As a companion unsolicited plug, allow me to call your attention to the most recent Kilgore-Frishberg collaboration on CD, Why Fight The Feeling, their collection of Frank Loesser songs. Full disclosure: I wrote the liner notes. I got paid, but I've spent the money, and I don't get royalties.
From the notes:
Loesser was a master at converting everyday language into lyrics that, as Frishberg put it, “Take the listener by the ear and lead him around." A fledgling songwriter in New York in the late 1950s, Frishberg got to know Loesser. He has never forgotten the guidelines the older man gave him:“Try to make everything refer back to the title. Make the lyric belong to the song, and the title should have something to do with it. Keep focused in on what the title is saying. He told me to avoid colorful language unless I put a rest nearby so that the audience could have time to digest it. Otherwise, they'd be admiring, or wondering, or puzzled about it and lose the next lyric or two, because the purpose of writing is to get their attention and keep it."
Anyone familiar with Frishberg's songs knows that Loesser's advice made an impression, but you'll have to consult Dave's recordings for evidence; the only songs here are his mentor's. In line with their long-time agreement, Dave doesn't sing when he and Becky perform together. That's only fair; she doesn't play piano when he sings.
