[Special thanks to Hilde Gjervik for the cover photo.]
When I first started writing The Godfather of Dance, I made each chapter title a ballroom or Latin American dance type: samba, waltz, pasodoble, etc. As the story progressed and the number of chapters grew – I write short, snappy chapters – I ran out of dances, so I switched to song titles. This gave me more freedom as I could choose multiple songs for one dance type, and I could use music genres that weren’t specifically tied to a dance style, such as film music, heavy metal, or punk.
I spent hours trawling the internet to find music that created the right atmosphere and had lyrics pertinent to the content of the chapter. For reference, I’ve listed all the songs I used here, including the genre and artist, so you can hear what I had in mind.
If you’d like to listen on Spotify, this is the link: The Godfather of Dance on Spotify.
| Chapter | Genre | Title | Artist |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Samba | Bailamos (We Dance) | Enrique Iglesias |
| 2 | Argentine Tango | Sentimientos (Feelings) | Andres Linetzky & Ernesto Romeo |
| 3 | Broadway | Something’s Coming | West Side Story |
| 4 | Rock | Life in the Fast Lane | Eagles |
| 5 | Salsa | El Preso (The Prisoner) | Fruko y sus Tesos |
| 6 | Gothic Rock | Riders on the Storm | The Doors |
| 7 | Waltz | Vito’s Waltz | The Godfather |
| 8 | Jazz | New York, New York | Frank Sinatra |
| 9 | Broadway | No Good Deed | Wicked |
| 10 | R&B | Milkshake | Kelis |
| 11 | Country Music | On the Road Again | Willie Nelson |
| 12 | Rock | Private Investigations | Dire Straits |
| 13 | Pop | Non, Je Ne Regrette Rien | Edith Piaf |
| 14 | Acid Rock | Careful With That Axe, Eugene | Pink Floyd |
| 15 | Paso Doble | The Black Pearl | Pirates of the Caribbean |
| 16 | Indie | Can’t Stop The Rock | Apollo 440 |
| 17 | R&B | Pick Up The Pieces | Average White Band |
| 18 | Film Music | Family Dinner | Shrek 2 |
| 19 | Contemporary | Everybody Hurts | REM |
| 20 | Indie | Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds | The Beatles |
| 21 | Rumba | Kiss of Fire | Brigitte |
| 22 | Afro Pop | Isabella | Sauti Sol |
| 23 | Pop R&B | One Call Away | Charlie Puth |
| 24 | Hip Hop | Not Afraid | Eminem |
| 25 | Rock and Roll | Viva Las Vegas | Elvis Presley |
| 26 | R&B | Down in New Orleans | The Princes and the Frog |
| 27 | Cha Cha | Tea for Two | Doris Day |
| 28 | Rock | FBI | The Shadows |
| 29 | East Coast Swing | This Will Be | Natalie Cole |
| 30 | Rock and Roll | Trouble | Elvis Presley |
| 31 | Indie Rock | Echo | Maroon 5 |
| 32 | Pop | Suspicion | Elvis Presley |
| 33 | Pop | Un-Break My Heart | Toni Braxton |
| 34 | Soft Rock | Tears in Heaven | Eric Clapton |
| 35 | Post-disco | She Works Hard for the Money | Donna Summer |
| 36 | Indie | Scene of the Crime | Placebo |
| 37 | Classical | Carmina Burana O Fortuna | Carl Orff |
| 38 | Samba | One Note Samba | Frank Sinatra |
| 39 | Rock | Blaze of Glory | Jon Bon Jovi |
| 40 | Rock | Cat’s in the Cradle | Harry Chapin |
| 41 | Folk Rock | Old Man | Neil Young |
| 42 | Rap | Debit Credit Theory | Colin Dodds |
| 43 | Disco | Video Killed the Radio Star | The Buggles |
| 44 | Disco | Staying Alive | Bee Gees |
| 45 | Soft rock | Clarity | John Mayer |
| 46 | Film Music/Indie | Run For Your Life | K. Flay |
| 47 | Punk | Brand New Cadillac | The Clash |
| 48 | Rock | You Give Love a Bad Name | Bon Jovi |
| 49 | Heavy Metal | Tripping Over Tombstones | DevilDriver |
| 50 | Film Music | The Burly Brawl | Matrix Reloaded |
| 51 | Folk Rock | Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) | Nancy Sinatra |
| 52 | R&B | I Can’t Wait to Meet You | David Ryan Harris |
| 53 | Musical | Memories | Barbra Streisand |
| 54 | Punk | Should I Stay or Should I Go? | The Clash |
| 55 | Hip Hop | Dosey Doe | Roy Bing |
Why I chose these songs has proved an interesting discussion point for interviews. It’s one of the topics we have planned for my chat with the fabulous Marg Attley on her show Quiet Please There is a Lady Onstage on Radio Mansfield, July 10, 2024. We’ll also discuss the Mansfield Readers & Writers Festival, living in Mansfield, and so much more. If you’d like to tune in it’s 99.7. You can live-stream it here.
How much attention do you pay to chapter titles? I admit I sometimes gloss over them when I’m reading. Do you notice chapter titles? Is this a detail you find important?
Next time: an interview with Timo Bozsolik-Torres on Improving Manuscripts using AI
Next post about writing: How to Get Your Book into an Australian Library
Next post about writing a mystery: Writing a Mystery: Chapter Titles/Playlist A Killer Among Friends

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