#5: The Legend To The Legends. Hall of Fame Songwriter Roger Cook Part 2

Legendary songwriter Roger Cook joins host Terrance Sawchuk on Sold for a Song to share untold stories behind hit records, the realities of Nashville’s music machine, and the future of music ownership. From Bono bar stories to Alanis Morissette’s Jagged Little Pill sessions, this episode is packed with songwriting wisdom, industry laughs, and lessons every creative needs to hear. Full Show Notes Episode Summary In this powerful episode of Sold for a Song, Terrance Sawchuk sits down with Hall of Fame songwriter Roger Cook (You Got Your Troubles, I Just Want to Dance with You) for an unfiltered conversation about: The highs and lows of songwriting success Crazy stories with Bono, The Beatles, and Roy Orbison Alanis Morissette’s intellectual intercourse lyric inspiration The Nashville writing grind vs. creative freedom abroad Music industry greed, market share royalties, and blockchain’s future Why the simplest songs often hit the hardest This episode isn’t just music history—it’s a roadmap for songwriters, artists, and anyone navigating creative ownership in today’s industry. Key Takeaways “Write one for the radio, one for yourself.” Roger’s simple but powerful philosophy on staying authentic. Market share vs. fairness: Why songwriters often lose money despite millions of streams—and how Web3 could fix it. Creative freedom matters: Why some of the best songs come from outside the pressure cooker of Nashville. The hit songs that changed everything: From You Got Your Troubles to I Just Want to Dance with You. Lessons from legends: Stories involving Bono, The Beatles, John Prine, and Alanis Morissette. Quotes from the Episode “The easiest thing you’ll ever do in this business is sign a record deal. The hardest thing? Keeping it.” – Roger Cook “At some point, you might as well fail being you.” – Terrance Sawchuk “Write for love first. Let the hits take care of themselves.” – Roger Cook Resources & Links Join the Sold for a Song community: TerranceSawchuk.com Follow Terrance on Instagram: @terrancesawchuk Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and everywhere you get your podcasts Timestamps 00:00 – Introduction 01:03 – Nashville beginnings & signing record deals 05:07 – Stories about Bono, The Beatles, Roy Orbison 08:45 – Songwriting with Alanis Morissette 12:30 – Nashville co-writing culture & royalty frustrations 16:20 – Writing hits vs. personal songs 19:30 – Chances Are and the power of simplicity 24:30 – You Got Your Troubles: Roger plays his biggest hit 28:00 – Nashville then vs. now: 1970s to the streaming era 34:18 – Market share, streaming, and blockchain’s promise 36:50 – Publishing splits, admin deals & music business lessons 40:00 – Closing thoughts & future conversations Call to Action Join the movement: TerranceSawchuk.com Subscribe, rate, and review $old 4 a $ong to help more creators reclaim their worth. Want to go deeper? Watch for the $old 4 a $ong Academy + 1:1 mentoring inside the private portal. Credits Host: Terrance Sawchuk Guest: Roger Cook Production: $old 4 a $ong / Terrance Sawchuk Music/Editing: Terrance Sawchuk Location: Nashville, TN SEO Keywords (paste in Podbean “Tags”) songwriting, music business, publishing splits, masters vs publishing, Nashville, George Martin, The Beatles, Roger Cook, Terrance Sawchuk, ASCAP, royalties, country songwriting, catalog sales, investor catalogs, 1000 true fans, ukulele, John Prine   Sold 4 a Song™ Podcast hosted by Terrance Sawchuk, Billboard #1 multi-platinum songwriter, producer, artist, mixer, & entrepreneur. Sold 4 a Song™ is a living exploration of creative worth, ownership, and the true value of music — inside the systems that monetize it. If this episode resonates, you can follow the work at sold4asong.com.