Thoughts on songwriting

I was reading an article, and then got the idea to look up a few opinions about songwriting.  I find them interesting.  Some, most, are basic you would think common sense, but a lot of us forget the points being brought up.

“You have to understand that music is something to be shared, and the function of music is putting people in different moods—it’s there to make them feel happy, powerful, or melancholic. It has a purpose.
Music is a tribal experience, and it is about connection. And if you don’t understand this, you simply cannot be successful.   Figure out how to reach in and change their emotions. Learn how to put them in a mood. That’s what music is for.”     
- Jason Hook, Five Finger Death Punch (Paraphrased from guitar player online interview)

"I'm doing the best I can. You can't say I didn't try really hard because I'm really trying hard to be good."
– Tom Petty

"But I'm of the school of the instinctive. I once worked with Allen Ginsberg and Allen always used to say, 'First thought, best thought.' And then he would edit everything. But I think the theory is good. 'First thought, best thought.' It doesn't always work, but as a general idea I will try and do that and sometimes I come out with a puzzling set of words that I have no idea what I mean, and yet I've got to kind of make sense of it and follow the trail." 
- Sir Paul McCartney (NPR Interview)

“..And remember, a song should contain only one story, or one message, told from a single point of view”…. “You have to try to find a melody and lyric that will braid together and create four minutes of memory that you will have for the rest of your life”             
- Dave Grohl,  Foo Fighters

“…writing the melody first gives me more freedom than doing it the other way around”.. “It’s very important to have a great melody, if you have one, build your song around that. Don’t make it too complicated.”
– Max Martin.  POP Hit writer “go to guy”

I think that is good for now.
Cheers and have fun.