Liking song writer at the outset (8)
I believe the answer is:
penchant
'liking' is the definition.
(penchant is a kind of liking)
'song writer at the outset' is the wordplay.
'song' becomes 'chant' (I've seen this before).
'writer' becomes 'pen' (I've seen this before).
'at the outset' means one lot of letters go next to another.
'chant' after 'pen' is 'PENCHANT'.
(Other definitions for penchant that I've seen before include "Willingness" , "weakness" , "Strong liking, inclination" , "Partiality" , "Inclination; taste" .)