New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Stephen Winston's latest soulful, heartfelt and insightful, mostly retrospective sixth album One True Story showcases the artist's early evolution as a songwriter from an era long before he released his debut album The Overlook Sessions in 2009.
Influenced by the ongoing release of the
Neil Young Archives and the drop of 60 previously unreleased
Elton John songs via the new
Jewel Box collection, Winston decided that maybe it was time to share some of the hidden gems from that innocent age when releasing an album project was still far from his mind.
Steeped in the unique individual ways independent artists are responding to the reality of making music during the pandemic, Stephen's decision to share tracks he created at his personal home studio in Littleton, Colorado with guitarist/producer Michael Pfeifer from 2003 to 2007 is a hopeful silver lining in the collective craziness of 2020.
"Each of the songs on the album have a unique and distinct backstory. It has been interesting to listen to music recorded so long ago and trying to remember the sessions and how Michael and I actually came up with the finished product. While not written as an entire album, which is what I usually do, I like the variation in subject and tonality and feel it could have been accomplished in the traditional fashion."
The tracks on One True Story prove that even in his more primitive writing days, Winston always struck that balance as a storyteller and chronicler of life and its tragedies and injustices. We're treated to early glimpses of Winston's trademark pop/folk/soul influenced vocals and the seamless integration between his piano, Pfeifer's guitars, their solid rhythm section (bassist
Blake Eberhard and drummers Christian Teele and Don Newby) and the occasional sax vibe of Bob Rebholtz. Though written from 13-17 years ago, a few tracks immediately catch our ears with their immediacy and relevance to our current moment.
"Re-visiting the songs that we chose for One True Story brought back all the memories of making music in my old studio in Colorado, exploring my newfound craft, learning to write - and the elation that happened when a track came together. It was a magical time for me and, while it wasn't my first intention for this album, I'm excited to have the chance to share this part of my musical evolution with an audience for the first time."
For more on Stephen Winston go to www.stephenwinstonmusic.com.
