Shelly Peiken 8/4/16 Shelly Peiken 8/4/16

Mad World

With all the absurdity going on in the world right now, it may be the perfect time to let a stranger in.

Shelly Peiken 7/27/16 Shelly Peiken 7/27/16

Elusive Butterflies

A creative mind never punches out. It’s always working. And that’s probably a good thing. As long as we're prepared to catch a butterfly.

Shelly Peiken 7/19/16 Shelly Peiken 7/19/16

If I Fell

Last night I went downtown to the Grammy Museum and along with about 200 lucky Super Fans, we listened to “Revolver” ...in the dark. Like millions of others around the world, my love affair with the Beatles is endless.

Shelly Peiken 7/11/16 Shelly Peiken 7/11/16

Write Anyway

If writing is the way we discover ourselves then to stop would be the end of beautiful relationship.

Shelly Peiken 7/6/16 Shelly Peiken 7/6/16

Where is the "Justice" in the DoJ?

“I can't help wondering if this may be the moment for the songwriting community to try to make a stand as a united front.”

Shelly Peiken 6/29/16 Shelly Peiken 6/29/16

Greetings From Nashville

"Concept is everything…some writers write themselves into a circle and wait for the main idea. Sometimes they get lucky. But if you have the concept right from the start the songs write themselves.”

Shelly Peiken 6/21/16 Shelly Peiken 6/21/16

#CarlySimon

Many artists sing about their incongruities, their longings, their insecurities. But what she said and how she said it resonated with the girl I was. She gave me my palette.

Shelly Peiken 6/15/16 Shelly Peiken 6/15/16

Father's Day 2016—Since You've Been Gone

As much as I wish you were still here I take comfort in knowing you escaped some very painful times. At least that's what I tell myself when I want to feel better about missing you so much.

Shelly Peiken 6/7/16 Shelly Peiken 6/7/16

Trading Places

What if, just for a few songs, Topliners took the bottom and the Producers got on top—so we could better appreciate each others’ function?

Shelly Peiken 6/2/16 Shelly Peiken 6/2/16

Suddenly...

We get so caught up in our work and then suddenly something happens that makes us take stock.... "Suddenly" from my new memoir...

Shelly Peiken 5/27/16 Shelly Peiken 5/27/16

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to The Airport....

The streaming revolution has been a gift to users. We can access as much music as we want, whenever and wherever we want it. For ten bucks. And, we can put our selection back on a shelf and opt for something else if for any reason we aren’t satisfied. That’s a pretty good deal. One would think that for an all-you-can-eat buffet, the value of music would have risen, not declined.

Shelly Peiken 5/19/16 Shelly Peiken 5/19/16

Kum Ba Yah

Chateau Marouatte. Day 4—reporting in.

Shelly Peiken 5/9/16 Shelly Peiken 5/9/16

Songwriting Camps

A few months ago, my esteemed colleague, producer/songwriter Greg Wells, who hosts a yearly event at a castle in Bordeaux, invited me to France.

Shelly Peiken 5/7/16 Shelly Peiken 5/7/16

My Favorite Gift

The best gifts are truly the ones that don’t come from the mall. Or cost money. Or arrive on a holiday.

Shelly Peiken 5/2/16 Shelly Peiken 5/2/16

Life Is Perfect

Or is it?

Shelly Peiken 4/27/16 Shelly Peiken 4/27/16

Nothing Compared 2 U

If we’re of the age that somebody’s music was the backdrop to our youth, and the one who created it moves on, it's as if our youth gets a little farther away.