From the first notes of Adam Shoenfeld’s new record All the Birds Sing–out January 28th via Lozen Entertainment Group/Copperline–the musicianship and wealth of drawn influences are readily apparent. Spending the last two decades bringing his rock-leaning sound to Nashville’s premier country music scene and his last nine years in Tim McGraw’s touring band, Shoenfeld has channeled all of these words and melodies of his own for something brand new; something apart from his country “day-job.” “I love getting to play guitar for people and making a living doing that,” he says. “It’s the best job in the world, but I’ve always been an artist at heart.” Yesterday, The Boot premiered the first single from All the Birds Sing, “The Sky is Falling Down” paired with an exclusive interview with Shoenfeld. Although the ELO-string section-influenced song alludes to the chaos in the world, there’s a silver lining in its message. Fans can hear “The Sky is Falling Down” now at this link and pre-order or pre-save All the Birds Sing ahead of its January 28th release right here.

Shoenfeld says he had family on his mind as the songs for All the Birds Sing were taking shape. His son, daughter, and stepdaughter inspired “Son,” “Pave Those Highways,” and “11,” respectively, while “Her Song” is an ode to his wife. In some ways, his cover of “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” ties back to his childhood in Blairstown, New Jersey, listening to his parents’ Beatles records as well as classic live albums by Eric Clapton, Peter Frampton, and the Rolling Stones. Today he credits those records with his desire to be a performer. “What I really connected to, and what gave me the chills, was the audience,” he remembers. “I had a guitar in my hand before I turned 5. My parents bought me one because I was air-guitaring to Frampton Comes Alive. I couldn’t help myself.”

Although he opted out of becoming known as a country artist, Shoenfeld’s playing has shaped the genre for decades now. He believes that being around the industry for this long, watching what artists go through, gave him the confidence to step out as a solo performer. “It’s all built up to this point where I’m like, ‘You know what? I need to do this. I need to put it out there to see if I can touch some people with this music,’” he says. From the rock anthem “Getting to Me” to the poetic songwriting of “Say a Word,” Shoenfeld is doing exactly that. The cornerstone of All the Birds Sing is the poignant title track, which he wrote in 10 minutes in a hotel room, in tears, for someone close to him who was going through a tough time. However, its tender lyrics resonate in his own life too.

“To me, the whole message of that song is ‘You’ve got this.’ That’s my whole message to everybody,” Shoenfeld says. “Yes, things can be bad. Yes, we can go down the wrong path, but follow your heart and believe in yourself. That’s why I’ve done this record. To me, that song is a message to myself as much as it is to everyone else.”

Find more information at adamshoenfeld.com.

All the Birds Sing Tracklist:
The Sky is Falling Down
Gettin’ to Me
All the Birds Sing
Eleven
Son
Pave Those Highways
Lose to Win
Her Song
Norwegian Wood
Say a Word