Norman Lembke

Born in the country town of Tamworth. What Nashville is to America Tamworth is to Australia being the “Country Music” capital. Not that there is any long term effect as my family moved away when I was just 2 years old. Still something might have rubbed off as country music is certainly one of the many music genres that continues to inspire.
Pop, blues, soul and high powered jazz. For me it is all about feel and that magical ingredient that makes us cry, dance, laugh and simply get lost in the music. From an early age I was engrossed in contemporary music learning every song I heard and singing along with the many great songs performed by ground breaking artists.
I was more than ready when I was introduced to the guitar at the age of 11. A family member purchased a nylon string guitar for me. Quickly progressing to electric, garage bands, flamenco guitar lessons culminating in being a professional musicians playing in cover bands getting paid for what I loved, what a gift!
Looking back I always had the thought of wanting to create my own songs however events took over my focus. Ironically it was within the music industry itself that diverted my direction as I was approached to start an artist’s agency and I decided at the time to go ahead and accept the role. From a modest beginning we quickly grew into a substantial business by becoming the house bookers for a number of “Rock Venues” around Sydney, Australia. The live music scene was thriving and all of a sudden we were booking major acts some of which became internationally successful e.g. INXS and Men at Work. My musical background was hugely beneficial as programming and choice of supporting acts contributed to our success.
I discovered I had a flair for event staging and after deciding to leave the live music scene I became involved in the trade exhibition industry in which I am currently running my own company.
I now find I have the time and resources to persue my first passion. Like all budding songwriters I listen to the past hits and current, dissect and try to understand what makes them great. What is it? That magical component, the melody, the hook, how long is the verse before the chorus starts, what about the bridge, does it need one, and do the lyrics convey a continuous storyline. There are many exceptions to the rules including hit songs with lyrics that make no sense at all. In the end is it mainly how the artist / performers sells the song?