Mirror - Matt Norton - 01 - The Early Years

Sharing the classroom and dorm with early members of Jars of Clay while attending Greenville College Matt could not help but be influenced by their music. Original Jars Of Clay guitarist Matt Bronleewe showed Norton the special tuning they had been fiddling around with at the time, inspiring Norton to write a series of songs including this one which was co-written by his then fiance, now wife Melissa, Norton actually borrowed Bronleewe's acoustic guitar for this recording and the song was recorded in the same studio that Jars Of Clay cut their first demo CD, "Frail". Norton later read that Bronleew's had sold an acoustic guitar to Plumb shortly after College who just happened to be living in the same apartment complex. It is quite possible that, it was the same Ovation acoustic guitar used on Norton's album "Direction" as featured on this best of collection.

You can defiantly hear the influences of songs like "Liquid, and the original much edgier demo visions of Jars Of Clay's "Fade To Grey" as well as the Newsboys' ' I can Not Get You Out Of My System" From "Not Ashamed." The song also fits right in with other songs from it's time like the Newsboys "God Is Not A Secret", "it's All Who You Know", CupO'Tea", "Reality", "Breath", "Breakfast", "Let It Go" From Take Me To Your Leader. Stone Temple Pilots and Sound Garden were also an influence in Matt's songwriting for this area as alternative rock started making it's impact. Songs like "Interstate Love Song", "Plush", "Vaseli