Songcraft: Spotlight on Songwriters

GRAMMY-winning producer, artist, and songwriter Charlie Peacock defies categorization. Paul chats with him about everything from his early days on the Norther California jazz scene, to writing hits for the Christian music world, to producing everyone from the Civil Wars to Switchfoot. PART ONE:Scott and Paul talk about aging, the Rolling Stones concert Scott just saw, the centrality of energetic drummers, and other fun stuff. PART TWO:Our in-depth conversation with Charlie PeacockABOUT CHARLIE PEACOCKFrom jazz to pop to rock to country, gospel, and Americana, Charlie Peacock is a Grammy-winning producer, artist, and songwriter who defies categorization. In addition to his own wide-ranging work as a recording artist, he has written well-known songs such “Every Heartbeat,” which was a major pop hit for Amy Grant, and “In the Light,” which is best known for the version recorded by DC Talk. He’s responsible for developing and producing the Grammy Award-winning duo The Civil Wars and the Modern Rock band Switchfoot, including their multi-platinum Top 40 pop hit “Dare You to Move.” Peacock launched his career as an artist on the Northern California jazz scene before recording his debut album, Lie Down in the Grass, which was released by A&M Records in the mid-1980s. After a stint with Island Records, he moved to Nashville to work as an artist and producer. His 1990 album, The Secret of Time, earned him a Grammy nomination for Best Rock/Contemporary Gospel Album. In that decade, he produced nearly 50 albums for other artists, and was named the Gospel Music Association’s Producer of the Year for three consecutive years.The long list of artists he has produced includes Nicole Nordeman, David Crowder, Holly Williams, The Lone Bellow, Al Green, and Ladysmith Black Mambazo. He has produced a wide range of music for film and television, including the Mandy Moore film A Walk To Remember, Chris Cornell's "Misery Chain" from the soundtrack of Twelve Years a Slave, and "Hush," the title theme to the AMC drama Turn: Washington's Spies, featuring Joy Williams and Matt Berninger of The National.As an artist, he returned to jazz with the Love Press Ex-Curio album in 2005 before embracing vocal music once again with his 2012 album No Man’s Land. In late 2015, Peacock was appointed the Director of Contemporary Music and Industry Outreach at Lipscomb University's College of Arts and Entertainment in Nashville. An author of several books, his forthcoming memoir will explore his musical life, while  his latest album as an artist, Every Kind of Uh-Oh, will be released at the end of August.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Acclaimed genre-crossing songwriter and interpreter Madeleine Peyroux takes stock of her songwriting over the years and shares insights into the creation of her latest album. PART ONEPaul and Scott talk music books, the value of recording, and whether or not performers should stick to a strict or loose interpretation of a song when performing live. PART TWOOur in-depth conversation with Madeleine PeyrouxABOUT MADELEINE PEYROUXMadeleine Peyroux moved to Paris with her mother at the age of 12 and began singing with street musicians while still a teenager. She eventually joined the Lost Wandering Blues and Jazz Band, with whom she toured Europe. After being discovered by Atlantic Records she released her debut album, Dreamland, in 1996. Madeleine's commercial breakthrough came with the Gold-selling album Careless Love in 2004 and it’s single, the self-penned “Don’t Wait Too Long,” which was released by Rounder Records and topped the jazz charts. The follow-up album, Half the Perfect World, hit the Top 40 on Billboard’s US album chart. Her 2009 album, Bare Bones, was the first to feature all original material. She moved to Decca Records for the Standing on the Rooftop album in 2011 and has since released four additional studio albums. Her latest effort, Let’s Walk, features all original material and continues to showcase her masterful blending of jazz, blues, folk, pop, and more.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Bruce Hornsby, a three-time GRAMMY winner known for his eclectic career spanning pop, jazz, and bluegrass, shares insights into his musical journey. He reflects on his collaboration with legends like Don Henley and shares stories about his hit songs, including 'The Way It Is.' Hornsby discusses the artistic evolution behind his recent work, 'Deep Sea Vents,' and the influence of literature on his songwriting during the pandemic. He also pays tribute to Elton John's impact on his music, emphasizing the power of emotional expression in songwriting.

You might know Rachel Platten for the wildly successful "Fight Song," but she's in the middle of a renaissance that's bringing her artistry into a new era. PART ONE:Paul and Scott  give their unfiltered responses to the new-ish 4-part Stax Records documentary streaming on Max.PART TWO:Our in-depth conversation with Rachel Platten.ABOUT RACHEL PLATTEN:Emmy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician, and children’s book author Rachel Platten is best known for “Fight Song,” an anthemic power ballad that became an international Top Ten hit in 2015, was certified six times Platinum, has been streamed over a billion times, and was even adopted as Hillary Clinton's campaign theme song in 2016. Rachel’s music career began with a self-released album in 2003, followed by a move to New York City’s Greenwich Village. She found success licensing songs for films and television before releasing her album Be Here in 2009. The single “1000 Ships” hit number 23 on Billboard’s Adult Top 40 chart. Her third full-length album, Wildfire, was released on Columbia Records and featured the successful singles “Fight Song,” “Stand by You,” and “Better Place.” The follow-up album, Waves, featured the single “Broken Glass.” Rachel issued the non-LP single "You Belong" in 2018, signaling a sonic shift away from her prior major label releases. Exploring new creative territory by embracing her struggles with mental health, Rachel has released recent songs such as “Girls,” “Mercy,” and “Bad Thoughts.” Poised to reassert herself as an artist focused on unflinching honesty and authenticity, she will release the album I Am Rachel Platten later this year.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Nashville-based platinum-selling indie artist Judah Akers of Judah & the Lion goes deep on the five stages of grief and finding beauty in the midst of pain.PART ONEPaul and Scott dive deep on how Nashville has transformed into a very different kind of "Music City USA."PART TWOOur in-depth conversation with Judah AkersABOUT JUDAH AKERSJudah Akers is best known as the lead singer, guitarist, and primary songwriter of Judah & The Lion. Their debut EP, Sweet Tennessee, was released in 2013, climbing to #2 on Billboard’s Bluegrass Albums chart and the Top 15 on the Folk Albums chart. And the first full-length album, Kids These Days, debuted in the Top 5 on Billboard’s Folk Albums chart. Expanding their sound, the band released Folk Hop n’ Roll in 2015, landing in the Top 10 on Billboard’s Heatseekers Albums chart and the Americana/Folk Albums chart. Later that year, the song “Take it All Back” hit the top of the Alternative Songs chart for three weeks and was later certified Platinum. The follow-up single, “Suit and Jacket,” was certified Gold. Judah & the Lion’s third album, Pep Talks, hit the Top 20 on Billboard's Top 200, and the Top 5 on the Alternative Albums chart, while the singles “Over My Head” and “Why Did You Run” performed well on the Alternative Songs chart, earning them iHeart’s Best New Alternative Artist award for 2018. Their most recent album is The Process, released in May of 2024. Built around the concept of the five stages of grief, the songs are Akers’ exploration of his own mental health and life circumstances that find beauty, purpose, and even joy in the midst of the pain.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With an ACM Top New Female Vocalist win and nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards, the chart-topping Carolyn Dawn Johnson chats about everything from her songwriting successes to her artist career to her co-writing with Chris Stapleton.PART ONEPaul and Scott dive deep on their opinions about the recently-announced Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction class of 2024.PART TWOOur in-depth conversation with Carolyn Dawn Johnson.ABOUT CAROLYN DAWN JOHNSONCanadian-born singer, songwriter, producer, and musician Carolyn Dawn Johnson moved to Nashville in the mid-1990s and started getting her songs recorded by artists such as Patty Loveless, Suzy Bogguss, Kathy Mattea, and Jo Dee Messina. Her breakthrough came in 1999 with Chely Wright’s recording of "Single White Female," which hit #1 on the country charts. Wright’s follow-up recording of Johnson’s "Downtime" also became a Top 5 hit. Carolyn was named Breakthrough Songwriter of the Year by Music Row magazine in 2000 and landed a record deal of her own with the Arista Nashville label. Her self-produced debut, Room with a View, hit the Top 10 in the US and earned Gold status in Canada. The singles "Complicated“ and "I Don’t Want You to Go“ were both Top 10 hits in the US. She won the Academy of Country Music’s Top New Female Vocalist award and swept the Canadian Country Music Awards. The follow-up album, Dress Rehearsal, also debuted in the Top 10. To date, Carolyn has earned nearly 20 Canadian Country Music Awards for songwriting, performing, and producing. As an artist she has toured with Reba McEntire, Alan Jackson, Kenny Chesney, Keith Urban, and Merle Haggard. As a backup vocalist and musician she’s toured with Ashley McBryde, Miranda Lambert, and Martina McBride. After a hiatus as an artist she has recently begun recording new music while continuing to enjoy success as a writer, including Chris Stapleton’s "The Day I Die,“ a song Carolyn and Chris wrote together that appeared on his 2023 album Higher.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Folkie Americana indie hero Drew Holcomb joins us to chat about the songwriting process and which of his songs he's not a fan of! PART ONEScott and Paul debrief the experience of recently seeing the 74-year-old Bruce Springsteen perform with the energy of a teenagerPART TWOOur in-depth conversation with Drew HolcombABOUT DREW HOLCOMBMemphis native Drew Holcomb first broke through on the national scene with the 2011 album Chasing Someday, credited to his band Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors. Subsequent studio albums, such as Good Light, Medicine, Souvenir, and Dragons hit the Top 10 on Billboard's folk and indie charts  and earned Holcomb and his bandmates a loyal following. The fiercely independent group is widely regarded as a live performance powerhouse, while Holcomb's original songs have found particular resonance with music supervisors who have made them staples of film and TV show synch placements. Whether working with the band, solo, or as a duo with his wife and fellow singer/songwriter, Ellie Holcomb,  Drew's literate folk-based Americana represents a craftman's approach to the songwriting process. The most recent album from Drew Holcomb & the Neighbors is called Strangers No More.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Grammy winners and astonishingly fabulous musicians Chris Thile, Sean Watkins, and Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek join us to chat about their fresh approach to songwriting on their most recent album, Celebrants. PART ONEPaul and Scott chat about musical virtuosity, Beyonce, Ricky Skaggs, and the blending of musical genres. PART TWOOur in-depth conversation with Nickel CreekABOUT NICKEL CREEKGRAMMY Award-winning trio Nickel Creek—mandolinist Chris Thile, violinist Sara Watkins, and guitarist Sean Watkins—formed a group as young children in Southern California and honed their chops on the bluegrass circuit for a decade before signing with Sugar Hill Records. Their platinum-selling debut self-titled album was produced by Alison Krauss in 2000 and revolutionized bluegrass and folk music, helping usher in a new era of what we now know as Americana. The genre-bending group has earned nine Grammy nominations across categories in bluegrass, country, folk, contemporary folk, Americana, and American Roots.    Each member of Nickel Creek has taken part in a number of outside projects over the years. Thile is a 2012 recipient of a MacArthur Fellowship and served as the host of the radio show Live from Here (formerly known as A Prairie Home Companion) from 2016 to 2020. He has also released collaborative albums with world-renowned musicians as well as six studio albums with his Grammy-winning band Punch Brothers. Sean Watkins is a co-founder of Watkins Family Hour alongside Sara, which has released three albums and maintains a long-running collaborative show in Los Angeles. Sean has also released a string of solo albums, while Sara’s extracurricular projects include the aforementioned Watkins Family Hour, as well as the Grammy-winning roots trio I’m With Her. Sara has released four studio albums and has contributed fiddle to recordings by artists such as Phoebe Bridgers, the Killers and John Mayer.The Grammy-nominated Celebrants, Nickel Creek’s fifth studio album and first project in nine years, was recorded at Nashville’s historic RCA Studio A and released to overwhelming critical acclaim in 2023.   Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Ninety-eight-year-old Songwriters Hall of Famer Alan Bergman chats with us about a wide-ranging career that started with Johnny Mercer and continues to today. PART ONEPaul and Scott talk about the Abba Voyage virtual concert and scare themselves with the possibilities of digital technology. PART TWOOur in-depth interview with Alan BergmanABOUT ALAN BERGMANAlan Bergman and his late wife Marilyn joined forces professionally in the 1950s to create one of the most successful songwriting teams of all time. Though both musicians, the pair are best known as lyricists, and they found particular success writing for the silver screen. The Bergmans earned eleven Grammy nominations, including four nominations for Song of Year. They won the Song of the Year honor for “The Way We Were” from the Barbra Streisand film of the same name. They received fifteen Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song, winning twice for “The Windmills of Your Mind” and “The Way We Were,” and earning a record-setting three nominations in a single year in 1982. The following year they won their third Oscar, for Best Original Song Score, for the Yentl soundtrack, which included Best Original Song nominees “Papa, Can You Hear Me” and “The Way He Makes Me Feel.” Other highlights from the Bergman catalog include “Nice ‘n Easy” performed by Frank Sinatra, “The Summer Knows,” recorded by Sarah Vaughn, “You Don’t Bring Me Flowers,” which they wrote with Neil Diamond, “Someone in the Dark,” which Michael Jackson recorded for the E.T. soundtrack, and “I Knew I Loved You,” which was recorded by Celine Dion. Additionally, the four-time Emmy award winners were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and were recipients of the National Music Publishers Association Lifetime Achievement Award. The Bergmans held a number of executive positions in various organizations, including serving on the executive committee of the Music Branch of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences and as board members of the National Academy of Songwriters. From 1994-2009 Marilyn served as the president of ASCAP. Their songs have been recorded by Fred Astaire, Johnny Mathis, Sergio Mendes, Ray Charles, Bing Crosby, Stan Getz, Dusty Springfield, Diana Ross, Gladys Knight, Glen Campbell, Sting, Natalie Cole, Tony Bennett, Norah Jones, and countless others. We’re thrilled to share this conversation with the now 98-year-old Alan Bergman, recorded at his home back in August.  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

SUMMARY:Norah Jones joins us to chat about her new album Visions and the evolution of her songwriting since she took the world by storm in 2002. Afterward, stick around for a very special conversation with Tish Melton. The 18-year-old songwriter discusses her new Brandi-Carlile produced EP and more. PART ONE:Paul and Scott reflect on Norah Jones's unique place in the musical world, the central role of patience in the delivery of a great song, the Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs Grammy performance, Joni Mitchell, Brandi Carlile, and the beauty of cross-generational musical collaboration.PART TWO:Our career-spanning in-depth interview with Norah Jones.PART THREE:Spotlight profile on Tish Melton, a talented young singer-songwriter who recorded her Brandi Carlile-produced EP at the age of 17. The high school senior has just released it to the world and gives us a little insight into early steps on what we know will be a long musical journey.ABOUT NORAH JONESNorah Jones catapulted onto the music scene at the age of 22 with the release of her now classic debut album, Come Away with Me. She took home five Grammy awards in 2003 alone, including Best New Artist, Record of the Year, and Album of the Year, while Come Away with Me went on to be certified twelve times platinum. The follow up album, Feels Like Home, became another international chart topper, establishing Norah as a consistent genre-bending musical force. In total, she has released nine solo studio albums for the legendary Blue Note Records; multiple projects with side bands such as The Little Willies, El Madmo, and Puss n Boots; collaborative albums with Danger Mouse, Willie Nelson, and Billie Joe Armstrong; and duets or guest appearances with a diverse list of artists that includes Ray Charles, Dolly Parton, OutKast, Ryan Adams, Foo Fighters, Talib Kweli, Jerry Lee Lewis, Herbie Hancock, Tony Bennett, Keith Richards, Mavis Staples, Emmylou Harris, Logic, and Wilco. Over the course of her career Norah has been nominated for 19 Grammy awards, winning nine of them, and has sold more than 50 million records worldwide. Her latest album, Visions, was produced by Leon Michels, and was just released on March 8th.       Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.