Meghan Andrews was definitely a Broadway baby. Born and raised in New York, her dad was a big band arranger, and her mom was a singer and songwriter. Now based out of Los Angeles, Meghan recently released, Just Let Go, her first album produced by Blue Coast Music. I caught up with this talented singer/songwriter recently to have her tell me more about herself and the album.
This isn’t an artist who got a lucky break and made a record. The total package for Meghan started with genetics (yes, there is an advantage if your parents are professional musicians), but she has developed her talent with training and dedication to her craft. Her modern-folk performance style came from years of singing in clubs around Manhattan as well as performing on stage from coast to coast as an actress and singer. This album has staying power for those who like acoustic guitar, a superb recording and appreciate Meghan’s hauntingly beautiful words and voice.
It was Meghan’s voice that grabbed my attention first when I listened to Just Let Go. Then, on second listen, I honed in on the words of these songs that focus on the pain of letting go of the past and the joy and hope of moving on to something uncertain and new. Whether it’s leaving home to go to college or moving away for a new job or something else, most of us have faced that struggle and maybe more than once. The haunting, almost ethereal messages of these songs will take you back to that time, but in a good way.
Musical Influences
Meghan credits her parents for helping her develop as both a singer and actress. She was playing the violin by the age of 4 and was a studio singer before she hit her teens. She picked up the guitar when she was 16, and she says she just didn’t put it down. “I was self-taught, and it was sort of an outlet for me even outside of my family when I moved away. I had all of the feelings and emotions of being out on my own, and I just started writing and playing almost like it was a journal,” she says.
Meghan discovered her love for the West Coast while on a national tour for a play she was in. “I just felt a very deep pull. I can remember this feeling that I was really meant to be out here. When I came out here, I felt like I got to reinvent myself.” The songs on Just Let Go came from poetry Meghan wrote in her 20s while struggling to make the move.
“So, it was like I was feeling the pull of my future while still living in the past and having my roots in New York,” she says. “It (the move) taught me a lot about life and gave me some beautiful songs. It was hard to leave my family when I loved them so much and move 3,000 miles away, but it was essential for me to start my own life.”
About the Album
The mist-shrouded cover art on Just Let Go sets the mood for what is really a very autobiographical journey. The push and pull of emotions between joy and hope and doubt and indecision expressed by the songs on this album create a certain amount of tension. This tension makes the album more powerful, especially when you keep in mind that the original songs are from Meghan’s journaling at a particular point in her life.
The first track on the album, “99” is a joyful romp through life that starts at 17 and ends at 99 and covers the major decision points one makes along the way. One of those decision points is the hope to find lasting love as expressed in the song “Johnny Colorado.” The title track, “Just Let Go,” looks forward with hope to the future and the blue coast where she will settle while still looking back at what she is leaving behind. Both “Sigh No More” and “Whisk” are songs that are upbeat and reflect confidence in her decision while still holding on to memories of the past.
But, there are songs on the album that show the struggle. In “Venus Rising,” there’s a line that says, “Sometimes I just don’t know, no I just don’t know, if the way that I’m headed is the way I want to go, the way that I’m going is the way I ought to go.” Another song,“Islene,” has a line that says, “Just breathe my honey. If we don’t believe in second chances, what chance have we now?” “New York City” with intricate harmonies reflects the chaos and confusion of the big, crowded city. The two songs on the album that are not written by Meghan are “Would?” by Jerry Cantrell of Alice in Chains and “Waiting Around to Die” by Townes Van Zandt, and they also contribute to the darker side of the struggle.
Additional Information
Just Let Go is Meghan’s third album but her first with Cookie Marenco although she has previously recorded songs for Blue Coast Special Collections. The two first met at the 2014 West Coast Songwriters conference where Meghan and her long-time collaborator and guitarist, Marco Ferrero, won the award for the Songwriters annual competition.
Meghan says that as a songwriter and performer today, her big question is how to make songwriting and performing a sustainable career. “I’m putting my songs out there and trusting that if they are strong enough to get attention and resonate with people, it’s going to grow.” You can find more background information on the recording, listen to tracks, and purchase the album here. Don’t be surprised if this album takes you back to some pivotal moment in your own life. It’s well worth a listen!
