Matthew West is writing with an entirely new concept on his upcoming CD “The Story of Your Life”. He is not writing about his own experiences in life, but rather experiences he has garnered from other people in their own words. How did he gather this information? He asked his listeners via the web and the radio to send in their stories – stories of hope, restoration, abuse, love – anything that has touched their lives and their hearts. Matthew received thousands of letters in response from every state in the United States and from 20 countries! He has said this is not a pool of information from which to write, but rather an ocean of thoughts, actions, feelings, heartbreaks and healing.
Matthew has a cabin in Tennessee not far from his home where he sequestered himself to undertake this tremendous task. He read all of the letters; felt the pain or the heartbreak or the joy of each and every individual who took the time to respond to his request. He sat with his guitar and piano trying out tunes and verses, used a large white board to capture his thoughts, and walked the hills and woods deep in thought about this undertaking. He is a songwriter – this is what he does and he does it well. Just look at “The Day Before You” by Rascal Flatts, as well as songs he has written for Billy Ray Cyrus, Diamond Rio, Michael W. Smith, Amy Grant, Jo Dee Messina, Steel Magnolia and a host of others.
Matthew is all about the pain, the healing, the joy and the feeling in the songs he writes and sings. He is about what others in the world feels and he wants this project to be the best he’s ever written.
The first single of the album, “My Own Little World” sets the stage for the rest of the songs on the CD which encompass all human emotions – joy, victories, pain and overcoming adversity. All the emotions and stories from the people, real people in this world, that responded to Matthew’s request for stories. It is an upbeat song about a person literally being in his own little world. About turning off the news when there is something not so nice on it (guilty here!) – about not seeing anything adverse in the world – about “population, ME” in the world. As the song progresses he realizes there is more to this world, that maybe there is something out there besides “Me”. It is a powerful song with the ability to make the listener think outside the box of their own world and it is done in such a way as to catch the listener off guard due to the lively, upbeat tune and Matthew’s choice of words for this single. This song is marvelously written and recorded and should seriously be the first song released.
Matthew’s CD will not be available until October 5, 2010, but you can watch the YouTube version of the story behind his songs at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsxrGdwuI5s&feature=player_embedded.
A new concept – a new CD – a new storyteller on the horizon of great country music. Check him out.
Calamity Annie – CMTT Music Contributor
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