Former Pulp frontman and full time English wit Jarvis Cocker has given a lecture on lyric writing to a packed crowd at the SXSW event.
Cocker first gave the lecture at the In The City conference last year, explaining that he had been urged to do something by late Factory impresario Tony Wilson.
The singer led the discussion, titled ‘Saying The Unsayable’, armed with a Powerpoint presentation and a pointer. Discussing the techniques of such songwriters as David Bowie and Leonard Cohen, Cocker also revealed a number of his own artistic secrets.
The lyricist believes that words aren’t particularly important when creating a song, pointing to ‘Louie Louie’ by The Kingsmen as a good example of indecipherable lyrics.
“Lyrics are an optional extra like a sunroof on a car,” Cocker said. The former Pulp star played an acoustic version of his classic track ‘Babies’ before going on to sing one of his first ever tracks.
The pop ditty is called ‘Shakespeare Rock’ and was apparently written in 1978.
The lecture was Jarvis Cocker’s only scheduled appearance at the SXSW festival.
