BBC - 6 Music - The Great Debate

Who’s the best British songwriter ever?

Next week, the Ivor Novello awards will reward the current big cheeses of British rock for their songwriting skills. Arctic Monkeys and Kaiser Chiefs could come of age, or Coldplay could just win everything as per ruddy usual.

Either way, this is one award that probably won’t be abandoned drunkenly under the table. Because an Ivor is one of the few awards left that still actually means something - neither cooked up by a sinister magazine committee or left open to be hijacked by marauding Will Young fans, it’s about songwriters being commended by people who actually know what they’re talking about – other songwriters.

All of which prompts the question – who is our finest songwriter of all time? Because writing great songs is not the same as making great records. Brilliant singers can make mediocre songs sound better than they are, but a great song has universal appeal.

A great song will shine through even if buried under an avalanche of death metal posturing but will also cut through any indie kid’s cool as they begrudgingly admit that, say, Love Machine by Girls Aloud is a work of complete and utter genius. Or is that just me?

The 'Aloud, sadly, are unlikely to feature in this poll. Instead, we're discussing the true greats of UK songwriting, those who have consistently come up with the tunes that make milkmen whistle and the working day not drag quite so slowly.

No doubt the usual likes of Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller, David Bowie, Kate Bush and Ray Davies will all figure prominently, but we're not having any songwriting partnership cop-outs. It's either John Lennon OR Paul McCartney, not both. You heard.

And it would be nice to see a few unsung heroes get a mention. What about Robert Smith, a man who can turn his hand to seemingly any style or any mood? Or Sir Paul "Heato" Heaton who may have stopped making records that indie hipsters want to listen to, but who can't be faulted for pure, old-fashioned pop songcraft. Or Polly Harvey, one of those rare songwriters who seemingly never comes up with anything even slightly mediocre. Or Stephen Duffy, who may only have sold about 11 records before he hooked up with Robbie Williams but whose back catalogue is full of gems just waiting to be dusted off should the Robster ever feel like making a half-decent record for a change.

Because that's the beauty of a great song. It doesn't really matter who sings it. As Ivor Novello would no doubt say to the Arctic Monkeys next week, if only he was still around for the ceremony ...

Mark Sutherland

Listen to your comments on air and hear the expert's view on The Music Week every Sunday at 1300 and Monday at 0100.

Comments so far

Simon Jones/Sawbridgeworth
Agree with others. Got to be Steve Marriott.

Melbourne
Thom Yorke end of debate

Galen Norman, Swindon
Paul Heaton must win this purely for the fact his lyrics have encompassed every social and personal whim, weakness and insecurity as well as providing a soundtrack to everyone's life, through the shear diversity of the topics his lyrics have covered (Royalty: Flag Day, We'll deral with you later, Love: Bed of Nails, A Little Time ..... the list goes on and on!)

essex
The Best British Songwriter has to be the often overlooked Steve Marriott.

London
what about Steve Marriott? Not only arguably one of the best songwriters England has produced but also one of the best singers too.

amy, upton
KATE BUSH

Paul Rosano/Cheshire (USA)
Definitely pretty Polly Harvey. She's an original in a day of pretenders. Speaking of pretenders, Chrissie Hynde would be a good second but she's not a Brit.

Laura from Wales
The greatest song songwriter, hands down, is Brian Molko. End of story, thanks.

Papa Dragon Florida
Bruce Dickenson did not write those songs you twit; Steve Harris wrote most of them. Stop making Americans look dumb. Or should I say MORE dumb.

Mike - Benfleet/Essex
Firstly how anyone can say that Paul Weller is overrated is either completely misguided when it comes to music (still thinking: Oh the beatles were the greatest band ever cos they came first)I'm not knocking The Beatles they were a great band and very gifted sonwriter's, but Weller has consistently changed his style of music and virtually always kept in with the current trend, he can write about anything and as a lyricist cannot be topped, everybody can relate to a Weller tune, and his music always sounds relevent and never dated, if you listen to most Beatles tracks u can tell they were done in the 60's. Whereas Weller's 1st single (In The City) can still sound fresh today next to the current crop of British Rock bands. How many other songwriter's can go from writing punk to indie to soul to ballads to funk and still make it sound fresh. Oh and since The Beatles split how many great songs has Mccartney written. Other mentions should go to Pete Townshend, Steve Marriott, Ray Davies, Noel Gallagher and even Bryan Adams yes also to Lennon & McCartney who were fantastic and their songs are still great but they are a little overated, still each to their own :-)

paddy, belfast
withour doubt it's morrissey - no one comes close & anyone who disagree's is a fool!!

Sophie Brown . Carmarthenshire, South Wales
I really like Dirk Tourette in TOWERS OF LONDON. But I have to say that I love Dani Filth in CRADLE OF FILTH

mod-
paul weller- no1 has capured british culture so perfectly in there songs

George, London
Pete Townshend. 'Nuf Sed

KIM HARRIS PLYMOUTH
I THINK THAT MORRISEY IS ONE OF THE BEST SONGWRITERS BUT PETE DOHERTY IS THE BEST TODAY!!!

Curt, Cambridge.
The biggest achievment in this list will be getting to the number three position because we all know no-one even gets close to Lennon and McCartney in terms of quality or quantity. Of course they were better together, but your list says we can't put them together, so that's the 1 and 2 positions taken, Lennon just shading it over Paul, but only just.

Tristan Williams from good old London town
Greatest songwriters are Morrisey, Pete Dohearty, Kurt Cobain and Adam Ant

Mercury, Centenntial Colorado, USA
Personally i think that the best British song writer ever is Bruce Dickinson, the albums he has released over the last god almost 20 years hiself have only gotten better and the lyrics to Accident of Birth, The Chemical Wedding, Tyranny of souls, not to mention the b-sides, which can be quite hilarious, are great. H has an incredible mind/magination that really comes out in the words he puts into his songs. I think he is an amazing song writer and musician

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