How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily

Today I’m going to show you how to memorize song lyrics easily. I’m going to show you a method that also helps you never to forget your lyrics so you don’t freeze up when you’re standing there all alone singing for thousands of people!

 

 

I’ve just been cast as Ebenezer Scrooge in “A Christmas Carol”, at Centerpoint Legacy Theater in Centerville, Utah. The music and lyrics are by Alan Menken and Lynn Ahrens. This show was originally called the Madison Square Garden Christmas Carol and I had the good fortune of seeing this show when it played at Madison Square Garden, in New York City.

How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily
Chuck Gilmore as Scrooge

We’re in rehearsals now and today I’m going to show you how to memorize song lyrics easily. This method helps you to learn easily and never freeze up and forget during your big solo moment.

How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily

For years I’ve used “The Memory Book” by Harry Lorayne and Jerry Lucas. This is a Ballantine Book published in 1975 by an arrangement with Stein and Day Publishers. It has some amazing techniques in it. I’ll use two techniques to memorize a solo Ebenezer Scrooge sings. You can apply these techniques to any song you want to memorize.

 

How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily – Technique #1: Ridiculous Picture

 

Technique #1: Ridiculous Picture

 

“In order to remember any new piece of information, it must be associated to something you already know or remember in some RIDICULOUS way.”

 

How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily – Technique #2: Association

 

Technique #2: Association

 

Thoughts may be associated to each other, so that one thought will remind you of the next thought. (pp. 9)

 

There are two steps involved.

 

#1.  You need a ridiculous–impossible, crazy, illogical, absurd–picture or image.  

 

#2.  You must associate the two items. (pp. 9)

 

Let me illustrate with a solo from the show. After Scrooge sees his past, present and future Christmases, he’s a changed man. He sings a solo entitled, “Yesterday, Tomorrow and Today”.

 

Step A:  I’ll pick several words from each line and create ridiculous–impossible, crazy, illogical, absurd pictures or images with them. If it’s an abstract word, I’ll create a word or combination of words that sound like or remind me of the abstract word.

 

Step B:  I’ll associate or link these pictures together in a crazy way.

 

Lyrics to “Yesterday, Tomorrow and Today” from the musical “A Christmas Carol”

 

How to Memorize Song Lyrics Easily
MT PIT Music Tracks for Musical Theater

The rehearsal track is provided by MT PIT which contracts with the theater. They create great minus tracks with live musicians and rent them to theaters throughout the world. Check them out. Google MT PIT to learn more about them.  

 

“Ebeneezer Scrooge!   Ahhhhhhhh

At last I understand.”  (from under a stand of binoculars. One is bolted to my head)

 

“I have seen a future full of darkness, all the darkness of my heart.

 

Step A: Pick Words:  seen–           future–                            darkness–              heart

(Picture)                    seeing         Ghost of Future                 darkness               heart

                                                    (or Foot Chair)         

 

Step B (Associate):   Seeing with giant binoculars bolted to my head. I See giant ghost of Christmas Future. Darkness with stars is bursting out of her chest. A giant bloody heart comes out of her chest and is staked to my heart.

 

At my door a world in need of kindness. From man’s kindness, I departed.

 

Step A:  door world kindness man departed

Kind nests

 

Step B:  My heart staked to huge door on a world . Door on world Opens and a world holding 1000’s of kind nests with a little man in them. I run from a 1000 little man’s as they jump on my head and de-part my hair.

 

All the hours and days and years I’ve wasted. All the joy and love I never tasted!

 

Step A:  hours      days        years       wasted             Joy       love             tasted

 

 

Step B: As my hair is departed from my head falls a Giant Clock with me as hour hands, (logic hours + days + years) clock with me falls into giant wasted basket.  Half full of liquid joy dish soap and Love Dove Soap bar floating on the joy and I taste it. Then vomit.

 

All the errors of the past replaced with something strange…Give me time to change.

 

Step A:  errors         past    replaced          something strange         time   change

 Arrows

 

Step B: Instead of joy soap, i vomit all the very old Arrows of my past which are re-pasted all over my naked body  in something strange, leaving too much skin exposed please  Give me time to change my arrows. I bolt my binoculars to see.

 

I can see a future full of beauty, and my spirit starts to fly.

 

Step A:  See      future        beauty        spirit           fly

    footchair  

 

Step B: With bolted cans for binoculars I can see a Giant Footchair (future) with a 1000 beauty’s standing on it. They fall on me and my spirit starts to fly.

 

I can change the world, yes, it’s my duty! God forgive me, Let me try!

 

Step A: Change   world     duty    God forgive me      try

 

Step B: As I fly around the world I drop 1000’s of dollars in change on the world. It’s my booty. Heavens part and God spanks and forgives me.   I try not to cry by spinning like a tasmanian devil

 

I’ll spend my fortune on the one who needs me, go where kindness and my conscience lead me,

 

Step A:     spin      fortune      one       knees me              kindness          conscience     leads me  

 

Step B:   tasmanian devil spinning on my fortune money flys out hit’s ONE giant who knees me  and kicks me to go where a kind nest and a Ex-con scientist lead me.

 

Give my heart and soul to all! God speed me on my way, And to God I pray———–

 

Step A:   Give my heart and soul to all    God speed me      my way    God I pray

 

Step B: con-scientist rips my heart and soul  out of me and gives my heart and soul to all. Collapsing, God pulls me speedily up with a shepherd’s hook upward on a high (my) way to heaven and to God I pray

 

Let the Christmas Spirit live within me, yesterday, tomorrow and today!

 

Step A:  Christmas Spirit live within me        yesterday

 

Step B:  Once in heaven a Giant Christmas Spirit (looks like Paul McCartney in Santa’s clothes) opens my mouth and dives in and lives within me. Sticks his head out and sings “Yesterday”.

 

“I have seen a future full of darkness, all the darkness of my heart.

At my door a world in need of kindness. From man’s kindness, I departed.

All the hours and days and years I’ve wasted. All the joy and love I never tasted!

All the errors of the past replaced with something strange…Give me time to change.

I can see a future full of beauty, and my spirit starts to fly.

I can change the world, yes, it’s my duty! God forgive me, Let me try!

I’ll spend my fortune on the one who needs me, go where kindness and my conscience lead me,

Give my heart and soul to all! God speed me on my way, And to God I pray———–

Let the Christmas Spirit live within me, yesterday, tomorrow and today!”

 

Going through this process will help “force the original awareness that’s necessary to remember anything. It will force you to concentrate and use your imagination as you never have before, and it will force you to form associations consciously.” (pp. 9)

 

If I find some picture needs changing, I change it to make it more ridiculous and crazy. These are my pictures. Yours would be different…and better for you.

 

I recommend “The Memory Book”  to teach you how to memorize song lyrics easily.  It’s helped me through the years with lyrics, scripts and other memorization projects.

 

If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up, subscribe and share it with a friend. Have you ever felt nervous about forgetting your lyrics? Let me know in the comments below.

 

Be sure to join me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Power To Sing.

 

Remembering your lyrics is vital, but even more important is learning your vocal type. I’m not talking about whether you are soprano, alto, tenor or bass.  Your vocal type is what you tend to do when you sing from chest to head voice. Do you tend to pull chest? Flip? Strain? Go Breathy?

 

Go to PowerToSing.com and take the vocal test, which I call the PowerTest. Take the quiz and discover your vocal type. After you get your vocal type, go to the Knowledge Center and watch the videos about your vocal type.

 

Download the free exercises and start practicing them. They’ll help you progress rapidly.

 

I’m Chuck Gilmore with Power To Sing. You can sing higher with beauty, confidence and power.

 

I’ll see you inside the next video.

 

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Chuck Gilmore

Chuck Gilmore

If you want to do more with your singing voice it is possible. This is the first and most important message. It is possible to achieve your dreams to sing better, to sing higher, and to add beauty, confidence and power to your voice!

I know this because I’ve experienced a real change in my voice. I am reaching my dreams to sing and perform. You can find happiness and fulfillment with your singing too!!

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