gems.
The same idea applies to solo songwriters. You need to write lots of material, because that opens the opportunity for those gems to surface.
For information on how to write the rest of the song:
Final Thoughts
Takeaway points:
- The groove is the part of your song that gets your foot tapping.
- A songwriting groove tip: Play on the beat, then off the beat, and back on the beat again.
- You need to write a lot of material, because that provides you with the opportunity to uncover the gems hiding within your brain.
Have fun writing!
Related Posts
- Writing Well Crafted Songs
- The 5 Best Free Music Notation Apps
- What Exactly Does Beat Mean in Hip Hop?
© 2025 Geoffrey Keith
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