Nick Drake, Neil Young, Elliott Smith, Richard Thompson, Tom Petty, Loudon Wainwright III, Awesomeness, Bob Dylan, Gary Jules, Iron & Wine, Jeff Buckley, Ray LaMontagne... or so I've been told.
I was born and raised about 30 miles south of Philadelphia, in a little State called Delaware. My father went to the other side when I was 7 yrs old, leaving my mother to raise me alone. She managed to play both parental roles, and instilled in me a tender balance of strength, and sensitivity. She taught me how to put my thoughts in to written word, which came in handy for dealing with the pain of losing my father.
When I was a teenager, my older brother left me his vinyl collection and a turntable. This led to many reclusive nights in the basement spinning Harvest, Who’s Next, Bridge Over Troubled Water… It was at this point that I discovered exactly what I wanted to do with my life. I wanted to make records.
So, come Christmas ’94, my mother and brother pooled together and got me my first guitar, a black Washburn acoustic. I spent day and night teaching myself chords, and it wasn’t long before I was writing songs in the basement. I started a band and spent most of my adolescence obsessing over band practice and gigs, meanwhile neglecting my homework.
As I got older, I developed a strong relationship with my uncle Will who resided in Nashville. He was a songwriter as well, and turned my ear to Leonard Cohen, Johnny Cash, and a slew of old SUN recordings. As a result, my writing began to improve and my musical horizons broadened.
In 2001 I went broke by investing in a bunch of recording gear, and taught myself the craft. I slowly built up a reputation in the area, and consequently spent the next 6 years recording/producing over 30 different artists of ALL genres. Talk about expanding, I was exposed to, and even producing music I knew nothing about, including hip-hop, hardcore, children’s…
In 2004, I traveled back and forth from Delaware to Nashville to make a record with my uncle Will, which ended up receiving critical acclaim and steady rotation on European National Public Radio.
In late 2006 I decided to follow his footsteps and move to Nashville myself, which is where I currently reside.
About “Necessary Lies”
In between long recording sessions making records with other artists, I was chipping away at this one. I think it’s evident that it comes from many places. For me, this album culminates my experiences of heartache and loneliness, my disgust with the current political landscape, and all the human deception that makes life so damn fragile.
I played a good amount of the instruments, and brought in friends to fill in the gaps and provide a fresh perspective. The entire recording process spanned about 2 years, with a hiatus or two, and a number of rewrites, re-recordings, relapse, etc…
***Request BRS on XM, very easily! Click here xmu@xmradio.com
Some Fun Facts:
• 2 BRS Songs ("Yet Again, and "Face to Face") topped the charts on Neil Young’s LIVING WITH WAR TODAY website, holding the 1 & 2 position for nearly a month.
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT "NECESSARY LIES":
• "Stewart composes classic pop songs that are timeless and surprisingly mature. And the man’s voice has to be heard to be believed...what a voice!" –LMNOP/Babysue.com
• "While the guitar playing is subtle and the vocals are hypnotic, there’s something about the songs that demand your attention." -Mite Mutant (thechickenfishspeaks.com)
so when you gonna play indiana again? if you do let me know cuz i've got an awesome fannie pack with your name written all over it that you could wear on stage! you know you wanna....
Thanks for the sleepless night, had a million thoughts running through my head, then all of a sudden I burst into laughter... BRT, yep I'm thinking you should go with it! haha We'll talk soon, off to work! Have a great day "B"!
just wanted to say hi :) How have you been? Hope all is well. I've been away on a trip and it's been super busy. don't be a stranger ok? Sending some love, Mara :)
I am so having withdrawls and kind of missing you guys too! 48 hours and we are back in business! Hope things are going ok for you! We will talk Wednesday! Are you missing me yet? haha Behave yourself... Hugs, Me :)
Thanks "B", for the message last night! That was sweet of you. Sorry didn't answer back, all the play ground equipment wore me out, crashed early! Have a great week, will talk to you soon. Hugs, Me :)
the weather is beautiful here...so its really awesome that i get to spend all my time inside painting, yay...my bathroom is almost complete though! i haven't had a working shower in my house for over a month now, been going european style and washing in the kitchen sink, haha. hope things are well on your end
perfected your moo any? i mean i'm not really sure how much more convincing it could get but...you should record it and post on your myspace so the world can hear your moo, haha
Hey Brett ... love your status quote! I write because I have five trains of thought going at once just about all the time ... they need a place to jump ship and land ... :) Writing can be painful, but it can also be cathartic ... good luck fighting the blank white ... meli :)
