Tim Fagan, Grammy-Winning Songwriter: The Hooks That Kill

Two years touring the world as music director and lead guitarist for Colbie Caillat gave Tim Fagan a lot to be grateful for. In between the long flights and pre-show warm ups backstage, he wrote several songs with Caillat, including the Jason Mraz duet "Lucky", a 2010 Grammy Winner. "Finishing a song while on the road can be a fun challenge," Fagan says of the effort. "It was like musical ping pong - Jason, Colbie and I sent Garageband mp3s back and forth until all the pieces fell into place." A similar process unfolded in Tim's collaboration with John Mayer on the soulful ballad "Deeper". Mayer published a batch of lyrics, eventually set to music written by Fagan. Upon receiving Tim's finished version of the song, Mayer commented in Esquire magazine, "his composition is a string of events laid out so that there's always something else to look forward to, namely a nice blues-guitar solo at the end."

Tim's passion for guitar playing began while growing up in Honolulu, listening to Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton, B.B. King and the other blues greats. His savvy guitar work and warm voice support Fagan's eclectic songwriting style, which bears a wide range of comparisons from Paul Simon to Radiohead. During his time in Los Angeles Tim released a full-length record of his own songs, From the Woodshed, and has worked with other breaking artists and writers through Sony/ATV.

At The Songwriting School of Los Angeles Tim has taught The Hooks That Kill, helping writers distill the essence of their style into the essential moments in their songs.

Tim Fagan is currently overseas and not teaching classes at The Songwriting School of Los Angeles. We eagerly await his return.