Recycling a tune is an age old tradition. We have written lyrics to existing tunes as well. We also do some songs that have the same tune; that is, we do more than one set of lyrics to the same tune. At the moment we are working on Michael Blann's Drinking Song which is to the tune of Yankee Doodle. We also do a version of Wraggle Taggle Gypsies which is also to the tune of Yankee Doodle.

It is also very common for lyrics to not scan the same in each verse. We've written some of those, too. Sometimes you will see notes in parantheses in musical scores which indicate that you use the note if you need to or skip it if that works better.

As far as we know, you're not in violation of any law! If someone wants to learn your song and they have trouble making it scan they will simply change the lyrics slightly (or the tune) to make them fit together. We do it all the time. It's called the folk process.

Bev and Jerry