Rhyme is a powerful tool. We use it for many reasons, some having to do with structure and motion, some having to do with meaning and expression Clement Wood's The Complete Rhyming Dictionary being able to identify vowel and consonant sounds to locate Perfect Rhyme Perfect Rhyme Remember the three characteristics of Perfect Rhyme: 1. the rhyming syllables have the same vowel sounds, 2. the consonant sounds after the vowel (if any) have the same sounds, and 3. the rhyming syllables begin differently.

very handy Perfect Rhyme substitute, Family Rhyme. Family Rhymes Then we have Family Rhyme: 1. the rhyming syllables have the same vowel sounds, 2. the consonant sounds after the vowel are phonetically related, and 3. the rhyming syllables begin differently. There are three useful phonetic families: 1. plosives: b,d,g,p,t,k 2. fricatives: v,TH,z,zh,j,f,th,s,sh,ch 3. nasals: m,n,ng Members of the same family can be substituted for each other: mud/truck, love/blush, strum/hung. And because vowels sounds are exaggerated in songs (singers sing vowels), the small family differences between consonants are hardly noticeable. Here is the table:

find more and better rhymes to help you say what you mean.

you simply have to learn how to find fresh rhymes that also help you say what you mean

Additive and Subtractive Rhyme when there is no final consonant sound belonging to a phonetic family, find more and better rhymes to help you say what you mean with Additive/Subtractive Rhymes Additive Rhyme. Just find words with the same "E" sound, and add as little sound as possible. For example, "free/seed" or "free/league." Voiced plosives add the least sound, followed by unvoiced plosives, as in "free/sleep," "free/treat," and "free/leak." As a rule of thumb, the less sound you add, the closer you are to Perfect Rhyme. As a rule of thumb: • Start with the voiced plosives, b, d, g. • Then move on the the unvoiced plosives p, t, k. • Next to voiced fricatives v, TH, z, zh, j. • Finally, try unvoiced fricatives f, th, s, sh, ch. Nasals are pretty risky. They add a whole lot of sound. Don't even think about "l" or "r"! Of course, you can also use Additive Rhyme for syllables ending in consonants: "meet/streets, flight/lights."

Subtractive Rhyme moves in the opposite direction of Additive Rhyme. It works by taking something away. If you start with "seed," you can subtract the consonant to get the rhyme "tree." Or from "planes" to "rain." From "trashed" to either "rash" or "dad." (Though "rash" preserves the more dominant sound and thus is closer to Perfect Rhyme.) Remember, the more sound you subtract, the less perfect the rhyme. When you have two consonant sounds, subtract the less noticeable one. With a plosive and a fricative, subtract the plosive: "flights/ties," not "flights/right." With a fricative and a nasal, subtract the fricative: "runs/fun," not "runs/fuss."

Sometimes it doesn't matter so much to stay close to Perfect Rhyme.The point is always saying what you mean. Expanding the rhyme possibilities can be a great help in this endeavor.

assonance rhyme, where the only common sound is the vowel, for example rough/sun Assonance Rhyme Assonance rhymes are simply vowel rhymes. Only the vowels are the same. The consonants are unrelated: life/tide Assonance rhyme is the weakest connection so far, However, when you sing it, the longer you hold the note out, the more prominent the vowel sound becomes (since singers sing vowels). At worst, it might be useful in some contexts, if only as a voice leading inside a line. At best, it could be useful as an end-line rhyme if the note is held, as Stevie Nicks does in "Landslide": Sometimes you don’t want a Perfect rhyme effect. You might want the lines to feel slightly unresolved: Can I sail through the changing ocean tide? Can I handle the seasons of my life? rhyme types can have a prosodic function Assonance rhyme ends up opening the entire vowel listing of the rhyming dictionary. You simply have to figure out what you want to say and how resolved (or resolute) it should feel, and choose rhyme types accordingly. The goal, as always, is to say what you mean. Prosody of rhyme types gives you a sensible way to help you choose: Perfect or (at worst) Family rhyme to support stable or resolved meaning. Use the more remote rhyme types (including Assonance rhyme) to support unstable or unresolved meaning. Consonance Rhyme In consonance rhyme, only the consonant sounds after the vowel sounds connect. The vowel sounds of the rhymed syllables are different: one/gone
friend/wind As an end-line rhyme, consonance rhyme is for special occasions only. Inside lines, it is very useful for linking words together with sounds--creating a “sonic fabric.” Always say them out loud. Rhymes are made for the mouth and the ear, so use both to test them out. As you can hear, the more sound the consonants deliver, the stronger the sonic connection. Plosives, as in “tread,” offer very little sound. Fricatives, as in “fuse,” deliver a little more. Nasals, as in “rain,” create even more connection, and combinations of nasals and fricatives, as in “dreams,” are even stronger. There are even stronger consonant sounds, l and r. Both of these consonants pack a sonic wallop. They can form powerful connections, even for consonance rhyme:

fill: fail pal real fell trial roll fall tool pull Pair: here fir tire roar hour When you combine L or R with a fricative or a nasal, the connections are even stronger: fools: pails pals feels cells aisles pills tolls halls bulls farm: worm storm (It’s tempting to try “born.”) The effect of “left hanging” you feel with consonance rhyme is even more pronounced than with assonance rhyme. If the consonants deliver enough sound, you feel a connection, but not a resolution. It doesn’t feel “done,” yet it still connects the lines together, working with the other rhymes to outline the structure of the section.

What seems to be the emotional state of the characters in each example? Do you think they feel a sense of loss, or of sadness, or of incompleteness? Interesting. The type of rhyme you choose can affect and support the meaning you are trying to communicate. That would be the “special occasion” use for consonance rhyme. 

As rhymes inside the line, consonance rhymes are a no-brainer. Very useful: I got the feeling I’m falling You now have a colorful pallet to paint with, giving you endless rhyme options to help you say what you mean. More importantly, you are able to control the strengths of your sonic connections, helping to support the emotional intent of your lyric.

• Notate rhyme schemes • Organize the flow of your lyric with rhyme • Control the pace of your lyric with rhyme • Define the end of sections with rhyme • Control closure (resolution) with rhyme • Use basic rhyme paradigms • Create prosody with rhyme

creating prosody with rhyme types: perfect and family rhymes create strong connection and give a feeling of resolution. More remote rhyme types create softer connections and feel incomplete--useful in supporting ideas that leave you “hanging.”

Since rhyme is a sonic event, directed at the ear, it is the perfect way to provide the ear with road signs, showing the way through the lyric. Rhyme structure tells the ear many things: • whether to stop or proceed ahead • how quickly or slowly the structure is moving • how the lines group together • when a section is finished • how strongly a section closes Notating Rhyme Schemes

We use consecutive letters of the alphabet to notate rhyme structure. Use “a” to stand for the first end-line rhyme sound in the structure, “b” for the next rhyme sound, and so on. Only use letters to notate end-line rhyme. Rhymes inside the lines (internal rhymes) don’t get letters, since they don’t affect the overall line construction. When an endline is unrhymed, don’t use consecutive letters to notate them. Use “x” to stand for all unrhymed lines. if two syllables begin the same way, they won’t rhyme. Rhyme is created by tension/resolution--by different sounds resolving into the same or similar sounds. Thus, neither grant/grant nor grant/gram call the ear’s attention to sound, since they both begin with the same “gr” sound. Grant/slant and grant/slam do call the ear’s attention to sound, since they each begin with different sounds. You would notate grant/grant and grant/gram as: grant a grant aI and grant a gram aI

Creating Forward Motion with Rhyme

You can create forward motion in two ways: 1. by not rhyming 2. stud 
sweet... 3. or 4. stud 
sweet 
lost... 5. by creating expectations with rhyme. 6. stud 
sweet 
blood 

or

heat 
sweet 
blood ... The end of each of these either moves you forward, or, at least, doesn’t make you stop.

Balancing (Resolving) with Rhyme

Each of the previous examples told you to move on. Now, let’s balance them by rhyming at the last line: stud x sweet a lost x heat a stud a sweet b blood a heat b stud a blood a sweet b heat b

Accelerating and Slowing Down with Rhyme

Rhyme controls the speed (pace) of a section. When the rhymes are close together, the pace is brisk and measured: stud a sweet b blood a heat b When the rhymes are further apart, the pace is more relaxed: stud x sweet a lost x heat a You can probably guess immediately at applications for pace. For example, if the idea is laid back, create a rhyme scheme with a slower pace. Look a “Years” on page 158 of Writing Better Lyrics. The principle is simple, but effective. You can speed up a section by changing pace--moving, for example, from alternating rhymes to consecutive rhymes: stud x sweet a lost x heat a forget b sweat b or stud a sweet b blood a heat b forget c sweat c

Accelerating and Slowing Down with Rhyme

You can also speed the pace within a section by inserting consecutive rhymes: stud a sweet b forget c sweat c heat b or stud a sweet b blood a forget c sweat c heat b In both cases, the consecutive rhymes (couplets) speed up whatever pace has been set. It’s more dramatic in the first case, since we have no rhymes and no expectations of what’s next: stud a sweet b forget c A very leisurely pace. Whereas in: stud a sweet b blood a ...a brisker pace has been established, so the couplet isn’t such a radical acceleration. Of course, if rhyme can accelerate a section, it can also slow it down by setting a pace, then rhyming even less frequently. For example: stud a blood a sweet x forget b fall x sweat b ...starts fast with a couplet aa, and slows down with xbxb.

Controlling Flow with Rhyme

Rhyme is the best tool you have to control the flow of ideas in a lyric. Sometimes, you may want to create a section that keeps one idea moving all the way to the end without stopping. Sometimes you may want to finish one idea and start another one inside the same section. Rhyme can keep a section moving or subdivide it into smaller units. Here are some rhyme schemes that move through the section without stopping (through-written): stud x sweet a lost x heat a stud a sweet b blood a heat b stud a sweet b hot c blood a heat b stop c Here are two rhyme schemes that subdivide the section (fragmented): stud a blood a sweet b heat b stud a sweet b blood a heat b forget c sweat c Defining the End of Sections with Rhyme

The basic reason that songs rhyme is to define the ends of sections. You listen to songs; they enter through the ear. Rhyme is a sound-event that guides the ear through the section and tells you when it’s over. That’s why, no matter what happens within the section, you rhyme the last line to make it feel like it’s done. This feels done: stud x sweet a lost x heat a This doesn't: sweet a lost x heat a stud x Not that you’re required to rhyme at the end of every section. It’s not a rule. But when you don’t, the section feels open--like it continues into the next section, and the ear tends to get a little lost. Sometimes, you might want that effect, especially if the song is about feeling lost. Most of the time you don’t. When you close sections with rhyme, it prepares the ear for a new section, helping to organize the song into easily identifiable units. If the last line of a section is unrhymed, the section is open--it wants to keep moving forward. It cannot be closed unless the last line rhymes. Sometimes, even when there is a rhyme at the end, a section can feel open, as in: fall wall small flood mud This cries out for either “blood” or “tall” to close (resolve) the section. Even though an unrhymed last line keeps the section open, having a rhymed last line is no guarantee of closure. Types of Closure

Closure is where you can have some fun--create some surprises. Let’s say you have these end-line rhymes: stud a sweet b blood a Of course, the sequence raises expectations that the next line will rhyme with “sweet.” If it does, stud a sweet b blood a heat b ...the closure is EXPECTED. It closes the sequence. But you could create a surprise: stud a sweet b blood a flood a Pretty neat. It closes the section, but in a way that fools us. We expected a rhyme with “sweet,” but got something that rhymed with the other words in the sequence. This is called “deceptive closure.” Because it fools us, it turns on spotlights and calls attention to itself. Put something there that you really want the listener to notice. Remember that in order to fool someone, they have to expect something else. So to create “deceptive closure,” the sequence has to raise expectations that it will close in a specific way. Then you rhyme with something else that appeared in the sequence. Of course, if you don’t rhyme: stud a sweet b blood a jolt c ...the sequence isn’t deceptive, it’s simply open. If the sequence raises no expectations, as in: stud sweet lost ...then closing it with stud sweet lost tossed ...also creates a surprise, but this time we call it “unexpected closure.” This also works when you add an extra line as in: stud a sweet b blood a heat b treat b

Using Basic Rhyme Paradigms

In our study of rhythm and line lengths, we saw basic rhythm models or paradigms that helped us understand how rhythm structures work. These paradigms correspond exactly to rhyme structure. In fact, rhyme structure is an essential ingredient in the paradigms as they apply to real life lyrical practice. In studying rhyme structure, we will complete our understanding of the use of paradigms in crafting and controlling lyric structure. Remember that line length and rhythm work according to the same principle: consecutive matched lines stop forward motion; consecutive unmatched lines create forward motion. The same principle applies to rhyme: consecutive rhymed lines stop forward motion. Look at this example (in triple meter): Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt kinda héats up your blóod Consecutive unrhymed lines create forward motion: Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt is nóthing but hót The forward motion is even more pronounced if you not only unrhyme the second line, but shorten it too: Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt is swéet Now, you must move forward. Of course, this is familiar territory, since we have been looking at matched and unmatched lines all along. Now at last we are focusing on rhyme. The paradigms we looked at earlier are now complete: matched couplets: Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt kinda héats up your blóod
You gét a little ítchy, mákes you wanna scrátch it
The clóser he géts, the móre you wanna gráb him And common meter: Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt is swéet
You gét a little ítchy, kinda bóils your blóod
Féel a little fáint from the héat The principles of moving and stopping apply equally to both line length and rhyme. Once you understand them as they apply to line length, rhyme motion is easy.

Review chapters 13 and 14 in WBL, and “Spotlighting in Common Meter” and “Managing Couplets” at http://www.patpattison.com, Lyric Tips. This time, focus on rhyme.

Using Basic Rhyme Paradigms

Since we now have two features that control forward motion: line length
rhyme we can exercise more precise control over motion. We can match lines but not
rhyme them: Yeah he’s prétty good lóoking, ÓK he’s a stúd
What he dóes to a tée-shirt is nóthing but hót The result is relatively balanced, but not fully resolved, as in the first two lines of “End of the Innocence:” Remember when the days were long
And rolled beneath the deep blue sky There’s a sense of stability, but also an openness to moving forward. The rhyme in “End of the Innocence” comes at the end of line four, creating resolution and a very balanced feeling--like the security of childhood. Matched lines create the balance, lack of rhyme creates the openness. Another way to create prosody. Neat. We can work the other way, rhyming unmatched lines: Yeah he’s pretty good looking, OK he’s a stud
Girl he really boils your blood Now, we feel like we’ve come to the end of an idea, but feel off-balance-- a lot like she feels in the presence of Mr. Hard Body. More prosody. Nice. We have now seen all four elements of structure in action: number of lines, line length, rhythm, and rhyme. Each of the four can create prosody--can support the lyric idea. The four working together can create marvelous effects. We will turn to those next week.

Rhyme: Taking Total Control Rhyme Scheme Rhyme Structure Balance Pace Flow Closure Types of Closure Rhyme Strategies

Rhythm: Setting Up, Shutting Down Syllables Patterns Rhythm Paradigm One Structural Pentad Paradigm Two Deceptive Closure Paradigm Three Unexpected Closure

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